The Last Audio Cassette Factory

Wow! Who knew there was only one audio cassette mfr left? I would have guessed none!

I remember, way back in 1966, having to make a choice between the cassette and the then
popular 8-track audio recording/playback format. I chose cassette then, although there was
very little pre-recorded music available at the time, mostly copyright-free classical stuff. In my
20s, I realized that the cassette was just reel-to-reel in miniature and I had worked with Ampex
and other- R-to-R gear at a radio station for which I was half-ass jackleg engineering and part-
time DJ-ing -- w-a-a-a-y back in the day.

Thanks for posting, Mark, you sure post some interesting stuff. BTW, how's your mom?

 

I like vinyl, but just don't get cassette. Never seemed like a good tech to me.

 

For most analog audiophiles, nothing will ever match the purity of vinyl. That said,
the cassette form factor brought a lot to music lovers that vinyl just cannot deliver.
First, obviously, is portability. Take your favorite tunes with you with the Walkman,
the 'boombox' and the in-dash car cassette player. Ditch the hiss when Dolby came
along and you had a pretty decent sound for the times. Plus, your recordings were
protected from damage and dust by the sturdy plastic case (ette). Most of us could
not press our own vinyl or easily record on a jerky track-shifting 8-track recorder, so
when the audio cassette arrived in the '60s it offered a whole new way of enjoying
your favorite music -- on the go!

More power to you vinyl fans -- I loved it too when it was all I had, but time & progress
wait for no man. Today, I can call up thousands of tunes by using only my voice, from
a virtual library of music, from ABBA to Led Zeppelin and everything in between.

 

Ok, portability sure. I guess I had too many tapes eaten back in the day.

I have plenty of digital media, but still like to listen to some jazz albums on vinyl.

 

Vinyl lasts forever unless in a hot environment.


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Or unless you leave it out and someone accidentally sits on it.

 

I found it quite an art to get a blank 60 minute 8 track and properly time my recordings to jump from track to track without being in the middle of a song.

 

Never thought of that. The vinyl records from the 1930s, 1940s had no bend to them. The newer vinyl have a certain amount of bend to them.



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Those early records, that ran at 78 rpm, were not made of vinyl, but a rigid substance,
something like bakelite. The discs were fragile and would break or fracture if dropped
or sat upon.

 

Cassette tapes? I want to know how this company is making any money. I think its been 20+ years since I've used a cassette tape, and I can't remember the last time I saw one for sale in a store.

 

So I guess no one had the tape stuck in the heads..... And no skip... Never really liked tapes.


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I still have two cassette recorders that work although I transferred almost all my recorded music to MP3's several years ago. Many of these are off-the-air recordings of local musical shows from the 70's and 80's such as Chuck Cecil's Swinging Years, Benson Curtis' Strictly from Dixie, and Dr. Demento. The original tapes are still sitting in two boxes in my computer room.

 

I have cassette players as well. I know one thing I prefer VHS tapes over DVD because DVDs sometimes do not play smoothly where VHS tapes do.


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I keep meaning to do this, but never seem to be able to find the time. I think I have hundreds of cassettes I recorded in the 70's and 80's.

 

Thanks, Mark. I enjoyed the link.

I really hate to admit this but we have a bunch of old 78's some dating back to around 1900, a few 45's, a bunch of vinyl LP's, some 8-tracks and some cassette's. We have something to play all these on, although the spring broke on the old Victrola and I just haven't gotten around to getting it fixed so I can hear "original' sound.

What me a hoarder? No way.

 

Or a pack rat. It is weird that 78 rpm records are not worth much monies.


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I also have a bunch of 33 1/3, 45, and 78 rpm recordings. I have transferred most of these records to MP3's on my computer using Audacity. My record player won't play 78 rpm records but Audacity lets me record from the slower speeds and changes the result to 78 rpm. Audacity also includes a lot of controls to get rid of most of the scratches, pops, and hisses on those old records. Audacity can also capture most streaming audio on the Internet.

At one time I had a few Caruso 78 rpm 12-inch records from my father's old collection. They did not survive about ten moves that we made the first few years we were married.

At one time I owned a multiple-record player that also automatically turned the record over to play the other side. I didn't use that machine for long as it sometimes turned into an automatic record smashing machine.