4

Out with the old stuff. I want to digitize my old vinyls.

What would be necessary to do that?

2

2 Answers 2

4

There are two parts to this issue:

Part 1: connecting something that can read records with your computer

For this, you can either play the record on your normal turn table, and take the audio output to your line-in via cable. You'll need a cable with 1/8 inch male audio on one end, and whatever output your turntable has easily available. EG a headphone jack on your stereo. Cables like this are available from audio stores like radio shack or best buy or whereever. If you have more speicific questions about this aspect, I'd be happy to provide more details - comment or edit with more details.

Alternatively, you could use something like @Jim mentions in his comment - a USB turntable. I have 0 experience with these or if they are Ubuntu compatable.

Part 2: record the audio that's coming in. For this part, @fossfreedom's answer here covers this in good detail.

1

I've used a Phono PreAmp made by Terratec which accepts an ordinary turntable's output, amplifies it and passes on the signal to your computer via a USB connection. (If you already have a good quality turntable this makes sense, otherwise not.)

You will need a suitable programme to enable the recording, of course, and I have been using Audacity. When I upgraded to Ubuntu 14.04, my set-up went haywire. After much trial and error, I found that I needed to use the overall system volume control to get the input level right.

The other vital step was to turn-off "software passthrough". This is a pain, because it makes it impossible to monitor recording as you go. (There is a detailed explanation on the Audacity forum of why this feature is a bit of a high-wire trick and you shouldn't be surprised if it won't work.) I have found that a useful approach is to identify the loudest track/section on what you are recording and set all controls to avoid "clipping" (distortion because it's too loud). You can go back and boost any tracks that are too quiet with Audacity's amplify effect.

1
  • This did not deserve a down vote! It is more correct than the accepted answer, because you will need a preamp to record from a decent turntable that uses a good magnetic transducer cartridge. Some of the cheap USB tables come with a cheap tinny ceramic transducer cart. True, the answer is not very well explained. But the tips are sound advice. Feb 9, 2018 at 14:33

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .