(Unit 4) First Research on Cassette Tapes

19/09/23

 Unit 4 - Cassette Tape

• Invented by Lou Ottens and his team at the Dutch company Philips.

• First released August 1963, cassettes came in two different forms. They either contained pre-recorded content (musicassette) or they came as 'blank' fully recordable cassettes. Both versions have two sides.

• Other cassette tapes have existed, such as the Microcassette which contains the same amount of magnetic tape as the more well-known Compact Cassette but is roughly a quarter in size in comparison.

• The generic term 'cassette tape' often refers to the Compact Cassette because of it being the most commonly known and used.

How cassette tapes are made

• Made of a polyester type film with a magnetic coating.

• The original magnetic material was based on gamma ferric oxide (Fe2 O3).

• Around, 1970, 3M Company developed a cobalt-doped process combined with a technique involving double coating to improve the tapes output levels.

• They're different to CD's (need to research this in more detail).

• 30 years is the average lifespan but different factors can affect this such as heat and UV rays.

• Early tapes were coated in the solid chromium dioxide which can make them less durable. This is why tapes started being released coated in other materials lie magnetite, cobalt-absorbed iron oxide or ferric oxide and cobalt.

• The compact cassette is another name for it.

• Analog magnetic tape recording format is used in compact cassettes and many other similar products for recording audio and playback (look more into this)