Cassettes represented a huge leap forward in the portability of music with an entire album now fitting in the palm of your hand. Consumers could now take their music with them and even record their favorite songs off of the radio giving birth to the “mix tape”, don’t act like you didn’t make these... Don’t let their small size fool you there are a lot of moving parts to a cassette tape that need to work in unison to keep the music playing!
The Anatomy of a Cassette Tape
Tape Reels: The magnetic tape is wound around these as it is played. One is the supply reel the other is the take-up reel.
Pressure Pad: Keeps consistent pressure with the machines head as the tape is read.
Tape Guides: Guide the magnetic tape on the and off of the rollers as it passes the pressure pad.
Capstan & Pinch Roller Openings: The corresponding rollers in the tape deck are responsible for keeping correct tape speed. They are also responsible for keeping accurate position of tape in whole tape path.
Tape Window: Most tapes that are not clear will have a clear window to view both tape reels.
The Anatomy of a Cassette Tape Case
This is the case for cassette tapes that comes to mind for most people. It was created in 1963 by Philips and is generally referred to as the “Norelco” style case. This style has many iterations where details like rounded or square corners come into play along with colored and clear plastic back panels. The breakdown below provides the basic anatomy of the case across most of its variants.
The Anatomy of a Cassette Tape Case
Back Panel: This portion of the case is connected to the drop down try and contains two posts to help secure the tape. Early copies tend to be black but later largely changed to clear.
Drop Down Tray(Front): This piece holds the albums artwork called a “J Card” due to its J shape when folded. The back panel is hinged to the top and bottom
Posts: These posts are molded into the back panel and secure the cassette inside the case. These can come in several variants such as single points or trident style (3 prongs).
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