Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

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DoomHammer
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Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by DoomHammer »

Hi!

I know there are a few Songcorder users on this forum. And there are also those using Lejonklou and Linn products that could benefit from trying Songcorder.

What is Songcorder?

Songcorder transforms your favourite vinyl records into high quality digital files.
Same sound. New format.

Why Songcorder is the best way to digitize your archive?

Songcorder uses the ADC in your network streamers (Linn devices tested so far, but should be compatible with others, testers welcome!). Once the signal is in the digital domain, OpenHome and Songcast from Linn are used to losslessly transfer this signal and save it as a local file.

It works great for vinyl, cassette, reel-to-reel, or whatever else you imagine (a guitar amp? why not!)!

It's possible to record digital streams from your favorite Internet audio stations as well.

What are some of the benefits of using Songcorder?

- best possible vinyl rips

- it's easier to compare turntable upgrades (record two samples with different Slipsik versions and play them back to back on a Linn DSM to hear the difference)

- longer cartridge life (you can listen to the recorded rips after all)

- take your analogue records wherever you are (rare albums that were never reissued in digital format are no longer a problem)

How does it look like?

Image

Where to find it?

https://meraki-acoustic.com/songcorder/
kampak
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by kampak »

looks interesting...

but I need further informations.

does it work on older Mac platforms (OS X 10.10 / Yosemite).
does it work with Klimax DS3 katalyst (not DSM) and Urika2 ? it says „certain versions“, but it would be essential for me!
Linn-Lejonklou-Kudos
DoomHammer
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by DoomHammer »

Hi!

Let's start from the end.

Yes, it works with KDS3 and Urika2. "Certain versions" means that Urika2 will work only with KDS with Exakt input, so KDS/0 does not fall under "certain versions". I think this needs more clarity.

As for Mac; we target Catalina and above. One of our customers got a custom built targeting High Sierra (10.13). It wasn't easy to find such a machine for building and even when I did, I didn't have access to test the build.

For now, 10.10 is officially unsupported, If you are interested, I can send you the High Sierra version to see whther it works for you. Alternatively I'll try looking for some older machines to build Songcorder there, but it may not be easy.

Thanks for your interest!
donuk
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by donuk »

Sounds interesting. But another, free, approach on a Mac is to....

Connect turntable to a standard preamplifier using the RIAA curve on that.
Feed the audio into the Mac sound card.
Use Audacity to record.
Note, with Catalina, Audacity needs to be launched via Terminal to overcome permissions problems.
Just sayin'......

Donuk
DoomHammer
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by DoomHammer »

Sure, there are other ways to record the sound from the turntable.

Keep in mind that if you connect analogue source to the soundcard of your computer you are limited to the ADC quality of your soundcard. While this may be acceptable for a lot of purposes, I think the ADC in most soundcards is inferior to those found in Linn DSM (or DS with Urika II).

The entire point of Songcorder is to use the best possible ADC in the chain.
matthias
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by matthias »

DoomHammer wrote: 2020-09-27 17:53 The entire point of Songcorder is to use the best possible ADC in the chain.
How do you do the RIAA?
Thanks

Matt
Matt

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DoomHammer
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by DoomHammer »

matthias wrote: 2020-09-27 18:31
DoomHammer wrote: 2020-09-27 17:53 The entire point of Songcorder is to use the best possible ADC in the chain.
How do you do the RIAA?
Thanks

Matt
I don't. Suppose you have an LP12 and suppose you have a Slipsik. You connect the Slipsik to the DSM of your choice and the ADC converts the signal to digital. The ADC in Majik/3 and below gives you 24/96, Majik/4, Selekt, Akurate and above gives you 24/192.

Alternatively, you can use Urika 2 with a DS of your choice as it does not require analogue input.

Other than Linn DSM, Songcorder should also be compatible with Lumin, Auralic, TEAC, and Esoteric products, though it hasn't been yet tested with them (testers welcome).
matthias
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by matthias »

DoomHammer wrote: 2020-09-27 18:39 I don't. Suppose you have an LP12 and suppose you have a Slipsik. You connect the Slipsik to the DSM of your choice and the ADC converts the signal to digital. The ADC in Majik/3 and below gives you 24/96, Majik/4, Selekt, Akurate and above gives you 24/192.

Alternatively, you can use Urika 2 with a DS of your choice as it does not require analogue input.

Other than Linn DSM, Songcorder should also be compatible with Lumin, Auralic, TEAC, and Esoteric products, though it hasn't been yet tested with them (testers welcome).
So your HP is somewhat misleading:

Connect your turntable to the network streamer (see the list of compatible devices) and your network streamer to the network. Once your device is connected, your favorite sound will seamlessly transfer to Songcorder running on your computer.

Connect your turntable to your phono preamp.......

Matt
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DoomHammer
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by DoomHammer »

matthias wrote: 2020-09-27 18:44 So your HP is somewhat misleading:

Connect your turntable to the network streamer (see the list of compatible devices) and your network streamer to the network. Once your device is connected, your favorite sound will seamlessly transfer to Songcorder running on your computer.

Connect your turntable to your phono preamp.......

Matt
You're right!

Sorry about that, I will fix it soon.
DoomHammer
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by DoomHammer »

Hope it's better now?
songcorder_tt_connection.png
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DoomHammer
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by DoomHammer »

DoomHammer wrote: 2020-09-27 17:53 Sure, there are other ways to record the sound from the turntable.

Keep in mind that if you connect analogue source to the soundcard of your computer you are limited to the ADC quality of your soundcard. While this may be acceptable for a lot of purposes, I think the ADC in most soundcards is inferior to those found in Linn DSM (or DS with Urika II).

The entire point of Songcorder is to use the best possible ADC in the chain.
BTW: the process will be free only if you already have a decent soundcard. If you don't, I doubt you'll be able to find one at the price of Songcorder!
ITB
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by ITB »

Nice and simple GUI. I have made lots recordings with Songcorder and it works very well for me. And with the new GUI it's very easy. Do you have made other changes in this version of Songcorder?
DoomHammer
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Re: Songcorder: record your vinyl as digital

Post by DoomHammer »

ITB wrote: 2020-10-05 21:08 Nice and simple GUI. I have made lots recordings with Songcorder and it works very well for me. And with the new GUI it's very easy. Do you have made other changes in this version of Songcorder?
We've done a lot of changes "under the hood". We've updated the OpenHome libraries among others. The aim was to improve the stability and user experience.
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