Andrew Rolls said:
Hi all,
I understand all the concepts involved, but I'm stuck with how to get a recording from an audio tape cassette on to a CD, using the computer.
Help please!!!
You will need a computer with a sound card and a CD-RW drive (CD burner) capable of burning audio CDs, a tape deck or turntable, proper cables and software (Like Sonic Foundry / Sound Studio ).
1)If your tape deck has a headphone plug simply connect a stereo cable between the headphone plug and the Line input on your sound card. If it has RCA plugs connect a cable with two RCA jacks on one end and a stereo 1/8" plug on the other end between the tape deck and your sound card.
2)Turntables may have RCA plugs, a cable with RCA jacks, or a headphone plug.The output from your turntable may be sufficient to drive a sound card, but, most turntables require a stereo receiver or a Phono Preamp to provide amplification and proper equalization. You'll tell if you need a phono preamp if the sound you record is very weak or distorted.
The general rule for getting the left and right channels hooked up correctly, if you have red and white RCA plugs on your cable, is to connect the red plug to the right RCA jack on your turntable or tape deck and the white plug to the left channel. There are some variations, and, again, you may have to experiment.
Do
NOT connect the speaker outputs from a receiver (or any other device) to your sound card. If you do you may turn your computer into a smoke machine when you turn on the receiver.
