I have PILES and PILES of 8 tracks at home. More 8
tracks than CD's, and almost as many as I own records.
Occassionally you can find an NOS 8 track player on
eBay, and this is the sort of thing you want if you
want to truely experience the "fidelity" of the 8
track. Of course, it will likely need some attention,
the drive belts tend to crumble and break over time if
not used.
8 track tape is basically 1/4" reel to reel tape,
which is pretty durable stuff. I've got some
reel-to-reels that are 30 years old and play just
fine. The weak point in the 8 track is the joint in
the tape, where the metal foil exists to trigger the
jump from track to track. This can be repaired with
patience, skill, and a little luck by using a flat
bladed screwdriver to carefully pry the housing apart,
and some scotch tape cut with a razor blade to splice
the tape. Aluminum foil can be used if the metal part
is gone, again, cut it with the razor blade.
A cassette tape is 1/8" tape, and while you will have
more "room" to store audio signal on a cassette tape
(1/8" / 4 tracks = 1/32" per track, vs 1/4" / 16
tracks = 1/64" per track) than an 8 track, the 1/4" 8
track tape will not stretch as much, so wow and
flutter will be reduced, and of course the tape is
more durable. I have seen cassettes warped by sitting
in a hot car; never have I seen an 8 track ruined by
anything other than brute force!
--Mike Pittinaro
"Forsake Inhibitions.
Pursue thy Dreams."
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