This can’t be right. Tape decks with a separate record head allow you to listen to the currently recorded track and quickly switch between the track and source

This can’t be right. Tape decks with a separate record head allow you to listen to the currently recorded track and quickly switch between the track and source feed. Apart from the hiss, the difference in quality is rather subtle for most people. Now, whether the store-bought tape from the 90s was recorded well, that’s a different story.