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How to Transfer Cassette Tapes to CD

With the invention of the CD in the 1990's, the cassette was quickly set aside in favor of this new recording medium. Though most of us buy all of our new recordings on CD, we still own countless audio cassettes full of our favorite music. Instead of throwing the outdated cassettes out, with a PC and blank CD's it is possible to transfer all of our favorite music from cassette to CD, without having to repurchase each album.

Things You'll Need

  • "Y" adapter cable
  • PC computer with "line in" or "mic" jack
  • Cassette player with a "line out" jack
  • Blank CD
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Instructions

    • 1

      Insert the red and white ends of the "Y" cable into the matching slots of the "output" jack on the cassette player.

    • 2

      Insert the 1/8-inch end of the "Y" cable into the "line in" or "mic" jack of the PC. Make sure the PC is turned off as it can cause a loud "popping" sound if it is on when the cable is plugged in.

    • 3

      Turn on the cassette player and PC.

    • 4

      Click on the Windows logo located on the bottom left of the computer screen. This will open a small pop up window on the left side of the computer screen.

    • 5

      Type "Sound Recorder" into the "Search" line at the bottom of the pop-up window and click "enter."

    • 6

      Click the "Record" button on the Sound Recorder. Once the recorder has begun, press "play" on the cassette player to start the tape.

    • 7

      Press "Stop Recording" when the song, or entire cassette, has finished playing.

    • 8

      Label the file as needed, "Dad's Cassette" for example, and click "save" to ensure that the new file is saved on the PC's desktop.

    • 9

      Insert a blank CD into the computers CD-RW drive, place the cursor over the audio file, right click and press "send to." Select the CD-RW drive, which is usually labeled as "F" or "G" in newer PC's, or "C" or "D" in older computers. This will start the burning process, which saves the audio file onto the blank CD.

Digital Music

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