is there a really easy way to transfer music from cassettes to a pc?

Answer 1

There is no easy way.

You have to record the cassette/LP at the speed it plays.

I've been doing it for years.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tools you'll need:

You will need:

A turntable (for LPs and 45s) and/or a tape deck for cassettes
A stereo with amplifier (into which your turntable and/or tape deck connect
A cable that connects your stereo's "Audio Out" connector to your computer's “Line in” connector on your sound card.
A computer with the following specs;
Pentium II 266 computer or better
128 megs of RAM or more
200 MB free space on your hard drive
a soundcard with a “Line in” port
WAV file recording software
WAV to MP3 conversion software
MP3 burning software, if you want to make audio CDs
Let’s talk a little about this list. First you must have the means to actually play the original music.

Vinyl needs a turntable or audio tape needs a tape deck. These older pieces of hardware can still be found in either your local pawn shop, second-hand store or a decent boutique stereo shop or vintage record store. You can get them new here or used at eBay! Or check your Dad's basement. Just be careful not to trip over the the betamax, the CB radio or the 8-track player.

Each component shouldn’t cost more than about $150 or so but remember that cheaper versions can mean cheaper quality which means a poor source from which to record.

Second, you must hook these up through a stereo with an amplifier. The reason for this is that most (though not all) turntables require amplification.

If you hook a turntable directly to a computer chances are the audio will be too faint to properly record. You can try plugging the turntable into the microphone jack, as it does amplify the audio source, however its not ideal.

Next you’ll need a cable that converts the two “Audio Out” RCA jacks from the stereo.

They must be converted to a 1/8 inch “Line In” or "Microphone" jack (sometimes called a mini-jack) on your computer's sound card.

This sort of cable can easily be obtained at Radio Shack or a stereo equipment store.

Software you'll need:

Lastly there’s the software.

MP3 recording software is pretty easy to find. A product I recommend is All Sound Recorder XP
http://software.cyberwalker.com/item.php?i=110

The program has a very straight forward interface that allows you to get up and running quickly. It's available as a fully functional spyware-free 30-day demo.

You might also look at AIPL Singulator - it's software used to record or rip a vinyl album, cassette tape, or any analog audio to your PC. It separates songs when recording and stops when finished.

Answer 2

It's not that easy...but then, it's not rocket science.

Put simply, you will need to connect your cassette player to your PC soundcard, then play the cassette whilst recording on your PC. A step-by-step guide is available at:
http://www.cassette2cd.co.uk/diy
The recording software is the key, there are some free software downloads available at:
http://www.cassette2cd.co.uk/downloads.php
I have used ‘Magix Audio Cleaning Lab’ and ‘Audacity’ – Audacity is particularly popular since it is free!
If you record to WAV format, expect file sizes of around 10MB per minute, or 1MB per minute for MP3 (at 128kbps).
Once you have your digital versions of the recording on your PC, simply burn them on to a CD (Nero burning software or similar..). If you use Magix Audio Cleaning, the software will burn an audio CD for you without needing additional software (assuming you have a CD writing drive of course!)
You can also download a free PDF version of the step-by–step guide from the download page mentioned above, the guide is complete with diagrams and screen-shots.

Answer 3

You need a 3.5mm stereo to stereo plug cable, & the free recording & editing program Audacity. Plug the cable into the headphones socket of your tape player, & the other end into the microphone socket of your PC. Then play the tape & click on Record in Audacity, when the track is finished, click Stop. Then Click on export to wav file. To reduce the huge file size without losing quality import the exported recordings that you make into itunes & convert them to mp3.

Answer 4

try this i use it to grab from video vinyl and cassette (even done 78s) you need to connect a stereo aux plug to the line in on the back of pc an just record from line in you need the lame encoder too available at the site
ps its all free
http://www.audiograbber.com-us.net/download.html

Answer 5

You want the Griffin iMic which comes with free software, connect your player to the PC using the audio out and in ports. The iMic removes all noise and digitises the music.

Answer 6

You need to purchase the machine to do do this and the blank cd's. Machine can be purchased at any electrics store such as Circuit City, etc.

Answer 7

there is only one way and thats the long way,connect a tape deck to your sound card and record the tapes.