answer:1) The audio sent to your speakers is an electrical signal – STRONG weak weak STRONG weak STRONG STRONG weak , etc. Like this: llll….l.l.l.l.l.l…...lllllllllllllll…..lllllllllllll….lllllllll…llllllllll..l.l.l.l…....lll..l.l.l.l…....lll..l.l.l.l…....llllllllll (It’s not just strong and weak, it’s every medium point in between, but for simplicity let’s just say strong and weak). 2) A tape recorder sends the signal to a magnet instead of a speaker. The recorder drags magnetic tape across the magnet (called a recording head) and the tape becomes a real long magnet imprinted with the strong and weak signals: llll….l.l.l.l.l.l…...lllllllllllllll…..lllllllllllll….lllllllll…llllllllll..l.l.l.l…....lll..l.l.l.l…....lll..l.l.l.l…....llllllllll 3) The cassette player reverses the process. It drags the tape across another head, the reading head – it “reads” the tape and turns the STRONG weak back into an electrical signal and sends the pattern to speakers. llll….l.l.l.l.l.l…...lllllllllllllll…..lllllllllllll….lllllllll…llllllllll..l.l.l.l…....lll..l.l.l.l…....lll..l.l.l.l…....llllllllll 4) The adapter cuts out the middle man. Forget the tape! Just put a writing head in a cassette-shaped box, and put the recording head directly against the reading head!! Your discman sends an audio signal, the adapter emits a magnetic signal, the player reads it and voila MUSIC!! Does that help? There is probably a much better explanation out there, but I wanted to give it a shot.