DiskFaktory

Hey there creative kids

Being a small studio, most of the projects that I work on end up getting duplicated (not replicated; there is a difference) in the end for small runs of CDs, usually between 100-300 copies. This being the case, I've done a lot of searching and trying and comparing to find the best quality at the best price for this sort of service. Allow me to share my findings with you.
Easily the number one company in my book is DiskFaktory.com. You may have seen them if you've ever visited the Guitar Center website or MusiciansFriend.com as they are partnered with them. Now let me get this straight, they're not number one because they have great customer service. I have needed customer service on numerous occasions as almost every project comes down to the wire and needs some special attention to make the deadline. I have never been able to talk to someone on the phone, but have had a more than a few live chat sessions with reps to work out an issue. Most of the time they were not helpful and said something to the effect of "That's not my department, let me transfer you."
But they are #1 because of their prices, quality of their work, and the ease of getting set up. They offer a few different short run packages that give you different artwork options. That being said, they are totally inflexible with the packages, which I assume is due to automation of the process. But the automation of the process is what makes it so easy to get the project going. Amazingly, this is the only duplicator I've used that has a way for you to upload your artwork and see what it will look like immediately. It seems like such a simple idea, I don't know why other companies don't do it. So I usually upload my artwork and mail a master audio CD. You can also upload wav files (which I have done and takes forever!) or upload mp3 (which I had to resort to once and it honestly turned out pretty well all things considered).
So check them out for your next short run of CDs.
Another company that I have used and like is ESP. They had great quality and customer service (thanks Deb!). Their prices were ok but not for anything under 300 copies.

Right now I'm finishing up a project that will be an even shorter run of 50 copies so I'm talking to a few companies about it now. It's for my own EP You and Me, which will be out by mid-December. I'll post my final choice and the verdict after that all goes down.

Listening to Calexico Garden Ruin right now.

Rock on

Ben
www.javboyrecords.com