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belizesailor · 02-07-2015, 15:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stu Jackson

How do you get the music from the PHD to your stereo system?

I've got an older Sony car stereo system with a 10 disk CD changer (circa 2007). I can play my old iPod nano (tiny) through the cassette tape adapter. OK, OK, I still have cassettes with some great stuff on them. Probably the last cassette deck ever made!

I also have a roatary dial cell phone.

IIRC, I could get something to plug into the RCA jacks on the back of the head end unit.

Any suggestions? Do they make a USB to RCA adapter? The unit doesn't have an aux input plug on the front.

I also have the instruction manual for the

You could use an FM Transmitter. Inexpensive and will broadcast any audio input via a weak FM signal. Then just tune your radio to it...does it still have a dial? ;-)

Or, take it by a good electronics shop and have them add an Aux In. Not hard to do on most. I've still got the old stereo in my Jeep because I like keeping the original look, but its modified like this.

You can also get Bluetooth adaptors that will drive your old speakers directly.

belizesailor · 02-07-2015, 15:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by colemj

You took a step backwards at the end of your transition there...

Until just a few months ago, Apple made a 160GB iPod - which was way big enough for even our large collection. Unfortunately, they just discontinued it and do not make one that can hold all our music now.

Hope our current one lasts.

Mark

Ha, I've still got an old 20GB iPod and use something like 18% !

socaldmax · 02-07-2015, 15:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by colemj

You took a step backwards at the end of your transition there...

Until just a few months ago, Apple made a 160GB iPod - which was way big enough for even our large collection. Unfortunately, they just discontinued it and do not make one that can hold all our music now.

Hope our current one lasts.

Mark

Cowboom.com has 4 of them in stock (pre-owned), black, for $179 ea. if you want to get a backup one before it's too late. I've bought a few items from them at huge discounts (Ipod Touch, HD camcorder and Samsung 10.1" tablet) and all were advertised as being slightly scratched. However, when I got them, they looked brand new when viewed with a magnifier and all have performed flawlessly. Cowboom gives a very generous return period, with no questions asked. It's the online scratch/dent department of Best Buy, great deals.

Here's the link to the Ipods.Apple MC297LL/A iPod Classic 160GB 7th Gen - Black - CowBoom.com

belizesailor · 02-07-2015, 15:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by socaldmax

I prefer WD My Passport USB drives, about the size of a wallet, no external power supply. I have about 2TB of movies, over 1TB of TV shows and close to 1TB (and growing) of music in MP3 format.

I can play them on my laptops or through my WD TV Live! media player, or plug the music one into any stereo with a USB input. If the stereo has folder or file limitations, that's something that can be dealt with, given a little time and effort.

My music is sorted by Artist folder, album folder, then tracks in numerical order.

Storage densities these days are mind boggling. I remember getting an early 5MB (yep, MB ) disk drive in the lab. It was the size of a microwave oven!

socaldmax · 02-07-2015, 15:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by belizesailor

You could use an FM Transmitter. Inexpensive and will broadcast any audio input via a weak FM signal. Then just tune your radio to it...does it still have a dial? ;-)

Or, take it by a good electronics shop and have them add an Aux In. Not hard to do on most. I've still got the old stereo in my Jeep because I like keeping the original look, but its modified like this.

You can also get Bluetooth adaptors that will drive your old speakers directly.

FM transmitters are a great idea! I still have a couple laying around from when we used to raft up a bunch of performance boats on Lake Havasu. They all had 1,000 -4,000 watt stereos, but the biggest problem was the Sirius radio receivers all had a different amount of time delay from decoding the signal, so we'd plug an Ipod or 1 Sirius receiver into the FM transmitter then use the FM radios in all of the boats to get thunderous sound all in synch.

colemj · 02-07-2015, 15:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by hellosailor

I think someone at Apple wanted to shift users to subscription music instead.

It is easy to hate Apple and to be suspicious of their motives, but in the case of canceling their big iPod, it was because the last manufacturer on earth of the small HD used in it ceased production. Apple had no choice. I suspect the solid state iPod models will eventually get to those capacities as the tech becomes available for the right prices.

Or the vast majority of consumers will move on to consuming their music in a different way - leaving us cruisers and our ways in a tiny minority.

