Orpheus10, i just googled "DAK 2800" and i got a hit, as I was completely unfamiliar with DAK. Please tell me what I uncovered by googling is NOT what you are recommending. What I found was a $69 (sixty nine) mixer capable of handling 2 turntables, RIAA equalization, a microphone and all software included to "convert your LP's to broadcast quality MP3's". Is this the same product to which you refer? If it is, I don't believe we are comparing apples to apples.....I'm sure you are enjoying your music however this will explain why your digital and analog sound so similar to one another. I'm just asking if I found the appropriate product you are touting to archive vinyl. |
I'll "enlighten" as best I can. The solution I describe is merely 1 way to accomplish archiving your vinyl into a digital file(s).
Pretend the Korg is a tape deck. For those of us old enough to remember those days, you simply play your album and press record on the Korg. You may get up between each track to press a button to "mark" the gap between tracks if you choose to.( Me, i just record and add track marks later.) When side 1 is complete, you press pause, cue side 2 and press record again.....when side 2 is over you press stop. Ok, now we have a file that resides on the hard drive of the Korg. You may play it back in DSD from the Korg right then if you like OR you may move the data onto your computer. The Korg appears as a USB hard drive to your computer, so if you can move a file today you have it down already.
Now that it is on your computer, you open the supplied Audiogate software, add track markers at the appropriate times, name the tracks and then convert from the DSD to your desired format from 16/44, 24/96 and so on. Now you are ready to have itunes or your player of choice to import the files, which is a piece of cake.
The advantages of this method is you will have a DSD archive of the vinyl as played from your table, cartridge and phono stage. So if you like your phono stage, you will like the results. The downside of this method is your archived copy may be colored(by the fingerprint of your phono stage). Rob at Pure Music favors another method. In summary, he advocates feeding your table into a microphone preamp and then into a A to D converter and then into your computer.(unless you find a high quality A to D converter with usb, you will need to make sure your computer has an interface capable of capturing the data and from then on Pure Vinyl will apply the appropriate RIAA equalization. You will still have to enter track data....no way around that.) You will be recording "live" to your computer's storage through his Pure Vinyl software. You are limited to 24/192 and Pure Vinyl requires a Mac but I am sure the steps are similar on a PC with the appropriate software.
I can't tell you how the Pure Vinyl sounds, I suspect though that it sounds very good. I chose my route through the Korg because it is simpler (for those of us who used to "tape" our albums) and the Korg is optimized for recording from analog feeds, converting to digital and storing it on a hard drive. I also believe the Korg fully contained with only one real A to D step is likely to introduce less jitter, which we all have discovered to varying degrees is the biggest culprit to digital musical enjoyment.
Feel free to ask any questions you like, i will answer them all. I dont however consider myself an expert, I just believe this is the simplest high quality archival method. Does this allow you to remove pops & ticks like Pure Vinyl, no. Play your vinyl, then play your digital version and the results will be SCARY close. If you have some great albums, you will be shocked at how close your recording will sound to your vinyl....depending on the quality of your vinyl rig and the resolution of the rest of your system, you may find the comparison indistinguishable. |
Licorice, I upgraded a DAK 2800-PC by replacing the capacitors. The program interface with the computer play list was perfect, and it's really easy to use. Korg sounds like you have to record it to Korg and then download it after. Maybe Ghasley could enlighten us both. |
Licorice.....please review....you do NOT need a sound card for your PC, as a matter of fact, it will be irrelevant with a USB DAC. As far as getting the Vinyl onto you computer, I highlighted 1 method via the Korg DSD recorder. This recorder is stupid good.....picture this is probably in alot of studios, certainly utilized by many live recording venues/bands. There is no better digital format than DSD, you can record it in 5.6mhz DSD and then convert it to whatever sample rate you desire.
A poster above recommended a NAD piece which indicates he has never done this and further does not understand what you are trying to accomplish. There is NO higher resolution method than DSD to digitally archive your vinyl. Period! Anyone who has heard my best vinyl recorded in DSD and then played back via my MacMini/Pure Music on my Playback Designs MPD-3 are blown away.
