This is the page for converting analogue audio, video and photographs to digital format(s). Having your audio and video in digital format(s) makes a lot of sense, especially for the following reasons:
- Physical size and portability. An 18TB HDD can store:
- The equivalent of approximately 3,830 full typical S-VHS cassettes, or:
- The equivalent of approximately 65,934 full typical 12-inch LP vinyl records, or:
- The equivalent of approximately 32,967 full typical compact audio cassettes of the longest length, or:
- The equivalent of approximately 3,177,931 UHD/4K (3,840 x 2160 pixels) photographs in high quality JPG/JPEG (the most common photograph format) format.
- Ease of copying and sharing. Your photographs, audio and video can easily be shared over the internet or by transporting an external portable flash drive or SSD or HDD.
- No deterioration in quality. Analogue media will deteriorate over time and usage. Data stored digitally will not; it will remain exactly the same for ever provided you have a sufficient backup strategy in the case of storage device failure.
- Ease of access. Having all your media in one place that is easily and quickly searchable.
NB: Please note that in accordance with Australian copyright law we will not copy music for someone who is not the artist or if the artist did not die at least 70 years ago or 50 years ago if they died before 1 January, 1955. In accordance with the law if you have copyrighted analogue media you wish to digitise we can show you how to do it and even lend you the equipment but you will have to format-shift yourself.
Photographs, Negatives and Slides
Do it once, right. We scan in 48 bit depth in the (uncompressed) TIFF format using Epson’s Perfection V850 Pro which is the best A4 scanner we are aware of, with an RRP of $1,555. The software we use is Silverscan 9 Ai Studio. Photographs are important and it is not cost-effective to buy a premium scanner just for your own needs. Scanning in lots of photographs can also be very time-consuming. Let us get the best results for you from your precious photographs, film and slides.
Fees: we charge $2 per photograph scanned at 300 DPI which is the recommended photograph resolution which for a 4″ x 6″ photograph works out to be roughly about 1750 x 1150 pixels and 12MB, depending on the photograph. Scanning at 600 DPI (with a typical 4″ x 6″ file size of ~42MB) costs $4 per photograph as it takes longer to scan, with each increment (to 1200 DPI, to 2400 DPI, to 4800 DPI) costing twice as much.
Video Cassettes
Do it once, right. For VHS cassettes we use JVC’s HR-S9700EU S-VHS video cassette player which is a high end unit that cost $1,462.55, Canopus’ ADVC-55 (Advanced Digital Video Converter) which sells second hand for ~$275 connected via IEEE 1394 (which is known in the Apple Mac world as Firewire), Evergreen’s 3m RCA to RCA Analog Audio Interconnect Cable that cost $75 and a Neotech S-Video cable. Though it may not technically be an analogue form, we can convert MiniDV cassettes to computer file format and/or DVD using Panasonic’s NV-GS150. For Digital8 (though it may not technically be an analogue form), Hi8 and Video8 cassettes we use Sony’s DCR-TRV460E which cost $599. If there is another format of video cassette you want digitised then please let us know and we will try to source the necessary hardware. Cassettes deteriorate over time even if you do not use them so if you have cassettes you are fond of then the sooner you get them digitised the better.
Fees: We charge $40 to convert a video cassette to DVD or to a video file on an external HDD/SSD or USB flash drive. If you need us to supply DVD or external HDD/SSD or USB flash drive provided that will cost extra. A standard DVD with case will cost $2 and an extra-length DVD with case will cost $5.
Audio Cassettes
For audio cassette digitising we use the Yamaha K-300 cassette deck which cost $359 plus postage and for input to the computer I use Creative’s Sound Blaster AE-9 which cost $459.95 via Wireworld’s Stream Audio Interconnect Cable Pair which cost $69. The K-300 is not very high-end nor is it cheap and nasty. Cassettes deteriorate over time even if you do not use them so if you have cassettes you are fond of then the sooner you get them digitised the better.
Fees: We charge $30 per side plus $5 per side for chopping the audio up into tracks. If you need us to supply CD or external HDD/SSD or USB flash drive provided that will cost extra with a CD and case costing $2.
Vinyl Records
It is possible to spend tens of thousands of dollars on a vinyl record setup and in our opinion the cost is not worth it. The cost of converting your old records to digital format(s) would need to be huge to make the money back. We use a Denon DP 450 USB Turntable which costs $1,099 and we believe is a good compromise between convenience, quality and affordability and it is the highest quality turntable with a direct USB connection that we are aware of. For cleaning I use the Knosti Record Cleaning Machine which cost $160. Ideally you should purchase lossless high-resolution digital audio from somewhere like HDtracks. There are other stores but HDtracks has the biggest range we are aware of. The problem is often the high-resolution digital audio is not available. Regarding audio quality: some people prefer CD quality while others prefer vinyl. If you can’t find CD quality or better copies of the audio you want then contact us and get us to convert you audio to digital format(s) for you or provide you with a way to do it yourself.
Fees: I charge $15 per side plus $5 per side for chopping the audio up into tracks. If you need me to supply CD or external HDD/SSD or USB flash drive provided that will cost extra with a CD and case costing $2. Record cleaning can be provided at a cost of $5 per record. In case you require us to come to you, there is a $60 call-out fee for all jobs in the Belconnen area. For the rest of Canberra north of Lake Burley Griffin the call-out fee is $90 and for the rest of Canberra and Queanbeyan the call-out fee is $160.