mdanh2002

Hi,

I am an Electrical Engineering students doing some analog electronics projects. I am currently in need of a simple cassette player circuit schematics that would be able to read the commercial cassette tape (using a magnetic head) and output sound waves to a high impedance speaker. I did some search on Google but only found advertisements about cassette players, and complicated schematics for REAL and commercial players that are obviously impossible for me to build. The circuit needs not produce good sound quality; I am just looking for a simple one that works, i.e. the circuit is able to play some audio (even low quality) to the speaker. It would be preferrable if the circuit is analog and does not use modern ICs. If this is not possible, then any circuits that use cheap and easy-to-find chips are also fine.

The only related circuit I could find on the Net is at

http://ciscom.ru/hackersrussia/Cards/Images/magamp.gif

which is a schematics for a magnetic stripe reader, such as those used for payphone cards, ATM cards, etc. I wonder if this circuit can be used tor read the cassette tape, if I used the magnetic head salvaged from an old cassette player?

Can anyone help me with this, or at least suggest a website where more information can be found?

Thanks a lot!

Nigel Goodwin

Try looking for opamp datasheets designed for tape recorders - essentially you just need an opamp (or two) with the correct frequency dependent feedback around it.

There have been various opamps specifically designed for tape recorders, but they were all a LONG time ago - but I seem to remember LM series tape recorder chips?.

__________________
PIC programmer software, and PIC Tutorials at:
http://www.winpicprog.co.uk

mdanh2002

I could not find any LM series chip specifically designed for tape recorders. The only chips I found related to your posts are:

LM380 Audio power amp
LM381 AUDIO POWER AMP.
LM384N AUDIO POWER AMPS/OUTPUT STAGE,SINGLE
LM386 Low volt audio power amp
LM388 1.5w audio power amp

I wonder if these chips can be used for a playback circuits. If yes, then can you provide any hints on how to connect the chips with the magnetic head and the speaker?

I also found the LA4165 Cassette Recording/Playback and the BA3416 Playback only chips. These chips are specifically designed for a cassette pleyer/recorder, but since these may be pretty expensive, I will concentrate on using the op-amp first.

Any more suggestions on how to use the op-amp witht he magnetic head?

Nigel Goodwin

They are all power amps, not preamps - the tape recorder LM series chips are probably too old to find datasheets for?.

__________________
PIC programmer software, and PIC Tutorials at:
http://www.winpicprog.co.uk

mdanh2002

Regarding amplifiers, I only found the BA series, mainly BA3416, BA3423, and BA3426 which are pre-amplifiers designed for tape recorder. I did not find any LM op-amp for tape recorders at all.

Can I use the BA series, say BA3416, instead?

Hero999

__________________
What's so bad about Microsoft?

Get Opera it's simply a superb browser.