Vinyl to CD
- Thread starter John Pickworth
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bob
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welcome john
answer to your question do what I did, on transfering old tjb albums to cds
go over to best buy and purchase a software called audi cleaning lab
download the disc to your computer and get a set of monster cables with the arrows they are like $50.00 connect them to the tape out put of your receiver then connect the other to the audio in put on back of the computer. then follow the directions. put to be sure you get the cleanest copy of the vinyl with the mininmal ticks and pops, becasue this software
will take out 99.5 of the surface noise on the vinyl, and you would be surprised what you hear it will sound like a remastered digital cd
hope I helped you John.
bob papp
answer to your question do what I did, on transfering old tjb albums to cds
go over to best buy and purchase a software called audi cleaning lab
download the disc to your computer and get a set of monster cables with the arrows they are like $50.00 connect them to the tape out put of your receiver then connect the other to the audio in put on back of the computer. then follow the directions. put to be sure you get the cleanest copy of the vinyl with the mininmal ticks and pops, becasue this software
will take out 99.5 of the surface noise on the vinyl, and you would be surprised what you hear it will sound like a remastered digital cd
hope I helped you John.
bob papp
Most of us hardcore Alpert fans have already transferred our LPs to CD-R. Bob's advice is probably sound if you have a computer that makes CD-Rs. Personally, I went the other route - a home CD-R recorder deck that simply connects to my stereo like a tape machine. For my transfers, I did a straight analog recording of my vinyl, so having clean vinyl is important with this method. I was fortunate in two ways - I had managed to collect just about all of the professionally-issued CDs back in the 80s, and the vinyl that I DID have to use was pretty clean.
A&M issued CDs for Lonely Bull up through What Now My Love and then tacked on Christmas Album and Beat Of The Brass. SRO and Brass Are Comin' were issued in Japan, and I had one of those and obtained a copy of the other. That just left Sounds Like, Ninth, Warm, Summertime, You Smile The Song Begins and Coney Island to do.
In the solo era, I had all CDs except for the albums of Just You And Me, Herb And Hugh Live and Noche De Amor, after obtaining a copy of the rare Japanese Beyond.
A lot of people will recommend the computer method of transferring vinyl, and sure enough it's great if you've got the time, energy, desire, and disc space to do it. Much can be done with clean-up software, but you have to be careful not to overdo it. Many people get heavy-handed with noise reduction, which can actually remove some of the subtle nuances of the recorded analog sound. My dubs straight from LP sound great. In fact, my next task will be to make a set of the mono albums I have.
Good luck in your transfers, I'm sure some of us can be of assistance -- oh, and welcome to the Corner.
Harry
NP: "Time Enough For Tears" Andrea Corr
A&M issued CDs for Lonely Bull up through What Now My Love and then tacked on Christmas Album and Beat Of The Brass. SRO and Brass Are Comin' were issued in Japan, and I had one of those and obtained a copy of the other. That just left Sounds Like, Ninth, Warm, Summertime, You Smile The Song Begins and Coney Island to do.
In the solo era, I had all CDs except for the albums of Just You And Me, Herb And Hugh Live and Noche De Amor, after obtaining a copy of the rare Japanese Beyond.
A lot of people will recommend the computer method of transferring vinyl, and sure enough it's great if you've got the time, energy, desire, and disc space to do it. Much can be done with clean-up software, but you have to be careful not to overdo it. Many people get heavy-handed with noise reduction, which can actually remove some of the subtle nuances of the recorded analog sound. My dubs straight from LP sound great. In fact, my next task will be to make a set of the mono albums I have.
Good luck in your transfers, I'm sure some of us can be of assistance -- oh, and welcome to the Corner.
Harry
NP: "Time Enough For Tears" Andrea Corr
Lately, I'm in limbo about doing transfers. With DVD-Audio now an option, I'm waiting to get a 24bit/96kHz sound card before doing any further work.
For quickie transfers, though, I now have a recordable CD deck in my audio system. And with music CD-RW discs, I can quickly dump them into the computer for editing, and reuse the disc. Once things are set up (IOW, if you've already tinkered with filters and have some good presets), it only takes a few minutes to clean them up in the computer if you have a "batch" processing mode. I've done about eight albums this way in the past couple of weeks.
For quickie transfers, though, I now have a recordable CD deck in my audio system. And with music CD-RW discs, I can quickly dump them into the computer for editing, and reuse the disc. Once things are set up (IOW, if you've already tinkered with filters and have some good presets), it only takes a few minutes to clean them up in the computer if you have a "batch" processing mode. I've done about eight albums this way in the past couple of weeks.
