The article is devoted to the peculiarities of the formation and systematization of the phonogram archive of the Udmurt Institute of History, Language and Literature of the Udmurt Federal Research Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The purpose of the article is to analyze the history of the formation of funds, the features of digitization of sound media on compact cassettes and reel-to-reel tapes, to identify the current state of the sound laboratory of the Institute as the main academic storage of materials on the spiritual culture of the region. The article analysis condition of the magnetic carriers, the work of the sound laboratory. Importance of timely digitization of magnetic tapes in accordance with international standards is marked. The examples from personal experience are given. Much attention is paid to the results of the British project «Vanishing voices from the Uralic world». Due to the project, modern standards of work have been implemented in laboratory. In conclusion, the author emphasis the necessity of formation of a unified music library of Udmurt records at the Institute as the main base for the preservation of the cultural heritage of the Udmurt Republic.