[sci.electronics] How to record 78 rpm records?

iws@rayssdb.RAY.COM (Ihor W. Slabicky) (06/01/87)

I have a number of 78 rpm records which I would like to record onto
cassette tapes.  Could you offer some suggestions?

I have a two channel, 9 band (50, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400,
and 12800 hz), +-12dB graphic equalizer.  The record player is a KLH
Model 11 (Garrard AT6 turntable with 16, 33, 45, and 78 rpm settings)
which has a mono/stereo switch, volume, balance, bass, and treble controls,
a Grado cartridge, and outputs for speakers only.  I also have a stereo
receiver, with phono, tape, and aux in/out, and a stereo cassette recorder
with Dolby.

How do I hook up this equipment to record the 78's,  get great
sound reproduction, and not blow up?

Should I get a special cartridge for 78's?

What should the tracking weight be set to for 78's?

What is the frequency bandwidth of 78's?

Is there a service/company that will record 78's onto tape and
get rid of the hiss, noise, and pops?



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gass@well.UUCP (06/02/87)

In article <1668@rayssdb.RAY.COM> iws@rayssdb.RAY.COM (Ihor W. Slabicky) writes:
>I have a number of 78 rpm records which I would like to record onto
>cassette tapes.  Could you offer some suggestions?
>
>I have a two channel, 9 band (50, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600, 3200, 6400,
>and 12800 hz), +-12dB graphic equalizer.  The record player is a KLH
>Model 11 (Garrard AT6 turntable with 16, 33, 45, and 78 rpm settings)
>which has a mono/stereo switch, volume, balance, bass, and treble controls,
>a Grado cartridge, and outputs for speakers only.  I also have a stereo
>receiver, with phono, tape, and aux in/out, and a stereo cassette recorder
>with Dolby.
>
>How do I hook up this equipment to record the 78's,  get great
>sound reproduction, and not blow up?
>
>Should I get a special cartridge for 78's?
>
>What should the tracking weight be set to for 78's?
>
>What is the frequency bandwidth of 78's?
>
>Is there a service/company that will record 78's onto tape and
>get rid of the hiss, noise, and pops?
>
I saw an article not long ago (was it in Audio?) about 78's.  It looked
very good--I'd go to the library and check the Reader's Guide to Periodical
Literature to track it down.

Two points I do remember:

You need a special stylus for 78's.  I know Shure makes them, but the
article said they weren't as good as those from another firm (was it Stanton?) 
because their compliance was too high.  They made it very clear that you
should NOT use the flip-over stylii that came with many older turntables.

Different companies used different equalization; RIAA came later.  You'll
need your equalizer; the article gave recommended equalizations for
different disks.  I'd expect you could do a pretty good job by ear; play
with the settings until you got the most listenable sound.  (The article
mentioned an early McIntosh preamplifier that apparently offers a great
deal of control, and that is ideal for the job.)

There are companies that manufacture noise-reduction equipment for 78's
and other noisy disks.  Packburn is one.  Their gear is apparently very good 
and very expensive; it sounds like it's used primarily by archivists.  If you 
gave them a call, I'd bet they could put you in touch with people who have 
their gear and who copy old disks for a fee.  Their address and phone should 
be listed in one of the audio manufacturer's guides (do any of you other 
readers have Audio's equipment guide?  It'd probably be listed there.)

One other point:  Dual now makes a fairly inexpensive, good-quality
turntable that plays 78's.  If you're really serious, you might want to
give it a listen.

Good luck!

Mitchell Gass