John Pickworth
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Rocketman
Well-Known Member
I have also transfered all my LPs and 45s to CD-R using a Mac running OS 10.2
I feed the signal from the turntable directly into the computer by connecting it to a analog/digital converter called an iMic. Record with Bias Peak. Then break the signal into tracks and work on cleaning the sound up track by track. I also distrust noise reduction or any automatic process and use the computer mainly to manually cut clicks and pops. Even the worst pops last no more than thousandths of a second and can by selected and cut out. If you do a carefull job, it is impossible to tell that any kind of edit was done. Cleaning up only these most obvious noises usually leaves the analog transfer sounding so clean you'd swear you were listening to an original CD. Once you have finished saving all the tracks, you can assemble them into a CD with iTunes and burn. Easy, fun, and once you have a clean copy you don't have to subject the original vinyl to any further wear.
It is surprising what you can do sometimes. I had a classical LP with a scratch (more like a gouge) that lasted around 10 revolutions and I was able to erase it completely-with no perceptible distortion-at least none I can hear!
I used the same process to transfer my Australian EP of Mexican Drummer Man to CD-R.
I feed the signal from the turntable directly into the computer by connecting it to a analog/digital converter called an iMic. Record with Bias Peak. Then break the signal into tracks and work on cleaning the sound up track by track. I also distrust noise reduction or any automatic process and use the computer mainly to manually cut clicks and pops. Even the worst pops last no more than thousandths of a second and can by selected and cut out. If you do a carefull job, it is impossible to tell that any kind of edit was done. Cleaning up only these most obvious noises usually leaves the analog transfer sounding so clean you'd swear you were listening to an original CD. Once you have finished saving all the tracks, you can assemble them into a CD with iTunes and burn. Easy, fun, and once you have a clean copy you don't have to subject the original vinyl to any further wear.
It is surprising what you can do sometimes. I had a classical LP with a scratch (more like a gouge) that lasted around 10 revolutions and I was able to erase it completely-with no perceptible distortion-at least none I can hear!
I used the same process to transfer my Australian EP of Mexican Drummer Man to CD-R.
bob
Active Member
hey john
your lucky, you from australia, because your vinyl records there from the
research I have done since the 70's has just about no surface noise. we here in the U.S. have more on our records, why becasue I have a herb alpert's ninth I got on a trade ,this is the vinyl record from australia and is mint, so that is what I used to make my CD version of the lp.
then I used the software that I had mention, and it sounds like a remasterd cd, Carman has more openness to it modern tech.
have a nice thankgiving people
bob papp
your lucky, you from australia, because your vinyl records there from the
research I have done since the 70's has just about no surface noise. we here in the U.S. have more on our records, why becasue I have a herb alpert's ninth I got on a trade ,this is the vinyl record from australia and is mint, so that is what I used to make my CD version of the lp.
then I used the software that I had mention, and it sounds like a remasterd cd, Carman has more openness to it modern tech.
have a nice thankgiving people
bob papp
I just got a new set of filters made by Waves. The ones I have are part of the "restoration" bundle. It's a case of "sticker shock" to the uninitiated. (Starts in the 4-digit range.) Waves makes pro-level filters, some that have been used on movie soundtrack restoration projects (including two of my favorite Peter Sellers films 
). They're actually "plug-ins" that work with different computer editors, including Pro Tools (the industry's most popular digital editor), as well as a set that is compatible with sound editors using DirectX. Like any filter, OVERusing it is a bad thing. But for the amount of work I put in, it's worth it. That's also why I'm waiting to get the 24/96 sound card so I can put my work on DVD-Audio instead of lower-resolution CDs. (I'd make SACD discs if I could, but there are no consumer or semi-pro-level converters for DSD yet.)
All I can say is, these filters, when set correctly, do a very nice job. As with anything, the cleaner the source, the better the end result. However, for the heck of it, I took a badly scratched Dave Lewis Little Green Thing LP and ran it through the filter several times on various settings. You can still hear muted pops (ones that are too wide for Waves' Click or Crackle filters to remove, and too numerous to clean out by hand), and the transients in the music are a little bit clipped off, but it's neat to hear what the filter can remove if pressed to the limits. In this sample I combined before and after clips into one track. Pretty obvious where it's working. 
http://home.comcast.net/~nrudish/media/lewis_compare.mp3
Here's a clean source, passed through the crackle filter on a low setting, and a noise-reduction filter set to get rid of only the lower-frequency rumble, which is below most of the low frequency information on a standard LP. (Note that this is a quiet intro to a song, but I've boosted the volume in this sample to make the noise, or lack thereof, easier to hear.)
http://home.comcast.net/~nrudish/media/wade_sample2.mp3
And here's what it sounded like before the filters:
http://home.comcast.net/~nrudish/media/wade_sample1.mp3
The Waves bundle, and especially the 'crackle' filter, can detect much finer defects than any other software I've used. It's worth the money for anyone who's really into restorations. It is even capable of removing something as fine as groove wear distortion without badly damaging the music like other filters will.
