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How to Restore Vinyl Album Music

Vinyl records have been popular for decades, and some audiophiles prefer them to compact discs. Many music lovers still collect vinyl for use on home stereo systems. But in an age of compact disc burners, MP3 players and computers, vinyl's weaknesses are sometimes too apparent. As records are played and age, they wear out, leading to degradation of their sound. By transferring the music on your vinyl albums into a digital format, you can ensure that the albums will be playable many times.

Things You'll Need

  • Record player
  • Stereo system
  • Computer or hardware CD burner
  • ¼-inch-to-USB cable
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Instructions

    • 1

      Organize the records you wish to restore. The best way to restore your old vinyl is to transfer it to a digital format that will not degrade. If you don't have time to transfer all of the music in your collection, you may want to gather those records that are in the poorest physical condition or mean the most to you.

    • 2

      Assess the condition of the records you chose. Since you are recording these albums to a new format, any pops or crackles on the original record will also be recorded to the digital format. If a record is extremely warped, it might not be salvageable.

    • 3

      Set up your vinyl turntable and stereo. To transfer your vinyl records to a new format, you will have to play the audio from a source---in this case, your record player. You want to make sure you are getting the best possible signal from your stereo system so when you listen back to it in the new format, it will sound just as good.

    • 4

      Prepare your compact disc burner and computer. Most people burn compact discs with software on their computer. However, you can also use an audio recording program or a hardware burner to record the audio signal from a vinyl album playing on the stereo.

    • 5

      Begin burning or recording your audio. Play the album on the vinyl turntable as you usually would, but use your stereo's line-out audio signal to transfer the sound to your new source. You may need a cable, such as a quarter-inch-to-USB cable, to do this, depending on the inputs located on your equipment.

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