CDS AND THE INDIES....

The Truth About CD Manufacturing
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Imagine...

"All right - who actually makes CDs and prints the covers?"

Almost none of the companies that advertise CDs for sale. A few of these companies have large, impressive premises but their staff does not put on white coats and masks in the back room and actually press the little discs; and they don't have any printing presses either.

In fact, most small CD runs (500 to 1,000) that are manufactured in Canada are made by Americ Disc, near Montreal, or Cinram, located north of Toronto. The majority of the printing is done by Ross-Ellis. These companies also do lots of work for the major label companies.

Most of the companies that sell CDs to independent bands and artists are really brokers. That is, they sub-contract out the services that they don't do. In recent years, there are also a few small plants with 2 to 6 presses that will also go direct to a small run customers.

"So now I know who really makes CDs so I'll just go direct."

Hold on! Save yourself the aggravation. Even though some of these CD brokers let you think that they make discs in the back room, they do provide an essential service. Sure, some of the manufacturing plants will sell direct to the indies (particularly in the U.S.), but you will be a tiny fish in a huge ocean. To the big plants, an individual order of 500 or 1,000 is barely worth doing, but it does fill up some press time. To the CD broker, small orders are the backbone of the business. Dealing with a reputable broker makes you a good sized fish in a medium sized pond.

Depending on the clientele of the CD broker, their yearly volume can be anywhere from 20,000 units to 1,000,000. The brokers take care of customer service (including meetings, many questions and phone calls) and keep a steady stream of orders going to the plants. This is why the plants prefer to deal with the CD brokers. They get large yearly volumes, don't have to deal with first-time customers and they get paid on time.

The volume of work that the plants do for the majors is another compelling reason for avoiding the plants directly. They will bump a small client's job if they get a large or rush order from a priority customer and as a result, your scheduled delivery date could be significantly delayed.

Because of your low priority status, if an error in the order occurs, the plant may take longer to rectify the problem with you directly than through the CD broker.

"Well, even if I have to wait a little longer, the savings are worth it."

Believe it or not, the CD broker's prices are usually competitive with the big plants. Because of the quantity they buy, the brokers get wholesale prices and are able to compete with any large plant on short runs. In addition, you may not get the individual attention from the plant that you may need to make your project as good as it can be.

"But if a large volume gives the big CD brokers an edge, why do I keep seeing ads for recording studio who also sell CDs. Are they worth investigating?"

Recording and/or mastering studios who work with mostly indie bands know that their clients are going to go down the street and spend a couple of thousand dollars on CDs once the project is completed. Since they have this built-in clientele, some of them have decided to cater to the CD market. In addition, a satisfied recording/mastering client has already built up a good relationship with the studio and, given the choice, often prefers to deal with those they know and trust. Even if you have already done your recording and mastering, a studio with a knowlegeable and dedicated staff can provide service equal to the the best CD broker specialist.

"Sure, we all appreciate a good relationship and good service but I'm not sure I want to pay more for it!"

A few studios compete with, or even beat the prices offered by the larger brokers. They do this by making a wholesale price arrangement with a big CD broker who does a volume of 500,000 to 1,000,000 units a year. This way, a studio that does 40,000 to 50,000 units a year is supplying 5 to 10% of the big broker's volume, and of course, we already know that large volume brokers are important to the manufacturing plant.

Given that the majority of indie CD sales are made by companies that sub-contract, the studio that sells a decent yearly volume of CDs has all the tools and power to provide the same service and price as the big brokers. Of course, studios that sell CDs should be scrutinized in the same way that other brokers are. After all, not all studios have personnel that can work the gear and be good business people. Regardless of who you choose to deal with, service and deadlines have to be dealt with in a timely manner. As a historical note, Silverbirch began as a sub-broker but about 1998, we were doing enough volume to get our own contract with Cinram. Currently we deal with several plants and we sell close to 500,000. units per year.

"Correct me If I'm wrong, but are you saying that the sound and look of the final CD will not only be of the same quality, no matter where I go, but will also be similarly priced?"

Well, given that the majority of Canadian CD brokers buy their discs from Americ Disc or Cinram and most of the printing is done at Shorewood or Ross/Ellis, it is the same product! Furthermore, since the majors also do most of their pressing and printing at the same places, your product will be of the same basic quality that you see displayed in the record stores. As for prices, there will obviously be some differences, but most brokers that do a reasonable volume are fairly close in price. If you are having your graphic design/layout done at a CD broker, you may find significant difference in price by shopping around.

