
The Last Audio Cassette Factory [video] - chkuendig
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMTpvr9HXeI
======
51Cards
To those here who don't understand it... Why do we seek out retro gaming
machines? Fire up a Commodore 64? Dig the Z80 unit out of the closet? Have
massive projects attempting to bit emulate old TV gaming systems? Are these in
some way better than our current hardware?

Retro has its own appeal... for a game, a vintage automobile, a manual
transmission, a paper photograph, 35mm film, a watch without a microprocessor,
a softer audio sound, or the scrape of a needle over vinyl. Someone will love
it on nostalgia alone even if the world has "moved on".

~~~
Someone1234
Little odd to read "a manual transmission" listed amongst other retro things.
It is the most popular style of transmission in the world. Even in the US most
vehicles larger than a minivan are manual transmission.

Most people drive that way, it isn't odd, retro, or hipster. It is the norm,
the US is the oddity. CVTs might change that a little as we go more
hybrid/electric, but as of 2015, manual remains the norm.

~~~
wil421
>Even in the US most vehicles larger than a minivan are manual transmission.

I beg to differ, the best selling automobile is an F-150. Which hasn't offered
a manual since ~2009 and only in a v6 (v8 trucks are more popular in this
class anyway).

The top 3 autos in the US are all trucks.[1] The next up is the Camry which
doesn't offer a manual.

Not to mention many car manufacturers are switching to CVT transmissions for
their base models. Audi even uses them along with GM, Honda, Nissan etc.

Its hard to even find new BMWs with manuals. Have a friend with a manual x3
and the dealer said its one of the only ones in the US.

These Quora responses indicate it's more of a price issue in Europe than a
preference. Most auto's are about $2000 more with a manual.[2]

[1][http://autocontentexp.com/20-best-selling-vehicles-in-
americ...](http://autocontentexp.com/20-best-selling-vehicles-in-america-june-
edition/)

[2][http://www.quora.com/Why-do-the-majority-of-cars-in-
Europe-h...](http://www.quora.com/Why-do-the-majority-of-cars-in-Europe-have-
manual-transmissions)

~~~
Someone1234
>> Even in the US most vehicles larger than a minivan are manual transmission.

> I beg to differ, the best selling automobile is an F-150.

That doesn't really differ from what I said. There are much bigger things on
US roads than the F-150, and most of them are manual. I'm talking big rigs,
delivery vans, buses/coaches, etc.

The F-150 started out as a small commercial vehicle aimed at contractors,
builders, and other similar jobs. It has since morphed into a consumer truck
that starts at only $26K. As you say it is one of the best selling vehicles in
the US, and it only reached that milestone by being a consumer vehicle.

All reminding us that the F-150 is automatic and takes regular unleaded (as
opposed to diesel like most commercial and or bigger vehicles) does is remind
us of how consumer-focused it is, rather than disproving that most commercial
vehicles are manual in the US.

PS - Quora is a source now? And you're ignoring eight out of nine answers and
citing the one answer that you like.

~~~
wil421
>Even in the US most vehicles larger than a minivan are manual transmission.

You didn't say anything about commercial vehicles. If you said commercial
vehicles I would've agreed. Regardless, most vehicles bigger than minivans do
not have manuals.

If you look at Audi, BMW and Benz, then you are going to be hard to find
manuals with most models in the US (I'm assuming its similar in EU with the
pricier models, who drives a manual 5 series or E class?).

Quroa...I did cherry pick but I was looking for real people in Europe thoughts
on the subject. So, I thought it was appropriate (and I was busy at work). If
you really looked at what some people were saying about car manufacturing in
Europe in the 70s it did make some sense.

~~~
Someone1234
> Regardless, most vehicles bigger than minivans do not have manuals. If you
> look at Audi, BMW and Benz, then you are going to be hard to find manuals
> with most models in the US

Just to be clear: When I say bigger I mean literally, not figuratively. I am
talking about commercial vehicles and other large things like trucks, vans,
and coaches.

Audi, BMW and Benz, aren't typically physically larger than a minivan. A F-150
might be (but considering Ford's minivan uses the same base as the F-150, I'd
argue they're similarly sized).

~~~
wil421
The Audi, Bmw comment was seperate from the f150 one. Just trying to state
that even some European manufacturers are moving away from manuals.

I'll agree with you on most _commercial_ vehicles larger than minivans have
manuals.

------
pnut
I sort of get the appeal of the audio cassette.

You can throw it directly into your backpack or pocket, no delicate fiddliness
like a CD.

It has enough physical substance to be meaningfully comparable to its
contents, in contrast to a USB thumb drive, plus it has a finite amount of
storage.

The limited storage is important in the context of mixtapes. That was a
currency back in the 80's and 90's, a very meaningful and thoughtful gift to
give or receive. Like a love letter.

You only got 20 or so songs, and that's it. Giving someone a subset of your
torrent library is not the same.

------
larrys
Not sure I agree with the "warm analog sound of tape". I do agree vinyl has a
nice sound. As someone who grew up with high end cassette decks (denon iirc
and Ohm speakers) (with dolby which always muted the highs for me) there is
really (in my opinion) nothing nice about the sound of a cassette to my ears.

~~~
robodale
"warm analog sound of tape"...yea more like "dull hiss..."

~~~
msandford
To people who grew up with tape, that dull hiss means "music is about to
happen!"

------
dec0dedab0de
I go to one or two shows a month with smaller touring bands, generally shows
with less than 100 people. Almost all of them have at least one tape now, some
are tape only. I think it's kind of silly, like no one remembers what a pain
rewinding is. I even have a friend who runs an all tape label.

Edit: I bet that's what people older than me thought when I was buying vinyl
in 1999.

~~~
mikeash
Is there some advantage to it, or are they just being weirdly retro?

~~~
eastbayjake
I have a 1988 BMW 325i with the original stereo + cassette deck. I don't want
to replace the stereo because I'd like to keep it in original condition, so
I've been in the market for cassettes! There are a surprising number of older
cars -- and some not that old -- where cassette decks were the base model
option unless you paid for a CD changer.

~~~
mikeash
Those fake cassette tapes that have a headphone plug work pretty well, though.
Then you can use the audio source of your choice.

The real problem is cars made in the few years after CDs completely took over
but before the iPod did. A lot of those only do CD and radio and there's
nothing good to hook in to for other audio sources, besides using an FM
transmitter, or jacking directly into the FM antenna. I owned a car like this
and I _wished_ it had tape player!

~~~
kw71
A lot of those cars have a changer option on the factory stereo which means an
emulator can provide an aux input. There are some adapters on the commercial
market for this and lots of arduino-style projects published on the web. So
far this year I built two such adapters for family and friends.

------
oconnore
And I thought I was a hipster for buying an external Bluray drive...

~~~
digi_owl
Hipster would be to get a external 5.25 drive.

Grabbing a BR drive, in particular if it is a burner, is basically about
covering ones behind.

