Audacity Forum

I have tried as many tricks as the book says to try but I am still getting lots of ugly noisy when I play back a recorded cassette. Need help on how to cure this and be able to burn to CD. I run Windows 7.

Thanks
dec

Is the recording more noisy than the original cassette?

Yes, it is horrible. The cassette sounds great on the machine it's only when it is copied to the PC does it all change to ugly noise. You can hear the song, but it sounds terrible.

How are you recording the cassettes?
(The more detail the better - part numbers and model numbers are often useful, along with a detailed description of what it plugged in where.)

Okay, I have played and searched and I think the issue may be, in part, the laptop itself. I think the sound card doesn't have the adjustments it needs to work with Audacity. I have downloaded the most uptodate version and it is better but I cam not able at all to move the input & output level bars. I am using the USB cable that came with the Victoria III. The other cables will not connect to this laptop. My best option is to tryit on a desktop PC, which I have at home but not here where I am trying to get it to work. Are my thoughts right on this, it's the laptop sound card? All the pictures on the Audacity site for setting up the cables show a desktop PC. I will take the player home and try it there and see if that isn't the issue. Sure hope so or this was a costly buy for nothing. Thanks for your feedback too.

It's normal for the recording level of USB devices to not be available in Audacity. This is because USB devices do not (usually) support being controlled by the computer.
The recording output level of USB audio devices should either be pre-set to the correct level, or should have a physical level adjustment control on the device itself.

Unfortunately this nice (simple) system for setting up USB devices has been made rather more complicated in recent versions of Windows (particularly Win 7) as Vista and Win 7 can scale the digital data from the USB device and make it massively distorted, or extremely quiet.

Is the recording extremely loud and distorted?
If it is, then you will need to go into the Windows Control Panel and set the recording level much lower (probably as low as about 0.1).
Hang, on a second and I'll see if I can find some instructions....

[Update]: the manual says: "right-click over the speaker icon by the system clock"

When I right click the speaker icon the mixer isn't anything that helps to control the sound in order to record; tho it says it is a mixer. It has volume ocntrol to speaker and system device and both move at the same time. I hate Windows 7 so I will take this to my home and try it on my desktop PC. I reinstalled the software to audacity to try what you suggested and it make no difference. I know I have a real mixer on my PC. Thanks for all your helps, if is still has issues at home I'll see if I can't return it to Amazon or the store sold thru Amazon. I'm out of tries at this point.
decrews

When you right-click over the speaker icon, don't click "Open Volume Mixer" because that is output (playback) and you want to control input (recording). Instead, right-click and choose "Recording Devices". In the window you come to, right-click over the USB codec or however your device is described and click "Properties". Then click the "Levels" tab. If the device offers a way for the computer to control its input there will be a slider there.



Gale

I did that and it still sounds way too loud and tin-ny. I'd like to try it at home and see what happens there. I have Win. xp, may not make a difference but I know it better. Also, on the level thing on this thing it never shows a USB device by name at all. USB should be there somewhere right? Anyway, I have tried here to no avail and will try at home. I htink this is past returning so the only thing it will be good for is playing media.
I am thinking maybe I can burn directly to the CD from the cassette player, but I'm not sure. If I can bypass the PC part of this it would be great. I thought it would be very easy to work with this but I was wrong.
Thanks for your input and helps. If I cannot get it to work from home I'll be back, maybe.
decrews

dcrews wrote:on the level thing on this thing it never shows a USB device by name at all. USB should be there somewhere right?

Yes of course it should. Are you sure you are right-clicking over the correct device in the "Recording" tab of "Sound" or that the computer is even recognising the USB device?

What is your Audacity recording device at Edit > Preferences: Devices? It's possible you are not even recording from the USB input.

Is this what you have (Victoria III)
http://www.goreporter.com/products/Vict ... layer.html ?

dcrews wrote:I am thinking maybe I can burn directly to the CD from the cassette player

You can't, with the equipment I think you have. You can buy expensive standalone equipment to duplicate LPs direct to CD, but finding such for cassettes may be difficult.

Do you have a normal cassette deck that works on its own?


Gale