I am not ripping my lps to store them, but I have enjoying doing a few and find that at 2496 the sound is amazingly good. Keld and I are getting good at it.

There is something magical about 2496, but I am dying to try 24192, but that will have to wait awhile as my software must be upgraded as well as both of my sound cards. To go 24/192 cheaply does not make sense.

Gald you are enjoying your TT rig. A P3 is very nice.

Me sez: Thanks

Tell us what gear you are using to get your lps into your computer. Also, sound card and software info would help and what your goal is.

Are you looking to digitize your lp collection? I think I read a while back that there is some good software for cataloging your needledrops. I'll bet Jazzfan is on it.

We can surely help.

I just connect the TAPE OUT (on the amp), or the OUT from my phono stage to the LINE IN on the computer with such a cable:

When recording the LP's I use Audacity 1.3 beta to do the job. I record in the flac format, and burn to CD-R afterwards with the CDburnerXP program. That's about it. Audacity can also record in WAV so you can burn with almost any other program.

I use my crappy onboard sound card, but the result is - if not brilliant - then at least satisfying. I do have a little hum from the phono stage though, but it's fairly low. A thing I can't do much about.

I use the $65 Sony Sound Forge Audio Studio program that will record 2496 in my version 9d, but the new version will do 24/192. I love that program.

My sound card is a Behringer FCA 202 2496 firewire ADC and DAC with balanced I/O. I run the tape out of my receiver and run that into a Mackie 802 VLZ3 mixer to control levels easier. Their 602 VLZ3 would work fine and can be bought for $99. it is very quiet and has a great headphone amp if you need it. My noise levels are better then -70db. Once the needle is in the groove I am usually -45db to -50db in unmodulated grooves depending upon the quality of the lp. I use 2 Hosa cables for that rig.

I record only in WAV, using no compression or limiting. I try and keep my levels -2db down from 0. Overs in digital can be bad. You have plenty of dynamic range so there is no need to force levels near 0 all the time.

In Sound Forge I record the full lp side and when finished I will cut and paste each track into a new window and save them separately if I want to get crazy about it and really want full track access. Some I have separated and some I have not.

I then burn them with $40 Audio DVD Creator in DVD+rs at 2496 for playback in any dvd player. The samples I have sent Keld in the PAL format have played perfectly. All of my NTSC discs have played without a hitch.

AT 2496 they sound excellent to me. My son and I are still researching a portable playback device (DVD Player $179 - $199) for the 2496 DVD+Rs and it appears that the Panasonic portable DVD player is the only one with 2496 audio converters and I have sent himn discs to try. Stay tuned.

The recodings through my Echo Indigo I/O card sound just as good as through the Behringer. The Echo input is through a stereo mini jack to 2 phono plugs. The Monster Cable I use is a little thick and stiff, but the quality seems excellent.

For my part, I have nothing to suggest. It seems you got it down completely.

I think the problem is that WMP cannot do 2496 files unless it takes them back to redbook. WMP will not play my 2496 wav pcm files. That is the reason that I use Sony Sound Forge.

Your WavePad program is excellent and works well at 2496. Have you tried the FFT prart of it and viewed your freq resonse? It is a very nice program add in. I used it in my laptop before a computer virus wiped out my laptop and all my programs. I could hear no difference bwteen it and Sound Forge. NCH was actually doing 2496 before Sony did.

Their Switch program is also an excellent conversion program for making MP3s if you needed to.

I think you are on the same track as both myself and Keld. You are only Audio DVD Creator away from making your own 2496 dvds...if that matters to you.

Question: Have you had any issues with tt/cart hum with the Grado and the Rega combo?

Is the "copying" of SACDs and DVD-A from the analog outs of your disc spinner?

Ah, but we must all join the "The First Church of the Universalist Format". Your DVD-A works for you and for Keld, but not for me and my less techy friends. It must play in any DVD player. I am trying to fight this fight you see of all these piddily diddily formats.

Just kidding. My nurse is coming and wants me to put down all the sharp objects. She tells me I can play with my little silver frisbees later.

As far as DVD-A recording, there is a plug-in for the Foobar2000 PC media player, that will let you play and decode DVD-A's. JA mentioned the plug-in in the ASUS soundcard review back in January. It is a pretty slick little app. PM me if you need more info.

I would except that DVD-A is dead as no more players will be made to support it. At least SACD is on life support with players still being made.

I like the fact that I do not need plug-ins of any kind to play my 2496 fiies and when burned on DVD+Rs and they will play in anyone's dvd player without DVD-A decoding. They are just PCM.

What has hampered all these formats (SACD and DVD-A) is the need for decoding or a special player. And now we have this special $750 hi bit rate walkman for playing back hi resolution files. Few will pay that when a good IPod or Somy Media player is out there for way less than that.I don't see that many audiophiles into portable hirez files, especially at $750.

I am still trying to research whether the 2496 equiped portable DVD players from Panasonic($199) will play my 2496 DVD+Rs. My son is to get back to me this week. They are the only portables that have 2496 chipsets.

Same here...