The small brokers in regional centres tend to be pricier than companies in big cities, like Toronto. The companies in big cities have so much competition in their area that you will inevitably get a better deal, and usually more expertise and options. The only perceived downside, i.e., the cost of long distance calls, courier bills for CD refs, art proofs and final shipment are really minor compared to the final price and service.

"OK, I'm convinced - it sounds like a broker is the best bet, but what about the artwork?"

A small number of brokers have a graphic artist on staff and the rest use qualified free-lancers. In either case, the results are generally very good. While there is not a big difference in CD and print prices from broker to broker, there is often a very large difference in price when it comes to artwork. This is one area where shopping around can make a big difference. Most people underestimate the cost of this part of the production. Depending on the cost of the graphic artist, disc film and colour proof/key, prices can range from $250. to well over $1,000. for a typical 2 panel job. Pick a graphic artist with same care you hopefully used to select your studio, engineer and mastering house. Make sure you like the person's finished work and see if you feel any rapport and interest in your job, i.e., are your ideas and questions going to be treated respectfully or is this person just going to plow through and knock the job off as fast as possible.

The specifications for graphics and film outputing for CD inserts, tray cards on on-disc printing are very detailed, precise and must be followed to the letter. If there are any errors the manufacturer will send it back for fixing (or fix it and charge the broker, who then charges you!). Even professional, experienced graphic artists who take on their first CD cover job almost always get some detail, or details, wrong the first time. This causes delays in the manufacturing process as the process needs to be corrected, re-output, or worst case scenario, re-done. As you can imagine, when friends or band members offer to design your artwork at home, the results can be disastrous. However, if you feel confident that your person can get the job done, most CD brokers will be happy to supply the specifications to you. The really service-oriented brokers can be relied on to cheerfully answer the countless questions that will usually come up! After all, the more questions asked, the more likely that the job will get done right the first time.

"By the way, my engineer told me that mastering my album was essential so I'm really glad that to see that most CD brokers offer mastering services."

Not so fast! This is one area where CD brokers should subcontract out their work but many don't. The mastering processing (technically the correct term is pre-mastering) is the production link between your finished stereo mixes and the CD glass master that is used in the first stage of pressing CDs. Mastering services range from "doctoring", i.e., fixing up the problems from an inferior studio or engineer, to enhancing and balancing well recorded mixes. Fix-ups include services such as lowering background hiss and hum, reducing excess sibilance, notching out harsh or boomy frequencies and removing static and non-musical noise. Enhancing includes editing, compression, stereo widening, frequency balancing (eq-ing), and finally, maximizing the overall volume as dynamically as possible so that your CD doesn't sound weak when compared to your major label competition.

Mastering is an essential part of producing a professional sounding CD, and is a process that every major label album has been through. Many of the more experienced indie artists have learned that, dollar for dollar, mastering is the best bargain in the whole recording/CD manufacturing process. It can make a poor recording listenable and a great recording sound absolutely scintillating.

To most CD brokers, the art of mastering is simply sequencing up your individual DAT mixes and cutting a "once-write CD" or CD-R in order to facilitate the making of the glass master. Anyone that asks for serious eq-ing, compression or volume maximizing from one of these companies is going to be seriously disappointed. As with the graphics, getting an inexperienced friend with a digital workstation to do your mastering could have disastrous results. When choosing a mastering house, ask for recommendations or check the credits of good sounding Canadian CDs. Go to the studio, listen to their work and ask for a demonstration on a minute or two of one of your songs. You will be amazed at the different methods (and prices!), equipment and philosophies that mastering engineers employ. No matter what method is used, you will also be amazed at the difference in the sound of a properly mastered CD when you compare it to your original studio mixes.

Professional mastering is your last line of defense, your last chance to make your album sound the best it can - DON'T GO TO CD WITHOUT IT!

(For further information on mastering, see for Silverbirch's "A Guide To Digital Editing And Audio Mastering" which is on this website. Also available on request is a copy of Andy Krehm's in-depth article on mastering, which was published in Canadian Musician Magazine in 1995.)

"Why do 500 CDs cost more per unit than an order of 1,000?"

This is because the printing plants will not print less than 1,000 graphics (inserts/traycards). So your intitial order always includes 1,000 graphics but only as many CDs (over 500) that you want. Any unused graphics are warehoused at the pressing plant in anticipation of a reorder at some time in the future.

