I have a USB record player that I believe is Linux-compatible (it shows up in Windows and MacOS as a generic sound card) for the LPs. It can do 33 and 45, but not 78. Let me know if you want to try it out.
- Y Sent from a device with a very small keyboard and hyperactive autocorrect. On Aug 10, 2016 9:58 PM, "Judah Milgram" <milg...@cgpp.com> wrote: > All, > > thanks for all the good info. I neglected to mention an important part of > the optimization problem: I haven't been able to put my hands on my old > Walkman (I know it's around here somewhere) nor am I sure where the heck my > audio cable collection is. So it's a dedicated cassette converter for > $20-30 or a simple tape player + a little left over to buy new cables. > > I wonder if there already is a digital recording of 4'33" that I can > download somewhere... > > This is all by the way a very indirect outcome of a half-baked idea to > learn a little French combined with a visit to the local library's used > book sale. > > Now if only I can figure out how to convert some old steel wire recordings > I inherited, and a 1/4" reel-to-reel tape, and an old 16mm film... not to > mention some VHS's, a passel of LP's, and what to do with all the film > cameras. Technology is not kind to hoarders. > > thanks again! I'll report back about the solution I went with. > > Judah > > > > On 08/10/2016 01:36 PM, Ben Stern wrote: > >> Seconding audacity + device that looks like USB sound card. It does the >> D2A >> onboard, so you don't have stupid Linux sound driver du jour disasters >> [1]. >> >> I have a cheapo turntable that looks like a USB sound card and Audacity >> works great, notwithstanding the need to babysit it when recording. >> >> (You have to tell it to start and then run over and press play, and then >> when the tape stops, stop recording. There might be software to detect >> silences, but tape hiss can defeat it, as can your collection of studio >> covers of John Cage's 4'33", and when there are drops in the middle of a >> song, like in _Intergalactic_, the automatic silence detection will kick >> in, and hard things are hard. This isn't bad for a single recording, but >> for a whole library, it gets old. >> >> It's possible that this is no longer the case, in which case I would be >> delighted to hear about it.) >> >> I do not recommend using the line in, mic in, or other analog inputs to >> your >> computer. The better control from the more powerful processor is offset >> by >> both the sound driver problems mentioned and also by the typically >> disastrous support for analog line in I've experienced with Linux. >> >> (I think the last time analog mic in worked for me under Linux was in >> 2001. Since then, analog mic in has never recorded anything but silence. >> This might be an ALSA problem, since I think 2001 was around the time of >> the last gasps of OSS, but even then, since everyone uses ALSA somewhere >> in >> their audio stack these days, it's still a problem.) >> >> Ben >> >> [1] Slackware just moved to PulseAudio by default, because heck, everyone >> else tried that 10 years ago, and apparently Bluez wants it now, and so >> nothing works anymore, because PulseAudio is terrible. Straight-up ALSA >> still works great, and once you do a PA-ectomy, everything starts to work >> again, but anyway, get off my lawn. >> >> > > -- > Judah Milgram > milg...@cgpp.com > 301-257-7069 >
