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How to Change Music From Cassette to CD

Having all of your music in digital form is a great way to organize your collection, make CDs and enjoy it on an mp3 player. Converting your CDs into digital is as easy as inserting the CD and making a few clicks in a music program on your computer. But if you have audio on cassette tapes that you want to have on a CD, it can seem like a more daunting task. Fortunately there are audio programs available which make the process much simpler.

Things You'll Need

  • Cassette tape player
  • A tape you want on CD
  • 1/8-inch (headphone size) cord / RCA (red and white) cord to 1/8 inch jack
  • Computer with Internet access, line or mic input and a CD-writing drive
  • CD-creating software
  • A blank CD-R
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Instructions

  1. Audio software and connections

    • 1

      Audacity is a free audio-editing program available for Windows, Mac and Linux. Go to http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/, choose your operating system and download the file to your desktop. Open the file and install it on your computer.

    • 2

      If your tape player only has a headphone jack output, connect the 1/8-inch cord from the jack to the mic or line input on the computer. If it has RCA (red and white) jacks, connect the RCA cord from the tape player output into the computer line in or microphone jack.

      Note: If you only have mic input, there is a good chance your cassettes will only transfer in mono. However, many line inputs are stereo by nature.

    • 3

      On your computer, open the system sound preferences. Find the section for "Input" and press "Play" on your tape player with a tape inserted. Watch the input levels and select the one which has activity on the meters, either "Mic" or "Line-in." You should also hear sound on your computer speakers when the correct input is selected.

      Note: If sound is not coming through you may have to test other areas of the sound preferences, such as muting and un-muting different input and output devices until sound or meter is active.

    Recording the cassette on your computer and making a CD

    • 4

      Open Audacity. In preferences, under "Recording -> Device", select the input which worked from Step 3, and in "Recording -> Channels" select "2 (Stereo)" if possible. Press "OK."

    • 5

      Have the tape you want to record ready. Press the "Record" button in Audacity and "Play" on your tape player simultaneously. Allow the track to play all the way through then press stop on both devices.

    • 6

      In the Audacity "File" menu, go to "Export As WAV...", name the file, choose an easily accessible file folder on your desktop and click "Save." For a tape with multiple tracks, after saving the .WAV click "File" and then "New" to create a new track. Then repeat Steps 2 and 3 in this section until you have them all.

    • 7

      Open your CD-creating software. Choose "Create Audio CD" from the file menu and locate your recorded files. Arrange them in the order they were in on the tape, insert the blank CD-R into the drive and press "Create CD."

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