So, you are paying for the cost of 1,000 graphics initially, regardless of the order and so with 1,000 CDs the cost is lower because the 1,000 price on CDs is usually a little lower.

A few companies offer runs of 300 manufactured CDs. However, since all other production costs remain the same you may find the price is only $75. to $100. cheaper as compared to the 500 price. In other words, 500 or 1,000 CDs are a far better value.

"I've been phoning around and found a place that sells 500 CDs way cheaper than anyone else."

To understand that question, have a look at the number of components that make up the final shrinkwrapped CD.

1) The Jewel Box - This is the plastic box that holds all the parts. Without any components in it, it is simply a hinged, slim clear plastic box. Jewel boxes also come in various colours, like the Rhino CDs. Unless you are manufacturing thousands of CDs you cannot place an order for a specific colour. Rather, you see what your broker can get from the plant at the time you are nearing the pressing date (usually what's available is the left overs from some big major label run) . There are other, rarely used formats that are substituted for the standard jewel box such as the CD single and the cardboard sleeve. The latter items usually cost more money to produce and should only be used after understanding the pros and cons of using a non-standard format.

2) The Insert & Tray Card - Inserts are the "cover" and come in several configurations. The most common is the 2 panel, also called a 4 fold. For example, pull the insert out of the nearest CD and unless it is a different configuration, when you open it, 2 panels face you (like a birthday card). This side is usually printed in black on white. Turn it over and you see the opposite 2 panels printed in full colour - magazine cover quality. This type of printing is called 4 colour process printing and this configuration described is called 4/1, i.e., 4 colour one side and black and white on the inside.

Inserts are available in sizes ranging from 1 panel to 16 panel. They also come in booklets and mini-posters. The more pages you have, the more expensive it costs to design and print. Colour printing on both sides of your insert (4/4) looks very impressive but adds to the printing costs.

Turn the CD over and you will see the tray card. The tray card fits inside the bottom of the jewel box. The spine, which contains the name of the artist, record label and title, shows through two of the slim sides of the jewel box and is actually attached to the tray card.

3) The Disc - One side is silk-screen printed and the other side contains the music.

4) On-Disc Printing - That's the printing of graphics on the CD face. Most brokers offer two colour printing for no extra charge. 3, 4, 5 and 4-colour off-set printing are also available for an additional charge. Remember that a blank disc face is silver in colour. If you don't want to use it in your design, you will have to use one of your colours to cover it. White is a commonly chosen background for a full colour disc unless one doesn't mind some silver showing in the background.

5) The CD Tray - This is the area or tray that holds the disc. The tray itself snaps into the bottom of the jewel box. The majority of trays are black but there are two other varieties that are readily available. The first is white and the second is clear. The clear tray presents some unique and cost effective options.

When a clear tray is installed in the jewel box, the reverse side of the tray card shows through (white). So, you might as well take advantage of this surface and print on it. There is usually no charge to print black on the reverse side of the tray card so you can have an additional surface to print information or a photo on without having to pay for an extra panel. Some companies charge a few cents for the clear tray and others don't. Just don't forget about the spindle (which holds the CD in place) when you are doing your design. For no extra charge, you can also ask for the tray card to be flipped over when it is placed in the jewel box.This puts the colour side under the disc and black and white on the outside of the tray.

When you view a jewel box (from the front) with a black or white tray, you will note that there is a black or white solid "bar" running vertically up the left side. When the jewel box contains a clear tray, you will see a clear bar. Now you can design your back-of-tray-card graphics with a name running sideways, so it shows through the clear bar or, perhaps a design or maybe just move the printing over enough so that only the white paper shows through. For an extra cost, some brokers can order colour on the reverse of the tray card, even if the insert is 4/1. If your job is 4/4, you may as well take advantage of the free printing and use the reverse side of the tray in full colour.

6) Shrinkwrap - In case this isn't obvious, it's the stuff surrounding a brand new CD that you can never figure out how to remove efficiently. Reputable CD brokers always include this in their price.

