# why did anybody with a brain want an 8-track tape player ? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 11, 2008, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760 "2008-12-11T20:23:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/1 "2008-12-11T20:23:37Z")
I’m looking at some old photos from 1978 ish, and there it is–an 8-track tape player.\* Why did anybody ever think that 8-tracks were a good idea? If you wanted music on tape, cassettes had been available for several years before 8-tracks. Cassettes were better in every way: they were smaller, more convenient, and, for og’s sake, you **could rewind/fast forward them**. So who thought up the idea of 8-tracks, with a continuous loop that you had _no_ control over? And why did anybody buy it? - (the 8T was not mine, of course–I was a true audiophile . My music was on vinyl, and I had a turntable with anti-skate compensation that tracked at 1.4 grams… .) ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/2 "2008-12-11T20:29:02Z")
Although it was a little before my time, based on the fact that they didn’t exist for very long I don’t think anyone with a brain _did_ buy them. There’s always the “people without a brain” market that you can’t underestimate. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/3 "2008-12-11T20:34:23Z")
Mass marketing? I wasn’t aware of cassette tapes before 8-tracks. New cars had 8-track players. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/4 "2008-12-11T20:35:41Z")
There were no commercially available high fidelity cassette players once upon a time. I first remember decent car cassette players coming into play in the late 70s. Before that if you wanted to buy something that actually sounded good then 8 track was the way to go. The tape speed was faster and produced much better results, until tape technology improved. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/5 "2008-12-11T20:36:36Z")
It was due to the black lights and fumes from the puke green deep shag carpet compromising peoples mental faculties… ---
**Author:** ![Stuffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@Stuffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stuffy)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/6 "2008-12-11T20:38:17Z")
Are you sure you’re rembering correctly. I was 10 in 1978 and remember my Mom having a box full of 8 tracks from the 60s and 70s. I don’t remember casettes really taking off until walkmen showed up. ETA: Now that I’m thinking about it, I remember getting a portable 8track player one Xmas. Oh and what do you mean by continuous loop. The “Track” in 8 tracks referred to the songs being on different tracks pressing a button changed the song/track. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/7 "2008-12-11T20:38:23Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > It was due to the black lights and fumes from the puke green deep shag carpet compromising peoples mental faculties… I’m blaming it on the hallucinogenic inducing effects of lava lamps. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/8 "2008-12-11T20:38:34Z")
I always associate them with cigarettes for some reason. They must have been easier to operate with a butt goin’. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/9 "2008-12-11T20:43:05Z")
I think you’re also understating the continuous loop feature. This was decades before auto-reverse became common on cassette players. If you were working in your shop or driving a car and wanted to play your music and didn’t mind listening to the same album a couple times in a row, hands-free, an 8-track was the way to go. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/10 "2008-12-11T20:48:50Z")
Yep, cassettes were readily adopted when they came out, but that was well after 8 tracks. Believe me, we weren’t crazy about them either but it was the best available at the time. Two gripes; you couldn’t record and they got eaten… a lot. I came across a box of 30 or so just last week as I was cleaning out the garage. While I did put them in the trash, I placed them on top in case anyone wandered by in the hopes they could wax nostalgic too. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/11 "2008-12-11T20:53:13Z")
I think they were primarily for cars, with a secondary home market. Easier to operate for cars, plus there were no easily available car cassette players at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/12 "2008-12-11T20:56:42Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > …Two gripes; you couldn’t record … Aw Contraire mon brothah. I remember in about 1970 recording onto 8-track. I was not yet in Kindergarten and Dad was teaching me the cutest little song about three Irishmen digging in a ditch. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/13 "2008-12-11T20:58:51Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Yep, cassettes were readily adopted when they came out, but that was well after 8 tracks. Believe me, we weren’t crazy about them either but it was the best available at the time. Two gripes; you couldn’t record and they got eaten… a lot. > > I came across a box of 30 or so just last week as I was cleaning out the garage. While I did put them in the trash, I placed them on top in case anyone wandered by in the hopes they could wax nostalgic too. Couldn’t record? I made dozens and dozens of my own 8 tracks. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/14 "2008-12-11T21:03:00Z")
