Best CD duplication

LI Slim

LI Slim

New member
I will soon be releasing my first almost-full-length cd (all homerecorded, BTW). I am looking at a "full service" duplication, including printing, cover.


Is Oasis the undisputed champ? My concern is that I'd rather start with only 100, and Oasis makes more sense if you're doing at least 500 or 1000... Do you have any other recommendations?
 
Most big houses are only going to work for 500+ for a good deal, however, I have seen local small houses that will do a run of 100 or 200 for a really good price. The end product in this case is usually CD-R with printing on it. From the top it looks like a real CD, but on the bottom, it's blue or gold... Still, can be pretty cheap, and you can usually get artwork too.
 
About a year ago, I took a look around at what deals various companies offer, and 500-1000 copies is a pretty standard lower limit for most. Fewer than that, and you're not making much money on the CDs because it costs so much per CD to make only a hundred, for example. I decided that if I got a company to do it, I'd opt for the larger number (eg 500) because the price difference isn't that great, but the difference in the number of copies is huge. But that only makes sense if you're playing a lot and flogging CDs out of a suitcase during the break, or if you're planning a massive demo attack on recording companies and radio stations. What's your game plan?
 
game plan

My gigs average about 1 or 2 per month, although when the cd is ready I'll probably have a couple "cd release" parties which might generate more sales than usual. I'd try to sell them through internet publicity also. I would only send them to radio stations and record companies in a narrowly targeted way. Also, I would probably not use the full cd as a demo (rather, I'd pick 3 or 4 songs for the demo, since that's what most venues, music festivals, etc. seem to prefer). So you see why 1000 might be overkill. I might go ahead and do 500 though.
 
The difference in price between 500 and 1000 copies might be very small, though. Like with Oasis, isn't the difference only a couple hundred dollars for the extra 500 copies? I can't remember, but I know they really price it in such a way that it makes the most sense to go with 1000.

It's a lot of copies to have onhand, but hey - your profit margin will be greater. You'll have plenty of copies to give away too, if you want - to friends, family, radio stations, publications, whatever.
 
Yeah, I know about that thing of only putting a couple of songs on a demo - your best stuff with the quick, engaging openings.

But is it horribly uncool to send a whole CD and say: "Listen to tracks 5 and 8"?
 
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