Failure: an audio file catched from a faulty cassette

[Blasius]

Hi, i don't know if this is the appropriate forum, tell me if not (i would then be gratefull for any orientation about where to post the thread).

I catched to a digital file a cassette that has a clear and i don't know if perhaps common fault: at intervals of 2 o 3 seconds, the sound appears attenuated for a second fraction, or something like it would be losing highs. It's an effect of the irregular running of the tape magnetic ribbon. I have uploaded a sample at http://www.esnips.com/doc/39651aec-8079-47b6-99f6-d61e640cc292/FailureSample.

Perhaps there's some tool in software like for example Sony Sound Forge or other audio editor, that fix or attenuate this fault if it's an audio effect commonly identified.

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Sonusthree]

Hi,

Why not fix the tape? Or try a different player?

If you think the cassette is not running correctly then it could simply be a problem with the cassette or the cassette player.

I have had a similar problem before. I removed the 'reels' from the cassette and placed them into a new cassette housing. Sometimes they can become stiff and cause problems. The problem seems to happen on every revolution of the tape.

Has the tape been left near a strong magnet? I deliberately had the same effect once. My brother had a terrible album when we were kids. He played it over and over and over ......... Eventually I placed a large magnet next to the tape and it sounded like your tape, but worse. I got some peace for a while until he bought the album on CD!!!!!

Watch the reels spin and see if the problem happens at the same point in the reel's 'revolution'. This would be a good clue.

Anyway, try those things and see how you get on.

As a last resort, you could use a digital editing program to compress/ limit/ normalise the sound. It won't be perfect but it would help! I am listening on a very small laptop speaker and cannot hear an obvious problem with the treble.

Regards,
Martin

 

[Blasius]

Thanks for reply.

I have changed the reels to another case but it hasn't solved the problem. So i am trying to compress, limit or normalize the sound.

I have tried to normalize but i haven't observed any change. I have also looked for compress and limit tools in Sony Sound Forge but i haven't found them.

Anyway i think that fixing the problem is going to be too hard to waste too time.