It doesn’t matter if your vinyl collection consists of a single milk carton or fills up a few Ikea Kallax shelves and is slowly taking over your home; we can all agree that there is something to vinyl.
Perhaps it’s the warm, uncompressed sound spinning from a solid turntable, or the feeling of holding a physical work of art in your hands as a record spins: it’s a special experience that has regained much of its glory in a world dominated by for digital transmission. The problem is that the boards are fragile and the boxes full of them won’t fit in your back pocket.
So why not digitize them? Converting your vinyl records to a digital music format will not only preserve that rare UK Beatles you dreaded pulling out of the sleeve and protect it from further wear and tear, but you’ll also have portable versions of your favorite records, including the ones you just can’t. find on streaming services, which you can enjoy anywhere.
Getting your precious records out of the slots and onto the sound waves is easier than you might think. From USB turntables and digital audio converters to various software options and how to use them, this article will walk you through all the steps you need to go digital.
Derek Malcolm / Digital Trends
Hardware
There is no single method for digitizing your vinyl collection, and the exact process depends on the type of equipment you have. Some turntables come with built-in turntable preamps, electronic components that amplify the typically low signal produced by just the stylus and cartridge before sending it to a receiver or set of powered speakers. Turntables without a preamp will rely on a receiver with a phono input or a separate phono preamp. Many modern turntables have a built-in preamp and USB output, allowing you to convert that musty copy of Steely Dan quickly and efficiently. I can’t buy a thrill with little effort.
That’s not to say you can’t convert your vinyl to a digital format without a built-in USB output, but choosing a turntable with such an output makes the process much easier and probably better quality. Below is one such turntable that we recommend.
Turntable: Audio-Technica AT-LP120XUSB
If you’re deeply interested in a large vinyl record collection, a high-quality player like the Audio Technica AT-LP120XUSB might be worth your money. A turntable popular with beginners and intermediates alike, the AT-LP120XUSB is equipped with a professional aluminum anti-resonance plate for mounting your records, a balanced S-shaped neck, and a variable pitch control with quartz speed lock.
The included Audio Technica cartridge is fully capable and sounds great, but one of the best things about this deck is that it can be easily upgraded to better quality heads and cartridges. The LP120XUSB’s direct-drive motor may not be as quiet as belt-drive turntables, but it’s push-button control and can be shifted between 45 and 33 1/3 rpm without awkward shifting or belt movement. But obviously the built-in USB output is what makes it ideal for transferring your wax to zeros and ones.
Software
Transferring the signal from the turntable to the computer is only the first step. Another part of the process is finding the right audio recording software application. While there are several top-notch applications designed to help you extract audio from your turntable, such as Pure Vinyl and Vinyl Studio, the open source Audacity is the best option for most users. This free app may not offer dedicated tools for converting vinyl to more affordable formats, but you can still record at sample rates up to 192kHz and export the resulting audio files as MP3, AIFF, FLAC, or WAV for playback in a variety of formats. from popular platforms. The interface may not be polished either, but the software works with Windows, Macintosh, and Linux-based machines.
Regardless of the software you use, we recommend that you record with a minimum of 16-bit sampled at 44.1 kHz. You can always create a compressed copy from the lossless, but you can’t improve the quality of the audio files without going through the burning process again. If you have a large library of vinyl, which seems likely, considering you’re here, it’s a serious time commitment.
Procedure
Once you have prepared the necessary equipment and software, it is time to start the scanning process. While you are more than welcome to digitize your vinyl wherever you see fit, we recommend that you choose an area that is relatively quiet and free from external vibrations (eg, passing trains, trampled children) that can cause noise or jumps. unwanted needle. Remember, for all intents and purposes, this is a live recording. Anything the stylus picks up from your turntable will appear in a digital file. This brings us to the first step of the process before even recording…
Step 1: Clean your vinyl: Vinyl records have the ability to get dirty. If you’ve ever seen a microscopic image of what it looks like inside a board slot, it’s like a chasm between two mountain ranges: dust accumulates over time, your fingers leave behind oils and other dirt, all of which can be pick up with a pencil, so it is better to clean your albums. Any blemishes, whether from scratches or just dust, will register when digitizing. Consider buying at least a simple brush or microfiber brush and some cleaning solution if you haven’t already, or something more complex like a Spin Clean dishwasher for under $100.
Step 2 – Connect your devices – If you’re using a turntable with a built-in USB output, plug the USB cable into the corresponding USB port on your computer. For newer computers, especially Macs, you may need a USC-A to USB-C adapter.
If you’re using a turntable without a USB output, things get a bit tricky, but keep an eye out. A turntable with a built-in preamplifier can be connected directly to your computer’s “line-in” headphone jack using an RCA to 3.5mm audio “Y” cable. But hear us out: on cheaper turntables, these turntable preamps are sometimes not the best, so you should still connect to a higher quality A/V preamp or receiver before you go to your computer using the same RCA to A cable. 3.5mm. .
Ultimately though, if you want to go a step further and want more control over input and sound quality, consider connecting your turntable to a standalone analog-to-digital converter (ADC), such as the Focusrite Scarlett. 2i2. , which has a higher quality digital conversion and connects to your computer via USB. You can even use it to record your own music, podcasts, or anything else you want to connect to.
Derek Malcolm / Digital Trends
Step 3: Launch Audacity: Open Audacity or your preferred audio recording software on your Mac or PC. First, you’ll need to select the appropriate input source (either your USB turntable, ADC, or direct line-in) from the system settings panel or a similar settings panel in the program. If you are using Audacity, click Edit > System settings before selecting “Line In” from the drop down menu in the Recording section Devices axis. it will be on mac Audacity > Settings > Devices. Note that you may need to additionally select an input source within your computer’s main soundboard.
Step 4: Recording: Click Record and play your record in its entirety, one side at a time, to capture every song on each side. You can stop recording after finishing the side and resume after flipping it over or just continue recording. Then it will separate all the soundtracks anyway and you can edit the space.
While recording from your chosen source, keep an eye on it to adjust input levels to reduce clipping and post-distortion where necessary.
Step 5 – Split the Tracks – If you’re like most people, chances are you’d prefer to split the entire track into individual tracks. If you’re using Audacity, click and drag to highlight the length of a particular track. After that click on Edit inside the toolbar and then click tagsthen select Add label on selection from the resulting dropdown menu and name the song appropriately. There are better tools for this process than Audacity (see: Perfect Tunes), but Audacity is free, which is nice.
Step 6: Export: Once you’ve split and named each record, click Archive inside the toolbar and select Multiple exports from the drop down menu. After that, choose the desired file format, save the location and enter the missing metadata in the popup menu that appears before clicking Export button in the lower right corner.
Step 7: Enjoy!: When you’re done with the conversion, enjoy your newly digitized music in the media player of your choice!
There are definitely more ways to convert your tracks to digital format, including other recording software like GarageBand, Pro Tools, and Logic, but we don’t recommend using them unless you’re experienced with them. For our money (for free!), Audacity has proven to be the best and easiest way to do this over the years. If you have a little extra money to spend, Vinyl Studio is a bit lighter and is dedicated to dubbing vinyl, but the process is basically the same. Plus, you can try it for free first, with certain savings limits. Happy pretending!
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Categories: GAMING
Source: tiengtrunghaato.edu.vn