Abstract: A tape cassette comprises a case body having a mouth formed in the front portion thereof, a front lid pivotally supported thereon so as to cover the open front side of the case body, and a back lid pivotally joined to the front lid so as to cover a space extending behind the substantially lower half of an exposed portion of a magnetic tape in the mouth. The front lid includes a front wall covering the front opening of the mouth, side walls extending backward from the opposite side edges of the front wall, an upper wall covering the upper opening of the mouth, and a back wall extending downward from the upper wall. The side wall is provided with two guide grooves with two round projections projecting from the inner surface of the side wall being respectively received therein. Each of the two guide grooves has the shape of an arc of a circle having its center at the center of an imaginary circle at one end of the other guide groove.

Abstract: A tape supplying and taking up apparatus is capable of use with either large or small size tape cassettes containing reels which can be of different diameters and rotated with a high degree of accuracy by reel spindles of simple structure. Each tape cassette for use with the apparatus has a shutter of the slide type for closing access holes in the bottom wall of the cassette casing.Each of the reel spindles has a large size cassette receiving portion for receiving a tape reel of a large size tape cassette coaxial with a small size cassette receiving portion for receiving a tape reel of a small size tape cassette. The small size cassette receiving portion is smaller in diameter and disposed at a higher position than the large size cassette receiving portion. The diameter of a lower end of a reel spindle engaging hole provided in each reel hub of the small tape cassette is smaller than the outer diameter of the small size cassette receiving portion of the reel spindle.

Abstract: An apparatus for recording an information signal that includes a signal processor for processing an information signal to be magnetically recorded, n magnetic heads (n is an integer of 2 or more) provided on a rotating drum with a step of about 1/n the width of a magnetic tape and a distributing circuit for selectively supplying the processed information signal to one or more than two of the n magnetic heads, wherein the processed information signal is recorded on one or more than two track areas of the magnetic tape by the magnetic head. Thus, much data can be recorded at a high transmission rate to improve the quality of picture, and also, a high access speed can be achieved.