Audio Preservation Links
These pages were correct at the end of 2009 but are no longer maintained
Note that links on this page appear in no particular order. Use your browser's 'Find on page' function to find keywords of interest within this set.
| Access to Audio recordings - Folk Heritage Collections in Crisis, report 2001 | Stating the Obvious: Lessons Learned Attempting Access to Archival Audio Collections |
| Audio Preservation and Restoration, Music Library, University of Washington | Audio Preservation and Restoration: including some links to film and video tape preservation. A list of references and links by John R. Gibbs |
| Graduate Certificate in Audiovisual Archiving | Charles Sturt University is offering subjects which lead to the award of a Graduate Certificate in Audiovisual Archiving. All subjects are available in distance education mode through the Internet. Working practitioners can complete the program in their own time over two years. |
| Akustyk - Improving Signal Acquisition | Signal acquisition is the foundation of successful field research. In a series of posts, I try to describe a few of the essential principles of field recording that are geared towards improving accuracy, consistency, reliability, and generalizability of speech data. I try to emphasize the importance of recording technique and understanding basic engineering and acoustic principles over equipment choices per se. |
| BBC online training | Free online training modules, primarily aimed at anyone who is working for, with or alongside the BBC, so the modules still contain some specific references to BBC procedures, methods and services. Some modules useful for sound recording are: BBC Microphones and Sound for Radio, BBC Minidisc for Radio, BBC: DV Camera Shooting Guides. |
| Care and handling of recorded sound materials | Sound recordings are machine readable artifacts; they are documents for which the integrity of the information they contain is directly related to the artifacts' physical well being. Since the majority of sound recordings are made of plastic, conservation must be treated as a plastics degradation problem, requiring a different approach than paper conservation. It is important to understand the basic chemical degenerative processes and the principles of the retention of sound by the various media in order to ensure that proper action is taken to slow the rate of degradation. |
| Care of Sound Recordings, National Library of New Zealand | Most sound-carrying materials gradually disintegrate over time. Recordings are subject to both chemical and mechanical damage. Lacquer discs are unstable and have a relatively short life while wax cylinders and many shellac discs deteriorate more slowly. The rate of deterioration is influenced by the way recordings are handled and the conditions in which they are stored. The following information will help prolong the life of valuable sound recordings. |
| Power solutions in the field: Using an accumulator | We conducted research and tests in regard to the situation of a field linguist who needs to power a laptop computer and possibly other equipment (recorders, charging devices, lighting etc) where mains power is not available, or inconsistently available. |
| CD-Recordable FAQ | A list of FAQ on CD burning |
| Cube-Tec Audio Workstation | Cube-tec make software for audio digitisation |
| Cylinder, Disk and Tape Care in a Nutshell, Library of Congress | Plenty of advice on handling and storage of audio material. |
| DAT-heads site | This is the WWW home page for the DAT-Heads mailing list. DAT-Heads concerns itself with Digital Audio Tape decks, with an emphasis on their use for the recording and distribution of live music. |
| Digital audio at the National Library of Canada | Technicalities of digital audio |
| Directory of Information Sources on Scientific Research Related to the Preservation of Sound Recordings, Still and Moving Images and Magnetic Tape, 1993 | Discussion of issues around format obsolescence. "The life of the medium on which electronic information is stored depends not only on the rate of the medium's physical decay, but also on the life expectancy of the technology used to write to and read from that medium." |
| Discribe recording and editing software | Discribe 5.0 is the most comprehensive CD and DVD (yes, DVD too!) mastering software available on the Macintosh. Discribe provides the ideal solution for one-off CD and DVD production. Discribe brings the world of multimedia to your fingertips, allowing you to create your own data CD and DVDs, CD and DVD Audio, DVD video on CD or DVD and mixed-mode discs for personal or professional use. |
| Manual of Analogue Sound Resoration Techniques, by Peter Copeland for the British Library, 2008. | An aid to audio engineers and audio archivists, this manual gives details of some of the techniques to be followed when old sound recordings are transferred to more modern carriers. It is aimed primarily at the professional archivist transferring them to conserve them, and it is generally assumed that the purpose is TO PRESERVE THE ORIGINAL SOUND. Note that some information, particularly on digital conversion in chapter 3, is outdated. |
