Cassette players jammed

There could be several reasons why a cassette does not play when inserted into a system, and the power light blinks within 5 seconds. Here are some possible causes and solutions:

1. Dirty or damaged cassette: The cassette tape itself may be dirty or damaged, preventing it from playing properly. Try cleaning the tape head and the cassette tape itself with a soft, dry cloth or a cassette cleaner. If the cassette is damaged, try playing a different cassette to see if the issue persists.
2. Faulty cassette player: The cassette player itself may be faulty. Try inserting a different cassette to see if the issue persists. If other cassettes also do not play, then the cassette player may need to be repaired or replaced.
3. Loose connections: Check that all the cables and connections between the cassette player and the amplifier or speakers are properly connected and not loose. If any connections are loose, tighten them and try playing the cassette again.
4. Low batteries: If the cassette player is battery-powered, check that the batteries are fully charged or replace them with new ones. Low batteries can cause the power light to blink and prevent the cassette from playing properly.

If none of the above solutions work, then there may be a more serious problem with the cassette player, and it may need to be inspected and repaired by a professional technician.

Check the Audio Cassette Tape

1. Make sure the cassette tape is compatible with your device. Note: Some cassette players won't play High Bias or Metal tapes.
   
2. Remove the tape from the cassette compartment. WARNING! There is a risk of hardware damage when you force to remove a stuck tape from the cassette compartment.
   
3. Use a pen or pencil to turn the cassette reel and reduce tape slack.

Check the Cassette Player

1. Remove the tape from the cassette compartment.
2. Clean the tape player head and drive mechanism. Use a dry cotton swab to clean the surface of the pinch roller, play/recording head and erase-head

The VCR tape will turn off when spools are Jammed to prevent breakage of the tape. Take out the VCR cassette and put a thick pencil in the each sprocket hole and try winding in the right direction (which means when you manually wind the tape the other spool should unwind without resistance). If you feel resistance the sprockets are jamming. Knock the cassette on a hard surface without breaking it and usually it will free the jam. If does not help then carefully open the the cassette screw and re-position the sprockets.

Cheap cassette players have no rewind feature. This allows the mechanism to be simpler and cheaper; they just 'pull' the tape forward constantly, without the pinch wheel for "fast" [sic] and with the pinch wheel for "play".

To work out if this is the problem with your cassette player, look inside with no cassette inserted. If one of the spindles is plain, without the "three-pronged" device to engage with the spool, then you have the cheap device with no rewind. Turn the tape over, and fast-forward.

my guess: the belts are broken by age - so the sensor (detecting cassette moving) means its the end of the cassette & switches A/B/A/B....

Check with a small torch, to ensure that there is no tape broken arround the pinch roller or head, if there was no tape broken away, between the pinch roller and the cassette head there is a white cassette bar, this may have become bent.

your cassette seems to be jammed, try removing the player open it which should reveal the trapped cassette then try to carefully remove the tape as it may have got stuck around the capstans(rubber bits) sometimes when tapes haveen't been played for a long time they tend to become loose, try to ensure that the tape is tight by using a pencil inserted into the spool and turn it until the tape tightens please take care not to over tighten. good luk

Better tape decks, like Pioneer, may use a different mechanism for record/play than FF & REW. So it sounds like a belt or mechanical link for the REC/PLAY has failed.

your tape player may be jammed up and not playing your cass.