Frequently Asked Questions

A: RadioTapes.com is a collaborative effort made possible by many individuals, and is operated by Tom Gavaras, a longtime radio historian.

The majority of the uncredited airchecks on RadioTapes come from Tom's personal collection. He previously worked in marketing and operations at WCCO Radio/Midwest Radio Network, as well as at a division of American Public Media Group and at WWTC-AM when it was known as “The Golden Rock.” Most recently, Tom retired after working at Housing First Minnesota.

Tom is the vice-chair of the board of directors for the Pavek Museum of Electronic Communication. His passion for radio also extended into international broadcasting and shortwave listening during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. You can view the verification (QSL) cards and letters Tom received from more than 210 broadcast countries HERE.

Thank you to the many contributors (see below) who have provided airchecks to this website. Special appreciation to Mark Durenberger, Jay Philpott, Todd Kosovich and others for their inspiration and guidance.

A: Due to the large size of some of the MP3 audio files, the recordings are best played using a high-speed connection. Some web browsers will start playing audio files when you click on them. Others won't start playing until the file loads (which can take a while with large files). You can also download the audio files to your computer (see below). Audio and video files can also be played on smartphones, especially when you have a faster connection.

A: Yes. If you are having problems playing audio files, this is your best option to avoid delays.

• PC: Right-click the file with your mouse. Be sure to note the default directory to which it downloads or create a special directory of your own for this purpose. Click "save."
• Mac: Press "control" key and click your mouse over the file name

Public reposting of airchecks and other materials from this website is not permitted without the permission of RadioTapes, Inc. and the originating source.

A: We are grateful for all aircheck and printed material contributions. Our primary focus is the Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN area. We are always looking for good quality historical recordings (audio and video). We accept various types of audio formats (CD, cassette, reel-to-reel, transcription record, etc.). If you send us an original tape, we will carefully transfer it to a digital format and promptly return it to you along with a flash drive. Or, you can e-mail mp3 recordings and scans. For more information, please contact us.

A: This website respects copyright rules limiting the inclusion of full songs, focusing instead on personalities, news, commercials, and more.

A: We are always looking for historic airchecks of Twin Cities radio stations. If you enjoy this website, a financial donation would also be appreciated, but is not required.

RadioTapes will always be free to access. Donations will be used to help cover website related expenses including making more than 2,500 audio files available, maintaining equipment used to digitize airchecks (with more than 1,000 aircheck tapes waiting to be digitized), and more. All donations will be exclusively used for RadioTapes. Though RadioTapes Inc. is a Minnesota registered non-profit, it is not currently a 501(c)3 charity and donations are not tax-deductible.