Many of us have collections of memory-filled and often irreplaceable LP, 45 or 78 rpm records or VHS videotapes. Unfortunately, these collections will not hold up in their current format. Images on magnetic (video) tapes deteriorate over time, and records may warp, lose quality when played and develop scratches and clicks.

If you want to preserve these collections, you need to convert them to digital format and burn them to CDs or DVDs, where they will also be more accessible and stored in a smaller space. In these digital formats, the quality of music and video is maintained no matter how many times you play them, and your collection becomes more accessible because you can find your favorite music or video immediately once it’s on a CD or DVD. You can also save collections on your computer hard drive, but since hard drives fail, you need a backup for this method.

A simple way to convert music from LP records to digital is to use one of the available USB turntables such as the Stanton T.90 USB Turntable (www.stantonmagnetics.com, $280 street). This solidly built direct drive unit connects via USB to your computer and includes Cakewalk’s Pyro 5 music editing software for recording (although you can use other software). The software can also clean up scratches and hiss and enhance the music by using automatic or manual controls. Record either a track, a side or an entire album at a time and sort later if needed. Save your file(s) and burn to DVD or CD using a choice of formats, including MP3. The Stanton T.90 USB Turntable also provides digital audio, line or phono cartridge outputs for connecting to a stereo system. The turntable spins at 33, 45 or 78rpm, has variable speed control (with or without pitch change) and instant motor start/stop, with reverse.

If your stereo system already has a good turntable and is convenient to your computer, another approach to archiving any music source is to use an external analog to digital converter. Instant Music (www.apstech.com, $59.99) is a compact external device that plugs into a USB port on your computer and provides convenient analog and optical inputs and outputs into which you plug your sound source. Using the included Nero suite of software, record your music as WAV files and save as WAV, WMA, AAC or MP3 files.

An especially useful feature of the Nero suite is the ability to automatically separate your music into individual tracks. This allows you to record an entire side of an LP and have the program separate each track as an individual file.

Another alternative is to connect your stereo system output directly to the input on your computer sound card and record from there using sound editing software such as Nero or Magix. However, recording capabilities vary widely, depending on the type and model of sound card your computer uses.

For video, an easy way to archive VHS tapes to DVD is to use a DVD/VHS Combo Player/Recorder. Several models of these all-in-one units include various features, but one we especially liked is the Panasonic DMR-EZ47VK (www.panasonic.com, $250). Archiving is as easy as putting the VHS tape in its slot on the unit and a blank DVD in its drawer, pushing record and then going for a cup of coffee while it works. Using this direct to DVD approach you can’t easily edit to remove unwanted portions, so you’ll have to do any editing later from the burned DVD copy. But if you have hours and hours of tape, using a combo unit is a good way to conveniently preserve your VHS memories. The Panasonic DMR-EZ47VK has a wealth of other features that you can explore on their Web site.

If you prefer to edit before you burn, DVDXpress DX2 (www.adstech.com, $89.99) provides an easy answer. The package consists of a compact USB 2.0 external analog-to-digital capture device that includes cables, a helpful Capture Wizard and Ulead’s VideoStudio 9 SE video editing software. The capture unit is powered by the USB port and has inputs into which you’ll plug your video source, left and right audio channels and composite video or S-video.

DVDExpress DX2 uses special hardware to do the conversion. This takes the load off your computer’s CPU and produces superior, consistent results. The captures we did were excellent, and you can capture video in various formats. Capture Wizard takes you step by step through the process of selecting your video settings, video source, and whether you want to burn a DVD or CD directly from your video source or record the captured video into a file for later editing. A link to a mini-tutorial about video formats is provided for those who want help choosing a format and settings.

The included video editor, VideoStudio 9 SE, has enough features to allow you to trim and arrange video clips and add backgrounds, transitions, music, narrations, titles, and burn DVDs or CDs.

There’s no need to let your precious audio and video memories fade with time when you can use these easy solutions to preserve them.

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