7) Miscellaneous - To use bar codes, or not, is often a concern. Bar codes, or UPC codes, are not strictly required in order to place your product into most record stores but if you are planning to consign or sell your CDs to a lot of stores, or use the services of a distributor, you probably should have one. Bar code numbers are generated exclusively for your CD and/or DVD and can be supplied by your broker or you can supply them (if legit). They can be either placed in the artwork by the designer or the broker can do it. Alternately, bar codes can be supplied on stickers, either put on by the plant or by yourself. Stickers come in rolls of 1,000 and can be stuck on the shrinkwrap of just the CDs that are going into the retail chain. The advantage of this method is that they don't have to be incorporated into the design and are history the moment the wrap is removed. This is also very handy if you have forgotten to address this problem until after the graphics have been printed! Bar codes are usually priced at less than $40. and sometimes might be included in the price.

By the way, the company that was selling the inexpensive runs of 500 were quoting the raw disc price on the phone, that is, without any other components! The truth comes out when you visit their premises and discover that they are charging additional prices for the jewel boxes and shrinkwrap. When checking prices by phone, make sure you find out exactly what is included in the prices. Giving accurate phone prices on graphic design is more difficult than quoting on discs unless the broker gives you a flat rate based on the number of panels. This is fairly common and is usually the best way to go.

"Just when I'd gotten a firm price on CDs from a company that was very competitive, they told me that not only might I receive as much as 10% more discs than I ordered, but I would also have to pay for them!"

Yes, but they also probably told you that you might be receiving up to 10% less. Welcome to the world of the overrun/underrun! The inexact delivery number is caused by the plant's rigid adherence to quality control. They start by pressing 10% more than the order and sometimes end up tossing quite a few disks. However, you should only pay for what you receive. Of course the printing plants are asked to make up to 10% more inserts and tray cards since they are printed in advance, and whether they are needed or not, the cost may also be passed on to you. In practice, the average delivery seems to be about 5% over, but you shouldn't plan on an exact amount - so much for tight budgeting! Some brokers charge for the print overrun and some don't.

"What about those brokers that advertise extra services, such as radio promotion, distribution, sales, marketing, internet and promotional assistance?"

In the real world, each one of above services are served by scores of companies. Most of them offer only one service, and companies with good track records charge a premium price for their services, such as the radio promoter or the publicity company. There is no way that a CD broker can offer more than a few ideas on any of the above mentioned topics, without charging for their service - there simply is not enough profit margin in CD sales to justify spending a lot of extra time with clients. Any substantial services have to be charged for because doing the job right costs significant amounts of time and money. There are a very few brokers who actually offer some of these services and when they do, they charge the going rate for them. Also, you do not have to manufacture your CDs with them to use those services. A CD broker who offers radio promotion is going head to head with other independent promoters and needs clients in order to keep their staff busy. For this reason, they don't care where you pressed your CDs!

"OK, now, that you've established that every CD broker has the potential to deliver a professional looking CD package, why should we chose Silverbirch?"

Well, the word "potential" is a good lead-in since there is a lot more to CD sales than placing an order with a manufacturing plant! All Ford dealers sell Fords but not all Ford dealers are not the same.

1) Guaranteed Lowest Prices - We offer very competitive prices on your first inquiry but, if one of our competitor's prices happens to be lower or they are offering a special or package price, we will match or beat their quote. Remember to get a written quote so that you can make a fair comparison. CD brokers want to get you into their premises and are sometimes devious with their initial telephone quotes. We often hear impossible sounding quotes, so we call the broker incognito and always find that they either left something essential out of the quote, and didn't explain what was missing to the client.

2) Firm Quotes - We offer flat rates for graphic design, based on number of panels, and so can give you a firm quote immediately.

3) Major Label Quality - We've already explained that everybody sells major label quality product but just for the record, our four colour process CD & DVD wrap sheets are printed at Ross-Ellis and our disks are pressed at Cinram. Furthermore, another advantage of recording, mastering and pressing, or mastering and pressing with us is that there is no question which company is responsible in event of any audio problems with the production CDs. We unconditionally guarantee our products against defects in quality and workmanship.

4) Graphic Arts: Scanning, Design, Layout, Disc Film and Colour Proofs, either press proofs or high rez laser - We can provide any or all of these services. We would also be pleased to provide you with our graphics specifications if you are doing this work elsewhere and will provide your graphic artists with unlimited support. We also will file check the work and make any suggestions necessary to ensure that the job will turn out correctly. Any fix-up work that you would rather have us do is billed at $ 45. per hour.

