Preservation of Magnetic Audiotape (Paperback)

High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! There are multiple types of magnetic media, however this article focuses on recommended best practices for handling, cleaning and storage of magnetic audiotapes in an archival repository, either in the form of open reels or enclosed cassettes. Although digitization of materials on fragile magnetic media in library and information science is a common practice, this article focuses on conserving the actual physical magnetic tape and playback equipment as artifacts, as there is still a need for this. The first magnetic tapes were manufactured by BASF in Germany in 1932. These were designed with iron carbonyl as the magnetic pigment mixed into the cellulose acetate carrier. Production soon moved to iron oxide coated onto cellulose acetate rolls cut into uniform strips wound onto plastic or metal hubs. Recordists began recording sound on magnetic media in the twenties in the form of magnetic wire.