Comment Re:Just a guess (Score 1) 820
Generally, speaking, if you want to produce an album from scratch, you (the band/recording artist) will have to consider several things.
First, you have to rent a studio. This can run into the $60/hr range really easily, depending on the equipment you need. The more tracks you have (i.e. recording channels) the more expensive the studio time is. Want a digital recording? That'll cost you. Have a brand preference on the mixing board? That might cost you, too. If we assume that you are a really great group of musicians and can knock out an album-length recording in, say...2 takes per song, an average of about 2:30 per song and 14 songs on an album. You're up to a MINIMUM of 70 minutes of studio time and then we have to add in time for sound checks, studio setup, etc. By the time you're done, you'll be lucky to get out of the studio for less than $240.
Now you have to mix all the tracks you laid down in the studio. Remember, one track is usually one instrument. I four-man band lays down 4 tracks per song and you have to mix them into a single track. THis is where lots of time gets eaten up and that time isn't cheap either. Figure $60/hour minimum. You can also figure on spending 8 to 10 hours getting it done right. Ka-ching, there's another $600 ($840 total). Mind you, these are local studios here in Seattle, but they offer some pretty state-of-the-art facilities.
So for $840, you have a mixed and mastered CD, but no artwork for the cover. Here in Seattle, CD reproduction services generally run about $250-300 per thousand CDs, ignoring the cost of reproducing the artwork on the disc. Printing on the CD runs about the same as paper printing, so costs depend on the number of colors in the print process. Assuming Black & White (2 colors), you can bet that it will cost you $200-$300 for setup and then ~$400/thousand discs.
Production - $840
CD Printing- $600
Jewel cases- $350
Total cost of 1000 cds - $1790, or about $1.79 per disc.
Of course, economy of scal applies, so if you are pressing millions of CDs, your cost can come down a bit.
First, you have to rent a studio. This can run into the $60/hr range really easily, depending on the equipment you need. The more tracks you have (i.e. recording channels) the more expensive the studio time is. Want a digital recording? That'll cost you. Have a brand preference on the mixing board? That might cost you, too. If we assume that you are a really great group of musicians and can knock out an album-length recording in, say...2 takes per song, an average of about 2:30 per song and 14 songs on an album. You're up to a MINIMUM of 70 minutes of studio time and then we have to add in time for sound checks, studio setup, etc. By the time you're done, you'll be lucky to get out of the studio for less than $240.
Now you have to mix all the tracks you laid down in the studio. Remember, one track is usually one instrument. I four-man band lays down 4 tracks per song and you have to mix them into a single track. THis is where lots of time gets eaten up and that time isn't cheap either. Figure $60/hour minimum. You can also figure on spending 8 to 10 hours getting it done right. Ka-ching, there's another $600 ($840 total). Mind you, these are local studios here in Seattle, but they offer some pretty state-of-the-art facilities.
So for $840, you have a mixed and mastered CD, but no artwork for the cover. Here in Seattle, CD reproduction services generally run about $250-300 per thousand CDs, ignoring the cost of reproducing the artwork on the disc. Printing on the CD runs about the same as paper printing, so costs depend on the number of colors in the print process. Assuming Black & White (2 colors), you can bet that it will cost you $200-$300 for setup and then ~$400/thousand discs.
Production - $840
CD Printing- $600
Jewel cases- $350
Total cost of 1000 cds - $1790, or about $1.79 per disc.
Of course, economy of scal applies, so if you are pressing millions of CDs, your cost can come down a bit.
