Anyone use or know a LP Ripping Service?
March 12, 2005 3:47 AM Subscribe
I've never had great results ripping vinyl. I still have my 1980 vintage Pioneer turntable, and a receiver that has phono inputs, but the files never sound that good, and noise filtering didn't do much.
Also, I really only need to rip about 3-4 albums. While I'm sure the gods of karma will arrange for some to finally be released on CD or iTunes just after I go to the hassle of copying, I'm also sure 2 will never be "officially" released.
Anyone have a vinyl ripping service they would recommend?
posted by Marky to technology (8 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
I don't have any advice on ripping services. I do, however, have advice on recording. You're using phono level inputs, that's correct.
The biggest issue is levels. Basically, when you record, you have two places you cannot go. Place one is the noise floor. Anything recorded below the noise floor is lost. Place two is the clip level. This represent the maximum signal that can be input that still results in a linear change in output. With tubes and transistors, this is a "soft wall" -- you can cross it, but with distortion. (Digresson: Guitar players with tube amps routinely do this. With transistor amps, though, it sounds horrible.)
With digital, however, that clip level is a hard wall -- you cannot cross it. Digital clipping is bad.
Dynamic range represents the distance between the noise floor and the clip.
The idea, in recording, is to use as much dynamic range as possible, while not clipping or dropping to the noise floor.
Since you're recording from a fixed source, this means you get to try and try again. This makes things easier. The idea is simple, in the start -- record as loud as you can, without clipping. Since you'll be recording a digital file, you cannot clip without ugly distortion. The temptation is to record well off the clip level. The problem with that is simple -- you overcompensate, part of the signal falls below the noise floor, and it sounds like crap.
Worse: Noise on the Signal. This comes from various things, but is usually at a constant, low level. It's not the noise floor (that's a limitation of the electronics.) You want to push your signal as far above the ambient noise, while not clipping.
The one source of noise you can't fix -- noise on the LP itself. That's noise *in* the signal, not on the signal, and it'll get amplified with the signal. You need to reduce that at the source -- clean the LP, and a good, sharp needle are your best bets. If there's any tone controls on the amp or the turntable, set them to 0 -- don't add or subtract anything -- anything that changes the signal adds noise, your goal is to record as much signal, and as little noise, as possible.
Enough of the tech details. Procedure:
You clean the LP and record. Sounds muddy and noisy. Push the gain up, do it again. Keep doing that as long as it sounds better when you do. When you clip, you fall back to your last setting, and record, then convert to mp3.
With a good recording app, you can set a couple of things to help. One is a "hardwall limiter" that will automatically reduce the gain if it tries to cross the clip. Too much of that sucks, but it can be a big win if you just have a few peaks.
If the signal has a dynamic range wider than the recording media, you need to compress the signal. This basically changes the volume equation -- instead of a 1-1 ratio between gain and record level, it becomes (say), 2-1, thus reducing the dynamic range. Compression of only the strongest signals is *very* common to deal with things that have very strong peaks, but still have useful signals at lower levels. (Canonical example: the kick drum of a drum set- full compression turns it into a click. Compressing just the peaks reduces the power of the impact, but leaves the tone of the drums.)
You shouldn't have to worry about compression, though -- one advantages CDs have that LPs don't is dynamic range, esp. if the LP has been played a few times. (LPs can record a much wider frequency range and CDs, in case you were wondering why audiophiles love them so...)
Otherwise, if the meters on the recording amp are useful (many aren't), you can play the loudest spots several times, and adjust the gain until they almost hit the clip. Then, record the whole track and encode to mp3.
Provided the vinyl source isn't trashed, I think you'll be happy with the results. To sum up:
1) The cleaner the source, the better.
2) Put as little signal processing between the source and the recording as you possibly can. Ideally, this is none. (You process *after* you record.)
3) Record as loud as you can without clipping, but no louder.
And, if that sounds like too much work, I can understand.
posted by eriko at 5:52 AM on March 12, 2005 [1 favorite]