First gripe for Stanton T-90 USB w/Pyro 5

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RevZafod
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2007/08/11 23:37:40 (permalink)

First gripe for Stanton T-90 USB w/Pyro 5

Maybe this will help some of you earlier posters about Audio Technica and Pyro 5; similar problems?

At 66 I decided now was the time to get my old vinyl* to a hard drive, and the Stanton T-90 USB looked ideal, so I pre-ordered one from Musician's Friend and it arrived Thursday, and now I'm looking thru my vinyl for a recording of "Early Adopter's Blues". Here's the detailed story:

With the T-90, I'm using a 4-year-old Sony VAIO PCG-FR130 laptop with Win XP Home and VIA AC'97 native audio; there's no room to set up the turntable near my 17" HP LapAsDesk-top, and I don't want to tie it up.

I d/l'd Audacity 1.2.6 Win and installed it; then the included Cakewalk Pyro 5, reset both Record/Playback [R/P] from AC97 to USB Audio Codec, and put on my first LP; Robert Johnson; and started Crossroads Blues. And tho I could see "LED-like" bars L/R in Pyro, there was no sound, thru speakers or headphones.

After five hours of diddling with it, I can report:

1] With Audio set to R/P USB/USB, both Audacity and Pyro can record with visual only, no sound [LED bars only in Pyro; both L/R level display and waveform in Audacity].

2] With Audio set to R/P USB/AC97, trying to record in Pyro gave a Hardware Error message.

3] With Audio set to R/P USB/AC97, I could record and listen [low vol thru spkrs, OK/adequate thru Bose QCII headphones] with Audacity and save as a .wav file. However, when I opened that file to edit clicks and pops with Pyro, it almost blew my eardrums. Even when I lowered the master volume control to about 15-20%, the vertical bars on the right still went offscale and a Too Loud! message flashed at the top, and it was loud and distorted thru the speakers.

So while it's possible that I could record with Audacity and edit with Pyro, rather than using Pyro alone [if I want to hear what I'm recording], it looks like AT A MINIMUM, every record will take 5-20 minutes or longer to set up, test-record, and fine-tune, rather than being a simple process, for which I bought the damned thing! I don't plan to start a DJ career at 66!

Please also note that Cakewalk "Support" consists solely of a forum where disappointed users can gripe to each other, with no way to contact Cakewalk.

This message goes to:
Donald Bell at C-NET who did the 10 May 07 video on the T-90.
Musician's Friend who sold me the turntable.
Stanton at www.stantondj.com.
Cakewalk forum

* No, not Sinatra; good, obscure rock, much not found on CD's because you're all still listening to stations that play 'Dark Side of the Moon' once or more per day.
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    RevZafod
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    RE: First gripe for Stanton T-90 USB w/Pyro 5 2007/08/16 03:31:12 (permalink)
    I hate to be first to reply to my own message, but it's an update re a reply I got from Musician's Friend, where I bought the turntable, concerning the PYRO 5 software:

    Musician's Friend Customer Service wrote back to me. Below is their answer, and mine to them:

    Thank you for your recent inquiry.
    It just sounds like you are having problems with the option settings that are on your computer/software when you record the vinyl if it is really loud when you play it back. Usually when that happens you are recording it at a very high volume and that is what the software plays it back as. You need to realize also that the analog to digital transfer there is going to be some changes in volume as well. I'm not sure why you need to listen to the playback when recording if you are just transferring LP's to digital. I do have a phone number for Cakewalk also: 617-423-9004:

    My reply to MFCS:
    Does this mean that Musician's Friend is the same as Listener's Enemy? This Stanton turntable is being advertised as a way for people to convert vinyl recordings to computer files easily. There is no mention of any additional equipment being needed for that than a turntable, a computer, and a USB connection.

    You said:
    "I'm not sure why you need to listen to the playback when recording if you are just transferring LP's to digital."

    I'm entirely at a loss as to how to respond to that one. Why would I want to actually HEAR the music while I transfer it? Please pass this one on to someone over 50, if they exist at your company. How about these:

    1] I haven't heard the music in 20 years; I might want to consider whether individual tracks are worth saving. Hard to tell when all the info I have is two visual L/R volume bars.

    2] Many recent receivers and other inexpensive audio devices up to many hundreds of dollars no longer include a "phono input" or other appropriate input for a turntable, without installing a pre-amp. My $300 for the turntable might balloon to a long search for compatible gear, and many hundreds more. The "Phono/Line" option switch helps, but I can't be sure I'm getting the full audio fidelity when I plug the RCA cords into other inputs named "CD/Tape/DAT" or others with the TT switch set to "Line". No electronic specs are given for "line" in the Stanton user guide. In fact, the only mention at all is there IS a Phono/Line switch, with no explanation beyond that.

    3] The freeware Audacity manages to handle different record/play options, such as "USB Audio Codec" for recording, and "AC'97 Audio" playback, native to many computers without separate sound cards, and available with most motherboards, esp. laptops. But Cakewalk, which sells Pyro 5 for $29.95, can't manage to make them work together? The world turned upside down. Free software beats commercial? But the freeware doesn't offer click/pop removal. And when you import the freeware WAV file into the $30-ware Pyro 5, the sound levels are totally screwed up.

    4] I've managed to make it work by spending about $60 on a cheap set of speakers, and using an obsolete Sony Reciever that I'd saved from about 15 or more years ago, that I'd retired because of a low-level hum which is still present, but tolerable for this use. Others might need to buy a new reciever to run between the turntable and speakers, to be able to hear the audio.
    This should NOT be needed, if the included [$30-standalone] software worked as well as the FREE Audacity software download. The only thing needed to listen to playback during capture should be the speakers thru the PC; built-in speakers if a laptop or otherwise included in the PC system. No hardware should be needed but turntable, PC, and a USB cable. NOTHING MORE!

    The turntable is very nice, but the supplied software SUCKS, and ruins the package.

    I couldn't recommend the Stanton T-90 USB to anyone else who wants an easy way to transfer old vinyl to disk, without a software fix, unless your stereo is closely integrated with your PC, all in one place, and you want to tie up that PC the whole time while transferring from vinyl without being to listen to other things while doing that.

    Very nice turntable, but product package not ready for market.

    Stanton needs to find a solution FAST to avoid a total meltdown. Why should Musicians Friend care? You were the sole listing for selling early models of the Stanton T-90 USB turntable. Do I hear an echo? 'class action lawsuit'?

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