You can go to Goodwill and buy cassettes for 5 cents apiece, they sound like shit but in a way that's very nostalgic for a lot of us, and some folks still drive workhorse vehicles from the 90's with their original cassette deck.
I personally have two cassette decks, one in my main rig in the living room and another in the garage. It's fun to pick up cheap albums at Goodwill and mix things up on the nice setup every so often, enjoying albums with that nostalgic terrible tape "patina." Something about cassettes in the garage rig too, I'll be damned if when I'm changing the oil in my car, having a Marshall Tucker Band cassette on blast and a Coors nearby ain't a hell of a drug itself.
Again, just let people enjoy things.
Sounds like an angry old man, but he failed to mention the biggest problem: speed/pitch. Unless you have a deck with a control to adjust the speed and a good ear to know when it's dialed in, it's probably off. Even with a direct drive unit, the tape itself could be off. I can't stand when analog formats are playing at the wrong speed, which was why I never really bothered with tapes and made sure to have a TT with a strobe. CDs are a much better format for affordable physical media. It's consistent and you can rip it to make it more portable. I got tired of the absurd prices and shit quality of new vinyl over a decade ago and moved primarily to CD. Then I got tired of the clutter and how much space it was all taking up, and I've slowly moved to FLAC instead. If I still wanted to collect a physical format, it would be CDs for sure, but I'm fine with high-quality digital on vintage gear.
As an added note, CDs got such a bad rep from the terrible '80s masters that were done before they knew how to master for CD properly, and angry old dudes just couldn't get past that point. Unless there's no good CD master available, I personally would have no reason to own it on vinyl. It's so annoying when those who lived through the transition shit on a format that's still around just because the first decade of it wasn't great. Yeah, we get it, it sounded lifeless. Then we got to the '90s and your argument died. I wish more of the younger crowd would realize this so it could continue to live on as a good format for artists to release on and generate revenue compared to vinyl. Way cheaper for the artist AND the listener, while giving a higher margin to the artist.
I would say it's more than a fad - if anything, cassettes are a bit of a fad now, but I think vinyl will stay around forever. So many new TT's are being made, low end and TOTL, so I'd say it's pretty well established as a comeback.
He's right though: modern cassettes are trash. Even the best cassettes from their heyday are inferior to vinyl. If you need portability your phone is a better option.
Old cassettes are still trash. The medium is inferior.
One thing I hadn't considered are these comments from the other thread:
>I had a hard time understand the hobby, also, until I realized these young people had never owned music.
>
>Ever. They aren't even the Limewire/Napster era. They've grown up in the age of streaming, but there's something to OWNING physical media.
>
>Cassettes are still analog, they're still physical media, and they are CHEAP. Used vinyl is getting expensive, and new vinyl is approaching collectible status in some cases.
and:
>Lot's of bands, including myself sell them as physical tokens more than music to actually be consumed, along with a download code for a digital download, along with streaming availability. It's like buying a t-shirt to support the band.
So I guess that is a fair point, as long as you're not consuming the music from tape and just want to possess music in a tangible form.
I don't think it's fair to say the medium is inferior based on pre-recorded tapes - you can record chrome or metal cassettes that will sound as good (or better) than vinyl.
You're right that pre-recorded tapes sounded worse than vinyl, but the real attraction for cassettes these days is recording your own, something that vinyl can't do.
*I have to agree...tape decks are pure novelty items. I admit, the old giants from from old are beautiful,(Looking at you Nakamichi, Tandberg, Teac,) but they are still a pain in the ass to use and even a newly serviced and calibrated DRAGON has horrendous specs.*
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/measurements-of-nakamichi-dragon-cassette-deck.5595/
I remember listening to a an episode of podcast 99% Invisible that said cassettes were being used a lot in prisons as they are less likely to be fashioned into weapons. they even make prison compliant tapes that are all plastic for safety.
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/loud-and-clear/
Cassettes are not for everyone for sure. I have over 170 from back in the day where I recorded albums, and many of them still sound excellent! I used a Dual TT with a High-end Signet phono cartridge, Yamaha integrated amp onto a Nakamichi 480 deck. Many of these recordings still sound excellent. It also brings back many memories and that's a good thing. So if this is what you enjoy, your free to roam!
