Timex/Sinclair 1000 Tape Loading

[Tony Duell]

> > > A somewhat 'crude' but simple thing you can try is to listen to the
> > > audiotape sound of the tape you created which you say was
> > > successful. Then listen audibly to the tapes you're trying to
> > > recover.  If the pitch seems to match for the most part it isn't a
> > > speed problem.  If you have an oscilloscope, look at the amplitude
> > > of the signal out of the cassette drive of the new 'working' tape
> > > and compare to the one you're trying to recover.
> > 
> > As others have suggested, use the simplest tape player you can find.
> > Noise reduction circuits and other fancy technology will only cause
> > problems.
> > 
> 
> The 'fancy technology' I suggested was an oscilloscope.  I don't see how

I think you've misunderstood the message. I think Sellam was refering to 
'fancy technology' inside the tape player -- things like noise reduction 
circuits. You want a player without anything like that.

> just using the cheapest garage sale tape player you can find is a better
> technical approach than actually looking at the waveforms coming out of
> the various cheap-garage-sale tape players you've rounded up.  Looking
> for clipping and comparing the pulsewidths of the signal on an accurate
> time base should clear up a lot.

I would agree that looking at the signal (and looking at the signal 'as 
far into the computer as possible' on machines where it's not all hidden 
inside a ULA -- for example the output of the comparator that produces a 
TTL-level signal) is well worth doing. It's much easier to put things 
right when you have evidence as to what's wrong!

-tony