How to digitise
cassette tapes.
To digitise a cassette, play it on a clean, working tape deck connected to your computer’s line input or a USB audio interface, record each side in real time as an uncompressed WAV file, and keep that file as your master. Make MP3 copies for sharing, store the files in at least two places, and keep the tape.
Start with the voices. If a tape holds the only recording of someone, it goes to the front of the queue.
Why digitise cassettes now?
Because the tapes and the machines that play them are both ageing. The Register recalls that Philips unveiled the Compact Cassette at the Berlin Radio Show on 30 August 1963, so the oldest family tapes are now more than sixty years old.
John Van Bogart’s 1995 guide for the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) gives magnetic tape a life expectancy of ten to thirty years, depending on how it has been kept, and says thirty years appears to be the upper limit for audio and video tapes. The New York State Archives adds that the equipment needed to play tapes is becoming increasingly scarce.
Old tape can fail as you play it, too. CLIR describes sticky shed, where the binder that holds the magnetic particles on the tape breaks down, making audio tapes squeal and clogging the heads. So aim to play each tape only once.
In May 2015, when the Heritage Lottery Fund (now the National Lottery Heritage Fund) awarded the British Library £9.5 million to digitise 500,000 rare and at-risk recordings, sound archivists estimated there were 15 years left before the equipment needed to play some formats could no longer be used.
Play it once, straight into a file.
What equipment do you need?
Three things, and you may have some of them already.
A tape deck or player. A hi-fi deck with line-out sockets is best, but the Canadian Heritage Information Network (CHIN) says a player’s headphone socket will do if it has no line out.
A way into the computer. A USB audio interface and the right lead, or a line input on the computer. CHIN notes that an external converter avoids interference from inside the computer.
Recording software. Audacity is free and open source, runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, and its manual includes a full workflow for digitising tape.
USB cassette players that plug straight into a computer are simpler still. Check what they save: if one offers WAV, choose it over MP3.
Test the deck with a tape you don’t mind losing. The New York State Archives advises against playing valuable tapes on unfamiliar or suspect equipment, and CLIR warns that dirty recorders can ruin tape by scratching it. Clean the heads with a cotton swab and isopropyl alcohol of 91% or stronger, as CHIN suggests, never rubbing alcohol, which Audacity’s manual says contains oil.
How do you digitise a cassette?
Check the tape first.
Mould, creased or snapped tape, squealing, or a white deposit on the heads (glue from a faulty cassette, according to Audacity’s manual) all mean stop. Set those tapes aside for a specialist.
Wind it through once.
If a tape has sat unplayed for years, Audacity’s manual suggests fast-forwarding to the end and rewinding in one go, to even out the tension before you play it.
Set the level.
Play the loudest part and adjust the input. CHIN says the loudest sound should approach but never reach 0 dB, or it is clipped and lost. Audacity’s manual suggests peaks of around -6 dB.
Record each side in one go.
Transfers run in real time, so a 90-minute tape takes 90 minutes. Let each side play to the end without stopping. You can split it into tracks later.
Save the master and leave it alone.
Export an uncompressed WAV file and never edit it: CHIN says a preservation file should not be modified in any way. Reduce hiss on a copy, because noise reduction always loses some of the signal.
What settings should you use?
WAV for the master, at the best quality your equipment allows.
WAV, not MP3. The Oral History Society warns that compressed files such as MP3 can audibly degrade when they are converted to another format. Make MP3s from the master, never the reverse.
Archive quality: 96 kHz, 24-bit. The Library of Congress’s Recommended Formats Statement prefers uncompressed WAV at 96 kHz and 24-bit or higher. CHIN calls 96 kHz ideal and 48 kHz acceptable for interviews, at 24-bit.
Good enough: CD quality. The Library of Congress accepts 44.1 kHz, 16-bit WAV, and the Oral History Society asks for 44.1 or 48 kHz, 16-bit when recording interviews.
Room for the files. A minute of stereo WAV at CD quality is about 10.6 MB, so a 90-minute tape makes just under 1 GB. At 96 kHz and 24-bit it is about 35 MB a minute, or 3.1 GB.
Which tapes should go to a professional?
The New York State Archives says tapes in poor condition or obsolete formats should be copied by experts. Send these away:
- Tapes that squeal, stick or leave deposits, the signs of sticky shed.
