Cassette recording

The invention: Self-contained system making it possible to record
and repeatedly play back sound without having to thread tape
through a machine.
The person behind the invention:
Fritz Pfleumer, a German engineer whose work on audiotapes
paved the way for audiocassette production
Smaller Is Better
The introduction of magnetic audio recording tape in 1929 was
met with great enthusiasm, particularly in the entertainment industry,
and specifically among radio broadcasters. Although somewhat
practical methods for recording and storing sound for later playback
had been around for some time, audiotape was much easier to
use, store, and edit, and much less expensive to produce.
It was Fritz Pfleumer, a German engineer, who in 1929 filed the
first audiotape patent. His detailed specifications indicated that
tape could be made by bonding a thin coating of oxide to strips of either
paper or film. Pfleumer also suggested that audiotape could be
attached to filmstrips to provide higher-quality sound than was
available with the film sound technologies in use at that time. In
1935, the German electronics firm AEG produced a reliable prototype
of a record-playback machine based on Pfleumer’s idea. By
1947, the American company 3M had refined the concept to the
point where it was able to produce a high-quality tape using a plastic-
based backing and red oxide. The tape recorded and reproduced
sound with a high degree of clarity and dynamic range and would
soon become the standard in the industry.
Still, the tape was sold and used in a somewhat inconvenient
open-reel format. The user had to thread it through a machine and
onto a take-up reel. This process was somewhat cumbersome and
complicated for the layperson. For many years, sound-recording
technology remained a tool mostly for professionals.
In 1963, the first audiocassette was introduced by the Netherlands-based PhilipsNVcompany. This device could be inserted into
a machine without threading. Rewind and fast-forward were faster,
and it made no difference where the tape was stopped prior to the
ejection of the cassette. By contrast, open-reel audiotape required
that the tape be wound fully onto one or the other of the two reels
before it could be taken off the machine.
Technical advances allowed the cassette tape to be much narrower
than the tape used in open reels and also allowed the tape
speed to be reduced without sacrificing sound quality. Thus, the
cassette was easier to carry around, and more sound could be recorded
on a cassette tape. In addition, the enclosed cassette decreased
wear and tear on the tape and protected it from contamination.
Creating a Market
One of the most popular uses for audiocassettes was to record
music from radios and other audio sources for later playback. During
the 1970’s, many radio stations developed “all music” formats
in which entire albums were often played without interruption.
That gave listeners an opportunity to record the music for later
playback. At first, the music recording industry complained about
this practice, charging that unauthorized recording of music from
the radio was a violation of copyright laws. Eventually, the issue
died down as the same companies began to recognize this new, untapped
market for recorded music on cassette.
Audiocassettes, all based on the original Philips design, were being
manufactured by more than sixty companies within only a few
years of their introduction. In addition, spin-offs of that design were
being used in many specialized applications, including dictation,
storage of computer information, and surveillance. The emergence
of videotape resulted in a number of formats for recording and
playing back video based on the same principle. Although each is
characterized by different widths of tape, each uses the same technique
for tape storage and transport.
The cassette has remained a popular means of storing and retrieving
information on magnetic tape for more than a quarter of a
century. During the early 1990’s, digital technologies such as audio
CDs (compact discs) and the more advanced CD-ROM (compact discs that reproduce sound, text, and images via computer) were beginning
to store information in revolutionary new ways. With the
development of this increasingly sophisticated technology, need for
the audiocassette, once the most versatile, reliable, portable, and
economical means of recording, storing, and playing-back sound,
became more limited.
Consequences
The cassette represented a new level of convenience for the audiophile,
resulting in a significant increase in the use of recording
technology in all walks of life. Even small children could operate
cassette recorders and players, which led to their use in schools for a
variety of instructional tasks and in the home for entertainment. The
recording industry realized that audiotape cassettes would allow
consumers to listen to recorded music in places where record players
were impractical: in automobiles, at the beach, even while camping.
The industry also saw the need for widespread availability of
music and information on cassette tape. It soon began distributing
albums on audiocassette in addition to the long-play vinyl discs,
and recording sales increased substantially. This new technology
put recorded music into automobiles for the first time, again resulting
in a surge in sales for recorded music. Eventually, information,
including language instruction and books-on-tape, became popular
commuter fare.
With the invention of the microchip, audiotape players became
available in smaller and smaller sizes, making them truly portable.
Audiocassettes underwent another explosion in popularity during
the early 1980’s, when the Sony Corporation introduced the
Walkman, an extremely compact, almost weightless cassette player
that could be attached to clothing and used with lightweight earphones
virtually anywhere. At the same time, cassettes were suddenly
being used with microcomputers for backing up magnetic
data files.
Home video soon exploded onto the scene, bringing with it new
applications for cassettes. As had happened with audiotape, video
camera-recorder units, called “camcorders,” were miniaturized to
the point where 8-millimeter videocassettes capable of recording up to 90 minutes of live action and sound were widely available. These
cassettes closely resembled the audiocassette first introduced in
1963.