Help

[Neetie]

I'm new to this and don't know if I'm posting this in the right place. My problem is I am trying to transfer some old records to a CD via the Sony walkman minidisc recorder/player. I have succeded in recording to the minidisc and connected the player via the lineoutjack to the pc( windows XP home edtion)I can now play the record on the computer. I have audacity on my pc and then recorded in audacity , however I did notice that the waves were very slight. I then saved the file both as an audacity and a wav. file but when I try to play it back I can barely hear it, in fact it was only by turning the speaker vol to max and putting my ear to the speakers that Iheard anything at all.I put this problem to another forum and they suggested that the volume of the line out may have been too lowI don't know how to go about changing that. The weird thing is that I did suceed in recording something satisfactorily for the first time last week, my first attempt at this. So is it the audacity or the minidisc which needs adjusting and if so how?I would be very grateful for any help I can get.

[bobt]

I'm new to this and don't know if I'm posting this in the right place. My problem is I am trying to transfer some old records to a CD via the Sony walkman minidisc recorder/player. I have succeded in recording to the minidisc and connected the player via the lineoutjack to the pc( windows XP home edtion)I can now play the record on the computer. I have audacity on my pc and then recorded in audacity , however I did notice that the waves were very slight. I then saved the file both as an audacity and a wav. file but when I try to play it back I can barely hear it, in fact it was only by turning the speaker vol to max and putting my ear to the speakers that Iheard anything at all.I put this problem to another forum and they suggested that the volume of the line out may have been too lowI don't know how to go about changing that. The weird thing is that I did suceed in recording something satisfactorily for the first time last week, my first attempt at this. So is it the audacity or the minidisc which needs adjusting and if so how?I would be very grateful for any help I can get.

Are you using a preamp on your turntable, or just plugging your turntable right into your MD? You may also have to go to your sound property page and slide your line level up, or un-mute it if it got muted.

Good luck,

Bob

[A440]

If I understand you, the recording on the minidisc itself is at a good volume. It sounds good through headphones, right?

OK, then it's settings in your computer and in Audacity.

Go to Start/Programs/Accessories/Entertainment/Volume Control. Under Options click Advanced Controls if it's not grayed out. Look at Properties and tell it to show every control. Look at Line In and make sure it is not muted and all the way up. You can mute SW Synth, PC Beep or other inputs if you are sure you don't need them. Make sure Master Volume is NOT muted. Shut the Volume Control.

Open Audacity.

Under Edit/Preferences look at Audio I/O. That tells you what Audacity will actually record and how. If it's mono, change it to stereo. The Device should be the soundcard in your computer, whatever has the line-in jack. (If it's not obvious, you can find out its name by going to Settings/Control Panel/System/Hardware/Device Manager/Sound and Video Controllers.) Check the Quality while you're in there--at least 16-bit.

The mixer toolbar on Audacity--with the pictures of the microphones--lets you control incoming level and (in the drop-down box) which input you are using--Microphone, Line-in, etc. Are you sure your computer has a Line-in? Some laptops only have Mic-in. (Usually a microphone icon and a red jack. Line-in is usually a white jack.) Whatever it is, make sure Audacity is capturing the correct one.

While you're recording you can move the Mixer toolbar sliders horizontally and watch the waveform expand as you raise the level. You want it to nearly fill the space of the display, but never to be flattened against the top and bottom.

-------------------------

One more thought: Do you want to have the albums on minidisc? Because otherwise you could just record them directly into Audacity from your stereo--stereo headphone out, computer Line-in--without an intermediate step.

Edited November 23, 2007 by A440

[Neetie]

Thank you so much A440 for your very clear instructions which I followed to the letter. I found that all the right boxes were ticked and the volume was on high. I have been struggling with this for days.. However I decided in desperation to pull the jack out from the back of the computer and reinsert it and hey presto it worked. It is still incomprehensible to me as the connection was sufficient for the disc to play on the computer but not to record adequately.Do you understand it? What happened this time is that the volume was very high indeed and the blue wave thingy occupied most of the space, top to bottom. I still don't see how to move the mixer tool bar or indeed what the mixer tool bar is and now just to complicate matters further I can't actually open audacity. When I click on the icon it just goes to the tool bar at the bottom of the screen and doesn't open... but I'm hoping a friend will help me with this later today. All this high tech stuff is not "old lady friendly" Thank goodness for kind people like you !

The reason for my working via the minidisc is that the music centre is a distance from the pc and it is not convenient to move either. Furthermore I am having to record my old 78s at a friends house as my 78 player gave up the ghost a while ago, I have to do this with a microphone as these old "gramophones" have inbuilt speakers and no outlets to plug into !

[A440]

The mixer toolbar is the third level down: big buttons, then meters, then the mixer toolbar. You'll see pictures of a speaker (left) and a mic (middle) and then there are chevron-shaped things that you can slide back and forth--the one at the mic control the incoming level. The drop-down box (white) probably has the word Microphone or Line In.

[Neetie]

Many thanks. I have now succeeded, thanks to your help. May I ask you one more thing. I exported my file as an mp3 file in order to email it to a friend but the file is too big. I wouold like to split it in two. Is that possible other than by playing it in audacity and stopping half way and then selecting each half separately? I can't see how to fast forward to a certain point Is it possible?

[greenmachine]

mp3directcut will cut your mp3s without losing quality.

[Neetie]

Thanks green machine. As I said earlier I am not too computer savvy. I have downloaded and installed the mp3 direct cut but don't know what to do next. I have the mp3file saved on my pc..could you bear to go thro' it with me?

[greenmachine]

There's a manual included, which you can access by clicking on the question mark in the menu.

Here's a basic quick guide:

1. start mp3DC

2. click file -> open - choose the mp3

3. hit the space bar to start playback

4. use the scrollbar to find the cutting point

5. hit the space bar to stop playback

6. in the blue window with the level display click with the left mouse button on the cutting point. you usually want the cutting point in a pause where the levels are low. this is indicated by very low or not visible dark blue bars.

7. a thin, light blue, dashed line will appear

8. click the "cut" button to set the cutting point

9. (repeat steps 3-8 to set additional cutting points - one cutting point will produce two files; two cutting points three files, and so on)

10. from the "file" menu, select "save split"

11. specify a filename scheme or rename afterwards

12. click "OK" - the files will be created in the same directory as the original mp3

[Neetie]

Thank you for the impeccable instructions. Why don't people who produce manuals employ people like you to write them. I usually find that I only understand the manua when I know what I am doing! One wee problem however, the first time I tried it worked brilliantly but the file was still too big so I had another go, indeed several goes but now keep getting an error message saying cannot write/create file.. What did I do wrong sorry to be such a nuisance I was really thrilled when it all cam right the first time.

[greenmachine]

That may be a duplicate file name problem. Try renaming the existing files or use a different naming scheme.

[Neetie]

I renamed the file, I tried with a totally different file but no joy. I alsouninstalled and reinstalled the programme but all to no avail !! Thanks anyway for trying.