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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsLou Ottens, Inventor Of The Cassette Tape, Has Died
RIP and a big Thank You
The cassette tape was Ottens' answer to the large reel-to-reel tapes that provided high-quality sound but were seen as too clunky and expensive. He took on the challenge of shrinking tape technology in the early 1960s, when he became the head of new product development in Hasselt, Belgium, for the Dutch-based Philips technology company.
"Lou wanted music to be portable and accessible," says documentary filmmaker Zack Taylor, who spent days with Ottens for his film, Cassette: A Documentary Mixtape.
But first, he had to invent it. Trying to envision something that didn't yet exist, Ottens used a wooden block that was small and thin enough to fit in his pocket as the target for what the future of tape recording and playback should be.
The result was unveiled to the world in 1963, and the so-called "compact cassette" quickly took off: It was "a sensation" from the start, Ottens told Time in 2013, on the cassette's 50th anniversary.
more....
https://www.npr.org/2021/03/10/975598869/lou-ottens-inventor-of-the-cassette-tape-has-died
Aristus
(66,327 posts)Hugin
(33,135 posts)I never did figure out a work around.
Hugin
(33,135 posts)There is someone who's had an indelible impact from the shadows.
RIP Lou and may the tunes carry on for you.
Made my world much better!
RIP
AllaN01Bear
(18,191 posts)soothsayer
(38,601 posts)Guy Whitey Corngood
(26,500 posts)Hekate
(90,667 posts)Silent3
(15,207 posts)For something that was originally meant for dictation-quality sound, this analog tech got pushed incredibly far, until you could get some really decent sound out of a slowly-moving narrow strip of magnetic tape.
This invention brought great pleasure to both my driving time and listening at home in its day.
Budi
(15,325 posts)hunter
(38,311 posts)It took me some time to save enough money for a floppy disk drive.
There were high speed cassette duplicating machines in the university bookstore. Supposedly these were for copying recorded lectures but mostly people used them for copying music. The quality wasn't great, but it worked.
My wife and I still have a travel box full of cassettes we listened to on long road trips.
world wide wally
(21,742 posts)Thanks, man
IcyPeas
(21,863 posts)world wide wally
(21,742 posts)I even had a 4 track player before that!
Jerryatric
(2,472 posts)I wouldn't know half my friends if we hadn't met back when we were all trading Dead tapes.
Hassler
(3,377 posts)PlanetBev
(4,104 posts)Along with my 45s and 33 1/3 rpms.
MustLoveBeagles
(11,597 posts)Your invention brought happiness to a lot of people.