Good luck and please ignore those recommending MP3 turntables and $200 NAD phono stages/DACs and the like. They mean well but have simply not seen enough to know what they are talking about. |
WAV is always good. FLAC's not bad either. My LP's are all in good shape. I even have a VPI 16.5 to keep them that way (and a good stylus cleaner, too!). |
Licoricepizza, most of the stuff available is for people who want to download the scratchy LP's they inherited. It's not for "audiophile's". You have to do a lot of research before you spend any money. What I did to get an "audiophile" interface was such a problem, that I can't even recommend that. You will be in Nirvana when you find what you're looking for.
By the way, I'm using WAV and have no complaints. |
The PC may change, but the music won't, so I am very concerned about the quality of the sound card.
The integrated sound card makes noise even when there is no music going through it! It has to be turned up, but it is there. The headphone amp is particularly dreadful.
If I could yank the thing out, I'd make it better by running it over with my car. Anything would be an improvement. |
I really wish I could help you achieve your goal, but I can't, although I've downloaded my huge 40 year plus vinyl collection quite successfully. My TT is in mothballs. The "only" limiting factor is the computer "interface". My downloaded vinyl sounds better than before to me. The computer is unlimited, disregard whatever you've heard on this forum that say's the computer is the problem.
The reason I can't help you is because I had to rebuild a computer interface in order to get "audiophile" quality to the computer. If someone can recommend an "audiophile" interface for you to down load to PC, you will be in heaven after this is accomplished. |
I've seen direct to CD TTs before, and I tend to steer clear of them. Maybe it's just me, but the TT/cartridge combo in those appear (at least) to be of dubious quality. My TT is not great, but it's possibly better than those. I'm not sure...
Would an ASUS Xonar DG be a good way to go, temporarily. I'm not interested in Gaming, or X.1 surround. I'm after good 2-channel audio. |
I wanted to add that TEAC makes a turntable direct to CD player/recorder. |
I use a NAD PP3 $200 that has a usb output and a A/D converter and it came with Vinyl Studio Lite software. It has a line in/out so I can use my Whest phono stage. The NAD has good reviews just as a phono stage. The sound quality of the files is quite good. I an just getting used to the software. |
Ghasley
That Korg looks like a pretty neat product. A digital recorder with 120 hrs of storage that can also play back analog! So it has an A/D and D/A in the same package. Cool. |
Licorice,
What I'm doing does not require an analog to digital converter. I record to the Korg MR2000s, i then transfer the data to my computer via a USB cable. You wouldnt have to do anything to your computer to get the data on there....no cards, etc.
Now then, you will need a digital to analog converter for playback. For your application, simple is better. Depending on your budget, we could all recommend our favorite USB DAC.
Buy a Korg (street price $1500 or so), plug into your Preamp's tape output, record some vinyl, transfer the files. Once the data in on your PC, the Audiogate software included with the Korg will strip out the individual tracks wherever you specify in the format you specify, then you can import into iTunes or your player of choice, enter the song info and you are done.
Then just play it through the dac you choose and you are good to go. |
I've got a recommendation of a NuForce UDAC 2 from a good friend, but that appears to be the exact opposite of what I need, which is an analog-to=digital converter, not a digital-to-analog converter, which didn't make sense to me.
I read the mentioned thread, and up pops the ASUS Xonar card. I've seen very favorable reviews of it before. Is there any particular model I should steer towards? |
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There is another way. Without rehashing, there is a good thread from about a month ago where I detailed what I am doing. Post any questions after you have read it.
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?eanlg&1313888931&&&/Are-you-recording-your-vinyl- |
Unfortunatly you will loose sonically. More so than when you archive digital to digital. |
You need an Analog/Digital converter (the opposite of the Digital to Analog converter you have now).
I have seen one product from Benchmark that does this
http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=BEADC1USB
but cannot vouch for the sonic quality. It has a USB output that allows connection to the PC and a number of other digital outputs. Apparently this unit can produce digital at 24/192.
I'm not sure what software you might need in the PC, or how you delinate one song from the next. |
