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Recording Decks The audiocassette holds a reel of quarter-inch-wide magnetic tape, which is a plastic or Mylar-based film coated with a layer of magnetic particles. The electrical signal is transferred from the sound source to recording heads in the tape deck that "write," or record, the electrical signal representing the sound onto the magnetic particles. The playback head translates these electrical signals and reproduces them as the original sound.  Audiocassettes play on two sides, not the front and rear of the tape, but actually the top and bottom, like two lanes of a highway. An auto-reverse tape player plays one lane, then changes directions and plays in the opposite direction. Tape recording isn't the only type of home audio recording. There are three ways to record sound.
Digital Recording Digital recording methods record in binary code rather than frequency waves to make a duplicate of the source. The sound quality of these recordings is on par with compact discs, with differences that only experienced listeners can discern. Digital recorders connected to a CD player can make exact digital copies of CDs. They can record live concerts with digital accuracy. Digital audiotape (DAT) was the first digital audio method to be introduced. DAT has more in common with a VCR than it does with the familiar audiocassette deck. The mechanical parts of a DAT are more like a tiny VCR with small tapes. The DAT can record at two different speeds with only a minor loss of fidelity, just like a VCR. DAT is an accepted recording format among professional studio engineers and audiophiles who make live recordings. But there are few if any prerecorded DAT tapes and the format has not caught the fancy of the public. MiniDisc (MD) was the next digital recording format to evolve. To fit the digital signal onto the magnetic media, MDs use compression schemes (5:1 compression) to analyze the digital code and record only those sounds that can be heard. Only the most discerning listeners can tell the difference between a CD original and a copy on MD. MD decks can display information about the album, artist and individual track title. And because the recordings are digital, exact timing information can be displayed in the panel. The latest digital recording format is the compact disc recordable (CD-R). CD-R media and decks are nearly identical to their play-only siblings and require no compression scheme. Unlike analog tape, DAT and MD, however, CD-R is a "WORM" disc format - an acronym meaning, "write-once, read many." In other words, CD-R discs can be recorded only once. You can buy CD-RW, or CD-rewritable discs, but CD-RW blank discs are more than three times as expensive as their WORM counterparts, and can be used and played back only in CD-RW-compatible players and recording decks. Because of fears of piracy, both MD and CD-R formats contain a copy protection system called serial code management system (SCMS). While you can make as many direct digital copies as you like, you cannot make a direct digital copy of a digital copy. (You can make an analog copy of a digital copy, but this analog copy will suffer the same frequency limitations as any analog recording, along with generational signal loss and tape hiss.) The primary advantage of CD-R is that it's "backward compatible" with the CD. This means you can play your existing CDs in the new CD-R recording decks and vice versa. The main advantages of MD are that it's re-recordable, exceedingly compact and self-contained. The 2.75-inch-square disc is enclosed in a plastic shell much like a 3.5-inch computer floppy disk. Features All recorder/players, analog and digital, share many of the same functions.
Many newer blank tape formulations allow you to tape "into the red," meaning the tape can accept more of the signal generated by the source. Distorted recordings, in which loud sounds carry buzz, have been recorded too far into the red. They are over-saturated with the source signal and should be rerecorded. Recording levels are set automatically when making direct digital recording. If your CD player is connected via analog jacks to your digital recorder, or if you are recording from a vinyl record, you will have to manually set the recording level.
Many high-end analog tape decks contain Dolby HX Pro. This is an automatic noise reduction technology that compensates for constant shifts in tape sensitivity when recording in higher frequencies and smoothes out the recording process to produce a more accurate recording. Because HX Pro works at the recording stage, a tape recorded in HX Pro need not be played back only on an HX Pro equipped deck to hear the benefits. Another noise control feature on many decks is the MPX filter, which is used in recording FM stereo broadcasts. Some high-frequency parts of the FM signal can cause the Dolby circuitry to malfunction. The MPX filter prevents this type of malfunction when using Dolby.
Many tape decks with a real-time counter and most digital recorders have a "time remaining" indicator that tells you precisely how much blank space you have remaining.
