On Tue, 23 Jun 2009, David Nebenzahl wrote:
On 6/23/2009 9:52 AM Arny Krueger spake thus:
"Bernard" wrote in message
news
I am looking for an usb audio interface that would give good results in
digitilizing vinyls. Using my original sound card give results that are
rather poor in quality. I read somewhere that I ought to have a usb audio
interface. Could someone tell of his/her own experience on a specific
interface for that purpose ?
Since you've given zero specific information, it is hard to make a
meaningful response.
True that. Would be nice to know what kind of sound card gave results that
were "poor in quality".
Vinyl doesn't really take a magnificent audio interface to be digitized
well.
I have to disagree with that sweeping generalization. Without committing the
sin of making another one, all I can say is that I have gotten results which
are close to what I would call "magnificent" running my turntable through my
sound card; the resulting CDs were pretty damn close to "CD quality".
Read what he said again. He said it doesn't take anything particularly
special to do this. And he's right.
The original poster may be having some other issue, like a bad ground (or
a ground loop), or as somone suggested, no phono preamp. So he reads
around, and discovers that some suggest a USB audio card. He shifts
in that direction, not really grasping what's being said, so he comes
here looking for details based on that premise. But he didn't read
far enough along to know that the reason some might suggest a USB card
is not because "they are better" but because it gets the analog circuitry
away from the noisy computer, which may be a factor in some cases.
Or he may be mislaid by those USB turntables, that are a mere convenience.
Someone without a turntable has to buy one, so they might as well get one
that has a built in phono preamp, and then the electronics to digitize
the sound into a USB signal. Of course, those are what you pay for them,
and I just saw one locally for a hundred dollars which isn't going to beat
my 30 year old Lenco turntable with a Grado cartridge, going through some
stereo receiver for the phono preamp and then into whatever sound card
I have in my computer.
Michael
Results will vary all over the place, of course, depending on the quality of
the vinyl being played, and the equipment being used to play it. With a good
cartridge (a Signet in my case), a decent amplifier, and probably any modren
sound card, good results are possible.
Clicks and pops are easily edited out by hand.
--
Found--the gene that causes belief in genetic determinism