- Mouldy, snapped, creased or tangled tape.
- Formats you can’t play at home, such as microcassettes or reel-to-reel tape.
- The only recording of someone’s voice, if you have any doubt about your deck.
VHS and camcorder tapes need different kit: see our guide to digitising home videos.
What to ask a transfer service for
- WAV masters, ideally 24-bit, plus MP3 copies for sharing.
- The files on a portable hard drive, which the New York State Archives suggests because drives are easier to move to new hardware later.
- A list matching each file to its tape and side.
- Your tapes back.
How should you name and store everything?
Give every file a unique number, as the Oral History Society advises, and keep a short list of who is on each tape. A name like tape-07-side-a.wav is enough.
Then make copies. The Library of Congress recommends at least two, stored as far apart as practical, checked once a year and copied to new media every five years or when necessary, and the Oral History Society says multiple external hard drives are now favoured over CD-Rs and DVD-Rs. Our guide to backing up family photos explains the 3-2-1 rule, which works for sound too.
Keep the tapes. The New York State Archives says to keep your original tapes as well as your digital copies.
Cool, dry and steady. For tapes in use, CLIR suggests 15 to 23°C and 25 to 55% relative humidity, without big swings.
Upright, away from magnets. Store cassettes upright in their cases, away from motors, loudspeakers, magnets and sunlight (Library of Congress; New York State Archives).
By the shell. Handle only the shell, never the tape or spools, and store played tapes without rewinding: the Library of Congress says to rewind just before playing.
How do you find the voices worth keeping?
A box of tapes can hold many hours, so the next job is finding the moments.
Listen with the people who were there. An aunt or grandparent can name a voice, a room or a year that nobody wrote on the label.
Keep a log. Note the tape, side and minute, who is speaking and what about, so hours of sound become something you can search.
Clip the moments. From a copy of the master, cut short clips: a laugh, a song at a party, a few sentences in a voice you miss.
Old tapes often bring out new stories. Our guides to interviewing your grandparents and saving family voices show how to record the next ones.
How it helps.
Ancestorii is a home for the clips your family will want to hear again, with the story beside them. Upload a clip as a voice note on a photo in a private family album or on a moment in your family timeline, and the relatives you invite can add what they remember, in writing or in voice notes of their own. Only the family members you invite can see it.
Every voice note is stored as M4A, converted where needed, so it plays on any phone. That copy is compact and mono, made for listening, so keep your WAV masters on your own drives. The Free plan needs no card and allows files up to 20 MB each, with 1 GB of storage shared by the family, which suits clips. Premium is £3.99 a month per family, with files up to 10 GB and 100 GB of storage; see pricing.
Questions people ask.
How long do cassette tapes last?
What format should I save cassette recordings in?
Can I digitise cassettes without a tape deck?
Should I use a professional transfer service?
Should I keep the cassettes after digitising them?
Sources
- The Register · Are you for reel? How the Compact Cassette struck a chord for millions (30 August 2013)
- Council on Library and Information Resources · Magnetic Tape Storage and Handling: How Long Will Magnetic Media Last? (John Van Bogart) (1995)
- Council on Library and Information Resources · Magnetic Tape Storage and Handling: What Can Go Wrong with Magnetic Media? (1995)
- Council on Library and Information Resources · Magnetic Tape Storage and Handling: How Can You Prevent Magnetic Tape from Degrading Prematurely? (1995)
- New York State Archives · Audio and Video Recordings (Family History preservation) (accessed October 2026)
- National Lottery Heritage Fund · British Library pledge to save the nation’s sounds secures £9.5m HLF boost (May 2015)
- Canadian Heritage Information Network · A Museum’s How-to Guide for Digitizing Audio (2024)
- Audacity · Audacity: Free, Open Source Audio Editor and Recorder (accessed October 2026)
- Audacity Manual · Tips for recording from cassette tape (accessed October 2026)
- Audacity Manual · Sample workflow for tape digitization (accessed October 2026)
- Oral History Society · Choosing the right equipment (accessed October 2026)
- Library of Congress · Recommended Formats Statement: Audio Works (accessed October 2026)
- Library of Congress · Personal Archiving: Audio (accessed October 2026)
- Library of Congress · Care, Handling, and Storage of Audio Visual Materials (accessed October 2026)