Pops and clicks are of two flavours – digital and analog. Digital clicks can be caused by processor overload as you make a digital recording. The recording “stops” for a moment and resulting skip creates a very short click. Digital clicks are easy to detect and most noise reduction software does this automatically.

Analog clicks and pops are caused by scratches and imperfections on vinyl and their duration is much longer than digital clicks. To remove this type of noise, a special filter is needed to automatically detect and remove unwanted sound. Settings can be adjusted to match size and frequency of noise.

There are several audio packages on market that are specifically designed to reduce noise from vinyl and cassette recordings. They allow you to capture audio digitally by connecting a turntable or cassette deck to sound card on your computer. Once audio is stored on computer, it can be processed to remove background hiss and clicks. Most presets will give you adequate results and you will be able to enjoy your old recordings in digital domain.

You can encode your own MP3 files using any of hundreds of software packages on market today. Many of them are free, and you can use them to rip music from CDs and encode them to MP3 in one step. To decide which settings to use, start by encoding a piece of music you are familiar with. Save three files - 128 kbps, 160 kbps and 192 kbps, and then compare original CD to these three files. This simple test will help you choose which setting is suitable for your own listening requirements.