Using CDR / CDRW to record FROM analogue?

[Doctor John]

I am looking at adding a CDR/CDRW to my setup and wondered if I could use it to record (and therefore preserve) analogue music cassettes into CD format in the same way as presumably I could with a stand-alone audio CDR? How would the 'wiring' work? Would I have to ask for a special 'line-in' socket?
I hear that you can't use CDRW discs to playback on audio equipment, but will CDRW machines take ordinary CDR discs anyway?

 

[cwillu]

CDRW drives can burn CDR disks, which can be played on most cd players, CDRW disks, on the other hand, rarely work in cd players.

 

[Buck62]

CDRW discs will play on Sony 5~disc cd players. I have two Sony units, (both 5~disc changers) one with digital optical output, and one without. The newer unit's model number (which I just bought last night) is CDPCE235. IT WORKS! However, rewritables don't work on the larger Sony units (50, 100, or 200 disc capacity).. probably because Sony puts more money into the cd transfer components rather than the digital read on the "jukebox" units.

 

[Grizzly]

OK, here is the straight dope on your question. I do a lot of the same thing with my music. Record from cassette to CD. I have a tape deck plugged directly in to my Tascam RW5000. It works very well being hot wired like this. I primarily use CD-R type media. This insures that every disk I burn in this machine works on ALL CD players I come accross.

It is much easier to use the stand alone than one built in to your computer. BUT you can do a much better job of making your analog recordings sound like they have always been digital. To do this you will need to baby sit your tape deck while you record each cut to it own wav file on your hard disk. Then you can clean it up give each one a .4sec leader ans 3.5sec out leader. Then use the software that came with your burner to creat a new CD with your new mix from the hard disk in your computer. To connect your tape deck to the compute you just go to Radio Shack and get a premade cable that has a stereo 1/8 mini plug on one end and two RCA plugs on the other. Plug into the line out on the deck and into the line in on your sound card. All of the controls you need are built in to the software for the sound card. The rest is up to you to figure out by playing with the system, and software. Just remember to READ the screen, and you will recieve excellent CD's from your efforts.