Our Artists & Labels Relations team receives many inquiries every day. In this article, we've selected some of your most frequently asked questions, and answered them as fully as possible !

Test Pressings

What is a Pressing Test, and what is its purpose ?

A "test pressing" is an initial copy of a vinyl record, pressed to test its sound quality before mass production.
Our factories produce five of these: three are sent to the artist, and two are sent to us.

Test pressings are evaluated by the artist or label to ensure that they meet the required quality standards, and to detect any pressing faults, unwanted noise, groove skipping... that could alter the sound quality.

Do I need Test pressings ? What happens if I decide not to have them produced ?

We strongly advise artists to get Test pressings. This is because, without TPs, we'll only be able to identify any defects once buyers have received their records. It is therefore preferable to avoid any complaints or disappointments beforehand, especially if they concern a large number of fans!

Please note that if an artist/label does not wish to have TPs pressed, Diggers Factory and the pressing plants cannot be held responsible for any defects in sound quality.

For more information on Test Pressings, please consult this article.

Length of tracks

We've noticed that the length of the tracks uploaded to our project pages regularly exceeds the maximum capacity of the listening device. So here's a reminder of how long each side of a vinyl, CD or audio tape can hold :

Vinyl

12” 33 rpm : 22 minutes per side
12” 45 rpm : 12 minutes per side

10” 33 rpm : 17 minutes per side
10” 45 rpm : 10 minutes per side

7” 33 rpm : 6 minutes per side
7” 45 rpm : 5 minutes per side

The optimum duration at which sound quality will not be impaired also depends greatly on the type of music. To find out more, click here !

CDs are much longer, with up to 80 minutes of music !

Finally, the audio tape wins out, with a maximum duration of 90 minutes !

We're sometimes asked if it's possible to make an exception to this limit. Unfortunately, we don't have any leeway on this, since it's simply the way every vinyl, CD or audio tape is produced!
Hence the name often associated with vinyl, for example, when we talk about 45 or 33 rpm : it's the speed of rotation, and therefore the total length of the tracks !

Digital Bonus

What is it ?

A "digital bonus" is additional content offered with the purchase of a vinyl, CD or audio tape.

Indeed, after purchasing a musical product, a fan can sometimes benefit from exclusive bonus content not available elsewhere. At Diggers, these are often tracks that don't appear on the vinyl.

The aim is twofold: for the artist, it's a way of thanking a fan for their purchase, and building loyalty. For the fan, it's a further incentive to buy an album or musical merchandising.

How does it work ?

When creating a project on our site, you can add bonus tracks in the corresponding section.

If you want the buyers to receive a digital copy of all the tracks already on the vinyl, CD or audio tape, there's no need to upload them also in the bonus track section.

In fact, fans receive the digital files automatically after their purchase. These files include both unreleased tracks, if any, and tracks already included on the purchased product.

I do not wish bonus tracks to be sent immediately after my vinyl/CD/audio tape purchase

It's perfectly possible to send them later ! In this case, they will be sent manually by our teams. It is very important to inform us of this, and to tick "no" to the following option :

If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact our Customer Success, or our Artists & Labels Relations team directly at alexandre.k@diggersfactory.com or lea@diggersfactory.com. See you soon for the second part of our article !