What is Digg?51 Comments
- schestowitz, on 10/12/2007, -1/+18So while proprietary software strives to make older things obsolete and incompatible in order to force upgrades, Free software can save the day (again).
- ecliptik, on 10/12/2007, -1/+14Actually, belt drive turntables give better sound quality during playback than direct drive, since it's step away from any motor noise. Direct Drive is only really needed if you need fast startup and are planning to do a lot of mixing/scratching.
The same is true for most direct drive styli, since they're usually geared toward DJs and use a conical stylus, which provides better tracking in the groove but decreased sound quality and greater record wear. If you want to do any sort of high-quality recording you should use an elliptical stylus. - steponsnyder, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10There are other reasons people rip vinyl. A lot of stuff exists only on LPs, and it's helpful to be able to make those tracks a little bit more portable.
- KayIslandDrunk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Wow, way to miss the point of the article
- thcobbs, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7That's why you chose a lossless codec instead of a lossy one like mp3.... DUH!
- KayIslandDrunk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Also notice that he is "normalizing" the tracks. IMO any quality preserved from ripping into a flac was just lost as one of the best thing about older music is the music isn't all "compressed". Ever notice how music of today is just a wall of noise coming at you? The last great album of "modern" rock I own that didn't do this was Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
- ecliptik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5When did I make such an argument? I never said I couldn't do it with other software, I could have used my iBook and OSX software instead, but I wanted to attempt it using 100% Free Software. Which fyi is Free as in Libre, not Free as in Money, see: http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html
The only shortcoming of course is I used MP3 instead of Ogg for the final compression in order to play them on my iPod shuffle, but since I kept the original WAVs I can always export them to Ogg whenever I want. - anderiv, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Normalizing is not the same as compressing. With compression, yes indeed, it does compress the dynamic range when the audio exceeds your set threshold. With normalizing though, it parses through the song, finding the peak volume of that track. It then raises the volume of the entire track an equal amount so that the song's peak is just below the clipping point.
- flaflashr, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I have a big project that I keep procrastinating to do this as well.
I am concerned that he used Normalize-Audio. I am not familiar with that product, but from the name, I expect it tends to compress the dynamic range, thereby significantly changing the audio from the original. Kinda' like those mike-compressors the CBers all used in the 70s. Does anybody have any further info on this app? - ecliptik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Screenshot 1 - Audaicty: Taken while VNC'd into my Debian server from my iBook (it's only display is my TV which doesn't have the resolution to use as a desktop). I used grab cause I didn't know about the key combinations, thanks for the tip though.
Screenshot 2 - EasyTag: Taken while VNCing from my Windows XP workstation at work during a lunch break.
Screenshot 3 - MusicIndex: Taken while at work using mod_musicindex (http://freshmeat.net/projects/musicindex/) so I could stream the freshly made MP3s and listen to them while working.
My computing style is a bit odd to people since I rely heavily on a centralized server I can access from anywhere on any computer via a network connection, you can read more about it here: http://junocake.blogspot.com/2006/06/my-typical-day-online.html - ecliptik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I adjusted the record level on each album so it peaked around 0 VU, I just used normalized it to push it right up to the edge before clipping.
- selrahc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Probably. Don't assume just because you know something that everybody else does too. I use Linux, and while I know quite a bit about photography, I have very little knowledge about audio stuff.
- thanks, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Personally I couldn't bring myself to digitize any of my collection unless it was vinyl-exclusive and I wanted to listen to it in my car. I love how my records sound like they have soul. At least, all my old used Monk, Powell, and Rich records do.
- caled, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I used gramofile when i did mine (http://www.opensourcepartners.nl/~costar/gramofile/) but this seems like a fairly easy way too.
Ditto on the taking ages to rerecord it tho - RyeBrye, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I toured a Sony audio production facility once in LA and saw how they remaster their "vinyl" masters. Instead of using a vinyl copy, they use the metal master and then have a turn table play it back. The turn table spins in reverse, and the head is (obviously) a lot different from a normal head. The guy then did a lot of cleaning up in some proprietary software... It would be interesting to compare the quality of what they are able to retrieve from working straight from the master to what an average person is able to obtain from working from a vinyl copy of the master.
- ecliptik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Here's the homepage for normalize-audio: http://normalize.nongnu.org/
I originally found it in the the Debian repos, and figured since most CD ripping I do uses some sort of normalization I might as well use it for vinyl too. As for degradation of quality I haven't really heard any difference between a normalized and original recording so I think it's safe. - chumpsucker, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Just like shooting flies with a bazooka!