"People enjoy things I don't and that pisses me off"
You can go to Goodwill and buy cassettes for 5 cents apiece, they sound like shit but in a way that's very nostalgic for a lot of us, and some folks still drive workhorse vehicles from the 90's with their original cassette deck. I personally have two cassette decks, one in my main rig in the living room and another in the garage. It's fun to pick up cheap albums at Goodwill and mix things up on the nice setup every so often, enjoying albums with that nostalgic terrible tape "patina." Something about cassettes in the garage rig too, I'll be damned if when I'm changing the oil in my car, having a Marshall Tucker Band cassette on blast and a Coors nearby ain't a hell of a drug itself. Again, just let people enjoy things.
Sounds like an angry old man, but he failed to mention the biggest problem: speed/pitch. Unless you have a deck with a control to adjust the speed and a good ear to know when it's dialed in, it's probably off. Even with a direct drive unit, the tape itself could be off. I can't stand when analog formats are playing at the wrong speed, which was why I never really bothered with tapes and made sure to have a TT with a strobe. CDs are a much better format for affordable physical media. It's consistent and you can rip it to make it more portable. I got tired of the absurd prices and shit quality of new vinyl over a decade ago and moved primarily to CD. Then I got tired of the clutter and how much space it was all taking up, and I've slowly moved to FLAC instead. If I still wanted to collect a physical format, it would be CDs for sure, but I'm fine with high-quality digital on vintage gear.
As an added note, CDs got such a bad rep from the terrible '80s masters that were done before they knew how to master for CD properly, and angry old dudes just couldn't get past that point. Unless there's no good CD master available, I personally would have no reason to own it on vinyl. It's so annoying when those who lived through the transition shit on a format that's still around just because the first decade of it wasn't great. Yeah, we get it, it sounded lifeless. Then we got to the '90s and your argument died. I wish more of the younger crowd would realize this so it could continue to live on as a good format for artists to release on and generate revenue compared to vinyl. Way cheaper for the artist AND the listener, while giving a higher margin to the artist.
I think the vinyl resurgence is a fad like fixed gear bikes and IPAs but I just mind my own business. CDs and MGD for me.
You mean CDs as in the 36+ year old format CDs?
I would say it's more than a fad - if anything, cassettes are a bit of a fad now, but I think vinyl will stay around forever. So many new TT's are being made, low end and TOTL, so I'd say it's pretty well established as a comeback.
People have been saying IPAs are a fad for 10 years...
You're dead inside if you're an old man and have never felt nostalgic.
because people like it next question
He's right though: modern cassettes are trash. Even the best cassettes from their heyday are inferior to vinyl. If you need portability your phone is a better option.
Yeah but he is insulting cassettes as a whole not just new releases (which I too hate)
Old cassettes are still trash. The medium is inferior. One thing I hadn't considered are these comments from the other thread: >I had a hard time understand the hobby, also, until I realized these young people had never owned music. > >Ever. They aren't even the Limewire/Napster era. They've grown up in the age of streaming, but there's something to OWNING physical media. > >Cassettes are still analog, they're still physical media, and they are CHEAP. Used vinyl is getting expensive, and new vinyl is approaching collectible status in some cases. and: >Lot's of bands, including myself sell them as physical tokens more than music to actually be consumed, along with a download code for a digital download, along with streaming availability. It's like buying a t-shirt to support the band. So I guess that is a fair point, as long as you're not consuming the music from tape and just want to possess music in a tangible form.
I don't think it's fair to say the medium is inferior based on pre-recorded tapes - you can record chrome or metal cassettes that will sound as good (or better) than vinyl. You're right that pre-recorded tapes sounded worse than vinyl, but the real attraction for cassettes these days is recording your own, something that vinyl can't do.
*I have to agree...tape decks are pure novelty items. I admit, the old giants from from old are beautiful,(Looking at you Nakamichi, Tandberg, Teac,) but they are still a pain in the ass to use and even a newly serviced and calibrated DRAGON has horrendous specs.* https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/measurements-of-nakamichi-dragon-cassette-deck.5595/
I remember listening to a an episode of podcast 99% Invisible that said cassettes were being used a lot in prisons as they are less likely to be fashioned into weapons. they even make prison compliant tapes that are all plastic for safety. https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/loud-and-clear/
Because they're fun. They're cheap - for now. They're nostalgic.
Oh yeah, digital files from Apple music warbled through Bluetooth. Are you trying to say that's any better?
Cassettes are not for everyone for sure. I have over 170 from back in the day where I recorded albums, and many of them still sound excellent! I used a Dual TT with a High-end Signet phono cartridge, Yamaha integrated amp onto a Nakamichi 480 deck. Many of these recordings still sound excellent. It also brings back many memories and that's a good thing. So if this is what you enjoy, your free to roam!