While CDs, digital downloads, and streaming services may dominate music listening today, there was once a time, especially during the 70s and 80s, when cassette players reigned supreme. These mechanized devices gave children and teens the ability to listen to the songs they wanted, and all the whirs and clicks of the moving pieces provided a soundtrack to their youth.
Table of Contents
- 1 1. Recording Songs Off the Radio
- 2 2. Making the Perfect Mix Tape
- 3 3. Rewinding with a Pencil
- 4 4. Saving the Tape with Scotch Tape
- 5 5. The Walkman Workout
- 6 6. Recording Your Own Radio Show
- 7 7. The Auto-Reverse Miracle
- 8 8. Double Deck Dubbing
- 9 9. Bass Boost Button Magic
- 10 10. Dolby Noise Reduction Debates
- 11 11. Carrying Case Pride
- 12 12. Battery Life Anxiety
- 13 13. The Pause Button Technique
- 14 14. Label Art Masterpieces
1. Recording Songs Off the Radio
One of the most enjoyable things tape players were used for was recording songs off the radio. You’d press the record button and capture DJ commentary, song intros, and news segments. Everyone who used a tape deck recording device loved the music more than they hated the interruptions.
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2. Making the Perfect Mix Tape
Making a mixtape is a time honored tradition that is still loved today. It takes a lot of planning to make a great mixtape. Considerations for the order of the side, length of the cassette, and room for the songs were all thought about. Once the songs were selected, the cassette label had to be decorated and the track list had to be written in tiny letters.
3. Rewinding with a Pencil
The old-fashioned way to rewind the tapes was a hexagonal number two pencil. Everyone who used tape players loved the ability to press the pencil into the tape spools, but it was an unwritten rule that the cassette tape player had to be out of battery or completely broken for it to be used. It was the equivalent of pressing the rewind button.
4. Saving the Tape with Scotch Tape
We needed to use some specific tools to fix our favorite tapes. Scissors to cut the tape and Scotch tape to hold it back together. Of course we would be careful because we thought of ourselves as professionals. After repairing it would click like a battle scar.
5. The Walkman Workout
Clipping that Walkman to your waistband was a fun and careful adveture. Trying not to bounce too much. The foam on the headphones would get sweaty and the batteries seemed to die faster when you were moving. But it was worth it. This was freedom.
6. Recording Your Own Radio Show
Terrible sound quality as you used a microphone to record your own radio show. You and your friends were DJ’s in your own minds. Of course if you had siblings they were “special guests”
7. The Auto-Reverse Miracle
When you were little metal mouth braces were futuristic. When you got your first auto-reverse player it was also futuristic. You could be free of the limits of manually flipping the tape.
8. Double Deck Dubbing
The double deck player was the holy grail of tape technology. Copying a tape took half the time. This feature was only used to make backup copies of tapes we owned…. right?
9. Bass Boost Button Magic
That beautiful bass boost button made everything sound “better.” We were convinced we were improving the sound quality. Turn that bass boost button on, we wanted it.
10. Dolby Noise Reduction Debates
The other question that always came up was Dolby on or off? What did it even do? Why did everyone have such strong opinions about it? Usually because you wouldn’t even remember if the tape was recorded with it on or off so there would be endless switching.
11. Carrying Case Pride
Your cassette tape holder was a status symbol. A simple wallet to a deluxe hard holder with individual slots, even how you transported your music collection was important. The real pros had multiple cases set up by genre.
12. Battery Life Anxiety
The fear of a battery dying mid song was real. You could always tell. The subtle signs before a battery died would be a slight slow down, or the sound would get quieter and worse. The rechargeable batteries you always had to carry were worth their weight in gold, AAs for spares were always there.
13. The Pause Button Technique
You were an audio ninja if you were able to create a good segue with songs because of how good you were at anticipating the DJ’s voice because they would always be talking and there’s a song coming up, and it takes seconds to hit the pause button. These songs were all about the pause button, and the segue was the most important to any mix.
14. Label Art Masterpieces
Every J-card insert was a small canvas, and a well-made label was an art. Drawing in the corners, using colored markers, and having neat lettering all showed how good you were at this and how good the tape was.
