Garrard Tape Magazine

Garrard Tape Magazine

The magazine tape was an early attempt to make handling open reel tape easier. It was introduced in 1959 along with a new Magazine tape deck which was produced by Garrard in the UK but could be found in systems sold by other manufacturers, such as Simon Audio Services, who produced the Minstrelle and Cymbal models, and Murphy with their TR1 tape recorder).

The Magazine tape required no threading, and the tape was attached to the reels so there was no need to anchor the tape onto the take-up spool. The magazine contained a brake system to prevent spillage. The deck was also simple to use, with a single speed of 3¾ inches per second, and no rewind facility (to rewind, the tape needed to be turned over). A lock prevented the magazine from being removed whilst in operation.

Like other open reel tape recorders of the day, it could record and playback, but no pre-recorded content was available in the Magazine tape format.

The magazine contained two 4-inch reels of ¼-inch tape on cine spindle hubs, giving a playing time of 35 minutes per side. The Magazine deck could also take standard open reels of tape, provided they were no more than 4 inches in diameter. The reels inside the magazine could also be removed and played on a standard open reel tape recorder.

This was Gerrard’s attempt at bringing quality tape recording and playing within range of everyone. Unfortunately for Garrard the decks never sold that well and were eventually superseded by the far more successful Phillip's Compact Cassette, which was launched in 1963.

Retail Prices

Here you find 118 models, 109 with images and 30 with schematics for wireless sets etc. In French: TSF for Télégraphie sans fil.
All listed radios etc. from Garrard Eng. & Mfg. Co. Ltd.; Swindon, England