How to convert a cassette to an mp3 on a mac

Plug your auxiliary cable into your cassette tape stereo's line out jack.

It's better to plug the auxiliary cable into the line out jack (because the volume level does not affect the recording). The jack is usually in the back.

Plug the other end of the auxiliary cable into the audio in jack on the left side of your MacBook Pro. It is the one with the icon that looks like a circle with 2 triangles.

Open up GarageBand app, the audio recording software, on your Mac. If you don't find it on your dock, search for it in your Spotlight (a magnifying glass) on the top right corner of your screen.

When GarageBand opens up, click New Project, and choose either Piano or Voice.

Choose where you want this music file to be saved on your Mac. I recommend creating a unique conversion folder for it within your Music Folder, so you can easily find it in the future.

Once GarageBand is open, click the GarageBand Menu, then Preferences, then the Audio/MIDI tab. From the Audio Input drop-down list, click Built-In Input, so that your Mac knows where to listen.

Insert a cassette tape into the stereo.

I recommend changing the Vocals/Band Instrument into a Basic Track, with no effects. That way, no weird audio modifications will automatically occur. Click the red record button.

Click the red Record button in GarageBand, and immediately press play on the cassette stereo. Whatever audio signals are coming out of the cassette stereo are being recorded by GarageBand.

After the cassette song is finished, click the red record button again to stop the recording. Then, click the Share Menu, and click Send Song to iTunes.

Give your newly converted song a name and artist. If you want high quality files, compress using the AAC encoder. If you're looking for average quality files, compress using the MP3 encoder.

iTunes will automatically import the converted cassette tape into the Music Library, and play it for you. Enjoy it on your Mac, or sync it with iPhone or iPod.