How to Make an Audio Scrapbook

Preserve forever the sounds of momentous occasions in your life - wedding vows, an infant's first cries, children's performances - in an audiotape scrapbook.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Batteries
• Audio Cassette Holders
• Battery Chargers
• Blank Cassette Tapes
• Cassette Tape Carry Cases
• Cassette Tape Recorders
• Dual Deck Tape Players
• Microcassette Tapes
• Portable Tape Recorders
• Address Labels
• Permanent Markers

1. Purchase a reliable cassette tape recorder and lots of blank tapes.
2. Practice recording things at home. Learn how to adjust the volume and how close you need to be to the source to get a clear recording.
3. Try using the recorder's built-in microphone and a plug-in microphone to see which provides better sound quality.
4. Keep extra batteries in the case with the recorder. You never know when yours will run out or you won't be able to find an electric outlet.
5. Tape things such as children's performances, a reading of an important letter, an important announcement, wedding vows, a birth and other occurrences that you want to preserve.
6. Use one tape for all of them, adding things one after another. Or, use separate tapes for each event.
7. Clearly mark the tapes with titles, names of people on the tapes and dates.
8. Be certain that you have the tapes positioned where you want to start taping. You will lose previous events if you tape over them.
9. Edit your tape by re-winding and taping over things you don't want.
10. Copy your tapes on a dual deck tape player and keep one copy in a safe place. Tapes can easily be lost or taped over by mistake.
11. Push in the buttons on the tops of the tapes when you are done recording a tape. This will prevent the tape from being recorded over.

Tips & Warnings

• Consider purchasing a clip-on microphone for easier use.
• Small microcassette recorders and tapes are available; they're very compact and can fit in your hand.
• Keep all of your scrapbook tapes in a special cassette box that you have labeled and decorated.
• Clean your tape recorder often to allow for the best sound quality possible.
• Keep cassettes away from extreme temperatures.