AUDIO CONVERSION

Transfer vinyl LP's and audio tape to CD

THE FOLLOWING AUDIO FORMATS CAN BE TRANSFERRED TO CD-ROM

Reel to reel magnetic tape
DAT (Digital Audio Tape)
Audio Cassette (Copyright restrictions may apply, see note below)
Micro Cassettes often used in personal voice recorders and answer machines.
Vinyl records - LP, EP and 78rpm
All audio formats such as Wave and MP3 etc

Note: Under current copyright law we are not permitted to transfer copyrighted material to another format unless you are the legal owner of such material. Our audio transfer service is therefore restricted to audio recordings other than commercially available music such as audio letters, recorded family events and other recordings that you have full legal ownership. The law states that you may make your own digital copies however it cannot be offered by us to you as a service. Details relating to this law can be reviewed by downloading the PDF information sheet from the Aust. Copyright Council. PDF Information sheet

REEL TO REEL MAGNETIC TAPE :

Magnetic tape became very popular in the 1950's~1960's for recording music and voice. Audio letters were a popular way to communicate with distant relatives using small portable tape recorders to record conversations at family gatherings.

Acetate tape over a period of time will curl and shrink causing degradation in playback quality. Polyester tape also had its problems, especially tape formulations from the USA around 1975 to 1985 which left a sticky substance on the rollers and heads causing a drop in fidelity. Age is perhaps the biggest drawback for magnetic tape, so if you have audio material archived on tape then the point in time will come when this will not be able to be retrieved.

The transfer of any analog to digital format will only ever be a temporary exercise as even the digital formats are constantly changing. CD players won't be around forever but to preserve your valuable data you can't afford to miss too many jumps in technology. Once in digital form it is far easier to upgrade to other newly emerging digital formats.

DAT - DIGITAL AUDIO TAPE:

DAT tape recordings were generally associated with professional recording of music due to the high sampling rates than other recording technology. It also produced a lossless encoding which was ideal for master recordings. While not widely used domestically due to its cost, DAT tapes were still a popular recording medium and will need to be transferred as the tape formulations will deteriorate with time.

VINYL RECORDS OR LP's:

In Australia the reproduction or digital copying of vinyl records is permitted by the person that owns the original material, however it is not legal for us to offer this service unless written legal permission is given by the original copyright holder. Some recordings made before 1955 which are now public domain can be reproduced by us but generally our service is for the original owners of recorded material.

AUDIO CASSETTE:

Audio cassettes fall into this same category as vinyl records regarding digital reproduction. By law we cannot offer a transfer service for commercially available copyrighted material unless you are the original owner of such material. Our transfer service is for audio material that you have personally recorded and own all intellectual rights.

MICRO AUDIO CASSETTE: