Old records go in, CDs come out

The beauty of the Teac GF-350 is that it doesn't require a computer, a stereo or technical expertise.
The New York Times

The story "Old records go in, CDs come out" published August 19, 2006 at 6:00 AM is no longer available on CNET News.

Content from The New York Times expires after 7 days.

[G.Nuisance]

Um...... No.

Yeah, Right, Like im supposed to pay 330 bucks to have to buy special cd's and not be able to 'Fix' The audio in attempt to remove hiss and other annoying noises and it not even sound like the original?

Not Me.

[tipper_gore]

well... yes

The vast majority of PC users, especially the ones over 40 and more likely to have scads of LPs in the closet, barely know how to turn on their comptuters, and they will like this machine. On the other hand, if they can afford 400 bucks for this machine they probably already bought replacement CDs for most of their albums back in the 80s/90s. This device will be niche niche niche.

[annanemas]

Too Many Limitations For The Money

For same amount of money you should be able to buy both a turntable and a sound card for your PC with RCA audio jacks, and maybe an extra hard drive. You can also get a simple piece of software called Total Recorder for about $12 for simple recording and track splitting. Any computer that can run Windows XP should have all the power you need to do a much better job than what this self-contained box will do. Getting ready to record LP's for the first time on a PC may still require some time and money up front, but it will be far better spent.

[Hardrada]

Better, try Audacity

I've never found any program (even Total Recorder) that was good at detecting blank periods in LP recordings. I recommend using Audacity (free, http://audacity.sourceforge.net/) and recording the entire side. Then select the songs and export them individually. It's much faster and easier.

[blueshore]

SCMS?

That thing still exists?! I thought that was dissapear with the DAT. Oh well... :)

[bugmenot]

Richard Cranium

"Are you over 30? Sorry to hear it. That makes you part of the Transition Generation, those who have witnessed the world's shift from analog to digital recordings.

Maybe you still maintain a turntable and cassette deck, which you use to listen to your tunes just as you have for decades. If that's your situation, congratulations; you may skip to the next article."

Pompous Ass

[neilschubert]

Don't play your records on this box, it will ruin them!

If you really like your records, keep them away from this ceramic cartridge box!. Those cause severe wear on records. Junk. Junk. Junk.

My suggestion is that you save the money, and use a computer and a ADS USB instant music capture box, available from Circuit City or CompUSA, or other stores.

Most older stereo recievers have a pre-amp built in - ADD a turntable and a decent cartridge, and you'll spend the same amount of money. And, you'll hear records the way they were meant to sound. There are software programs out there that will even divide the tracks correctly. The ADS box comes with basic software that will let you edit and fix.

No, your grandma can't use an audio editor, but if you are going to bother, why not do it right?

About records:
LP records made after 1953 generally have a frequency response that is greater than CDs, as well as faster transient response time - clicks and drumb beats come through perfectly whearas, CDs lag. The older records are subject to the limitations of their master tapes. As you get past 1963, quality greatly increases, with the use of transistorized cutting amplifiers, although the tube ones weren't bad.

Playing your collection on a Ceramic cartridge with uncontrolled weight can PERMANENTLY damage your records. My suggestion is that you get your old turntable fixed or fix it if you know how.

There are currently more manufactures of cartridges and styli than manufacturers of CD players. If you want to take a look go to http://www.needledoctor.com. There are many others, also! My favorites are Grado, Stanton, ADC (not made anymore) and Shure. Audio Technica has a few good ones, too.

For quick, automated transfers, I personally use a Tascam DAT recorder, which very accurately and automatically divides tracks. They then get copied into computer and burned. No hoops.

I go to great lenghts to "remaster" records to CD, and don't expect the average person to do so. However, a CD recorder, a good turntable, and a good reciever works great, and will work just like it did when you made tapes of your favorite records.

[DeusExMachina]

LPs vs. CDs

While it may be true that LPs have a greater frequency response
than CDs, this is only true of a subset of records made for the
high-end audiophile, and is only true of those for the first few
plays, after which the grooved surface of the platter is worn down
enough by the passage of the needle that this fidelity is lost.
That was the part of the point about CDs, and why they quickly
took the market, even amoung audiophiles.

[talledega500]

can it go the other way?

PLS?

[Rev. Doug]

Why not just buy a turntable?

...and keep your records. I have records that I've had since high school and they still sound fine.

[ddesy]

More money for lower quality?

If the turntable on this deck is anything like the ones on other modern retro systems, it isn't worth using. Why use one of these cheap plastic turntables with cut rate cartridges when it's actually cheaper to buy a decent used turntable and preamp to record into the computer? Besides, if you record 78 RPM records, this unit will likely apply the RIAA audio curve to them even though they were never designed to be used with it.

For under $200 on eBay you can often buy a decent used turntable made by Dual, Thorens, Technics, Denon, etc... Then, you can get a workable preamp for under $30 or pretty decent one for under $100, still having spent under $300 total. Cables are cheap. So for under $300, you can get much more faithful audio reproduction and produce a more listenable CD.

[penso]

Old record burner

This peice of electronic equipment is a little spendy. I have used the program from Diamond Cut Productions to accomplish the same thing and with excellent results. It has many filters on it and removes pops,crackles and other noises. My previous tower got wiped so I have to buy and install it again. I have over 400 albums.

[penso]

Old record burner

This piece of electronic equipment is a little spendy. I have used the program from Diamond Cut Productions to accomplish the same thing and with excellent results. It has many filters on it and removes pops,crackles and other noises. My previous tower got wiped so I have to buy and install it again. I have over 400 albums.

[jmy2kiska]

repair

TWO WEEKS AGO I RECIEVED THE LP TO CD
I PLACED THE UNIT ON MY DESK PLUGGED IN THE CORD
PLACED A LP ONTHE PLAYER OPENED THE CD BURNER
IT WOULD NOT CLOSE I TOOK THE UNIT TO A OFFICIAL
SERVICE CENTER IN GARDENA CA I DID NOT BELIEF MY EARS THE STORY OFF THE SERVISEMAN THIS TRAY IS OUT ALLIGNMENT YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY $85.00 OR GO SOMEWERE ELSE WHAT A INSULT HOW CAN I RECOVER MY LOSS??? $85.00 AND NEARLY TWO WEEKS IN HIS SHOP

[jmy2kiska]

repair

TWO WEEKS AGO I RECIEVED THE LP TO CD
I PLACED THE UNIT ON MY DESK PLUGGED IN THE CORD
PLACED A LP ONTHE PLAYER OPENED THE CD BURNER
IT WOULD NOT CLOSE I TOOK THE UNIT TO A OFFICIAL
SERVICE CENTER IN GARDENA CA I DID NOT BELIEF MY EARS THE STORY OFF THE SERVISEMAN THIS TRAY IS OUT ALLIGNMENT YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY $85.00 OR GO SOMEWERE ELSE WHAT A INSULT HOW CAN I RECOVER MY LOSS??? $85.00 AND NEARLY TWO WEEKS IN HIS SHOP