Digitizing media is obviously convenient, but isn't the point of procuring vinyl in the first place to increase that ever important audio-fidelity as much as possible (in ways that digital formats, e.g. compact discs can only hope to achieve)? - beermad, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2One useful extra bit of software I'd recommend for this is Gnome Wave Cleaner (GWC) http://gwc.sourceforge.net/ which you can run your tracks through to remove virtually all of the noises that vinyl picks up as it gets used.
It made a big difference to the 1000+ LPs I digitised; many of them very worn from the days in the 1970s when I was a DJ. - SteveMax, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3He basically recorded it in "oh-so-quiet" volume, and then expanded the amplitude to a normal volume. Yes, it has a (bad) effect on dynamic range. He could do it the right way, adjusting the volume for each record (but it would possibly take a lot of time).
- jsully, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I was hoping to hear a sample of the resulting ogg / flac / mp3 files - anyone have any?
- bedouin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1He's using his receiver as a preamp. Adding the RIAA curve again would just screw it up.
- ecliptik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1oops, typo, thanks for the heads up.
- bedouin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Did this really need a tutorial? I think we can all use audio editing software and connect RCA cables. Why would it be any different in Linux? Hell, I used to do this in MS-DOS with the built-in sound app that came with my SBPro.
- KayIslandDrunk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Damnit, this really makes me want to skip work and go home to my vinyl collection
- diggdong, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1From what I can remember ( currently using Replay A/V) Audacity doesn't have a spliter for recording audio. Therefore, every track has to be split and edited. That's rather enjoying. Also, recording wave is like going for a Sunday walk with a corpse.
- rubah, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Regarding the hardware end of recording vinyl, I wanted to share how dang impressed I was a couple of summers ago when I read about a floppy disk drive driven turntable on /. and mentioned the idea of recording LPs to my computer to my dad.
He hunted down a plug to fit into the speaker jack in the back of his 1982 sears stereo, whittled away the plastic on the end, found a plug to fit into the line in port on my computer, whittled it down, and taped them together with electricians tape.
After a few trials, I got a passable recording of John Denver's Season Suite.
It was a fun thing to while away the morning with anyways. What impressed me most was just using electricians tape to keep the connection together. It prettywell blew my mind then. - dafragsta, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1If the audio isn't being ripped and played at 24-bit 96kHz or above, what's the point really? Then there is the not-so-trivial factor of the quality of your ADC on the sound device you are using. All this just goes to prove that the snobs out there who do this sort of thing without even considering the actual reason vinyl CAN sound better than CDs and aren't ripping something that isn't available in a digital format, are really just going a long way to get a bad copy of the music all the while telling themselves it's better. If you rip your Led Zeppelin albums to digital, you are just admiring the emperor's new clothes.
- codyman, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3Hmm.. never thought of that but I do still love my direct drive Pioneer PL-740.... $50 bucks on eBay and it sounds great...
- bat-21, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Ecliptik, you forgot one vital piece of equipment, a ground loop isolator. It eliminates line noise and prevents the computer from frying audio components. Xitel makes a very good one for $35 ( http://www.xitel.com/2007/prod_gli.htm ). This is what can happen when you don't use one: http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6450_7-5021407-1.html .
- XVampireX, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1***** you, you dick head, Free is not ***** beer, we want Freedom in our Software, so we say Free. Free, not in the ***** sense that microsoft and other proprietary companies put in you.
The freedom that we request is that we are allowed to do whatever we want with the software, and that includes improving it and using it for our purposes, as well as being able to share the software without being called pirates.
As for everything else, You should have used OGG/Vorbis and FLAC, both formats are free software, and using Rockbox is a step or two away from being able to play that music on your iPod.
P.S: Vorbis DOES sound better than MP3 at the same bit rates. - bedouin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Seriously, if you think normalizing perfectly mastered classic rock records sounds good I doubt you have an ear that can distinguish between a belt or direct drive turntable, especially when you're talking about a consumer-grade Technics belt drive table. A high-end (not even audiophile) direct drive table will sound better than your SL-20 any day.
- codyman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1alright, how about I start another riot...
what do you find as the best way to clean an LP that has dust?
