[sclug] Vinyl to digital

[Neil Haughton]

Alex,



Subject: Re: [sclug] Vinyl to digital
>
> On Sat, 22 Oct 2011, Neil Haughton wrote:
>
>  I have a Debian Squeeze box fitted with a soundcard with audio line input,
>> and all the software toys (Audacity, LAME etc) installed but I have also
>> been put off using my existing (cheap) soundcard for the A-D function, on
>> the grounds of audio quality. A-D is probably the critical bit for this
>> exercise if I want good results.
>>
>
> I'd be surprised if you could tell the difference, unless you were also
> prepared to spend the time necessary to do a full digital remaster (i.e.
> manually cleaning up the recording, etc). And even if you were, I'd expect
> one would get more economic, and better, results by simply buying a
> professional commercial remaster on CD, SACD, DVD-A or whatever.
>

 Well, the view I take is that the end device can only reproduce the source
signal it is given, and whatever the deficiencies of my ears (the end device
in this case) they deserve as good as I can give them. Hence my desire to
get the best conversion A2D that I can afford.

However, I take your point below about cheap analogue -> USB devices - that
is one thing I wanted others' opinions on. I'm hoping for someone who has
actually used them, to let me know what they found. There are also PCI
devices serving the same function, which will avoid the limitations of USB
that you suggest.

However given the number of LPs I have, replacing them with CDs would be
prohibitively expensive, even if they are all available on CD (which they
aren't).

I imagine professional remastering would be prohibitively expensive, unless
there is someone who has automated this process to keep the costs down. What
Linux tools could be used for this by myself? Something that could remove
scratches and reduce hiss, and perhaps increase the dynamic range would do
me. Time is not the issue for me - this is a Winter Project, to fill the
bleak evenings that approach.

Perhaps I'll dust off my audio kit and try it directly into my old
Soundblaster card, to see what the reuslts are like. Then take it from
there.


>  So the missing link seems to be the A-D bit. My research shows a number of
>> analogue -> USB devices out there, many at modest prices, for 'studio and
>> DJ' use. You basically plug an analogue line input into one side, and it
>> appears as a digital signal at a USB socket on the other side. Several
>> claim
>> not to need drivers or separate power supply, so they appear to offer the
>> perfect solution for me, ie:
>>
>> [Turntable] -> [amplifier phono input -> amplifier line output] ->
>> [analogue-USB device] -> [USB port on Debian box] and hence to digital
>> file
>> for further processing by Audacity or whatever.
>>
>
> I'd be amazed if any such gadget available at "modest" prices was capable
> of
> meeting pro or "audiophile" quality.  I can't imagine a shared USB will
> help
> with minimising jitter, either (unless the device includes a decently-sized
> buffer).  They'll probably have the same ADCs as you'll find in
> bog-standard
> consumer PCI and motherboard solutions, and probably won't have an
> especially carefully-designed analogue side either.
>
> If you're intent on doing this, then you're probably best looking at
> devices
> from the likes of M-Audio, RME and so on in order to obtain 24bit/96kHz
> ADCs.  AFAIK, the fancier models also do the A2D in an outboard box to
> reduce noise (and improve ergonomics).
>
> Hmmm.. yes, well, I've had a look at the RME range and (gulp!) they're
somewhat beyond my pocket! It would probably be cheaper to buy a good
quality soundcard (the M-Audio Audiophile 2496 is just about within reach
for me at $99, although I am slightly troubled by the need for drivers
(Windows or Mac provided) ).


Neil.


>  Neil.
>>
>
> HTH,
> Alex
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> sclug mailing list
> sclug at sclug.org.uk
> http://sclug.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/sclug
>