Many people own four cassette decks: a home deck, a personal player, a boombox and a car player. MiniDisc recorder players are available in all four configurations as well, and DAT in all but boomboxes. CD-R decks are tabletop devices. There are single and dual-well cassette models. The dual-well deck (or double cassette deck) can hold and play two cassettes, and can make copies of a cassette (with significantly lower fidelity than the original). In some dual-well decks, many of the features are doubled; in others, only one deck plays back and records while the other simply plays back. One feature that a dual-well deck offers is high-speed dubbing, the ability to record at twice the normal speed. New dual-tray CD-R decks share a similar high-speed recording feature. Personal cassette and MD players may or may not include an AM/FM radio. And most moderately priced personal cassette and MD units play only and do not record. Car cassette players, which function like their tabletop and personal cousins, are discussed in the Autosound pages. Purchase Your primary decision is between analog and digital recording formats. What you record, how and where you will be listening to the recordings, how discerning an ear you have and your budget will determine this decision. If you buy prerecorded music on cassette tapes, then you will probably settle on an analog deck. If you frequently make copies of other cassette tapes, then you will want a double cassette deck analog system. If you make copies of CDs to take with you while traveling, and money is an issue, you will probably choose the standard analog cassette system. The better models of analog recorders offer three heads and a real-time clock counter. Among the personal models, durability is the main issue and the extra money you spend will ensure a longer life for a fragile device. If your recording needs are more demanding and if you can spend the extra money, you will want a digital recording system. The choice between MD and CD-R depends heavily on budget. Choosing MD could require the purchase of both a component deck and a personal or portable player. This purchase can be combined into a single personal or portable recorder/player, but many consumers dislike continually connecting a small recorder to their system. More than two-thirds of American homes have a CD player, making the addition of a CD-R merely a replacement for an existing home player. MDs are more convenient for traveling, and unlike CD-R, all MD blanks are re-recordable. Before making a buying decision, bring along a tape or disc you are familiar with, play with the controls, and understand the features and what you can do with them. Connections Unlike a CD player or a phonograph, a recording deck requires not one, but two sets of interconnect cables: one set for recording from a source and one for playback through your amplifier. Some recording deck manufacturers label their back panel jacks "play" and "record." Other manufacturers label these jacks "line in" and "line out," or just "in" and "out." It is easy to mix these up when hooking up your recorder to an amplifier and your source. Just keep repeating In-Out, In-Out, and you should be fine. The "record"("line in") jacks on your recording deck are inputs from a source (usually your amplifier). The "play" ("line out") jacks on your recording deck are outputs; from their perspective, the recording deck itself is the source, and the cables transmit the sound out - to the amplifier and speakers. The arrangement is the opposite from your amplifier's point-of-view. Music to be recorded flows "out" from your amplifier and "in" to your recording deck. Music to be played back from the recording deck flows "out" from the recording deck and "in" to the amplifier. Most amplifiers have two sets of recording deck plugs. Most people have only one recording deck, which leaves a set of these recording plugs open. The available record/out jacks on an amplifier now can be used in a number of creative ways to add flexibility to your audio system. A frequent use of the extra record/out jacks is for wireless speaker or headphone applications. The appropriate signal is sent in to the amplifier/transmitter and the signal is transmitted to the wireless speakers or headphones. Recording Media The most important accessory for a tape deck is a blank cassette. All analog audiotape is made from a Mylar plastic ribbon coated with magnetic particles made from varying metal oxides and coated on the surface with binder glue. Type I tapes are usually coated with ferric oxide, and are often called low- or normal-bias. Ferric oxide tapes are reliable (if you use a well-known brand), the least expensive and the best for spoken audio and uncomplicated recording. Most prerecorded music is made on Type II high-bias tapes that are coated with particles of chromium dioxide or ferrichrome, a combination of ferric oxide and chromium dioxide. These tapes work on all decks. Type IV, high-bias tape, more popularly known as metal tape, is made with metal particles. A special metal switch on your tape deck is often required to record on it. Salon tapes are made with metal particles and enclosed in a higher-quality, heavy shell made from a space-age ceramic resin. The shell makes the whole package more resistant to the vibrations of a recorder, which often can leave subtle noise on a recording. The cassettes can cost more than three times the cost of a Type II cassette. A cassette shell may look like a simple plastic case, but it is composed of hundreds of tiny parts and must be assembled within the tightest manufacturing tolerances to ensure the tape maintains accurate alignment with record and playback heads. When the tape sounds as if it's off the track, it is usually the shell's fault for allowing the tape to go out of alignment. All cassette tapes are available in a variety of lengths, usually 60-, 76-, 90-, 100- and 110-minutes. There are 120-minute cassettes, but to fit more tape into a cassette, the tape must be thinner and, therefore, more susceptible to breaking with heavy use. Tape for DAT is usually made of high-grade plastic and coated with a denser layer of metal particles to better maintain the integrity of the digital data, which are far more fragile than standard analog signals. DAT blanks are available in 30-, 60-, and 120-minute variations. CD-R blank media comes only in 74-minute lengths. But CD-R blanks used for audio recording differ from CD-R blanks used with a personal computer to record data. Blank media intended for use in an audio CD-R deck can be used with your PC, but not vice versa. In many cases, the differences between CD-R blanks are not very clearly delineated on packaging. Make sure you are buying the correct disc for your recording needs. Timers Timers similar to those on VCRs are available for analog tape decks, allowing you to record radio programs while you aren't home. The tape deck must be equipped with the appropriate timer input jack to attach a timer. Maintenance As tape moves through a recording machine, bits of coating can flake off and stick to the heads or on the tape path mechanism. Oxide particles, if left to build up, will reduce sound quality and performance. To minimize this possibility, stick with known brand names of audiotape, and clean the heads and tape path regularly. Several manufacturers make cleaning cassettes that keep heads and tape paths clear. Sure signs that a tape deck needs to be cleaned are bad or garbled sound or low volume. To keep the sound at its best:
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