AUDIO RESTORATION

by Ron Tipton

Last updated: 29 May 2008

As we are using the term, audio restoration is the process of copying audio (speech or music) from the original media (disc or tape) to a computer’s hard drive, removing clicks, pops, hiss and other noise using appropriate software and then writing the “cleaned up” audio to a CD or DVD. If the original media is a shellac or vinyl record, the first step is washing the disc.

In this revision, I’m separating the text into chapters to make updating easier. I’m also making the chapters available as downloadable Adobe Acrobat (pdf) files so you can easily print the ones you need for later reference. Each chapter will also contain a “last updated” date in the heading so you easily see if you need print or download it.

Chapter 1: Washing Discs (1 Nov 2005)

Chapter 2: Copying the Original: 78 RPM Records (28 Nov 2005)

Chapter 3: Copying the Original: 45 RPM Records (1 Nov 2005)

Chapter 4: Copying the Original: LP Records (1 Nov 2005)

Chapter 5: Copying the Original: Reel-to-reel tape (1 Nov 2005)

Chapter 6: Copying the Original: Audio Cassette (1 Nov 2005)

Chapter 7: Clean-up Software (29 May 2008)

Chapter 8: Writing to CD (3 Nov 2005)

Chapter 9: Writing to DVD (26 Nov 2005)

Chapter 10: Application Notes (18 Feb 2008)

Chapter 11: Cleaning and Playing Cylinders (28 April 2008)

Case Study 1: Restoration of Music on 50 Year Old, 1/4 inch Reel-to-reel Magnetic Tape