Plusdeck Review - Installation continued
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Now that the work inside the computer was done, I closed it up. The last thing to do before powering it all up is connect the audio and serial connectors.
As you can see, it resembles the old operator switchboards, where the operators connected calls by using patch wires from hole to hole. I understand it was simpler and cheaper for it to be engineered this way, but I would still find the package a little more agreeable if it didn’t require so much rerouting of the back panel. This configuration uses my only serial port (to control the device), and the three jumper wires to connect to my audio jacks. If you have some sort of EQ, or need access to the other audio jacks for another purpose, then you either end up with a SERIOUSLY confusing wiring arrangement, or are just out of luck completely.
And here is a shot of the Plusdeck installed, with a tape partially inserted into the slot.
Now the hardware was complete and I had once again hooked up the computer. Interestingly enough, since this unit works completely through your existing sound hardware, it doesn’t have any actual drivers. This means by using the controls on the unit manually, you can actually use it to play cassettes without installing a stitch of software. I did this, but was disappointed when it didn’t work immediately. Then I noticed my LINE-IN was muted. Removing the mute and raising the volume treated me to sounds from my DJ days.
So next I began the software installation. I installed the CD into the drive and awaited an auto-start. But alas, there was none. I browsed the contents and found two executables. One installed the Plusdeck software, and the other installed four utilities from NCH, which include:
- WavePad – Allows you to edit WAV and MP3 files
- Express Rip – CD Ripping software
- Express Burn – CD Burning software
- Switch Sound - Sound file converter, to convert sound files to different formats
The installations were simple and straightforward. Here’s a shot of the Plusdeck installation.
And now that everything is installed, we can actually try it out.
Next: Get out your cassettes >>
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