I've tried everything but haven't had the greatest results (and don't recommend one of those expensive nitty gritty machines... i'm a starving film student, don't have 500 bucks to blow in order to clean a 25 cent garage sale find lp..) - stmiller, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Ick! Using a pci sound card? Must use a usb or firewire audio device. There is zero noise, and the best A/D conversion.
- CompIsMyRx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Oh NOES!!! An RIAA spy!
- ecliptik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1The belt vs direct isn't tired, belt drives have less noise, take this 1600$ audiophile turntable for example: http://www.dedicatedaudio.com/inc/sdetail/6133 . Overall it's the cost of your cartridge that will affect your sound quality most, which is why I dropped 60$ on a new one (http://www.musicdirect.com/products/detail.asp?sku=AGRAPRESGRE).
- bedouin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1The belt drive vs. direct drive debate is very tired. If you use a cheap turntable you will get cheap sound -- period.
And direct drive by default doesn't guarantee great torque. Many times the opposite was true. - bedouin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1And what do you mean by "direct drive styli?" There's standard mount and p-mount cartridges. You can get elliptical styluses for either, and neither are limited just to direct or belt drive turntables.
- bedouin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Rubbing alcohol and a paper towel. Some people dilute the alcohol with water. The expensive 'record cleaner' fluid you buy is basically alcohol anyway . . .
- colinmhayes, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1I'm more concerned that the writer/submitter doesn't know know that it's anti-skating adjustments and not anti-skid adjustments...
- eatsushi, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2ThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYou
I am going to try this later. I use Final Scratch (http://www.stantondj.com/v2/fs/prod_fsopen.asp), and this allows me to rip my scratch records onto my computer or even make my own samples to scratch! - snnycl, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0didnt see any burier :) today....
Linux Rullz. - stegdump, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Somebody mentioned this higher up, but you want to use a receiver with phono inputs, then use the line level out, or headphone out to the computer. This will apply the RIAA equalization curve.
Most LP's have a equalization curve applied to them when the disk is created, and correct EQ curve is needed on the output (all you computer people can think of it as analog data compression). If you must plug in your record players outputs the wound will be thin and weak, the RIAA eq curve will help with some of the thin-ness of the recording (normalization will help with the weak part).
Audacity has the proper EQ curve built in to its equalizer plugin, which is pretty good. Use this if you you have no stereo receiver that has phono inputs, and you need to plug the phono outputs directly into the input on your computer. - cphuntington97, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2Don't forget to use the RIAA preamp, either in software or hardware, or you'll get a funny sounding recording :P
- dancenhance, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3I've got all mine archived! Just takes time. Damn you, analog. Damn you to hell.
/sounds great though. - knugen, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0Turntable + Line-in cord + sndrec32
::O - eatsushi, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2ThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYouThankYou
I am going to try this later. I use Final Scratch (http://www.stantondj.com/v2/fs/prod_fsopen.asp), and this allows me to rip my scratch records onto my computer or even make my own samples to scratch! - capran, on 10/12/2007, -7/+1I found it odd that he said he was using OSS and Linux, but the screenshot clearly shows OS X, and possible a Gnome desktop running in a VM. Just curious why he chose to do that, when I know for a fact that Audacity has an OS X native client, and the other tools are probably available too.
Also, he used Grab for the screenshot, and all he did was grab the entire screen! FYI, on any Mac, you can use CMD-OPT-3 to capture the screen, or CMD-OPT-4 to grab a selection of the screen. Grab isn't required. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -11/+3SL-20 Belt Drive Turntable... yuck...Direct drive all the way baby.
Also, anyone who didn't know this, probably couldn't use Linux. Am I the only one who has been archiving my vinyl? - Topher06, on 10/12/2007, -8/+0Um, wow, I don't know where to begin. I have heard of weak arguments supporting Linux over retail software, but this is one of the weakest yet.
So lets get this straight, the argument being made is you CAN'T rip vinyl to MP3 using Windows or OS X, even though EVERY PC sound card or sound-board comes with FREE software that allows you to record from the line in. And both Windows and OS X have free recording software built into the OS. As for processing the sound to sound good, well again, most sound cards usually bundle these kinds of features, and there are lots of shareware products that can do the same thing (including supporting FLAC and other open-source utilities that just happen to be build for Windows / Mac over Linux). I am fairly certain that if I even owned a record that I could rip it to MP3 using nothing more then free software, except for the price of the OS.
I don't know, I mean, Linux has its strengths for many things, but this is one of the lamest arguments yet.
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