A microcassette tape comprising a tape housing including top and bottom case halves, a reel, a tape mounted on said reel, a rotating shaft for the tape reel, a pinch roller provided at the front of the tape housing, and a capstan between which the tape passes during endless revolutions of the tape. A guide is provided for preventing the tape from being misdirected and caught around the pinch roller and a wall is provided as a part of the tape housing for preventing the tape from slackening as it passes between the pinch roller and the capstan on a tangential path to the guide member which prevents the tape from being caught by the pinch roller. A further guide element is provided which prevents the tape from falling off the tape reel. A hole is provided in one of the halves of the tape housing which permits insertion of a shaft member for taking up any tape slack which develops in the passage of the tape from the tape reel to the pinch roller.