F.A.Q.

Free subscriptions are available in digital format to anyone in the world with a valid email address. All subscribers will receive a link to download a PDF of each new issue of Tape Op via email. Subscribers will also be able to view and download PDFs of their current and past delivered issues directly via their login. Subscribers will not be able to access issues from before the date their subscription started, an archive subscription or box set purchase is needed to access that.

If you live in the U.S., we will also send you a paper copy of each new issue via the US Postal Service. Basic print subscriptions are indeed free, but not 100% guaranteed to arrive, or may arrive torn. However, 98% arrive just fine.

Check out our main subscriptions page for all of the above options.

No. Subscriptions start with the next issue to be sent out, not with one that's already out.

The easiest way to access back issues is to purchase one of our online archive subscriptions, which gives you online access to all our back issues back to the year 1996. These are digital copies only, but they have the significant advantage of searchable access. For individual back issues, browse our Shopify store to see what is currently available.

Tape Op does not currently offer paid print subscriptions.

Tape Op cannot send free print issues outside of the United States. Tape Op does not currently offer paid print subscriptions of any sort.

We do not replace missed free print subscriptions. It seems the postal service loses about 2% of them each issue, which is unfortunately a fair amount of magazines when you're mailing 35,000 copies. But hey, it is a free subscription and 98% of them get there just fine! You will be able to access the online and PDF version of the missed issue.

Printed back issues are available here.

If you had a FREE subscription and then stopped receiving issues, several things may have occurred. Subscription renewal is handled via an email to you, once a year. If you have changed your email address between signing up and renewal, then you will not receive this notice and your subscription will be cancelled. If your spam filter grabs it, you will not receive this notice of renewal. If you signed up long ago, before we required an email, then you randomly may be dropped from the mailing list as the list is purged of non-email addresses. In all of these cases, for a free subscription the easiest thing to do is sign up for a new subscription. If you do start receiving extra copies, email subscriptions@tapeop.com and give your address, name and email address used to sign up. 

The best way to manage all aspects of your subscription is to log in with your provided email address (reset your password here if need be). Your name will appear in the upper right of the page once logged in – click/tap/headbutt your name to see all your account and subscription information.

If you're not sure what email address you gave us, search for your sub here. If all else fails, you can fill out our lost subscription form and we will look it up ourselves the old fashioned way and send you your information (please allow us a few days to do this).

See above.

We don't know exactly. Our distributors send them to lot of stores big and small across the country and Canada, but we don't know what stores carry them for sure. The larger chains like Barnes and Noble, Books A Million and Chapters (in Canada) should have the current issue of Tape Op. Our distributors are CMG and Small Changes, feel free to ask your favorite local newsstand to order Tape Op from one of them!

Tape Op is a free magazine that's supported by our advertisers. That's how we can afford to create, print, and offer it to you for free. For print subscribers, this might include an occasional snail mail piece from some of our advertisers as well as weekly sponsored emailed newsletters. We'd like to be a bit more clear about how this works for those of you who are interested in this:

• All email advertising will be in the form of Tape Op's weekly newsletters with our sponsors.

• Sponsored emails will only come from us. We will not give out your email address to any third party.

• Subscriber email addresses (or any other subscriber information) are not shared with sponsors.

Some subscribers have asked us if they can opt out of the sponsored emailed newsletters but still get the free online magazine, digital magazine, and printed magazine (USA readers only). Unfortunately, no. The advertising in Tape Op, on our website, and in our newsletters is how we afford to create the content, print and mail the magazine, offer PDF downloads, and maintain all the articles and functions on our website.

Tape Op’s free print subscriptions are advertiser-supported and include sponsored newsletter emails. You may unsubscribe from sponsored newsletters at any time. If you unsubscribe, you will also be removed from the free print subscription mailing list.

If you have a paid digital subscription, you can also get the free print subscription and that opts you into the newsletter emails.

If you do not want to receive our newsletters, you can opt out of the newsletters on the paid digital subscription. This will also remove you from the free print subscription list, but you can purchase single copies of the print magazine as they become available through our website and any third party vendors.