I’ve recently gotten the bug to do some more LP to CD/MP3 conversions. It’s been a couple of years since I’ve done any. I have an Audio-Technica turntable that has both line out and USB out, which makes the process a bit simpler. The turntable isn’t super high-end, but it’s plenty good for these types of conversions and for playing the occasional LP. I capture the USB audio using the free program Audacity on my Linux media center in the living room, then move the files to my desktop in the den for processing.

Going back many years – to my pre-Linux days – I’ve used a program called Cool Edit Pro to process and clean up the audio from the LPs. With a bit of tweaking, it runs just fine in a virtual Windows machine on my Linux desktop. Back in the day I purchased a plug-in for Cool Edit Pro called ClickFix, which does a really nice job of reducing the pops and clicks that are part of the LP listening experience. Some additional noise reduction, along with a bit of subtle EQ, brings the audio around quite nicely. Cool Edit Pro was purchased by Adobe in 2002, and released as Adobe Audition in 2003, which shows how long I’ve been using this software. But it also shows that 15+ year old software is still more than good enough.

On the current docket is a 1983 album from the (UK-based) Barratt Band, a 1984 album from Steve Camp (recorded in the UK with the Barratt Band), a 1986 album from a California-based alternative Christian band called 441, and a 1985 album from guitarist extraordinaire Phil Keaggy.