). They're actually "plug-ins" that work with different computer editors, including Pro Tools (the industry's most popular digital editor), as well as a set that is compatible with sound editors using DirectX. Like any filter, OVERusing it is a bad thing. But for the amount of work I put in, it's worth it. That's also why I'm waiting to get the 24/96 sound card so I can put my work on DVD-Audio instead of lower-resolution CDs. (I'd make SACD discs if I could, but there are no consumer or semi-pro-level converters for DSD yet.) All I can say is, these filters, when set correctly, do a very nice job. As with anything, the cleaner the source, the better the end result. However, for the heck of it, I took a badly scratched Dave Lewis Little Green Thing LP and ran it through the filter several times on various settings. You can still hear muted pops (ones that are too wide for Waves' Click or Crackle filters to remove, and too numerous to clean out by hand), and the transients in the music are a little bit clipped off, but it's neat to hear what the filter can remove if pressed to the limits.
In this sample I combined before and after clips into one track. Pretty obvious where it's working. http://home.comcast.net/~nrudish/media/lewis_compare.mp3
Here's a clean source, passed through the crackle filter on a low setting, and a noise-reduction filter set to get rid of only the lower-frequency rumble, which is below most of the low frequency information on a standard LP. (Note that this is a quiet intro to a song, but I've boosted the volume in this sample to make the noise, or lack thereof, easier to hear.)
http://home.comcast.net/~nrudish/media/wade_sample2.mp3
And here's what it sounded like before the filters:
http://home.comcast.net/~nrudish/media/wade_sample1.mp3
The Waves bundle, and especially the 'crackle' filter, can detect much finer defects than any other software I've used. It's worth the money for anyone who's really into restorations. It is even capable of removing something as fine as groove wear distortion without badly damaging the music like other filters will.
Rick-An Ordinary Fool
Well-Known Member
Out of curiosity, what other software programs can you buy that will clean up the pops when transfering your 45's & Lp's to CDR's? I obviously can't afford that one Rudy mentioned and I don't own a Mac PC.
What would be others that would be not so expensive? Are there programs at best buy if I go shopping there? I transfer my Lp's & 45's by connecting my turntable to my PC & burn to a CDR using my PC.
...who thinks a "little" pop & crackle is not so bad, online...
What would be others that would be not so expensive? Are there programs at best buy if I go shopping there? I transfer my Lp's & 45's by connecting my turntable to my PC & burn to a CDR using my PC.
...who thinks a "little" pop & crackle is not so bad, online...
As already mentioned - beware of "clean-up" software. It can have the opposite effect, and produce a muddy, over-processed, robotic sound that's truly horrible.
I'm lucky to have a home radio studio, so I run the disc on a Technics deck, through a decent RIAA amp and into the computer. Then I trim each track individually, taking out any big clicks and pops manually. Takes a bit more time but it's worth it.
As an aside - but a relevant one - I just picked up a MINT STEREO copy of "Sounds of Tijuana" on eBay. This was the EMI Stateside label release from 1963 which mixed tracks from the first two albums. A truly beautiful pressing, and the surface noise so low that the tape hiss is louder!!! Needless to say the first playing was the transfer to CD and I'm now blessed with a much cleaner CD copy of the early material than I deserve to have!
I'm lucky to have a home radio studio, so I run the disc on a Technics deck, through a decent RIAA amp and into the computer. Then I trim each track individually, taking out any big clicks and pops manually. Takes a bit more time but it's worth it.
As an aside - but a relevant one - I just picked up a MINT STEREO copy of "Sounds of Tijuana" on eBay. This was the EMI Stateside label release from 1963 which mixed tracks from the first two albums. A truly beautiful pressing, and the surface noise so low that the tape hiss is louder!!! Needless to say the first playing was the transfer to CD and I'm now blessed with a much cleaner CD copy of the early material than I deserve to have!
Chris-An Ordinary Fool said:
The cheaper software just doesn't do a good job...you can hear its effects. You can buy Sound Forge, but you'd have to buy an additional plug-in to get the click/pop filter. Adobe Audition (formerly Cool Edit Pro) has its fans, and apparently has a click/pop filter built-in that does a good job. No idea of the cost though. It does go without saying that the more you pay, the better the results. I didn't know if the Waves filters would be all that good, but they are like a notch above the Sound Forge filters I'd been using. All of these run on a PC, by the way...but I'm sure there are other products that do similar work on a Mac.
The nice part about the better filters is that you can reverse the filter so you can hear what the filter is removing. If you over-adjust it, you can hear it removing the music (the noise will have a "beat" to it).
TonyCurrie said:
Hey, even the engineers out there who make the CDs we are buying today can be guilty of over-using the noise reduction software! There are plenty of bad examples out there of putting the equipment in the wrong hands!
No-noise is like a plague. It's hard to find a reissue today that isn't touched by it. Tony--if you get a chance, send me your mailing address by private message. I still owe you something for the MiniDisc you sent my way.
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