Hi,
I’m not a high tech type of guy. I use Audacity for just a few things using the most simple options.
I like to record old cassette tapes to audacity. Most are home recordings of music or speaking. Some of the tapes are decades old. I connect my cassette tape player to the line-in, hit record on Audacity and Play on the tape player. Once a whole side of the tape is in Audacity, I save the project. Then I split up the songs by copying each one and paste it into a new project. I then edit the song by chopping off the unneeded beginning and end. I might add Reverb or maybe even change the pitch. I have my guitar (tuned to 440) at the computer so I can see if the recording is at standard pitch. If not, I can change it in Audacity before I export it. A lot of cassette recorders that were used years ago to record the song weren’t that great or the batteries were low, etc. I usually export in Mp3 since I like to email songs. I also use Wave.
Sometimes I’ll put the finished product into iTunes. I can make an iTunes playlist then burn a CD.
Other times I will use a Tascam hand-held recorder to record a band I’m with, either at practice or at a gig. I then bring it home and connected it to my computer and put the whole performance into Audacity. I can then do the same as above, splitting the recording into individual songs, saving them as Mp3 then into iTunes. I can then burn a CD to practice with or listen to in the car. It’s a good practice tool.
I can also record myself practicing a guitar solo or lick at home, putting it into Audacity, copy and paste it several times on one track, then play along with it until I get it right. I also slow down a guitar part of someone else’s solo so I can learn it slowly until I can play it at correct speed on my guitar.
I sometimes find a song on YouTube and convert it to Mp3 with Any Video Converter. I can then import it into Audacity to slow down and play along with. There’s many uses in Audacity for a musician. These are simple things that don’t take a lot of time, but really help me.
Sometimes a friend will record a band with his Tascam and ask me to put it on CD for him. Piece of cake.
Thought I’d share.
NB: “Any Video Converter” ∈ any video converter.
i.e. there are many YouTube-to-mp3 converters, not all are safe.
I’ve used that one for a couple years with no problems. Do you recommend one?
Hello Friend,
I’m trying to record audio from old cassettes as well but can’t seem to get my computer or Audacity to recognize the cassette player. I just purchased a new player with a cord that has firewire on the end that leads from the player and a USB on the end into my computer, but no success. Any suggestions for me are helpful?
I come out of the recorder line out with a 1/8" plug(RCA to 1/8") into the line in on the back of my desktop computer(the blue input). I open Audacity and hit record. Then turn on the tape deck. It recognizes it and works fine. My tape deck is about 20 years old, just a basic tape deck like used with old stereo systems. I hope that helps.
Thanks for the prompt reply. Seems it was just my computer needing several updates to drivers that had to do with audio. Once I ran all of the updates, it recognized the tape player as an input device and I was able to use it with no problems in Audacity.
I’m glad to hear that helped. I’ve probably done 100 cassettes and a dozen or so recordings from my Tascam digital. Works like a charm.
Hey Friend, Happy Holidays,
Thanks very much for sharing what you use Audacity for. Very informative & useful. I wish more members would contribute to the community like you did. I will archive your feedback for future reference.
I also use Audacity for basic things like you do, vinyl & cassettes, and I’m always running into issues that bog me down. I’ve left questions but except for only once have I received a reply with any detail to resolve it.
For the most part the help feature is useful, but at times you(I) have to have other knowledge to proceed.
Again, thanks for your input, I will look for future posts from you.
Alwaystriing
I’m happy to help, even with my limited knowledge. I know what works for me. I sometimes think of Audacity as a no cost Pro-tools! It’s been very helpful to me as a music tool. I have trouble splicing two parts of a song together and keeping on-beat. I’m working on that. Thanks for your comments.
This is so interesting Friend. I am completely new to Audacity and am about to embark on a project to being together about 20 or 30 songs recorded by myself and a good friend years ago on maybe 20 or 30 different cassettes.
Have you any tips in advance ir could you point me to a good tutorial - especially how to record one song and then the next day maybe add a second from a different recording…and the same again a few days later…
Your comment “Then I split up the songs by copying each one and paste it into a new project.” Sound like the sort of thing I will want to do also. Again, can you point me to the “how” please?
Take care,
Brendan
No, use “labels” and export to multiple files. See the Audacity online manual on how to do this.
I sent a reply. Did you get it or should I post it here in the forum?
You should post here in the forum, so that others also can take advantage of any good ideas. They may help others as well.
So far I did not receive any personal message via this forum.
Sure, I have a few tips, but I’m no expert. This works for me.
I have a cassette player connected to my desktop computer’s line in.
I open Audacity, click on Record then push play on the cassette player. I use an old Optimus player, possibly from Radio Shack! I don’t have the volume set too high due to distortion that can happen.
After I record the whole side of the cassette, I press stop on Audacity.
Now I have around six songs recorded. I can then flip the cassette over and record the other side.
So, I’ll have a dozen or so songs ready to work with. I first save the project and give it a name. The project can go to your desktop so it’s easy to find.
Next, I want to work on each song. I highlight the first song and do Control C to copy it. I then go to the top left of the Audacity and click on File New. When that opens, I Control V to paste the song into the new file. Now I can highlight the song with the mouse and use drop-downs on the page to Amplify the song. That is usually my first step. I don’t want it too loud or it will sound distorted.
If you want to, you can highlight the song again and add reverb, change the EQ, or many other things.
You can save that new project as the song’s name if you want to save it for editing later.
Before you get too far along, it’s best to export the song by using File, Export Audio and save it. I save mine to my desktop as an mp3. Now I go to the desktop and open the mp3 into iTunes or whatever kind of player you have in your computer. Now you can listen to the first song and see if it’s distorted or if it’s too loud or soft compared to regular songs you may have on your computer. I like to compare with an iTunes song or something from YouTube. If your song is too loud or soft, you can go back to Audacity and adjust the volume, EQ, etc.
Repeat for all the songs. I open all the mp3 songs into iTunes and make a playlist then burn a CD. A lot of people don’t use iTunes anymore, but it works for me.
Some old tapes might be worn out, but I’ve recorded from cassettes that were over 40 years old and got good results. Not studio quality, but good for keeping. I recorded about 100 cassettes last winter and made CDs from them or just kept the songs on my computer.
I hope this helps.