Tape to PC??

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Oregonredneck

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Hello everyone. This is my first time here. Looks like a great site. Can anyone tell me as simply as possible (I'm not very electronics savy) How to get recordings from my tape to my Audacity program on my PC?? Thanks!

David
 
you need to buy a converter to convert your tape to digital onto the pc them import that into audacity. converters can be found on musicians friend and other popular sites
 
What degree of quality do you need? If you aren't too particular and your computer has a stereo line input you could use a simple adapter from a tape deck to your stock sound card. If you want professional quality transfers you'll need a proper audio interface, which is essentially a higher quality external sound card.
 
Yes ... what sound guy from Boulder is suggesting will be the simplest, but you'll have these recordings done in real time and depending what you have for material on ... tape will take some time.
 
What type of tape?
- The big several inch wide stuff used for studio stuff BITD?
- The reel to reel machines used for elevator music and airline flights, before the advent of mp3 players?
- The traditional cassette / cheap deliverable before CDs were so popular?

What you need:
- Something to play the tape
- Something to convert the output to a digital audio file (soundcard / line input)
- Something to connect the two

Woes:
- that old gear is susceptible to cell phone hand shakes
- you get to record at playback speed. i.e. realtime.
- in the case of musak reels, you could be swapping sides every 90 minutes (if nothing went wrong)
- and various alignment, lubrication, and capstan issues
- if using a headphone output as input, set the volume super low (5%).
- be prepared to run the tape twice, once to set the levels, once to actually capture the content
- as with any conversion you're going to lose quality. How much depends on the quality of your gear.

For me, I've got some reel to reels that I'm currently working with. Old airline stock. And it's three hours of content per reel. (90 minutes each side). I've got RCA outs that I use an RCA to 1/8"(3.5mm) stereo cable on. Which plugs right into my M-Audio Mobile Pre. Just something my Dad wanted me to do for him.
 
Thanks for all the info.

That all sounds kinda complicated for me. Maybe I should just bring my 4 track into the store and ask them for a converter. I'm really just looking for a way to put vocals and guitar on a disk for demo's. I'm a Songwriter that recently moved to Nashville from Oregon. So I need something I can give to producers etc that are looking for songs. Any ideas on the easiest to use and cost effective would be appreciated. That is if there is an easier way than just getting a converter.
 
Oregonredneck said:
That all sounds kinda complicated for me. Maybe I should just bring my 4 track into the store and ask them for a converter.
Click to expand...
What kind of 4 track do you have? Reel to reel....cassette? Most tape recorder/players have R&L line outputs that you should be able to use to feed to your PC. A simple Y connector for example.
 
Does it have an out put for each track, or do you just want to capture the stereo mix off the 4 track?
 
Really you need to be more specific. What model is the 4 track recorder? It will cost you almost as much as an interface to have someone else do this for you.......once!. If you plan on making more recordings in the future, then go the 'complicated' route. You will be wasting your time and money paying others to do the simple. Btw, it is not complicated. It just takes some effort to learn. If I can do it, then..........
 
Oregonredneck said:
I have a cassette tape 4 track. It's old.
Click to expand...

As in 30 minutes each side tape? (or 45) I suppose that it's 4 tracks. Stereo (2 tracks) both ways. Which could lead to some interesting time shifting and sound reverse-age to get everything lined up on a traditional cassette player.
 
You guys are making this way more complicated than it is.

You need either a 4in-4out or 2in-2out interface. You could transfer 2 tracks at a time from the 4-track cassette and sync them after they are digitized. That's just click-and-drag. I don't know about Audacity but it would be an easy job for Reaper or most other software. But it does depend to a certain degree on the conditions of the tapes and the tape deck.

Depending on the age and condition of the cassette player you may have warble after you digitize your tracks, along with hiss and other tape artifacts. I would think in most cases producers and A&R guys are gonna have a problem with those artifacts. Especially younger guys. They are just going to hear the artifacts and not the merits of the song.

It would be very worth your while to learn the basics of digital audio and switch over for future demos. Portastudio technology is over 25 years old now!

Another option would be to take your tapes to someone that can digitize them and clean them up a bit. Any decent samll commercial recording service should be able to to do this for a reasonable amount of money.

But you are going to be miles ahead if you can make your own digital demos.
 
c7sus said:
You guys are making this way more complicated than it is.

You need either a 4in-4out or 2in-2out interface. You could transfer 2 tracks at a time from the 4-track cassette and sync them after they are digitized. That's just click-and-drag. I don't know about Audacity but it would be an easy job for Reaper or most other software. But it does depend to a certain degree on the conditions of the tapes and the tape deck.

Depending on the age and condition of the cassette player you may have warble after you digitize your tracks, along with hiss and other tape artifacts. I would think in most cases producers and A&R guys are gonna have a problem with those artifacts. Especially younger guys. They are just going to hear the artifacts and not the merits of the song.

It would be very worth your while to learn the basics of digital audio and switch over for future demos. Portastudio technology is over 25 years old now!

Another option would be to take your tapes to someone that can digitize them and clean them up a bit. Any decent samll commercial recording service should be able to to do this for a reasonable amount of money.

But you are going to be miles ahead if you can make your own digital demos.
Click to expand...
The OP was looking for a way (hardware) to get from tape to PC.

It isn't complicated.
 
60's guy said:
The OP was looking for a way (hardware) to get from tape to PC.

It isn't complicated.
Click to expand...

It IS complicated if you don't know much if anything about the originating hardware. i.e. No specs to look up what type of connections exist to record from. No budget to know what we probably shouldn't recommend. No information that could help us help them.

Meanwhile:
- tape
- 4 track
- cassette 4 track

Is about all we know. I'm sure it has a brand, model, or other specs easily answered with a single picture. But we don't have that information (yet).
 
Yow ... Nightlight maybe this guy I know can beat the info out of him .................... forget about it!
 
Maybe he's doing some spring cleaning..............................forget about it!

Seriously man. Get a sweet hat. :)
 
Just can't find a good chapeau as yet that doesn't look down right silly on top of an aliens head.
 
I could see that being difficult. Where do aliens shop? Galactic Mall?
 
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