| Format listening tests: CD and MD | Comparison of auditory perception of different reccording types. |
| How to Care for your Audio Collection, ScreenSound Australia | How long will audio tapes and discs last? ¥ How should tapes and discs be handled and stored? Will tapes and discs last longer if they are not used? Will household appliances accidentally damage/erase tapes and discs? How can you clean or restore tapes and discs? What precautions should you take with audio tape players, tapes and discs? Should head cleaning tapes be used regularly on tape players? Can tapes and discs used in Australia be used on overseas machines? How can I protect my audio equipment and collection in the event of a disaster (eg floods, bushfires, etc)? Fire Affected Audio Materials |
| International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives (IASA) Safeguarding of Audio Heritage | The present document identifies problem areas and proposes recommended practices for sound and AV archives for today's technical environment. These recommendations are a balance between the ideal situation and the real world that we inhabit. They are intended to help the reader to focus on the various issues relating to responsible audio archiving practice. At the same time it uses a consistent terminology and may be read by people with technical as well as financial responsibility for a collection. |
| Macfixit Forums - troubleshooting CD and CD-RW (includes toast etc) | Multimedia Troubleshooting (Any OS) >> CD, CD-RW, DVD |
| Magnetic tape deterioration, 1993 | List discussion of problems found with magnetic tape and how to deal with them. |
| Mini Disk Decks | General information on Mini Disk decks. |
| PCAVTech Sound Card Test Ratings Comparison | The PC AV Tech Brings You: Computer Soundcard tests, CD-R Media tests etc. |
| Peak 4 - professional level sound editing | Soundsoap Pro, The Universal Restoration Solution |
| PMD660 Portable Solid State Recorder | Our newest PMD recorder is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, but it has features that make more expensive, full-sized field recorders green with envy. It can run for hours on just four AA batteries. It records on Compact Flash media cards which you can find in any discount store, and will store more than 36 hours of mono on a single card. If audio quality is your key requirement, you get over an hour of pristine, uncompressed, 16-bit .wav files. Editing can be achieved right there in the field using either of two editing modes, or you can use your favorite audio editing application by transferring files to your PC-the PMD660 even has its own USB port. XLR inputs, phantom power, built-in mics and more-it's all there in the PMD660. |
| PMD680 PC Card Recorder by Marantz Professional | The PMD670 Solid State Recorder features non-stop record with 7 hours of battery life, a menu-driven remote operation, and an EDL marking system for creating new files on-the-fly during the recording for easy file selection during playback. Users are assured a high-quality recording result due to the built-in lock down panels that secure the recording setting switches and media door from accidental changes in-the-field. |
| Preserving Access to Digital Information (PADI) | PADI is a subject gateway to international digital preservation resources |
| Procedures for Recovering Audio and Sound Recording Materials, Syracuse University Library Disaster Recovery Plan 2009 | The Syracuse University Library Disaster Recovery Plan for library materials outlines procedures for salvaging a wide variety of library materials in the event of a disaster of minor emergency. |
| Raygun 1.2 noise reduction app | Ray Gun is a vinyl & tape restoration for Windows & MacOS. With Ray Gun, the noise zapper, you can clean up old vinyl and tape recordings in a snap. |
| Transcribe! - Shareware music transcription program | The Transcribe! application is an assistant for people who sometimes want to work out a piece of music from a recording, in order to write it out, or play it themselves, or both. |
| USB gadget for good audio output from your computer | Link the music in your computer with the power of your home audio system |
| Vidipax - Audiotape restoration | The VidiPaxª archival audio service is designed and customized for preservation and is significantly different from systems used in audio postproduction, recording or duplication facilities. Our aim for preservation is to achieve the highest-quality reproduction and recording without losing the integrity of the original. The VidiPaxª audio archival service specializes in the remastering of analog open-reel tapes. The equipment we use for this process is highly specialized for optimum playback of the original record format. |
| Virtual Cutter | The Virtual Cutter, is an easy to use web-based application developed by the University of Groningen that allows users to create a clip; a selection of a streaming media file between any given starting point and end point. |
