- 1. Sony Walkman Car Connecting Pack
- 2. Besdata Car Cassette Adapter
- 3. Carwires Premium Car Audio Cassette Adapter
- 4. Insten Car Cassette Tape Deck Adapter
- 5. Lesley Car Cassette Adapter
- 6. Maxell CD-to-Cassette Audio Adapter
- 7. Monster iCarPlay Cassette Adapter
- 8. HEIBAIGE iTape Cassette Adapter
- 9. XM Satellite Radio Auto Vehicle Cassette Adapter
- 10. Scosche Universal Cassette Adapter
Over the past few decades we have seen some pretty amazing electrical inventions become available on the mass market and some not so amazing too. Cassette adapters definitely fall into the amazing category as they serve two important purposes; saving money and allowing you to listen to your own music in your car. Audio systems for cars are often very expensive and can be complicated to install. Most older cars feature cassette players but no one really listens to cassette tapes anymore. Most of us have a portable CD player or MP3 player. Cassette adapters offer a genius solution to this problem, providing a connection between your chosen music player and the cassette player. Most cassette adapters with aux cords are inexpensive too.
The Best Cassette Adapters With Aux Cords
If you are looking for a good quality cassette adapter from a trusted brand, then the Walkman CPA-9C won’t let you down. This cassette adapter can be used to connect your CD or MP3 player to your car’s cassette player and is simple to use too – just plug the jack into your portable music player, place the cassette in your car’s cassette deck and then you’re good to go! The Walkman cassette adapter is compatible with car cassette decks that have a side opening and the cassette boasts a special silent mechanism that reduces mechanical noise. Good value for money too, this Walkman Car Connecting Pack is inexpensive too. All in all, a good choice for those looking for a top quality adapter.
- Compatible With Side Opening Cassette Deck
- Easy To Use
- Self-Adjusting Spring Head (For Optimum Contact) & Silent Mechanism
- Brand Sony
- Model CPA9C
- Weight 6.4 ounces
This tape player aux is simple to use as you just literally place the cassette into your car deck and plug the aux cord into your iPod or iPhone. Who knew listening to your favorite digital music files through your car’s cassette player could be so easy? We liked this product for several reasons. Firstly, it offered amazing value for money at under $8. Secondly, this cassette adapter has been specially designed to fit any type of cassette deck due to its large, flexible cable. It has a very lightweight design and a spring loaded cassette head which maintains excellent contact with the cassette player head for the clearest sound possible.
- Compatible With Any Cassette Deck
- Lightweight & Easy To Store
- Spring Loaded Head (For Optimum Contact)
- Easy To Use
- Brand Besdata
- Model KD200
- Weight 1.6 ounces
It’s a simple process to connect cassette to mp3 when you have the right product such as the Insten Car Cassette Tape Deck Adapter. For under $8 this adapter offers a fantastic price and can be used on a number of devices including: tablet, mobile and MP3 player. Never again will you have to leave your favorite music at home!
Featuring a silent mechanism, this tape adapter promises to reduce mechanical noise so you get a clearer sound without disturbance. It also boasts a 40 inch cord which means that it’s super flexible and you can rest your audio player safely, wherever is convenient.
- Silent Mechanism For Noise Reduction
- 40 Inch Cord
- 3.5mm Connection – Ideal For Mobile Devices, Tablets, MP3 Players & More!
- Brand Insten
- Model 2144684
- Weight 0.96 ounces
This lightweight and portable cassette adapter is perfect for use with your mobile device, MP3 player, iPod, iPad and iPhone. An easy solution to having to listen to repeated tracks on the radio, just plug this adapter in and listen to your own music on the go without having to spend a dollar on a new audio system for your car. Featuring a 3ft cassette tape aux cord with male connector and 2.5mm male adapter, this device is compatible with most cassette decks and simple to use. It also features a spring loaded cassette head to maintain a good solid connection with the cassette head mechanism for the best quality of sound.
- Lightweight & Portable
- 3ft Cable
- Compatible With Most Portable Audio Systems
- Brand Lesley
- Weight 5.6 Ounces
This cassette adapter will allow you to connect your audio devices to your car cassette deck, so you can listen to your best tunes on the go. This product works with any audio device too, so your MP3 player, CD player, iPad, iPhone or other mobile device is guaranteed to work using this adapter. Maxell are so confident that you are making the right choice with their product, that they offer a lifetime warranty.
- Guaranteed To Work With Any Cassette Deck
- Compatible With CD Players, MD Players, Mobile Devices, Tablets & MP3 Players
- Lifetime Warranty
- Brand Maxell
- Model 190038
- Weight 2.4 ounces
The Monster iCarPlay is super portable – this cassette adapter can be easily stored away when not in use. Not only that, but it also works with all audio devices too so you’ll be able to connect your iPhone, iPad, Windows or Android devices for guaranteed clear sound. As with other cassette adapters, they are super simple to use and only require you to connect the wire to your portable audio output and insert the cassette into your car deck. The cassette adapter also features dual balanced conductors for a natural audio sound.
- Dual Balanced Conductors For Natural Audio
- Compatible With CD Players, MD Players, Mobile Devices, Tablets & MP3 Players
- Portable & Easy To Store Away
- Brand Monster
- Model 129342
- Weight 4 ounces
Those of you looking for the best cassette adapter and we mean the KING of cassette adapters, should look no further than the HEIBAIGE iTape bluetooth tape adapter. The difference between this device and the others we have included on the list, is that this works as a wireless device so it requires no cables. Easy to use, just insert the cassette into your car cassette deck, connect bluetooth and listen your favorite songs from your digital devices.
