DIY Resources

For all of your physical media needs.

To be updated somewhat often.

Some of the tutorials are boring, but I selected them because they are short and comprehensive.

Software

Windows Media Player works on Windows XP all the way to windows 11 (its referred to as Windows Media Player Legacy). I highly recommend this for ripping or burning CDs on windows.

cdburnerxp - cd burning software for windows. Has more features than Windows Media Player

Apple has a guide for burning CDs on Mac OS. Go read it.

k3b - CD burning software with a GUI for Linux distros

If you are a linux user I am going to assume you know what you are doing. Here is how I would install k3b on Debian, the distro I use:


                sudo apt - get install K3b

Audacity - available on all OS. For editing audio files.

Handbrake - available on mac + windows + linux. great for handling DVD rips.

Mediums

Maxwell Virgin Tapes - For recording Cassettes.

Verbatim Blank CDs - For Burning CDS. Great write speed.

Digital:

  • Bandcamp
  • Sail the seaven seas. I trust you understand.

Hardware

Storage

WD EasyStore External USB SSD/HDD

SSDs typically have less storage space but read and write faster. You can get more storage, but the price increases with storage size. If you have the money to spend go with an SSD.

HDDs are cheaper and offer more storage. In my opinion, this is the way to go because if all you are storing is media then storage size is preferrable to read/write speeds. Modern hard drives are fast enough. SSDs would be desirable if you were storing 4k videos.

You can also back stuff up to your computer. I store media files on a half-terabyte easystore SSD but I consistently back up my files to a dedicated 2 terabyte hard drive on my main desktop computer.

Disk Drives For Burning & Ripping

The easiest solution for most people is likely to purchase an external USB disk drive that can hook up to anything. If possible I recommend adding a SATA powered CD-ROM drive to your desktop computer if you have a disk drive bay in your desktop tower. This is because you can get drives with faster read/write speeds for cheaper. Fast external USB powered disk drives usually cost more. I also recommend going the extra mile and getting a disk drive that can burn dvds and blurays too if you have the extra money. It's worth it in my opinion, but everyone has different needs and different budgets. Burn your own CDs, buy DVD/Bluray copies of your favorite media and rip them. Also, snagging your favorite albums and ripping them is a great way to get CD quality files for cheap. Both are completely legal. The only thing that is illegal is distributing those copies without permission or for profit.

Recommended Drives:

Budget Recommendation:

Cassette Player-Recorders:

Making your own tapes is simpler than you think. Here is a simple overview: You just need a Cassette player with input/output that you can hook up to your computer. All you have to do is record your computers audio to the tape using the record function on the cassette player. You simply connect a 3.5mm audio cable to the output of your computer and connect the other end to the microphone input of your tape recorder. Hit record on your cassette recorder, wait a few seconds and then hit play on your playlist, album, or song from your preferred media player. As far as what cassette player I would recommend, just use this ebay search. There are so many identical ones. Just look for the best price.

Also consider:

  • Retekes tr606 - people online seem to like these. It's also a portable radio.

Tutorials