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Releasing Vinyl, CD, or Tape


lyst

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Considering doing a limited CD run of the collection of singles off of my Record Label.  After the release of the next single it would be an 8 single CD compilation.  https://www.discogs.com/label/1210005-Electronic-Brew-Records ,  Did an online quote with Oasis Disc Manufacturing and a 100 set Digipak came out to around 380-400 USD.

 

I understand tape is the cheapest way to go, but I refuse to release any as myself, my friends, my family have NO WAY to play it.  It's a dead technology and has no use IMO.  Vinyl at least has something to give with the listening experience, cover art, etc. 

 

So what are your experiences with releasing your own physicals?  Did you do it DIY or use a service?  Experiences either way?  Was there ANY return on investment at all?  Overall feelings towards releasing physicals?  Do you yourself purchase independent physical releases still?

 

 

 

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Lol I buy tapes all the time. New releases too.

 

Yea, there are some circles that do (indie, hipster, unshaven people, etc).  I personally have no friends or family that buy or listen to tape, nor do I myself buy or listen to tape.  Would be pretty futile to produce tapes in that case-- asking people to buy something that I do not even support myself.

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Lol I buy tapes all the time. New releases too.

 

Yea, there are some circles that do (indie, hipster, unshaven people, etc).  I personally have no friends or family that buy or listen to tape, nor do I myself buy or listen to tape.  Would be pretty futile to produce tapes in that case-- asking people to buy something that I do not even support myself.

 

 

Okay, so...in your first post you ask the question if there was any return on investment, which makes me think that you're hoping to make some money off of this venture.

 

But it seems like you're only expecting your close family and friends to buy physical copies of your music.

 

Considering that (speaking very generally here, I know) the general public have moved away from listening to music on physical media and mostly stream music these days, if you're releasing music and you want to release it on a physical medium, are the vast majority of your friends and family the type to buy and listen to a physical music medium? If they're just buying because they want to support you as a family member or friend, and they won't actually be listening to the physical product (instead listening to digital files / streams) does it really matter if they can't play the format?

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Speaking physical copies, I will only buy tapes and vinyl now.

 

The only reason for buying a CD now is if it's something ridiculously obscure and I can't find it on slsk or bandcamp.

 

But hey, maybe I'm one of those hipster unshaven people you mention.

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I've got a CD I put together. Spent a few hundred on getting 100 copies pressed, only sold like maybe 20? That could be just because people aren't into the music/exposure/whatever else though of course.

 

In general, people just don't like CDs despite them being convenient and great (best, really) quality for a great price. There's no obscurity or ritual or whatever to a CD so there's no mystery and so interest is near nil for them. I personally have no affinity for tapes, despite being raised on them (and having released one!), and absolutely zero interest in new release vinyls. I'm definitely in the minority though.

 

Basically, take pause before investing in selling CDs. There's a market, but it ain't a big one.

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vinyl and downloads.  will buy a CD if there's not Wav format download on bandcamp/bleep etc.. but otherwise downloads and vinyl are it. 

 

but we have tapes/cds/vinyl in the synth shop i work at and people do buy all the formats... 

 

 

as a label it's nice to have promo copies to give to people.. turns out i have around 800 promo copies remaining of 2 releases i put out on CD in 2006

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Lol I buy tapes all the time. New releases too.

 

Yea, there are some circles that do (indie, hipster, unshaven people, etc).  I personally have no friends or family that buy or listen to tape, nor do I myself buy or listen to tape.  Would be pretty futile to produce tapes in that case-- asking people to buy something that I do not even support myself.

 

 

Okay, so...in your first post you ask the question if there was any return on investment, which makes me think that you're hoping to make some money off of this venture.

 

But it seems like you're only expecting your close family and friends to buy physical copies of your music.

 

Considering that (speaking very generally here, I know) the general public have moved away from listening to music on physical media and mostly stream music these days, if you're releasing music and you want to release it on a physical medium, are the vast majority of your friends and family the type to buy and listen to a physical music medium? If they're just buying because they want to support you as a family member or friend, and they won't actually be listening to the physical product (instead listening to digital files / streams) does it really matter if they can't play the format?

 

 

Well that was one question I asked out of many.  The main goal is not to make money ( but it would not hurt, being currently unemployed. )  I'm not only expecting my close family and friends to buy but others as well.  From my own personal experience with fans and music buyers, Tape is more of a venture for people who want to release physical music as cheap as humanly possible.  If I were to release CDs, it would cost more, but more people would actual use them and play them.  A lot of my friends do buy and play physical music, but none of them do this with Tape.

 

To me it's like releasing something on A-trak.  From personal experience most people do not play tape anymore, except for a very very small niche group of people.  CD is still alive, and Vinyl is growing again faster than ever.

 

My dream about physical music and putting my own touches onto the music scene is not having my grandkid sitting on my lap one day and saying, hey sunny boy! Here's an audio tape of my music and my record label!  "Grandpa what tf is that gei azz sht!"

