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Thread: Ripping Audio from Vinyl to Computer

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    Winter is Coming THE MASON's Avatar
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    Default Ripping Audio from Vinyl to Computer

    anyone got suggestions on how to do this properly post em here please.

    just started gettin into this, so i know imma have to fuck around with some settings and what not, but tips on shortcuts or anything are appreciated.

    right now i use a Sony turntable with Sound Forge LE (looks like a better version of Audacity)

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    Your fav. artist's artist fatboybrandon's Avatar
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    When I do it, I'm checking the quality of the turntable, it's needle, the soundcard connecting the turntable and computer and the vinyl itself.

    One thing I noticed about turntables is that if you try using a portable like a Vestax, the sound is too thin and hollow. You most likely need a standard home turntable to achieve good quality for recording and archiving digital sound files.

    I remember an interview where Lord Finesse was talking about needle quality and choice brands to sample with, can't remember which magazine though.

    Some vinyl records just have certain problems with how they were pressed and/or mastered so you have to find ways to deal with the quality as is, I notice this with some cheap independent Hip Hop pressings I bought in the late 90's, especially the bootleg copy of Pete & CL's Main Ingredient Instrumentals.

    Once I have music recorded & on the computer, I like using a free copy of Ableton Lite to trim them, edit unwanted start & end points, trim individual songs if I recorded a whole album as one file by region separation, or consolidate a number of parts within a song. You can save a bunch of editing and chopping up of one audio file as a Set, then decide what parts to save and bring into a program like Recycle for further editing and looping.

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    i jsut use a USB connection into my computer from my table. some sites recommended that i get a usb pre amp

    but i essentially, just turned down the recording volume and it seemed to work okay. but im sure there is something i am missing to get an overall better sound. i upload everything as a WAV file as well so it sounds almost the same

    i just ripped a gladys night track, and it sounds pretty good comparing to my last attempt

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    Digital @fterLife INF's Avatar
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    yeah I heard that when you have usb turntable you need audio interface as well. I just heard this though ....at the instrument shop and from some music friends ...

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    audio interface? like Audacity or Sound Forge? i got that i think lol

    if anyone checked the samples i uploaded thats how i got upped was in Sound Forge, i just turned down the input level

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    Your fav. artist's artist fatboybrandon's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bronze Feet
    audio interface? like Audacity or Sound Forge?
    Those are the recording software programs you're speaking of Bronze, audio interfaces are things like the mBox or Digi 002, 003 lines by Avid/Digidesign. That's a connection that goes in between the turntable and your computer where you can pre-amplify the signal you're recording from vinyl. It helps if the vinyl record is lower than usual.

    Check out this interview with Nicolay of The Foreign Exchange, he gives a tour of his home studio and shows his recording setup which includes his audio interface, the Digi 002.



    The reason people go with interfaces instead of just a direct connection to the computer is because they're looking for more quality in the final sound during the analog/digital conversion process. Most audio interfaces are marketed to their consumers based on the quality of their A/D converters.

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    oh word, okay okay. i see now

    think i will look into one of those in the future to get a higher quality sound. i think i have seen that mBox brand around before

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    Hip Hop aholic Sinapse's Avatar
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    you need an interface or a mixer, some kind of intermediate that is going to amplify the phono signal....also make sure your table is properly grounded (electrically)...supposedly some new USB tables you can rip directly to computer, but overall I think the best option is to have a mixer so you can amplify and do other things to the audio coming off the table as vinyl is very inconsistent in quality and loudness from record to record

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    ye, so basically i just need to invest in a interface for better quality sound cause it does hook up directly to the computer through USB connection.

    unfortunately, all i have speaker wise for my laptop is the speakers it came with, so when i listen to my rips from vinyl i never really know. although, i do notice the variation from record to record but that was to be assumed.

    it still maintains the cracks, hiss and pop of the vinyl which is dope. after ripping it gives the option to remove those and normalize the recording.

    should i normalize each recording? or just leave it as is?

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    Your fav. artist's artist fatboybrandon's Avatar
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    I think the pops & cracks do sound dope Bronze, that's a preference you can make on your own on whether to keep it in or not. Remember the crackling sound of Mobb Deep's What's Ya Poison?



    There's no rules behind using vinyl noise, but there are plug-ins like Izotope Music & Speech Cleaner that take it out if ya want.

    A technique of recording vinyl I learned from Pete Rock, Dr, Dre and Alchemist: use an analog mixer between the turntable and audio interface stage of your vinyl recording chain to EQ and enhance the tone/color of your sounds before they reach your MPC or computer. This is similar to adjusting the controls on your camera to effect the outcome of your photograph.

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