Digitizing LP - vocals distorted

Audacity Help Forum Windows
1

I have been digitizing my record collection and one record keeps giving me problems. The record sounds good, but the recording is heavy on the static and the vocals sound like they’re coming from the end of a tunnel. Normalizing helped a little bit, but not much. I used noise reduction to get rid of a lot of the static, but that seems to have made the vocals even worse. I’ve had this problem a little with some of the other older records I’ve digitized, but never so bad that I felt the need to fix it. Any suggestions?

I’m using an aux cable directly into the record player, Windows 10, and Audacity 2.4.2.

2

Sometimes Windows can do that.

https://manual.audacityteam.org/man/faq_recording_troubleshooting.html#enhancements

Koz

3

How do you have them connected? Most of the time you can’t use the headset connection on a laptop. You need to use an adapter designed to do this such as a Behringer UFO-202 or one of the ART adapters.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/UFO202--behringer-u-phono-ufo202-usb-audio-interface-with-phono-preamp

The sickness has made this hard to do because the Behringer factory has partially shut down. Many stores will sell you one but not deliver for a long time.

Koz

4

That problem appears to be specific to the US. There’s no apparent problem getting Behringer devices in Europe or the UK.

5

I have them connected with a USB cable, with an adaptor to get it to feed into the record player.

6

and one record keeps giving me problems. The record sounds good, but the recording is heavy on the static and the vocals sound like they’re coming from the end of a tunnel.

Maybe the record is just poor quality or maybe it’s damaged? Is it a mono or stereo record?

Have you tried listening to the record without the computer? Do you have a stereo or TV to plug into? If you have a line-output you can plug regular powered computer speakers directly into the turntable.

Or, do you know someone else with a turntable/record player?

…Often troubleshooting requires swapping things around to nail-down the problem.

I’ve had this problem a little with some of the other older records I’ve digitized, but never so bad that I felt the need to fix it.

There are certain wiring defects that can act as a “vocal remover”. That kind of defect will remove/reduce the “center” which also removes the bass. Or, you could be getting only the left or right channel from record but recorded into both channels on the recording.

I have them connected with a USB cable, with an adaptor to get it to feed into the record player.

If you can give us more details it mig help. Hopefully, there’s a phono preamp somewhere in the signal chain…