Can someone please tell me what device/cables I need to transfer old cassette tapes to my Mac mini? They are recordings of family members they made in the 80s. Amazon had a bunch of stuff but they all have a few crappy reviews. I don't need anything great, just want copy the entire tape that I can then put on my mom's iPad. I just want her to be able to pick one from the home screen and be able to play it. TYIA
ETA: I don't even have a tape player now.
You need an RCA to phono cables.... something like
this. -BUT- That's not all.
The tape deck needs to have line-level stereo RCA out. You can't go from a headphone jack because a headphone output is amplified and carries a different (usually lower) impedance than a line level signal... the higher voltage and lower impedance will result in distortion at best and, at worst, can permanently damage some line level hardware.
The interface receiving the signal for encoding on the Mac needs to have line level inputs corresponding to the 1/4" mono ends of the cable.
You need to find an interface that does NOT use USB bus power and instead uses properly grounded AC power. If it uses a two prong adapter or has only USB power, you're going to end up with ground loop hum because any stray current needs to be discharged at the interface before it is carried into the Mac which is not properly grounded for audio (Minis and Macbooks bleed off stray current through their metal chassis, which often results in ground loop hum getting into the audio signal itself).
10 times out of 10 when I hear about someone struggling with noise on, e.g., a Focusrite interface, it is always because it's a model that is USB bus powered.
What this ends up meaning is that you have to go up to a Focusrite 18i20 (which I have), which runs by itself about $700... not to mention the software, filters, outboard processors, etc., what have you.
Honestly, if you want the highest quality transfer, I would find a small studio that can do them for a fee... take all your tapes there and have them properly transfer them using reliable hardware and software. No matter how much you think it will cost, it'll still cost you less than buying all the proper hardware for a one-time deal.