Another great feature is that you can use this whilst its charging and it also supports a Micro SD TF Card so you are able to save your favorite songs to the cassette. You can also make hands-free calls using the built-in microphone together with your car’s speaker. Is there anything it cannot do?
- Bluetooth Cassette Adapter
- Works Whilst Charging
- Supports Micro SD TF Card
- Handy Volume Control
- Brand HEIBAIGE
- Model 4th generation iTape
- Weight 2.4 ounces
This cassette adapter is compatible with both the SIRIUS & XM satellite radio receivers. You can also use this adapter with iPods and MP3 players too. Easy to use, the adapter also features an inner magnetic and shake resistant design for the ultimate playback performance. The cassette adapter works with front and side loading cassette players and provides excellent value for money.
- Brand XM
- Weight 2.4 ounces
The Scosche PCA2 Cassette Adapter is perfect for those looking for an inexpensive way of listening to music through their car’s cassette deck. It has been manufactured with a standard 3.5mm headphone jack so is universally compatible and will work with most MP3 players, CD players, MD players, iPods or mobile devices. We like a warranty too. So we were happy to see that the company are so confident that you’ll like their product that they offer a 90 day warranty.
- 3.5mm Headphone Jack
- Compatible With MP3 Players, CD Players, MD Players & iPods
- 90 Day Warranty
- Brand Scosche
- Model PCA2
- Weight 2.4 Ounces
Best Cassette Adapters Buying Guide
What to Look for When Buying a Cassette Adapter
Sometimes it can be tricky, knowing how to choose the best cassette adapter for your car. There are many different types of cassette adapters available on the market – so what should you look for?
- Cord Length
You might think it a little strange that we’re starting with this as it might not seem important, but cord length is everything. A short cord length is not only going to be very annoying, but it’s also going to be super inconvenient too. You will need to ensure that you buy a cassette adapter that will give you enough cord to connect the cassette player in your car to your device. If you choose a longer cord you will be able to allow backseat passengers to control the music from your portable device and it will also give you a little flexibility when it comes to storing your device too.
- Type of Adapter
Which adapter is best for you? You can buy cassette adapters (like the ones we have featured in this review) which are inserted into your tape player and the cord is plugged into your device. You can also purchase cassette shaped MP3 players and bluetooth cassette adapters that work wirelessly. These tend to be more expensive but easier to use as there’s no wire to worry about.
- Compatibility
Before you go and purchase a cassette adapter you will just need to check that it is compatible with your MP3 device. Have a look at the headphone jack to determine the size and compatibility. Most cassette adapters have been designed to fit a standard port.
- Price
You will find that most cassette adapters are very reasonably priced and this is why they make a good investment. Much cheaper to buy an adapter than to have a CD player or MP3 player installed into your car.
How to You Use a Car Cassette Tape Adapter?
Anyone that owns a car will know how expensive it is to buy a new sound system. Those that have ever installed a car sound system will also be aware how tricky and time consuming it can be too. The wonderful thing about cassette adapters, is that they are simple to use and install.
Just simply insert the tape head into your car’s cassette player and connect the cable to the headphone port in your phone or MP3 player. Make sure you switch your audio system to ‘cassette’ and then simply press play. Couldn’t be simpler. Remember: connecting the cassette adapter to your MP3 player or phone will not give power to the battery. If you want your phone or iPod to charge whilst playing, then you will need to buy a separate power adapter that usually plugs into the cigarette lighter.
Best Cassette Adapters With Aux Cords FAQ:
There is a special feature in sometape decks and cassette tapes that allows the tape deck to stop playback or reverse the playback when it’s reached the end of the cassette. People who have grown up listening to cassette tapes will be all to familiar with the sound of the tape when it reaches the end – like a loud CLUNK. What next would occur is that the cassette would automatically reverse and start playing the other side. Cassette adapters aren’t real cassettes (well at least not on the inside) which means that inner mechanisms are completely different. Cassette adapters feature a special mechanism made from a series of gears that ‘tricks’ the head unit into not stopping or reversing. Without this device your cassette adapter would continue to stop and reverse and wouldn’t be able to play a continuous loop. Some people have problems with cassette adapters that do stop and reverse, in this case the adapter is no doubt faulty and this could be due to the gear mechanism being broken.
You will find that the inside of a cassette adapter looks very different from a traditional tape. Where normally there you will find reels of tape inside, a cassette adapter has a special transmitting head which is connected to an input cord that leads directly to the music source. When the wire (or cord) is plugged into a CD player or iPhone/MP3 player it carries a signal to a special inductor inside the cassette adapter which then creates a magnetic fields that works with the signal from the audio device. The special head inside the tape deck doesn’t know the difference between a real cassette and a cassette adapter. This enables it to ‘read’ the magnetic field and send a message to the inductor which allows the head unit to reproduce a sound signal like a traditional cassette tape.
Our Top Pick
For amazing value for money and a brand that knows and understands cassette players like no one else, we chose the Walkman Car Connecting Pack for our best choice cassette adapter.
The Walkman CPA-9C can be used in conjunction with your CD player, MP3 player and more. It’s easy to use too and is compatible with car cassette decks which have a side opening. The cassette adapter has a special silent mechanism that reduces the mechanical ‘clunking’ noise and it also has a self-adjusting spring head.
Sources:
- Cassette tape adaptor – Wikipedia
- How to Listen to CDs in a Car Without a CD Player – HowStuff Works