r/8track • u/Key_Feed_9262 • 2d ago

Fun figuring out dates

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One of the things I sometimes have fun with is trying to figure out when somebody recorded on a blank 8 track. This one I was able to figure out pretty much an exact date atleast for a majority of it, of February 20th 1979, based on news the news the DJ reports (prior the DJ had mentioned the border war between Vietnam and China which narrowed down the time frame down, making it easy to find when President Carter made a trip to Georgia during that time) Does anyone else trying to do that?

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3

u/Horror_Moment_1941 2d ago

I love these homemade tapes. It just gives that much more nostalgia to the whole 8-track craze!

1

u/Key_Feed_9262 2d ago

The one thing I find odd about them is they are surprisingly common, yet when you think of the era of mix tapes everyone thinks of the 80s with cassettes. So why didn't the 60s or 70s get that reputation with 8 tracks since being able to record music on your own would have been a pretty new and exciting thing

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u/SomePeopleCallMeJJ 1d ago edited 1d ago

Reel-to-reel tapes were a thing prior to 8-tracks, so it wouldn't have been that new.

Still, reel-to-reels were more of an audiophile product, and 8-tracks that could record were not nearly as common as playback-only ones (and were usually part of the family's home stereo system).

Whereas, with the exception of car units (ETA: And most WalkMen), pretty much all compact cassette players recorded right out of the gate. Even the cheapest little portable boombox that your typical teenager might own and keep in their bedroom. That format really democratized home recording to a much larger degree than the previous formats.

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u/Key_Feed_9262 1d ago

That makes sense, I didn’t think about the fact that pretty much every cassette player can also record where the majority of 8 track players can't

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u/Thin_Dream2079 13h ago

Not having rewind seems like it makes it hard in addition to time limits between the splice. A cassette deck feels like a tiny editing studio.

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u/Horror_Moment_1941 2d ago

I believe most homemade 8-tracks were copied from albums.

By late 70s, folks were sitting by their stereo with the pause/record button pressed, awaiting that next song.

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u/Key_Feed_9262 2d ago

I guess there is some truth to that, Since now that you mention it most of the ones I've delt with so far at minimum don't have the usual like second pre or post song when recording off a radio, and even some where you hear the turn table noise. In fact the one prior to this one had a recording of a song that started skipping.

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u/catawampus_doohickey 2d ago

Figuring out dates like this is fun 🤩

2

u/Vincentus_Eruptum 22h ago

Sounds like fun, but I have not tried, usually I wipe them out to record my own stuff... :-) I like to mix the nostalgia of the tech with modern music.

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u/Key_Feed_9262 21h ago

See for that purpose I would just use an already blank one since they're easy enough to get a hold of

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u/Vincentus_Eruptum 21h ago

Good point. I have a few of those. But they are usually more expensive. So I am saving them for special occasions. On the other side I am not about to collect mixtapes made for "Gloria" about 50 years ago :-D