** ethics **

basslik

New member
Good day everyone,

I need help regarding potential clients. I strictly do demo's, that's my nitch, and get them a great liver recording.

What's great is a few of the bands end up re-recording the tunes in commercial studio's.

Well the bands grant my free copies of my work, and even one band suggested to use their songs they granted me with, and the official release version of the CD, which they also have given me, to use a segment collage between the two, so potential clients can hear the two, so they can critique my work.

I know people always do that kind of stuff on the Y tube and such.

Although I would never mention where the recordings were done, although I imagine they can google the song and research, but as for me I would never do such a thing.

Is that reasonable?
 
Well the bands grant my free copies of my work, and even one band suggested to use their songs they granted me with, and the official release version of the CD, which they also have given me, to use a segment collage between the two, so potential clients can hear the two, so they can critique my work.

I find it difficult to understand what you have written. However, what I think you are saying is that you do demo recordings for bands. These bands then go into other studios to record a finished product, then sometimes play the demo, then the final, to show the difference between before and after.

Your concern seems to be that by them doing this, they show up your recording efforts in poor light, and thus indirectly are critical of your work. This is made worse if they actually name you, specially if they fail to mention the nature of your work, i.e. to produce cheap, quick live demo recordings.

Is that reasonable?

It is inevitable that comparisons will be made, specially if a band will want to highlight how the tracks were transformed in the process of going from demo to final. So you need to expect that. Is it reasonable or ethical to use this comparison to denigrate your work? Probably not. But you have little recourse that I can see. And even if your demo recordings are shown in poor light through this comparison, I'm not sure you would be able to say they were deliberately being critical of your efforts.
 
I find it difficult to understand what you have written. However, what I think you are saying is that you do demo recordings for bands. These bands then go into other studios to record a finished product, then sometimes play the demo, then the final, to show the difference between before and after.

Your concern seems to be that by them doing this, they show up your recording efforts in poor light, and thus indirectly are critical of your work. .....
Yes, a little hard to track, but I read it differently. I thought OP was saying that he did a demo, then the band went and got a studio recording done (maybe funded on the basis of the demo?). They gave OP permission to use some parts of the studio recording for his own use to show how his demo compared to the final, i.e., to actually generate business.

Then, the question was, "If he did that, say on YT, should he mention the professional studio?" IF that was the question, then the obvious answer I'd say is no. It's just asking for trouble. Who knows, maybe the pro studio my be a possible referral if someone comes in and wants a demo, but doesn't have the money for their services. Be nice...

But, I could be all wrong!
 
That's a possibility as well.

I therefore withdraw my interpretation and declare that I have absolutely no idea what the OP meant.
 
Yes, a little hard to track, but I read it differently. I thought OP was saying that he did a demo, then the band went and got a studio recording done (maybe funded on the basis of the demo?). They gave OP permission to use some parts of the studio recording for his own use to show how his demo compared to the final, i.e., to actually generate business.

Then, the question was, "If he did that, say on YT, should he mention the professional studio?" IF that was the question, then the obvious answer I'd say is no. It's just asking for trouble. Who knows, maybe the pro studio my be a possible referral if someone comes in and wants a demo, but doesn't have the money for their services. Be nice...

But, I could be all wrong!

Keith you are correct. THANKS ALL

My goal is to help bands get paying gig's, and to let them hear my demos, compared to professional CD's, and to show them my abilities are viable to strictly get them gigs, and justify the savings at that point and time. By no means even mention names, or places, but merely show then great live recordings at a fraction of the cost. Reason is that I've already had 5 bands call me stating they preferred my recordings after it was all said and done.

I would never say mine is better, or as such, only this is my vibe compared to another vibe.

Thank you all for your time. Oh I just caught what your saying, (I) would never post it anywhere to throw it out there, only when they come to check out the studio to just hear a 30 second samples of various recordings.
 
If it's good enough, it maybe isn't necessary to even do a comparison, i.e., your work can simply stand on its own.

If you do comparisons, make sure you level (LUFS) match so they are not biased because of how we hear.

I have noticed myself, though my viewpoint is hugely biased because I see, hear and sometimes record a lot of singer-songwriters in live settings, that when they go into a studio, the results are very different, and, for me, sometimes disappointing, because I'm used to hearing them live. Some of this is that the live performance has a dynamic and crowd interaction factor that not many performers are able to bring to the studio (IMO).

And, the other thing is that when I do a mix, it's usually influenced by the fact that I've probably seen this performer several times, so what I give them is (I hope) the best example of their actual performance, without coloration. When they go to a studio, they're working with an engineer/producer that hears them possibly for the first time, and then applies their own idea of what the performer(s) should sound like. They might actually be doing things with the mix that makes the sound more "commercial" but one which is very different from the original. Then the comparison becomes less appropriate, and I probably wouldn't even suggest doing an A/B.
 
If it's good enough, it maybe isn't necessary to even do a comparison, i.e., your work can simply stand on its own.

If you do comparisons, make sure you level (LUFS) match so they are not biased because of how we hear.

I have noticed myself, though my viewpoint is hugely biased because I see, hear and sometimes record a lot of singer-songwriters in live settings, that when they go into a studio, the results are very different, and, for me, sometimes disappointing, because I'm used to hearing them live. Some of this is that the live performance has a dynamic and crowd interaction factor that not many performers are able to bring to the studio (IMO).

And, the other thing is that when I do a mix, it's usually influenced by the fact that I've probably seen this performer several times, so what I give them is (I hope) the best example of their actual performance, without coloration. When they go to a studio, they're working with an engineer/producer that hears them possibly for the first time, and then applies their own idea of what the performer(s) should sound like. They might actually be doing things with the mix that makes the sound more "commercial" but one which is very different from the original. Then the comparison becomes less appropriate, and I probably wouldn't even suggest doing an A/B.


Thanks for your time folks. Cool !

Well it's pretty much a controlled semi studio recording, but tracking live, and pretty much what Vance Powell does.

But my may concern, is to showcase the value I have to offer, and I just wanted feedback on being able to use another studio's version, to compare side by side with mine.

Well I just got off the phone with a local Grammy producer/Engineer Nominee friend of mine, and he said there is absolutely nothing wrong with two companies showing off two different paint jobs, and said it's a free market.
 
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