That's the way it always has been for us in everything, but it is the price we pay for our lifestyle.

Mark

Stu Jackson · 02-07-2015, 15:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by belizesailor

You could use an FM Transmitter. Inexpensive and will broadcast any audio input via a weak FM signal. Then just tune your radio to it...does it still have a dial? ;-)

Or, take it by a good electronics shop and have them add an Aux In. Not hard to do on most. I've still got the old stereo in my Jeep because I like keeping the original look, but its modified like this.

You can also get Bluetooth adaptors that will drive your old speakers directly.

Thanks. I do have one of those FM transmitters, but the sound that comes out is very poor, hence the cassette adapter.

Good idea about the aux jack, I'll look into it. I have to also RTFM, too.

Finally get to use RTFM on myself!!!

Stu Jackson · 02-07-2015, 15:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by hellosailor

Stu-
I always used to listen to albums by album, no mix tapes, and no great fondness for "Best of" collections if I could get the real deal. But in the evil car, I labored for days to figure out how to get an entire USB stick to random play. Evil machine won't let me random play "from this folder down" so I had to put the polka music on one stick, and all the yodelling on another. But, at least I got it to random play "a stick" so in the car, it is always "My Radio Station" and rarely albums. If I try to un-random it...I never quite get it back on the first try. Or second. And definitely can't do that while driving.

An iPod big enough for all your music? Well, the discontinued iPod Classic with a 160GB hard drive might do it, in mp3 format. But that's obsolete, anything that can play digital music and take a 128GB micro-SDXC card in it (not SD, not SDHC, but SDXC) can make a good dent. Newer stuff can take a 256GB micro card in it, and you can do some damn nice storage on that.(G)

Too funny. Mix the yodelling with the polka and you've got a winner!

I wasn't speaking of pre-recorded Best of... but mixes I make myself. Many times the prerecorded Best of... include stuff I don't necessarily think of as Best.

I'll look into the discontinued iPods and these newfangled thingies.

Thanks again.

colemj · 02-07-2015, 15:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by belizesailor

Ha, I've still got an old 20GB iPod and use something like 18% !

Yes, Milli Vanilli's complete catalog is convenient that way...

Mark

hellosailor · 02-07-2015, 16:40

Mark-
' I suspect the solid state iPod models will eventually get to those capacities as the tech becomes available for the right prices." The tech has been cheap for years now. The same tech that they already use, just needs a small push from "embedded" to "micro SDXC card slot" the same slot that's already in most cell phones for years now. What's it cost, a buck? And the SDXC standard will accept something like 4TB, way beyond the 64GB that most readers (and phones) stop at today. Which probably just means someone has to use a 64-bit chip instead of a 32-bit or 16-bit in their design. Another fifty cents.

Of course the folks who use the $200-1000 digital players often rip into Apple for using lousy mp3 quality and cheap analog-to-digital converter chips, making a huge profit on a mundane audio player. Could be Apple has no interest in being a leader on this. Or as Dr. Dre said before he sold them the Beats brand "I couldn't believe the incredible markup on this stuff!" Ah.......

Stu-
You CAN move those cassettes to digital. The process takes a bit of time, but isn't difficult or expensive. Before the recorder dies--as they all do--basically?
You play each tape, in real time.
Run the line output of the tape deck to a Behringer (or other) inexpensive analog-to-digital converter. About the size of a soap bar. RCA plugs in one side, USB cord out the other. That plugs into the USB on your computer.
Then you run Audacity, a professional quality free music editor on the PC. You can watch the levels on screen, try to adjust the USB volume settings on the computer and in Audacity so the music almost hits peaks, the same way you'd adjust recording levels on a tape. OK, some stuff will be too loud or soft, so you may need to play each tape two or three times to get it right.
Now your tape has been digitized. You mark and split the tracks, export them to whatever format you please, and voila, your tapes are now superfluous.
I find that doing the conversion while I'm reading the mail or watching the news...you know, multitask and it doesn't seem to take up so much time.
Not totally simple, there's always a learning curve and always some adjusting of hardware and levels to get started, but once you get it set up? Easy, just needs the "real time" to play and transfer.

socaldmax · 02-07-2015, 17:25

I wouldn't bother converting cassettes to mp3, not even when I still had my Nakamichi deck. I'd either buy the CD (used) at the swap meet, or just DL it via torrent.