Really? Y’all had much nicer decks than us then. I never ever had one that could record. You could buy blanks? I remember what a big deal it was with cassettes in that we finally could make our own tapes. I also remember always having a matchbook or piece of paper handy with 8 tracks. You often had to wedge it in the top of bottom just to get it to play correctly. ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/15 "2008-12-11T21:03:30Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Yep, cassettes were readily adopted when they came out, but that was well after 8 tracks. Believe me, we weren’t crazy about them either but it was the best available at the time. Two gripes; you couldn’t record and they got eaten… a lot. I could be wrong, but I thought I read about 8-track recorders. I know Wikipedia mentions them, but it doesn’t go into detail. If they did exist, however, my family didn’t have one. > [@](#): > > I came across a box of 30 or so just last week as I was cleaning out the garage. While I did put them in the trash, I placed them on top in case anyone wandered by in the hopes they could wax nostalgic too. See, now there’s a shame. I would have grabbed them from you. I used to work next to a thrift store and for some time in the mid-'90s, you could still find quite a few tapes. I think I have about forty or fifty of them stacked away in an old Sony stereo cabinet; I’ll occasionally play one for friends, but yeah, each time I pop a tape in I know it might be on the last leg of its journey. ---
**Author:** ![Apocalypso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Apocalypso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apocalypso)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/16 "2008-12-11T21:04:32Z")
I could be wrong, but… I think 8 track pre-recorded music albums came first, as more portable form of music than record albums. It was a way you could play your music in the car stereo or take to your friends house. I don’t think pre-recorded cassette albums were released until the late 70’s or early 80’s, although blank cassettes and recorders were certainly available before that. My hazy childhood recollections of people replacing their 8 track collections with cassettes seem to support this. I know that by the time I started collecting music in the early 80’s albums were no longer released on 8 track, at least not in my area. Everything was on cassette and record albums. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/17 "2008-12-11T21:09:50Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > Really? Y’all had much nicer decks than us then. I never ever had one that could record. You could buy blanks? I remember what a big deal it was with cassettes in that we finally could make our own tapes. > > I also remember always having a matchbook or piece of paper handy with 8 tracks. You often had to wedge it in the top of bottom just to get it to play correctly. Oh yeah, a book of matches jammed under one side to keep the pressure on certain tapes was a must: almost synonymous with the quarter taped to the tone arm on your record player. ---
**Author:** ![Tool\_of\_the\_Conspiracy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@Tool\_of\_the\_Conspiracy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tool_of_the_Conspiracy)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/18 "2008-12-11T21:12:31Z")
Darn it, on preview, I see that almost everything that I had typed out has been covered. Wikipedia agrees that 8-Tracks came before pre-recorded cassettes, but not by much. I don’t know what their relative popularity was; maybe 8-Tracks were just more popular until the late '70s. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/19 "2008-12-11T21:13:18Z")
I wonder if it wasn’t a competetive marketing thing like Beta/VHS or DVD/Bluray or Mac/PC? Clearly 8-track didn’t suck too bad at the time because it was a marketable medium. Perhaps the fatter & faster tape provided better quality than the skinny cassette tape and so 8-track’s other shortcomings (Let’s not forget the 2-3 second pause in the middle of a song while the player switched tracks!) were worth working around. Eventually cassette prevailed in a big way when they were able to at least approach sound quality? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760/20 "2008-12-11T21:17:03Z")
Having lived through this time period, and having owned an 8-track, I can tell you flat out that it was quality that drove the market. 8 tracks came first, and cassettes in the early days were suitable only for voice recording. It wasn’t until the Walkman era that cassettes really became a viable music medium. eta: Hell, I owned a **4 track** player! With the hole in the bottom of the tape cartridge where the drive wheel went. Match that! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-did-anybody-with-a-brain-want-an-8-track-tape-player/476760.md?page=2)