| Saving Sounds: Preserving Audio Collections | Saving Sounds: Preserving Audio Collections, conference held in the newly renovated Harry Ransom Humanities Center on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin, July 24-26, 2003. |
| AIATSIS - Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies | AIATSIS is an independent Commonwealth Government statutory authority devoted to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander studies. It is Australia's premier institution for information about the cultures and lifestyles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. |
| British National Library Sound Archive | The International Music Collection is one of the world's largest collections of recordings variously described as traditional, folk or 'world' music. It encompasses most musical traditions of the world with recorded performances dating from the infancy of sound recording to the present day. |
| AILLA The Archive of the Indigenous Languages of Latin America | AILLA is a digital archive of recordings and texts in and about the indigenous languages of Latin America. Access to archive resources is free of charge. Most of the resources in the AILLA database are available to the public, but some have special access restrictions. |
| The Computer Assisted Language Worker | This is a guide to resources available for linguists interested in using computers to assist their work. We give information on how to use the software, and provide links to other sites of a similar kind. The aim of these pages is not to deal with large scale corpus issues (which are already dealt with at other sites), but to help in small scale projects, typically a single researcher working on a previously undescribed language. |
| Kodak info on permanence, care and handling of CDs | Long life for any information storage medium is always a combination of manufacturers' and users' responsibilities. As a manufacturer of recordable CD products, Kodak believes strongly in sharing information that helps users of CD technology understand all aspects of CD longevity. |
| Why Digitise? | Includes a rationale for audio digitization for fieldworkers, description of a particular project, and links to useful online resources. |
| Coaster 1.1.3 FREE software for burning CDs | "Coaster 1.1.3 is a freeware Direct-to-Disk Audio Recording Software for PowerMac computers. It creates files in uncompressed AIFF format, suitable for processing in Sample Editing Software or burning Audio CDs using e.g. Discribe or Toast It creates files in uncompressed AIFF format, suitable for processing in Sample Editing Software or burning Audio CDs using e.g. Discribe or Toast" |
| Felt Tip sound studio recording and editing software | Sound Studio is a Mac OS X application (an older version is available for Mac OS 9.1 through 9.2.2) for working with digital audio. Digitize vinyl records and tapes, record live performances, create your own mixes with crossfades, tweak the levels and EQ, apply digital effects, and save in several file formats with Sound Studio. The free trial download is fully-functional for 14 days. |
| Summary of analog to digital software from Linguist List | Below is a summary of the responses that were sent to my query about analog/digital sound. |
| Linguist List - field recording equipment | A discussion of the merits of various kinds of recording equipment. |
| The Basics of Digital Audio | In order to create the best possible sounds of your own, it is important to know something about digital sound. In this article I will try to explain to you, in plain English, some things which will hopefully help you a lot. |
| Inventors: Sound Recording History | Resources on the history of audio recording technology. |
| Recording Digital Sound - UKOLN / AHDS Quality Assurance Document | The digitisation of digital audio can be a complex process. This document contains quality assurance techniques for producing effective audio content, taking into consideration the impact of sample rate, bit-rate and file format. |
| Sound Recording, Microphones, Hans Rausing Endangered Languages Project | For language documentation and archiving, it is important to record the best possible sound quality. Different microphones have different capabilities, strengths and weaknesses, and a fieldworker should have a (small) variety of microphones for handling different situations and choose appropriately. |
| Audio/Video Capture and Management, NINCH Guide to Good Practice | Despite differences in format and standards, the fundamental issues for capture, storage and management of audio and video are quite similar and will therefore be considered together. This article looks at the motives for digitisation and why sample projects have chosen particular digitisation strategies, briefly describes the decision points and principles of audio and video capture, outlines the main standards and formats and their suitability for different access scenarios, and considers options for delivery and management. |
