[mix4fix]

https://www.audioxpress.com/news/recordingthemasters-launches-new-fox-c-60-analog-compact-music-cassette

As all analog music formats (vinyl, cassette, reel-to-reel, etc.) continue to rise in popularity, cassette tapes now outpace all other formats in consumer-market growth, more than quadrupling since 2011.

[Mike-48]

I hope those who are buying them enjoy them. Still, aside from 8-tracks, they were the worst format I can remember. Typically very high wow and flutter, high failure rate, limited frequency response; and the playback decks need periodic maintenance.

[mix4fix]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elcaset

Bring back the Elcaset.

As usual, the better format loses out to the convenient format.

[revg1952]

I agree Love the quality of Elcaset

[timind]

I hope those who are buying them enjoy them. Still, aside from 8-tracks, they were the worst format I can remember. Typically very high wow and flutter, high failure rate, limited frequency response; and the playback decks need periodic maintenance.

Not sure what your experience with cassettes is, but my experience says you're wrong. I owned a few top tier decks and with good quality tapes, they made copies which were very hard to distinguish from the source.
If you're talking about prerecorded cassettes, I won't argue as I have almost no experience there.

[Mike-48]

Not sure what your experience with cassettes is, but my experience says you're wrong. I owned a few top tier decks and with good quality tapes, they made copies which were very hard to distinguish from the source.
If you're talking about prerecorded cassettes, I won't argue as I have almost no experience there.

Yes, the very best decks were excellent, and my desire was not to denigrate the technology at its best.  But on average, it was mediocre or worse, and I doubt that most people into cassettes today own the very best decks, in the condition needed to get excellent results. Technology has moved on, and it's easier and cheaper to get far better performance from an optical drive.
And yes, I was thinking of prerecorded tapes, which were just terrible. Now, I see racks and rack of them in used record stores -- usually for $1 a pop. But in making a mixtape today, the only reason to use a cassette and not a CD is cool factor. Surely not fidelity.

What's driving this seems to be some kind of weird nostalgia.

[Rocket_Ronny]

Too bad Dolby S wasn't invented sooner. Cassettes are next to free at second hand stores and kind of has a cool retro effect to it for kids.

Rocket Ronny

[2bigears]

  re-flash in the pan.  Blink and again they are long gone,,,, please 

[PDR]

Streamers......8 track and cassette.......awesome streamers.

I had a very nice HK cassette player back in the early 80s.
To be honest though i played mostly in my car......I remember having a couple of nice Craig players
mounted under dash.....high school rocked back then.
I played 99% albums in the home, the tapes were in the vehicles.

Once CDs arrived.....they all vanished.
Few years ago vinyl found its way back.....wont be tape of any kind in my house.
My father in law has a few awesome RR decks, Tascam etc.......I just couldnt
find the time or energy for a new trick.

[FullRangeMan]

Unfortunately I started in audio with Cassete tapes(Pink Floyd), all tapes I had lasted about a year, most prob were music sound decreased and His growup alot, some tapes reel developed a kind of glue that lowered the motor rpm and sound becomes very slow, not to mention when the recorder eating the tape. Cassete useful life is even shorter than vinyl.

[ArthurDent]

Back as nostalgia, probably. That said recently had my Nakamichi 581 repaired for minimal $ just to see how it would sound (purchased new in '81). As I've got cassette players in my vehicles I hung on to many tapes from 20-30+ yrs ago. As noted by others the pre-recorded tapes were pretty much junk, with limited to no dynamics, and a very limited lifetime. However I think many would be surprised at how good well recorded homemade tapes can sound on a good deck. The Nak is a discrete 3 head, and it still sounds very impressive. I also have a Harmon Kardon TD392 (purchased new in late '80s-early '90s), sandwich 3 head  deck, that also sounds very good. Of course it all depends on how well the tape was recorded, and how much it's been played over time, but a friend was more than a little surprised with how both decks sounded with my old tapes. Most all the tapes were Chrome, Maxell, TDK. May be worth noting this was the first service the deck ever had, and it got used a lot back in the day.

Would I suggest anyone rush out & find a vintage deck, No. That time has long passed. But if you have a good old deck collecting dust in the closet, and some good tapes you hung onto, you might be surprised at how good it can sound if you drag it out & hook it up.