Ever been screwed by not getting a test press?

[numanoid]

I didn't get one. My records have a loud, repetitive noise all throughout them. If it was a minor defect, I would say fuck it, it's my problem. But this is bad!

Is there anything I can do? I mean, come on! If I gave someone something defective, regardless of if they got a test of some sort first, shouldn't they be held responsible?

And how far does it go? What if I didn't get a test pressing, and they messed up and put someone else's song on one side. Would they be responsible for that? How far does this go?

I really need advice!

[hickey]

Why wouldn't you get test pressings?

[adamlikesmusic]

Why not ask the plant? I don't think anyone here would know for sure.

[xlovecolouredx]

what project you're on ?

i mean what album you will press ?

[numanoid]

I was trying to save time. I've never had a test press sound bad. And they claim to listen to everything before it goes out.

The plant said it's my problem. I think I'm going to ask for my money back. I think I'm fucked.

The release is a Static Static 7-inch.

[AlexH.]

That sucks, but it's really your fault for not getting a test pressing.

[brentoage]

yikes.

keep us posted.

[alphanumerica]

That completely sucks but it's your gamble in that situation. I really hope your able to work out something out. Best of luck

[xjustinxschwierx]

you're fucked.

never leave checking test pressings up to anyone but yourself.

[kurtz]

I don't think the plant owes you anything. If you chose not to listen to a test, it's nobody's fault but your own.

[cactusbot]

No offense but not getting test pressings is the stupidest thing ever.

Not the plants fault.

[thesack18]

my teacher told me when im at work, i should always set the machines up myself and to not trust that someone else has done it right. you should of gotten tests and checked yourself. youre fucked now

[googlemyass]

senseless thread makes no sense.

[rtw88]

Yeah, like everyone else is saying, looks like you screwed the pooch and are SOL, unless the pressing plant is very, very nice.

[vardcore]

I'm sure you are an awesome person, so don't take this personally, but... you fucked yourself. On the positive side, at least you are very limber. Ha.

(Sadly, I bet it looked safe to you if all of your previous records were 100% good.)

It's never a good idea to skip the test press phase. If you are only making 100, okay, maybe you can risk it. But "risk" is the active word there.

There is such a thing as a "striker plate" that skips a step or two in the pre-press process. In this case, you just press records one time and get what you get. No tests. No re-pressing. Crazy.

I got a test recently that had the right band, but the wrong songs. You have to be careful. Everyone in the process can pull an "ooops", including yourself. Be careful. Wear an audio condom.

[Guest afsdan]

var's quite colorful with the descriptions!

moral of the story: pay for tests. my 13 vinyl projects have had about 8 bad test pressings. it's worth it in the end.

[flood]

out of 7 projects i only had one bad test... but that would have fucked everything...

[jailhouse]

Wow that really sucks dude. I'd hate to restate the obvious about getting test presses. But that's a good chunk of money

If anything it's a learning experience, I am sure it won't happen again huh!?

Sorry for the screw up man. Hopefully something will work out?

Best of luck

[forgeagain]

If I ran a pressing plant and somebody asked to not get test pressings I'd screw their record up on purpose to teach them a lesson.

[numanoid]

If I ran a pressing plant and somebody asked to not get test pressings I'd screw their record up on purpose to teach them a lesson.

What lesson is that exactly? That $800 isn't enough money to ensure that you do the job I paid you for correctly?

I take pride in my work. I would think that they would too. I understand shit happens, but come on? This is a manufacturing defect.

Look, I can understand if the music on it sounded like shit; muddy, flat, too much bass, etc. But this isn't the case. In fact, they sold me something defective. The plates are bad. After paying well over $200, I would think that the plates would be good, but the music may not be up to my satisfaction.

I work at a screenprinting shop, and this would be equivalent to me requiring all of my customers to pay for a test of their shirts. If they don't pay for them, then whatever the end up with is their problem. Like a torn shirt, wrong ink color, or wrong design. This is just not how it works. In fact, we've replaced shirts before when someone did approve art and there ended up being a misspelling or something. That's what a decent business does.

Like I said, I was willing to risk the audio sounding like shit. But they didn't manufacture something that I paid for correctly. And when it's all said and done, I paid them over $800.

And it's a good thing you don't run a pressing plant.

[flood]

theres a difference between printing and manufacturing companies in policy.

which plant did you use? most of the ones i go with have always stated if you don't get tests you have no recourse on anything after the fact.

[hyperrealist]

I was trying to save time. I've never had a test press sound bad. And they claim to listen to everything before it goes out.

The plant said it's my problem. I think I'm going to ask for my money back. I think I'm fucked.

The release is a Static Static 7-inch.

It is totally your problem and your fault. ALWAYS get a test press. Its not worth the few days you save. Ask yourself - is it better to have a record early or one that sounds good? This is often the argument between a band and a label when its time to hit the road for tour and a record is late. I personally side with the "good record" argument.

The test press is your opportunity to find and fix problems with your record. When you skip that step you forfeit your chance to do so and, by extension, your right to complain about your record if it sounds bad.

ALWAYS get tests. Always.

[hyperrealist]

I work at a screenprinting shop, and this would be equivalent to me requiring all of my customers to pay for a test of their shirts. If they don't pay for them, then whatever the end up with is their problem. Like a torn shirt, wrong ink color, or wrong design. This is just not how it works. In fact, we've replaced shirts before when someone did approve art and there ended up being a misspelling or something. That's what a decent business does.

Like I said, I was willing to risk the audio sounding like shit. But they didn't manufacture something that I paid for correctly. And when it's all said and done, I paid them over $800.

No, its more like asking your customers to proof the art and colors before it goes to press. I've worked in print for over 12 years now. If anything is an error on our part, we replace it. If its an error on the customers part, they pay to replace it. Thats just how it works. I wouldn't say that replacing something thats not your fault is "how a good business works".

[Guest afsdan]

if there's a misspelling on your silkscreen, that's your customer's fault for not getting a proof copy.

just as it's your fault for not getting tests. don't be stupid, don't blame the pressing plant. don't rely on the employees to "check everything they send out", because they don't know how things are supposed to sound.

[forgeagain]

I was mostly joking about screwing stuff up on purpose. However, if they fucked the plates up, then they should re-do the plates free of charge. However, since YOU didn't get test pressings, the pressing costs (the bulk of the expense) are completely on you, since they wouldn't have pressed anything without approval if you had gotten plates made. I really wouldn't expect a plant to fuck up the plates and then be like "Well, you gotta pay new ones." That'd just be silly.

Not getting a test pressing was an assumed risk. You took said risk. It did not pay off. Lesson learned.