Preserve your reel-to-reel tapes, cassettes and other audio recordings in digital form
Audio tapes on archive shelves are not accessible without the right playback equipment. The expertise and machines for quality tape playback are disappearing. Polartape transfers your audio archives to digital, keeping them safe and easily accessible.
Magnetic tapes degrade, and the technology to play them is vanishing
- Equipment is disappearing — Working studio tape machines, spare parts and trained specialists decrease every year. Soon high-quality playback will no longer be possible.
- Chemical decay — Properly stored magnetic tape is surprisingly durable, but not permanent. The number of tapes that are difficult or impossible to play grows steadily.
- A tape on a shelf is dead capital. Only digitization makes the content searchable, usable and valuable.
Mass digitization with per-tape optimization
Most digitization projects force you to choose between volume and quality. We eliminated that trade-off. Our process handles archives of thousands of tapes, yet every reel and cassette gets individual attention.
Broad format support
- • Reel-to-reel tapes: all 1/4" tapes at any speed and track configuration
- • Compact cassettes: standard cassettes plus special speeds and track layouts
- • Other formats: grooved disc recordings, minicassettes, microcassettes, Elcassettes, DAT tapes, NT cassettes, MiniDiscs and wire recordings
Per-tape adjustment
- • Right equipment every time: we identify track configuration and tape speed before digitization
- • Azimuth alignment: we adjust the playback head azimuth individually for every tape
Professional-grade equipment
- • Studio-grade machines: We use only studio-level equipment, customized for high-volume digitization projects
- • Regular calibration: We adjust and service our equipment in-house on a regular schedule, ensuring consistent quality across every tape
Why azimuth adjustment matters
Per-tape azimuth alignment is the single most critical step in tape digitization. Wrong azimuth means lost high frequencies. Correct azimuth captures the full frequency range.
Incorrect azimuth
Per-tape adjustment
Your material's safety is at the core of our process
We handle irreplaceable audio heritage. Our process builds on an unbroken chain of custody, from the moment we receive your tapes until the finished files are back in your hands.
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Secure shipping
We recommend our vetted logistics partners for shipments. For large projects, we can collect the materials in person (Nordics and Baltics).
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Unique ID per tape
Every tape receives a unique identifier on arrival. The ID follows the tape through every stage, so we always know exactly where each recording is.
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Secure handling
We process your materials in a protected production environment. Only staff performing the digitization have access to the data.
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Controlled handover
We deliver the finished files securely and permanently erase all working copies once you confirm receipt.
Trusted partner for demanding archive projects
Case National Archives of Finland: We served as the selected partner in a large-scale project where thousands of hours of national cultural heritage were digitized from reel-to-reel tapes and compact cassettes. The project met the highest standards of material security and audio engineering.
Quality according to international archive standards (IASA)
We follow the strictest IASA (International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives) recommendations and national guidelines. This ensures the digitized material remains technically flawless for decades.
Recording formats
24-bit / 48 kHz to 192 kHz WAV. Also 32-bit float when required.
Metadata
Full technical metadata (AudioMD) and checksums (MD5/SHA) included with every delivery.
Pre-treatment
Controlled process for sticky-shed tapes (heat treatment) and mould damage.
Let's plan your archive digitization together.
Whether you have a specialist collection of ten tapes or a broadcast archive of tens of thousands of hours, we will provide a clear plan and cost estimate.