Help Me Start, Please!, Need advice on what to buy. :-) Options

[ibnabouna]

Hello,

I have a question for all of the professional audio buffs that hang around here.

On my not-so-spare time, I build and run the web site at http://www.coptichymns.net/ , which is dedicated to the digitization and preservation of rare hymns of the ancient Coptic Orthodox Church (talk about niche market, huh).

Anyway, I currently encode all of my audio in RealAudio format via RealProducer Basic. I have a USB iMic connected to my DP G4, which, in turn, is connected to my stereo's headphone check. This is an extremely simple setup, I know.

I would like to begin doing more "hardcore" digitizing. My major concern at this point is that cable going from the stereo's headphone jack to the iMic. I think I would get better performance and quality from an RCA cable instead, right? Unfortunately, my stereo doesn't have that jack, so I guess I need to buy a completely new tape deck to play these ancient tapes and get the best possible quality for further optimization.

Now that you have my story, can anyone suggest a good quality tape deck that works well with Macs? Any other suggestions as to how I can make this endeavor more productive?

Thanks so much in advance.

[formatj]

Presto,

Here is info from TCWorks website for "Denoiser" from Spark XL

"The Denoiser is optimised for broadband noise and utilizes a fingerprint method, so it is easy to control the behaviour. Only 3 parameters are required to finetune the denoising process – and the audition function ensures that only noise is removed, not your material!"

So yes, it does remove hiss from all sections of music including pianissimo ones.

I own Spark, not Spark XL, however I have seen/heard it in action and was amazed by the results. I will definitely upgrade to XL at some stage.

The Waves restoration bundle has similar types of plugins. They are available in VST version. Ibnabouna, you may want to download a demo to see what they can do when you have your system set up.

I also don't think 96kHz is necessary for ibnabouna now however just like phantom power + preamps from the Mbox it is an extra feature not required now but is there for the future.
He can add a preamp + phantom power later to the audiophile system if required.

I think M-box is a good solution for certain requirements, especially a portable system with a laptop for recordings with a microphone. It's probably just not necessary for transferring material from casette tapes.