These functions were instead performed on a dedicated machine in the event of playback being required. These machines were extremely restricted in the reel sizes for which they were designed, and often had no rewind or fast forward facility at all, or even playback. However some specialised applications, such as call logging, used ten-and-a-half or larger reels of double-play or thinner tape for extended recording times. Studio- and otherwise professional-quality 1⁄ 4 in (6.4 mm)-width tapes thinner than long-play were not commercially available in either reel format. However 3600 ft tapes on seven-inch reels were commercially available for those who wanted them. Triple-play tape was too fragile for many tape decks to safely rewind even on a full seven-inch reel, and was more commonly used on five-inch- and smaller reels. Thinner tapes with thicknesses of 18 μm, fitting 3,600 feet (1,097 m) on a seven-inch reel and 1,800 feet (548.6 m) on a 5 inches (13 cm) reel were known as triple-play tapes. This and thinner tapes were not commonly used on 10 + 1⁄ 2 inches (27 cm) reels, as the tape was too fragile for the angular momentum of the larger reels, particularly when rewinding. These were known as long play tapes.Īlso manufacturers also referred to 3 + 3⁄ 4 inches per second (9.525 cm/s) tape speed as long-play.Ī further reduction to 26 μm resulted in double-play tapes of 2,400 feet (731.5 m) on a 7 inches (18 cm) reel. The first commonly available increase in tape length resulted from a reduction in thickness from 42 μm to 35 μm, which allowed 3,600 ft (1,100 m), 1,800 ft (550 m), and 900 ft (270 m) tapes to fit on ten-and-a-half, seven-, and five-inch reels respectively. Some (not all) reels described as three inches are in fact three and a quarter inches (8.2 cm) in diameter, in order to have half the capacity of a five-inch reel. The standard ten and a half inch reel has approximately twice the capacity of the seven inch reel, which in turn has twice the capacity of the five inch. Reel capacity is affected by both the reel diameter and the reel hub diameter. When in use these hubs were locked onto the cine spindles by the same mechanism used to secure the smaller reels. Some tape decks could accommodate either format by using removable hubs for the larger reel size. In machines designed to allow for vertical mounting, the upper part of the shaft or hub could commonly be rotated by 60° so the upper splines locked the reel in place (or, more recently, used a rubber stopper placed on the spindle). In each case the shaft or hub had three splines. The most common sizes were seven, five (12.7 cm) and three inches (7.6 cm) in diameter. These reels dominated domestic applications. Reels of up to 7 inches (18 cm) in diameter, most commonly with plastic flanges but metal was also used, which fit over a splined 1⁄ 4 in (6.4 mm) shaft known as a cine spindle, because it is of the same dimensions as the spindle used for Standard Standard 8mm cine film.The reels were known as NAB reels and the hubs on which they were mounted as NAB hubs. These reels and hubs were similar to those used for wider tape formats such as 1⁄ 2 in (13 mm), 1 in (25 mm), and 2 in (51 mm) tape widths, and were principally used for studio and other professional applications. 10 + 1⁄ 2 inches (27 cm) reels, almost always with metal flanges, which fit over a hub three inches in diameter.The tape decks of the 1950s were mainly designed to use tape 1⁄ 4 inch (0.64 cm) wide and to accept one of two reel formats: Reel-to-reel quarter-inch A seven-inch reel of 1⁄ 4 in (6.4 mm) tape Outside of the US, the overall thickness is more often quoted, and is the more relevant measurement when relating the thickness to the length that can be fit onto a reel or into a cassette. However, this varies from manufacturer to manufacturer and also between tape formulations from the same manufacturer. In the United States, tape thickness is often expressed as the thickness of the base alone. This article describes the length, tape thickness and playing times of some of the most common ones.Īll tape thicknesses here refer to the total tape thickness unless otherwise specified, including the base, the oxide coating and any back coating. Since the widespread adoption of reel-to-reel audio tape recording in the 1950s, audio tapes and tape cassettes have been available in many formats. JSTOR ( July 2021) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message).Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.įind sources: "Audio tape specifications" – news Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. This article needs additional citations for verification.
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