 

You are right though that most people will go Digital.  This is common knowledge, and the debate between Digital and Physical was not the intentions of this thread.   

 

Also, it does matter if they cannot play the format of tape, because otherwise tape gives you nothing.  It's not physically or aesthetically pleasing, you cannot admire the artwork or craftsmanship as you can with a CD or Vinyl.  To me it's ugly as hell and needs to die off.  So yea-- with those kind of views does that make any more sense why I would not release tape?  I mean I have CD and Vinyl unopened collected purely to support the artist and to display the artwork, and i know many others that do the same.

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I've got a CD I put together. Spent a few hundred on getting 100 copies pressed, only sold like maybe 20? That could be just because people aren't into the music/exposure/whatever else though of course.

 

In general, people just don't like CDs despite them being convenient and great (best, really) quality for a great price. There's no obscurity or ritual or whatever to a CD so there's no mystery and so interest is near nil for them. I personally have no affinity for tapes, despite being raised on them (and having released one!), and absolutely zero interest in new release vinyls. I'm definitely in the minority though.

 

Basically, take pause before investing in selling CDs. There's a market, but it ain't a big one.

 

That's my worry.  To spend so much on the CDs and the market is just not there.  Do you remember exactly how much you spent?  Did you do it through an online service?

 

 

vinyl and downloads.  will buy a CD if there's not Wav format download on bandcamp/bleep etc.. but otherwise downloads and vinyl are it. 

 

but we have tapes/cds/vinyl in the synth shop i work at and people do buy all the formats... 

 

 

as a label it's nice to have promo copies to give to people.. turns out i have around 800 promo copies remaining of 2 releases i put out on CD in 2006

 

I see your point, but me personally I purchase Digital, Vinyl, and CD.    Tape no thank you.  And DAMN that's a lot of extra promo copies, lol.  

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I've got a CD I put together. Spent a few hundred on getting 100 copies pressed, only sold like maybe 20? That could be just because people aren't into the music/exposure/whatever else though of course.

 

In general, people just don't like CDs despite them being convenient and great (best, really) quality for a great price. There's no obscurity or ritual or whatever to a CD so there's no mystery and so interest is near nil for them. I personally have no affinity for tapes, despite being raised on them (and having released one!), and absolutely zero interest in new release vinyls. I'm definitely in the minority though.

 

Basically, take pause before investing in selling CDs. There's a market, but it ain't a big one.

 

That's my worry.  To spend so much on the CDs and the market is just not there.  Do you remember exactly how much you spent?  Did you do it through an online service?

 

 

vinyl and downloads.  will buy a CD if there's not Wav format download on bandcamp/bleep etc.. but otherwise downloads and vinyl are it. 

 

but we have tapes/cds/vinyl in the synth shop i work at and people do buy all the formats... 

 

 

as a label it's nice to have promo copies to give to people.. turns out i have around 800 promo copies remaining of 2 releases i put out on CD in 2006

 

I see your point, but me personally I purchase Digital, Vinyl, and CD.    Tape no thank you.  And DAMN that's a lot of extra promo copies, lol.  

 

 

 

when the CDs don't sell.. they become promo copies by default because i'm tired of looking at them on a shelf in the basement. 

 

if you can get your CDs into japan the market is great.. they buy a lot of CDs there apparently. 

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I've got a CD I put together. Spent a few hundred on getting 100 copies pressed, only sold like maybe 20? That could be just because people aren't into the music/exposure/whatever else though of course.

 

In general, people just don't like CDs despite them being convenient and great (best, really) quality for a great price. There's no obscurity or ritual or whatever to a CD so there's no mystery and so interest is near nil for them. I personally have no affinity for tapes, despite being raised on them (and having released one!), and absolutely zero interest in new release vinyls. I'm definitely in the minority though.

 

Basically, take pause before investing in selling CDs. There's a market, but it ain't a big one.

 

That's my worry.  To spend so much on the CDs and the market is just not there.  Do you remember exactly how much you spent?  Did you do it through an online service?

 

 

vinyl and downloads.  will buy a CD if there's not Wav format download on bandcamp/bleep etc.. but otherwise downloads and vinyl are it. 

 

but we have tapes/cds/vinyl in the synth shop i work at and people do buy all the formats... 

 

 

as a label it's nice to have promo copies to give to people.. turns out i have around 800 promo copies remaining of 2 releases i put out on CD in 2006

 

I see your point, but me personally I purchase Digital, Vinyl, and CD.    Tape no thank you.  And DAMN that's a lot of extra promo copies, lol.  

 

 

 

when the CDs don't sell.. they become promo copies by default because i'm tired of looking at them on a shelf in the basement. 

 

if you can get your CDs into japan the market is great.. they buy a lot of CDs there apparently. 

 

 

I have definitely seen and heard that about Japan.  Would have to make a Japan Exclusive Track just to follow suite.  Lol.

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I find CDs useful for giving folks my music in person. For friends and such. http://kunaki.com is ridiculously cheap for small runs of CDs. The quality is good, and they ship quickly too. Only downside is that your only options are jewel cases (yuck), dvd cases (weird?) or plain CDs printed on and sent on a spool (DIY packaging)

Would recommend.

