Many modern turntables come with a Universal Serial Box connector that can enable you just connect the turntable directly to the computer, however this is not always the case. Typically you need to connect the turntable-a circular rotating plate supporting a record being played-for preamplification.
Precisely, you connect the audio output of the turntable to the audio input of the laptop. The preamplification is to ensure that you get a reasonable volume out of the connection. Often times, you would have to buy the amplifier separately from the turntable.
If you have a standalone turntable, below is how to connect it to a computer. To do this, you would need to have 2 RCA cables. They are useful for connecting audio and video devices; they could be single or multiple connector cables.
So let us get along with the steps quickly:
1. Check and ensure that both RCA stereo cables you have are two-pronged.
2. Connect the preamplifier to the turntable. To do this:
- Plug in one end of the RCA stereo cable to the Output of the turntable
- Plug in the second end to the Phono In ports of the preamplifier (When doing this, ensure that you match the colors; i.e. red color for red color and white for white)
3. Plug in one end of the second cable to output of the preamplifier, ensuring you match the colors as before.
4. Plug the second end of the second cable to an RCA-mini-plug adapter.
5. Insert the adapter to the Line In port of your sound card of your computer.
