(2023-06-30) Why cassette tapes are still relevant
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I just finished recording my first mixtape. On the cheapest hardware I could
possibly find new. But I am quite satisfied with the result. The tech
definitely is alive and well in 2023.
Besides the audio source, the recording device and the cassettes themselves,
you'll need two precious resources: electricity and time. Time is necessary
not only for the recording process itself, but also to adjust the correct
input signal level, because in case of "shoebox recorders", especially
modern ones, you don't have any level indicators at your disposal. Even in
this case (which is the most desperate one, because your recordings will be
mono and their overall quality is very lo-fi), the process is simple. First,
just record a bright fragment of the audio you need to process and look for
any distortions, starting with about 70% to 80% level. Keep lowering it
until you don't hear any distortions. In my case of Auna RQ-132USB aka
CRS-132 (which is probably true for all the OEM "shoebox recorders" of the
same generation) recording from VLC running on the Nokia T20 tablet onto a
Type-I cassette from Sony, I had to lower the output down to about 20%
(relative to the tablet's headphone hearing limit recommendation) to get the
optimal sound. Overall, if your mixtape is prepared correctly, you shouldn't
have to spend over 2 hours on a 90-minute recording. Of course, with a
stationary deck, the process is simpler although more energy-consuming, and
yields much better outcome.
Speaking of energy consumption, modern cassette "shoeboxes" and players have
one huge advantage despite all their inferiorities: the DC power they
require is from 3V/0.5A (pocket-sized players) to 6V/0.6A ("shoeboxes") at
its peak. So, theoretically, they consume up to 3.6W at most. Realistically,
they can even run on 1.2 NiMH cells, which maps to 1.2W for pocket players
and 2.88W for "shoeboxes" which, in turn, can hypothetically run from USB
too. Quite a solar-friendly solution we have here. And if the rechargeable
Varta C cells I have bought for the tape recorder purposes really do have
3000 mAh in them, then this CRS-132 can run for at least 20 hours straight,
which is already impressive.
"But wait", you might ask, "aren't solid state players/recorders much more
efficient in terms of space, energy and audio quality?"
Yes, they are. They also break more often. They also don't offer any
good-quality options that have removable batteries. Say hello to the planned
obsolescence that makes them contributing to the e-waste problem much more
than any broken cassettes and oldschool players could ever do. I wish I
hadn't lost my single-AAA-powered pocket MP3 player though. Yes, it was an
OEM crap (by TakeMS), but this crap did most things right. Now, nothing does
them right except cassette players. Also, because of the 30 to 45 minutes
limitation of the tapes, you need to think multiple times about how to
better arrange your music. At the end of the day, you only leave what really
matters to you on the tape. And then you can decorate the box. I can hardly
imagine presenting someone a microSD with music. CDs don't require much
effort either, and vinyl records are virtually impossible to produce at
home. So, cassettes, with their perfect balance of DIY and physicality, are,
to me, a symbol of the analogue rebellion in the digital age.