 

https://www.duplication.ca is very good for tape dupes, but the cost definitely adds up. Unless you already have hype and a market for the tapes, I wouldnt recommend it. I have about 50 out of 55 still left of the last tapes I had made, and about 30 out of 50 of the ones I got in 2013.

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I used an online service, yeah. I think it was $250-$300 for 100 CDs: digipak, individually sealed, shipped and delivered. Quick turnaround from what I remember as well. 

 

You could always try the DIY approach: CD-Rs, unique art/packaging (some places offer unique packaging deals on CDs, for more cost obviously), make it more interesting and grant it an air of mystery or one-of-a-kind feel, ya know? But even stuff like that, from what I've seen on Bandcamp and elsewhere, it's just not near as big of a deal of the same thing as vinyl or cassette. People are stuck in their ways and what they want: they want subpar quality physical audio

 

 

:trollface:

 

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I find CDs useful for giving folks my music in person. For friends and such. http://kunaki.com is ridiculously cheap for small runs of CDs. The quality is good, and they ship quickly too. Only downside is that your only options are jewel cases (yuck), dvd cases (weird?) or plain CDs printed on and sent on a spool (DIY packaging)

Would recommend.

 

https://www.duplication.ca is very good for tape dupes, but the cost definitely adds up. Unless you already have hype and a market for the tapes, I wouldnt recommend it. I have about 50 out of 55 still left of the last tapes I had made, and about 30 out of 50 of the ones I got in 2013.

 

Awesome, thanks! Bookmarking Kunaki.

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I find CDs useful for giving folks my music in person. For friends and such. http://kunaki.com is ridiculously cheap for small runs of CDs. The quality is good, and they ship quickly too. Only downside is that your only options are jewel cases (yuck), dvd cases (weird?) or plain CDs printed on and sent on a spool (DIY packaging)

Would recommend.

 

https://www.duplication.ca is very good for tape dupes, but the cost definitely adds up. Unless you already have hype and a market for the tapes, I wouldnt recommend it. I have about 50 out of 55 still left of the last tapes I had made, and about 30 out of 50 of the ones I got in 2013.

 

Wow 108.92 USD for 50 Jewel Case CDs with all the art, shipping, inserts included.  There's gotta be no better deal than that for a test run of physical release.

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Speaking physical copies, I will only buy tapes and vinyl now.

 

The only reason for buying a CD now is if it's something ridiculously obscure and I can't find it on slsk or bandcamp.

 

But hey, maybe I'm one of those hipster unshaven people you mention.

Same, in fact I just came home to a copy of the new Ekoplekz cassette, yay!
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CDs are dead tbh (if I ever buy a CD by a local band I just rip it and put it on the shelf).. however:

 

You could always try the DIY approach: CD-Rs, unique art/packaging (some places offer unique packaging deals on CDs, for more cost obviously), make it more interesting and grant it an air of mystery or one-of-a-kind feel, ya know? 

 

I did this last year for a live show I played, except rather than unique packaging, each copy contained unique audio. I never distributed any of the audio on bandcamp or streaming services, so each physical copy was the only version of that audio.

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From my own personal experience with fans and music buyers, Tape is more of a venture for people who want to release physical music as cheap as humanly possible.

 

From my experience, the fact that larger labels are flooding the pressing plants with mediocre represses of bullshit for Record Store Day, meaning delays of 8 months or more is a very big reason why people I know who're putting out physical media releases are turning to tapes instead of vinyl.

 

 

To me it's like releasing something on A-trak.  From personal experience most people do not play tape anymore, except for a very very small niche group of people.  CD is still alive, and Vinyl is growing again faster than ever.

 

Do you mean 8-Track tape? That doesn't compare to cassette tape at all, in any way. It'd be more correct to compare 8-Track to Minidisc. Only the smallest niche of labels and artists are releasing new music on the format, and usually as pure unadulterated novelty.

 

Although this is only anecdotal evidence, I can honestly say I don't know anyone who buys CDs anymore at all. In the last decade I have bought 4 CDs, and in each case it was either as a completionist or to support the artist. I know a lot of people involved in the electronic music scene in Liverpool and I'm pretty sure they don't buy CDs either.

 

 

Also, it does matter if they cannot play the format of tape, because otherwise tape gives you nothing.  It's not physically or aesthetically pleasing, you cannot admire the artwork or craftsmanship as you can with a CD or Vinyl.  To me it's ugly as hell and needs to die off.  So yea-- with those kind of views does that make any more sense why I would not release tape?  I mean I have CD and Vinyl unopened collected purely to support the artist and to display the artwork, and i know many others that do the same.

 

Definitely a personal preference there - Tapes aren't ugly to me at all, and for certain genres actually really add to the listening experience.

 

Do you really display unopened CDs? Does anyone display CDs so their tiny small artwork is showing? I've never heard of this, ever.

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