Quote Originally Posted by Barry View Post
Better than CD? Mechanically DAT uses tape in the same way as video tape: the tape is pulled out and uses a helical scan head to read/write, and thus suffers the same vulnerability to stretching and oxide shedding as any other magnetic tape.

I have a CD recorder and a bunch of blank CD-RW discs, but I have never used it. Perhaps I should give a try and make up CDs for the car.
I read up a bit on DAT the other days, and apparently DAT tapes do have shedding issues and can degrade after 20 years or so, depending on storage conditions, whereas CDs have a life expectancy of about 100 years. Also it said that DAT machines often would chew up the tapes. So I would say music recorded onto CD has a better chance, though they too have a shorter life than ready-made ones.

Machine does look cool though.

Nice that you have a CD player in the car (as do we), manufacturers seemed to have ditched the format in favour of whatever you can send from your phone it seems. I don't know how I'll go on when we change the car, I have a (probably irrational) fear of "computer says no".