Which soundcard for old analog records to cd conversion?

[Rudy]

Hello folks,

I want to record some of my old analog records onto
CD and was thinking to get a Phone PreAmp from Terratec
and a not to expensive soundcard (<= $100). Which one
would you recommend, or do you have any other suggestions
how to accomplish this task.

Rudy

 

[DavidK]

Good Ol' Soundblaster is cheap, will do just fine
for your needs. David

 

[Rudy]

Hello David,

any suggestions which of the Soundblasters to go for?

Thx.

Rudi

 

[barefoot]

Rudy,

Recording vinyl is no different than recording anything else. If you want to get close to the best sound possible, get the best equipment you can afford. There are many recommendations on this bbs for sound cards.

But, a good sound card is only a fraction of your problem. You also need to worry about the quality of your turntable, tonearm, cartridge, and phono preamp. High quality components like these are generally VERY expensive. You need to weigh this into your consideration.

This Terratec unit runs off of 5 volts from the soundcard gameport. No decent audio equipment would use this sort of supply. You’re much better off using your home stereo phono stage. If you have a basic consumer turntable and you’re going to use this Terratec preamp, just get any inexpensive and convenient sound card.

barefoot

 

[DavidK]

Hello Rudy,
There is a Soundblaster out there, SoundblasterPCI512,
that will probably work real well for you,
and its about 50 bucks.

The more expensive ones have more features, thats
why they are more expensive!!! But if you want to
save a few bucks, the PCI512 will be more than
fine. As barefoot said, any soundcard out there is
going to work fine if you just have an average
turntable, so there is no need to buy a fancy
sound card, unless you plan to do more advanced
stuff in the future. Good Luck, David