Speaking of older stuff...

I had about 400 LPs, all pristine, in plastic sleeves, dust free, played only on my Bang&Olufsen turntable. About 15 yrs ago, I gave them to my old neighbor for Christmas because he still listened to LPs but had a crappy turntable. About a year later, his alcoholic wife (a polite term in this instance) destroyed the turntable in a fit of rage. She's still alive, BTW.

Fast fwd to now...

I was shocked to recently see good to excellent quality LPs selling online for $30 to over $100!!! AAARRRRGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

If only I had known...

belizesailor · 02-07-2015, 18:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by socaldmax

I wouldn't bother converting cassettes to mp3, not even when I still had my Nakamichi deck. I'd either buy the CD (used) at the swap meet, or just DL it via torrent.

Speaking of older stuff...

I had about 400 LPs, all pristine, in plastic sleeves, dust free, played only on my Bang&Olufsen turntable. About 15 yrs ago, I gave them to my old neighbor for Christmas because he still listened to LPs but had a crappy turntable. About a year later, his alcoholic wife (a polite term in this instance) destroyed the turntable in a fit of rage. She's still alive, BTW.

Fast fwd to now...

I was shocked to recently see good to excellent quality LPs selling online for $30 to over $100!!! AAARRRRGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

If only I had known...

Been there done that...or at least similar. I used to be into high end audio gear too and had Nakamichi and B & O components. Gave it all to my teenaged stepson when we took off cruising. I'll probably burn in audiophile hell for that...no doubt while listening to Mili Vanili.

All the classic vinyl, many digital masters, went to GoodWill. Be worth at least a few boat bucks now!

belizesailor · 02-07-2015, 18:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by colemj

Yes, Milli Vanilli's complete catalog is convenient that way...

Mark

Arf, Arf...mostly Delta Blues for me.

hellosailor · 02-07-2015, 19:46

LPs...yes, couldn't even give away some of the "master quality" limited pressings. Then years later...

But there's a good reason to digitize old tapes. I had a (crappy commercial) tape of Judy Collins third album, which was stolen from a locked car trunk along with two dozen other tapes. It was OUT OF PRINT and no replacement available for over 20 years, on LP or any other media. Eventually, it was re-released on CD as "Judy Collins #3". I'm sure that somewhere, in some used record store, there must have been a copy. Pre-internet? Right, go walk the streets and find it.

Then there was a CSN album that I had as an LP, and yes, replaced with a CD. Except after maybe ten years to CD broke and when I went to replace it? The new CD's were remastered, the originals no longer available. Maybe the recording engineer was trying to compensate for aging ears with a treble fall-off, but they pushed some of the instruments so much more than the original (which I still had on metal tape, also make on a Nak) that it sounded like they'd gone to a skating rink or a carousel.

Don't rashly assume that *any* release, re-release, etc. of "the same" album will ever be the same. It often isn't, at all. Sometimes, it can be worth working with the old source, especially if that was a quality tape, rather than the cheap commercial ones.

Then I have tapes I made from live concerts broadcast on the radio...Simply not available on any commercial source.

And there's a funny thing about CDs these days. You know, when an album is of a live concert, the way that one song ends, someone does a blurb, there's a break or applause before the next lead-in and the next song, so the natural place to break the track always was IN BETWEEN the lead-out and the next lead-in?

That's not done on a lot of the CD releases of the same albums! You'll often here "this track" ends without the lead-out, but "that track" actually begins with the lead-out from the last one, plus the break, plus the new lead-in. Or sometimes, a track ends with the lead-in that should have been attached to the NEXT track. Really sounds like crap when you're playing a mix of cuts and they make no sense that way.

There's a lot of simply cheap inexcusable crap on CDs these days, that would never have been tolerated in LP days. Maybe the new "engineers" are folks who simply don't speak any English at all, and have no idea what they are editing.

Dunno. But I do know, the metal tapes I painstakingly made on my Nak? Were and are totally equal to CD quality, and digitizing them has maintained quality that is indistinguishable from CD. I don't mind the performers earning a living--but those cheap *ing bloodsucking vampires at the recording companies can go *** themselves before I'll let myself be ripped off by them again, if I have any other alternative.