Lesson 2: Hardware, and the women who love it. In this session we will discover just what and where we plug in the stuff. First off you need PC, ok that was lame..of course you do. Next you will need a cassette deck. Now hold on, not just ANY old deck, but one with some features. Now one might ask where the heck can I still find one of those things in this age of the CD rom? Well there a few places I can suggest such as the Goodwill stores, pawn shops, and even ebay. When I say features I mean it should have a headphone jack, or at least a line out jack in the rear panel. So before you buy, check and make sure it has one or both of these features.

As for myself I prefer using the headphone jack simply because it is in the front of the machine, and easy to access. My weapon of choice is the JVC KD-V350 (see image) I bought it at the Goodwill store for 6 bucks :o) The one above it is a Technics, but it will not joining in on the sing along this tutorial.

The Weapon:

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Next, and this is optional, you may wish to use a mixer as a go between.

It is not mandatory, but comes in handy instead of always having to open the windows volume / mix controls. It will also cut down the audio signal going into your PC line in jack. Remember, audio is also voltage. Better to under drive than over drive. Besides too, if you play something a bit too loud, your chat buddies might give you one of these >> 

Finally you will need some cables to hook them all together, If you plan to go the mixer route, you will probably need some Y-cables.

You will need 2 of these one going in to the the mixer from the cassette deck, and another coming from the mixer to your PC. You may also need an adaptor of various types due to the fact some cassette decks ust the larger stereo headphone plug. You can usually find these at Radio Shack, or if you are feeling a bit "rocket scientist" you can make your own for a little less money. If you decide to make your own, solder all your connections, not just duct tape them.

If you do not know how to solder, Do Not Do This!

Get someone experienced to use a soldering iron, and have them make your cables.

So with this all completed, we can now connect the stuff. See schematic.

MAKE SURE YOU PLUG FROM THE MIXER TO THE LINE IN OF YOUR PC SOUND CARD AND NOT THE MICROPHONE INPUT! IF YOU ARE NOT SURE REFER BACK TO LESSON 1, OR READ YOUR OWNERS MANUAL.



The last lesson will be the windows settings..so lets take a look at that..shall we? :o)
End Lesson 2: