[peel] Re: New Member - Not The First Time This Has Been Asked?

Stuart stuartb@...
Tue Jul 6 23:31:09 CEST 2010


Paul

 

Well the Audacity files would take up over 1GB but a 192kpbs Joint Stereo
mp3 would be nearer 130Mb for a C90. You could just delete the Audacity
files once you've mp3'ed each tape. So even with 700 tapes that would easily
fit onto a laptop (around 100 Gb). 

 

A 1Tb external HDD isn't that expensive and could accommodate the lot.

 

Out of interest, are these tapes complete shows? And what years do they
cover? 

 

Stuart

 

  _____  

From: peel@yahoogroups.com [mailto:peel@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of
isector100
Sent: 06 July 2010 22:19
To: peel@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [peel] Re: New Member - Not The First Time This Has Been Asked?

 

  



Hi Stuart,

Thanks, doesn't sound as complicated as I thought!

I'm using a laptop rather than a PC, will this affect the quality of the
sound card? The laptop is less than 12 months old.

(Sorry if this is a stupid question), but what sort of size of file will a
c90 tape produce? I've got quite a lot of tapes (over 700 I think) and I
wondered how much space might be needed.

Paul

--- In peel@yahoogroups.com <mailto:peel%40yahoogroups.com> , "Stuart"
<stuartb@...> wrote:
>
> Hi Paul
> 
> 
> 
> Welcome to the group!
> 
> 
> 
> Starting with the source end of the conversion chain..
> 
> 
> 
> I assume you still have a decent Cassette Recorder! If not, then there are
> plenty available on eBay, I got a great condition Nakamichi which has
pitch
> control and easily adjustable azimuth.
> 
> If you are still using your original machine which you used to record your
> tapes then there is every likelihood that they will play back OK without
> fiddling with anything. 
> 
> If playing back on a different machine then there are certain things you
> need to do to ensure good sound quality.
> 
> By far the most important is to make sure the playback azimuth is spot on,
> or the sound will be shushy and mufffly. For this you will need to be able
> to access the azimuth control. Some decks have an azimuth knob but for
most
> it involves removing the cassette door and using a small screwdriver to
> adjust the head angle until the treble content sounds clearest. Do a
Google
> search for further info and pictures.
> 
> 
> 
> I also tend to keep Dolby off on playback, there is nothing worse than a
> mistracking Dolby. This is very important as it is exceptionally difficult
> to compensate for digitally.
> 
> Pitch control is useful on a deck though rare, though at least this can
also
> be altered in software afterwards. There are quite a few shared tapes out
> there where JP's voice is audibly fast or slow!
> 
> 
> 
> Now that the most important bit is sorted, you will then need a twin phono
> to 3.5mm stereo jack to connect the cassette recorder to your sound card
on
> a PC or Mac. Best results will be gained if you have a proper sound card,
> though for cassette recordings then most onboard motherboard sound will
also
> be fine.
> 
> I use Audacity software (the latest beta) to record with. This allows you
to
> choose which audio channels on your PC will be recorded, you want Line In
if
> available, or What You Hear making sure that any microphones and other
> Windows sound schemes are disabled. A test recording should be made making
> sure that the sound level meters on Audacity don't rise into the clipping
> zone (0dB on the bar meters or +/-1 on the trace).
> 
> 
> 
> Then just press play on the tape player and record on the Audacity
software.
> 
> 
> 
> Audacity will record in its own lossless format and these recordings can
be
> edited, cut and pasted etc. You can also export to mp3 (you will need to
> download the mp3 dll separately to enable this) and I suggest a minimum of
> 192kbps recording quality. It will also encode into flac which is another
> lossless format, though iPods will not be able to play these files back.
> 
> 
> 
> Then, should you wish to share the results then you can upload the files
to
> a site such as Mediafire, let us know through the Mailing List and update
> the pages on the Wiki if you can date the show.
> 
> 
> 
> I know I've not gone into any great detail in any of the above steps but
> just do a Google Search for anything you're stuck on or get back to the
> group!
> 
> 
> 
> Stuart 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _____ 
> 
> From: peel@yahoogroups.com <mailto:peel%40yahoogroups.com>
[mailto:peel@yahoogroups.com <mailto:peel%40yahoogroups.com> ] On Behalf Of
> isector100
> Sent: 06 July 2010 19:44
> To: peel@yahoogroups.com <mailto:peel%40yahoogroups.com> 
> Subject: [peel] New Member - Not The First Time This Has Been Asked?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Hi All,
> 
> 
> 
> Just joined the group. I've started to listen again to my J P Show
cassette
> tapes and found you via the John Peel Wiki. 
> 
> 
> 
> I'm sure this is not the first time this has been asked, but can someone
> point me in the direction of help / guidance on making digital copies of
my
> tapes. I'm aware that cassette tape recordings don't last forever and I
> would like to be able to help preserve what I've got if possible. 
> 
> 
> 
> Paul
>





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