DIGITAL CASSETTE AND CARTRIDGE RECORDERS TODAY.

This article discusses the use of cassette and cartridge recorders, how tape cassette deck mechanisms work, what goes wrong with them, when to use cartridges, how much of a system to buy, and the reliability factors involved. It concludes with a review of state-of-the-art performance factors and currently available equipment. Cassette drive systems discussed include pinch roller-capstan drive, and reel-to-reel type drive. A block diagram is shown of a digital cassette system, because a number of manufacturers supply complete, wholly self-contained cassette systems, including independent cassette drives (generally more than one) and full interface electronics for use with specific minicomputers or other data sources. These systems usually include internal timing and control for all commands, data formatting, error detection and correction, and generation of suitable status words. Digital cartride recorders are described and compared with cassette recorders. A list of factors to be considered in selecting and applying digital recording devices is presented.