transfering vinyl records to digital format

[endre1952]

Does it make sense to transfer vinyl records to digital format in 24-bit resolution or a sampling rate higher than 44khz? I think my Asus Xonar HDAV 1.3 PCI-E card should be capable of recording at 24/96.

[Alistair]

Yes, i recommend you see HydrogenAudio's forums for an excellent explanation, specifically:
http://www.hydrogenaudio.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=49473

But search the forums, there are literally tens of threads discussing this issue. And the forum is the supreme one for audio discussion and facts, not opinions.


For a quick opinion

Recording at 24/96 (or 24/88.2) is generally not a bad idea for new recordings, and then converting down from there. Setting your recording program to record at 32-bit float and 88 or 96 is a good idea too.
however for vinyl 16/44.1 settings in your sound card are probably fine, just oversample (record at 32/88) in your recording program to eliminate loss and dither and downsample to 16/44 from there.

BTW, converting 88.2 to 44.1 is a lot quicker, easier and more reliable than 96 to 44.1, because mathematically it's a straight 2/1 conversion.


- Alistair