So, how do you play your 45s? One at a time? If you're used to listening to a continuous stream of music, either from an LP or from a Spotify playlist, that may seem like a lot of work unless you're doing a radio or nightclub show.
Until the iPod and iTunes were invented, I used to methodically record the 45s I collected onto 90-minute, high-quality cassette tapes. I would put together playlists in advance and then make custom tapes. I made hundreds of tapes like this over the years.
With iTunes and a personal computer, custom tapes went out the window, since making custom playlists became so simple. Instead of recording to cassette, I have a turntable with an optical output (as well as USB output), so I simply connect it to my computer's optical input. Using inexpensive recording software (I use Amadaeus Pro on the Mac), I record the sides of each 45 I sell that I want to keep in my collection in the highest quality, uncompressed format possible, and then tag them with genre, year, artist, title, etc. and make them part of my iTunes library. I used to burn CDs, but I haven't done that in years now. Whatever I want to hear when away from my computer, I make available on my iPhone, which I plug into my car's stereo when on the road.
In terms of sharing your music with others, nothing beats taking a box full of 45s to a friend's house and taking turns listening to them — one at a time. At one time, this intimate experience was the default way of sharing. With enough 45-collecting friends and enough 45s, that experience will perhaps one day return.
To transfer your 45's music to your computer — for example, to your iTunes library — there are several approaches. Some manufacturers make turntables specifically designed to do this, complete with USB connections and software. Here's how my setup works and the components I use:
- Stanton ST.150 turntable. This is a "deejay" table (about $250) with lots of controls I don't use, like "brake" and "start" times, but it has two key ingredients that make it the best choice for me: A USB out interface and an optical-out (TOSLINK) interface. The turntable is "powered" in the sense that you don't need a preamplifier or amplifier to bring the phono line level up to normal. I connect the USB out directly to my powered speakers, and the TOSLINK connector goes directly to my computer's optical-in ports. The turntable has an elliptical stylus, which I understand is best for audiophile playback and especially good with 45 records.
- Audioengine 5+ powered speakers. I like these because they have not only the usual RCA connections but also a USB port and a port for adding wireless adapters. They cost about $500 a pair and have terrific sound... just right for my needs. It's great to be able to plug my turntable directly in to my speakers so I can listen immediately without any other devices in between.
- Mac Pro computer. Unfortunately, newer Macs don't come with the TOSLINK optical interface that this baby has, so I may be keeping this computer longer than usual. With the optical-audio in ports, I can connect my turntable directly to my computer... again, with no intervening devices necessary. If your computer doesn't have an optical audio interface, you will have to either use the USB interface (which I understand is somewhat lower fidelity) or purchase a DAC (digital audio converter) to sit between your turntable and your computer.
- Amadeus Pro software. When the audio comes in to my computer through the optical interface, I need to capture it somehow. There are many good audio capture and editing software programs out there, but my experience is with an app called Amadeus Pro (about $50, I believe). With Amadeus Pro, I can record whatever audio comes into my Mac using a simple interface. Afterwards, I spend some time trimming the file and "normalizing" the audio to 0 db, which basically makes it as loud as possible without introducing distortion. Amadeus Pro lets me capture meta-information about the recording, and I do that next — entering artist name, title, year, and genre. If I have an image of the 45's label (made using a scanner and edited using Photoshop), I drag that to the "art" screen for the song. When I'm done, I save the audio file to my hard drive.
- iTunes. To get my newly captured 45 record into iTunes, I just drag newly created audio files to one of my playlists. Of course, you can also just add it to your iTunes library as a whole and then add it to a playlist afterwards. All of the metadata I added in Amadeus Pro gets transferred intact, and I can edit it or add to it in iTunes using the iTunes "Info" screen for each song. Once in iTunes, I can enjoy the music on any connected device — for example, on my iPhone or Apple TV.
- ClickRepair. Not a required component, but a recommended one is a software package called ClickRepair. Created many years ago by an Australian mathematician, ClickRepair magically removes "pops" and "clicks" and other surface noise from your recordings without distorting or degrading the audio. Back in 2005, I wrote a review of ClickRepair which you may enjoy. Using ClickRepair is great for cleaning up somewhat messy audio, and it makes buying less than pristine 45s a reasonable strategy.