Silverbirch has created 100's of album graphics over the years and so would be pleased to handle the design for you, if needed. We handle most formats, so if you are bringing your design, we will be able to check it before outputting

5) Lots of Innovative And Cost Saving Ideas - For instance, how many brokers have told you about the free printing on the reverse of the tray card with a clear tray order? Has anyone told you about the tray-card-only option? We are interested in trying to work within your budget, not blow it! Call us for more cost saving ideas.

6) A No-Pressure, No Commission Sales Environment - Customer service is our #1 goal and therefore our job is to find out what would be most suitable for your project while staying within your budget. We do not feel any pressure to try to sell you packages that are more costly than what you actually need.

7) Convenience - Because we are also a studio, there is often someone here 7 days a week - and evenings too! We can schedule production meetings and the pick-up time for your CDs anytime after hours or week-ends.

8) Our Staff Has Experienced The Music Industry Wars First Hand - And Lived To Talk About It!

Ron Arnold is currently our Manager Of Operations and is the lead man in the CD manufacturing/duplication department. Following in the Silverbirch tradition, Ron is an accomplished musician and brings us a different set of skills, having worked in sports and entertainment management and administration.

Some of his more interesting jobs were as Patron Services Representative - Winnipeg Symphony, Group Sales Manager - Winnipeg Cyclone Basketball Team, Sales Manager - Legends In Concert, Group Sales Account Receivable Manager, Livent Inc. and Ticketing Operations, Toronto Blue Jays.

Ted Onyszczak is our recording/mixing engineer. In his over 10 year career Ted Onyszczak has engineered and provided studio support for such Canadian music icons as Rush, Tom Cochrane, and Kim Mitchell, including work on the latest Rush EP "Feedback". He has also engineered, mixed, and produced Cynthia Hallett's two CD's "Sweet Like Poison" and "Miracle", which are featured in the CBC Water Street Pictures TV series "Edgemont".

Mastering is done by Andy Krehm. Over the last 3 decades, Andy has been a successful free-lance guitarist, arranger, music producer, music contractor, artist manager, mastering engineer and studio owner working with names such as the Pointer Sisters, Aretha Franklin, Oscar Peterson, Vivienne Williams, Concert Productions International, O'Keefe Centre, Canadian Musician, etc. Andy's variegated experience has given him a unique and wide-ranging view of music business. He has mastered close to 4,000. albums and scores of singles and EPs. Albums mastered at Silverbirch have been nominated for twenty-eight Junos and six were winners.

Our staff is extremely generous with their knowledge. When you record, master or order CDs at Silverbirch, there's always time to share information and knowledge about the seemingly mysterious inner workings of the music industry.

Since starting in 1995 as a sub-broker of one of the big CD brokers, we have learned the CD manufacturing process inside-out. As of 1998, we had sold over 300,000. units (currently around 500,000 per year) and were able to get our own contract directly with Cinram. Our prices are now even more competitive and we've garnered practical experience in dealing with just about any manufacturing situation or problem.

9) Location - We are located in the Lakeshore & Bathurst area in downtown Toronto, very close to the Gardiner Expressway.

10) Big Savings In Time - For those recording, mastering and pressing, or mastering and pressing, find that dealing with us cuts down significantly on travel and meeting time. There are plenty of times when the client is not needed in the studio and can be using the time to meet with another staff member in regard to CD manufacturing.

11) Fast Turn-around Time - From the time that we receive approval on the art proof or PDF, our average turn-around time is about 10 to 12 business days. If you really need your CDs faster, we can usually speed up the process - although sometime the plant may charge extra for this service. If you are in a rush and have assembled all of the raw material for your artwork, we can sometimes do the design and layout in a day or two and let you see a proof immediately on finishing.

12) We also provide a number of other services that are useful to independent artists, such as Website Design ($295), Online Store, Posters, and various transfers for Cassette, video, etc, DVD editing as well as recording and mixing.

13) Mastering - Silverbirch Productions is also a major label quality mastering studio. In 2004, the studio was designed and rebuilt by Group One Acoustics and is loaded with gear found only at the most elite mastering studio. Our prices, currently $75. per hour, are very reasonable and should be affordable for most indie projects. Please ask for our "Guide To Digital Editing And Mastering" and discography. We would also be pleased to arrange a no-charge demo.

14) In-house Duplicated CD-Rs & DVDs: We have our own writers and can do any quantities of packaged or promo CD-R's. Graphics can be printed here and shrinkwrapping and assembly is done in our building. Please call for prices.