Selling Cd's vs CRD's

donny · Post by **donny** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 12:27 am

oh, the packaging is basically a kinko's job, except the stickers. just get creative with it.

nothing wrong with no cover either ...

dfuruta · Post by **dfuruta** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 9:33 am

Palomino records pressing does short run 12"s, as few as 50. I don't know how the quality is?the only record I've heard that I know was pressed there is a 33rpm 7" with 9 minutes or so of music per side. Not much anyone can do with that!

As to cdrs vs cds vs downloads, it depends on your audience. I do underground black metal, and it's easier to sell cds than cdrs due to a collector sort of mentality. Either sells if the packaging is nice enough. This (tiny, marginal) audience absolutely prefers cds over downloads. But, if you're doing indie rock I imagine it might be different.

jrdamien · Post by **jrdamien** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 12:27 pm

dfuruta wrote:-the only record I've heard that I know was pressed there is a 33rpm 7" with 9 minutes or so of music per side. Not much anyone can do with that!

What do you mean by that?

dfuruta · Post by **dfuruta** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 12:41 pm

jrdamien wrote: What do you mean by that?

To fit that much music onto the record it had to be cut at a really low level, and so there's a lot of surface noise. 33rpm 7"s are also the lowest-fi standard vinyl format...

jrdamien · Post by **jrdamien** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 12:43 pm

dfuruta wrote:
jrdamien wrote: What do you mean by that?
To fit that much music onto the record it had to be cut at a really low level, and so there's a lot of surface noise. 33rpm 7"s are also the lowest-fi standard vinyl format...

So cut 7" records at 45?

chris harris · Post by **chris harris** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 3:45 pm

Read this: http://chicagomasteringservice.com/vinyl.html
I also highly recommend them for your lacquer cutting.

dfuruta · Post by **dfuruta** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 5:14 pm

This is a nice explanation of why 7"s have clearer sound at 45rpm.

Rolsen · Post by **Rolsen** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 7:32 pm

My band, The Variety Hour, just had our 'CD Release' show at our town's most-popular club on a Friday night. We are not that big a deal, and don't have throngs of fans. We experimented by handing out our CDs to folks before our set and scattering some more on some tables and booths. On our 'merch' table, we set out more CDs and a big jar with 'Donation?' written on it. Mid-set, we encouraged everyone to grab a CD and, if they're up for it, pitch in whatever they can spare. We made $40 in donations, which probably didn't quite cover the cost of the CDs we handed out, which were $2 a disk.

Bottom line, we wanted as many people as possible taking The Variety Hour home with them, which we accomplished. I don't know any local bands who make any money on their albums, so why not almost break even on duplication costs and earn Karma points? Hopefully the payment comes in the form of building interest in our band. Besides, who here has boxes of old albums that never sold? I'm sure I'm not the only one!

jrdamien · Post by **jrdamien** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 7:56 pm

So what's a good price to sell a 7" with download card for?

donny · Post by **donny** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 8:06 pm

Rolsen wrote:My band, The Variety Hour, just had our 'CD Release' show at our town's most-popular club on a Friday night. We are not that big a deal, and don't have throngs of fans. We experimented by handing out our CDs to folks before our set and scattering some more on some tables and booths. On our 'merch' table, we set out more CDs and a big jar with 'Donation?' written on it. Mid-set, we encouraged everyone to grab a CD and, if they're up for it, pitch in whatever they can spare. We made $40 in donations, which probably didn't quite cover the cost of the CDs we handed out, which were $2 a disk.

Bottom line, we wanted as many people as possible taking The Variety Hour home with them, which we accomplished. I don't know any local bands who make any money on their albums, so why not almost break even on duplication costs and earn Karma points? Hopefully the payment comes in the form of building interest in our band. Besides, who here has boxes of old albums that never sold? I'm sure I'm not the only one!

I still believe it's a better idea to charge something for physical product ... even if it's just a token $1 or $2. I often give away records & CDs if people don't have the cash, but I feel like setting it up at a cost provides more 'perceived value', making people more likely to actually play it. I can't tell you how many CDs I've been given that I never actually listen to. Plus, people like discovering something for themselves.

chris harris · Post by **chris harris** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 10:27 pm

jrdamien wrote:So what's a good price to sell a 7" with download card for?

It really depends on how cool the packaging is. 7" records usually go for $4, for simple 'fold-over' packaging in plastic sleeves, to $10+ for something very unique and creative.

The inclusion of a download code for several more tracks than are actually included on the 7" would maybe increase the value of the 7" by a buck or two.

leigh · Post by **leigh** » Mon Feb 13, 2012 10:46 pm

donny wrote:I've been selling full-length CDs for the last 3.5 years and the sales have REALLY dwindled to almost nothing in the last year. put out a 7" EP and have already sold more records in the last 2 weeks than I've sold CDs in the last year. and it's a vinyl-only release ... no downloads and not available on any other format

Donny - where are you located and what's your genre of music?

This idea is intriguing. I have a new record done, and coming out soon, and still haven't settled on a release format.

cheers,
Leigh

Brett Siler · Post by **Brett Siler** » Tue Feb 14, 2012 1:13 am

Here are a few short run vinyl places I found:

http://www.morphius.com/manufacturing/
http://www.mobineko.com/

I personally haven't used either, but I may check them out in the future.

donny · Post by **donny** » Tue Feb 14, 2012 11:33 am

leigh wrote:
donny wrote:I've been selling full-length CDs for the last 3.5 years and the sales have REALLY dwindled to almost nothing in the last year. put out a 7" EP and have already sold more records in the last 2 weeks than I've sold CDs in the last year. and it's a vinyl-only release ... no downloads and not available on any other format
Donny - where are you located and what's your genre of music?

This idea is intriguing. I have a new record done, and coming out soon, and still haven't settled on a release format.

cheers,
Leigh

San Francisco, '60s pysch pop/acid folk

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Selling Cd's vs CRD's

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