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why do records cost what they do?


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examples: bought plenty of new releases with great packaging for well under $20 (appleseed cast, hospital ships, war on drugs) and then find a record that i like (viva voce) for over $20 with no real reason to be priced that high. does it have more to with record labels, or is it something with the artists.

also, what is the incentive for a distributor to press 100 copies of a release that can only gross <$2000.

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Hah. All of the above are acceptable.

But in all seriousness, even though

it would seem more reasonable to press more records and shave a buck or two off the cost.

If the record isn't all that high in demand, it would probably be a pain to have a ton of excess stock laying around and not selling, thus pressing a lower number and knowing the vast majority of them WILL sell seems like a safer bet even if that comes at a few bucks extra per copy. The few who wanted the record bad enough in the first place wouldn't bat an eye at the extra cost anyway which leads credence to lastwordspoken's answer that sometimes folks will just pay what the charge is.

I don't know record economics from a hole in the ground, but tons of dudes around here do. They'll probably chime in at some point.

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different pressing plants have different prices, and final sale prices are usually based off the cost of the pressing.

so if they spent more for a fancy gatefold and rad colour patterns in the vinyl, than you're probably going to wind up paying more.

also pressing plants charge more for smaller runs, or less if the label orders more.

that bulk discount, ya dig?

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Shamrocks, as far as incentive to press 100 goes..

Some people are trying to create a collector's item they can cash in on.

Other people can only afford to press 100. Or maybe they are just doing it for their own enjoyment. Believe me, there are a lot of people putting out records who are taking a loss and don't give a shit about profit, or are struggling to break even. I have pressed 100 or less many times because it was what I was able to afford or the amount I though I could sell.

On why they cost they do, well again some people involved in more popular bands/labels are price gouging and others might have more complex packaging, special colors or etching, etc...you can usually tell what the deal is. Whether you still want to buy or care as to the reasons is up to you. Most people charge reasonable prices, those who don't are the exception not the rule.

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Also some labels pay for recording time and mixing/mastering for their bands, which needs to be recouped somehow. Take Hydra Head for example, they support their bands and give them a budget for recording. Cave In isn't paying out of their own pocket to record these days. So to pay off those fees, you get a single LP that costs $22, even though they pressed over 1000 copies. The markup is huge, but they also operate out of a functioning office with staff to cover. A small label that one dude runs out of his house, pressing records for smaller bands that pay for recording and mixing/mastering themselves can afford to charge a lot less for their records, even if they are pressing small quantities.

Some quick math, based on quotes from Pirates Press for a 180 gram 2xLP in a gatefold, pressing 300 copies vs 500 copies.

300 = $4,000

cost each = $13.33

500 = $4,700

cost each = $9.40

Yes, makes much more sense to press an extra 200 records for only $700 more, but not if they'll never sell. So, the 300 end up being priced at $20+ while the 500 can be $17+. Now those prices don't include anything else, like remastering for vinyl, shipping from the pressing plant, packing supplies, etc. All those factor into the price, just like a recording budget would.

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also, what is the incentive for a distributor to press 100 copies of a release that can only gross <$2000.

that is $2000 they did not have before pressing 100 copies of a release.

The opposite is actually true, considering it probably cost almost 2,000 to press 100 records. It's not $2,000 profit, its gross sales.

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also, what is the incentive for a distributor to press 100 copies of a release that can only gross <$2000.

that is $2000 they did not have before pressing 100 copies of a release. and distributors don't press things.

They don't press records, but they sure as hell pay pressingplants to do it and have the records shipped straight to them.

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Some quick math, based on quotes from Pirates Press for a 180 gram 2xLP in a gatefold, pressing 300 copies vs 500 copies.

500 = $4,700

cost each = $9.40

This is my first project and I used PP but this price only covers the LPs and not the covers, bags, sleeves, test presses and their 2 day shippping, DMM processing, the stampers and then the freight shipping on an order this big when it arrives at your house on a pallet.

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