goddessfarmer | Ask Dr. LJ.. Audio stuff

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goddessfarmer

Does anyone have any experience or opinion about this gadget: http://www.thinkgeek.com/electronics/mp3/85fb/

chocorua has a lot of vinyl, and some reel-to-reel stuff that we'd like to preserve. (Including tapes of Apple Gunkies commercials from WTBS, back when that was the MIT radio station.) He still has working technology to play all of his media, but the media will degrade eventually.

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From:

n2mlq.livejournal.com

it's cute. but plugging the tape loop output of a good receiver or pre-amp into the audio in jack on you computer will do the same thing and save a chunk of $$.

The capture software makes a difference ( platform specific) and then there are some neat bits of software to clean up trashy media.

From:

perspicuity.livejournal.com

some of those boxes act as pre-amps, necessary with some soundcards, and esp on current generation macintoshes. some of them will also do the magical things needed requiring equalization/noise-mapping/etc (hardware/software combos that just pluggin in won't do)...

iMic is a standard for the macintosh side. i'm intending on getting one of those sometime. as powerbooks are completely useless at inputting from various audio sources that aren't "special". bah :) MANY PCs don't need the box, but as said, some of the boxes are semi-magical.

the software though, is a must, esp if you intend to edit, separate into tracks, and intend to record a lot of stuff, as hands free as possible.

i believe more than a few people in "our crowd" have various boxes already. perhaps a loan could be achieved for testing/use before hand.

me? i should get off my duff and get an iMic. that's more of a winter project, as is turning my family photos into digital (got my photo scanner working!)

#

From:

totient

some of those boxes act as pre-amps

Yeah, but this box is not one of those. My guess is that

chocorua has a preamp anyway, since

goddessfarmer says he has playback capability.

I have one of this box, branded Creative Labs but clearly the same box. It really is just a way to have line in/out on your computer if your computer happens not to already have those.

goddessfarmer, I'm happy to lend it to you if you'd like.

From:

goddessfarmer.livejournal.com

I must remember to pick your brain the next time I see you. Thanks for the offer, we might take you up on it. But we need to look into software, I think.

From:

n2mlq.livejournal.com

We had a long discussion about this issue about a year ago on TF, I'll see if I can find it and forward off line.

Very important is what platform you're on, be it Mac (OS9/OSX) M$ W$ or Linux/BSD

And, oh yea. Of all the media he has, the vinyl records will probably last the longest if they're in proper storage state. My father was head of QC at Columbia Records for a number of years and I think what he got for me as far as storage is reasonable gospel.

From:

sarahshevett.livejournal.com

I completely agree.Don't throw away that vinyl; it will probably outlast whatever you are recording it onto, with proper care
From Wikipedia:

Because vinyl—a virtually unbreakable light plastic made up of polyvinyl chloride acetate copolymer, or PVC—is considered the most stable of analog recording media, it is seen as less a concern for deterioration than earlier sound recordings made from more fragile materials such as acetate, vulcanite, or shellac. This hardly means that vinyl recordings are infallible, however, and research—both expert and evidential—has shown that the way in which discs are handed and cared for can have a profound effect on their longevity.