why i wont do free testmixes anymore...

[dcb]

just had a band that asked me for a test mix.
i did and was very happy with it (actually spend a whole day on that stuff,
as the raw material was weak).
so after i send them my testmix, they told me they had 2 other guys doing test mixes...

i thought : ok... lets see what happens... but they could have told me before.
after 5 days i had no answer, not even a short "cool mix" - nothing.

todas i wrote em, they replied : thanks for doing the test, we had someone who did a mix we liked a little more, and he does it for less....
im kind of pissed now... i should have charged something for the test mix
and tell them if they pick me they get a discount or something.

the problem with doing testmixes for free :
bands let people do test mixes here and there and in the end choose who does it cheaper...

so, im kinda pissed atm. not that they didnt choose me;-) - but the fact that they told me this is a competition - AFTER I DID ALL THE WORK... f***

so do you guys still do free test mixes?

because i wont.

 

[gabriel g.]

just had a band that asked me for a test mix.
i did and was very happy with it (actually spend a whole day on that stuff,
as the raw material was weak).
so after i send them my testmix, they told me they had 2 other guys doing test mixes...

i thought : ok... lets see what happens... but they could have told me before.
after 5 days i had no answer, not even a short "cool mix" - nothing.

todas i wrote em, they replied : thanks for doing the test, we had someone who did a mix we liked a little more, and he does it for less....

im kind of pissed now... i should have charged something for the test mix
and tell them if they pick me they get a discount or something.

the problem with doing testmixes for free :
bands let people do test mixes here and there and in the end choose who does it cheaper...

so, im kinda pissed atm. (not that they didnt choose me, their music sucked anyways ;-) - but the fact that they told me this is a competition - AFTER I DID ALL THE WORK... f***

so do you guys still do free test mixes?

because i wont.

never did never will.

 

[jval]

c'est la vie

 

[dcb]

c'est la vie

voila, une baguette!

btw. jval! - the band asked for a "counterparts" style mix , haha. thats where you come in, buddy! ;-)
again really nice work onthat stuff! was that superior on drums ?

 

[gabriel g.]

voila, une baguette!

btw. jval! - the band asked for a "counterparts" style mix , haha. thats where you come in, buddy! ;-)
again really nice work onthat stuff! was that superior on drums ?

nah thats not superior!!!

 

[dcb]

nah thats not superior!!!

the drums sounded familiar to me somehow. well not the whole kit, but kick and snare. just curious what it was, cause these drums are very snappyand cool for that style! me likes!

 

[gabriel g.]

IIRC Jval made the samples by himself.
He also owns all the SSD, ec stuff.....

The Counterparts kick sounds to me like a slate kick, with extreme eq and compression after that.

Did you buy the CD on itunes?
I did and I´m hearing reading-erros at the end of DIGRESSION (last song of the cd)

 

[Torniojaws]

the drums sounded familiar to me somehow. well not the whole kit, but kick and snare.

Maybe he used the same drum models as what Toontrack used for Superior

 

[Ermz]

I can't really see why you're angry, to be honest. You have to expect this sort of thing. Bands are just looking out for their own interest - searching for the best product at lowest cost. Half the time when I send bands a detailed quote I never even get a response at all. Communication is half the battle with these people, because if there's a problem, they will rarely ever address it face to face and say for instance 'hey, can you drop your rate $50 per song, because we can't meet it'. If you're lucky you'll get a 'sorry, that's too much for us, good day'. Normally you just won't hear anything from them ever again. If you think of it as dealing with disorganized, unprofessional, egocentric children, then you tend to have a better set of expectations for these interactions (that is to say, next to none). You will then value the clients who exceed these expectations and realize that you are dealing with the few who are truly driven, professional etc.

Free test mixes send the idea that your time is worthless, so they will treat you as such. I only ever do them if the project is really lucrative, or really high quality, and I have the free time to spare. You can't do them on a regular basis and expect to be treated respectably.

 

[jval]

voila, une baguette!

btw. jval! - the band asked for a "counterparts" style mix , haha. thats where you come in, buddy! ;-)
again really nice work onthat stuff! was that superior on drums ?

Haha that's funny, thanks man. Drums are live, not programmed. It's a home made kick sample, from his kit, and the snare is Slate 22 and D4 "standard". Some original snare in on fills. Toms are slate I think, which is weird because since that album I only use tom samples from the real kit... I guess that's why I hate the toms on that record now, hah..

anyways not to derail the thread... agreed it sucks to to free test mixes. I only do them when I have time to spare. In fact I just did one last week so given the counterparts reference it's highly possible that I am the one stealing this mix from you... I hope not!

 

[[UEAK]Clowd]

I can't really see why you're angry, to be honest. You have to expect this sort of thing. Bands are just looking out for their own interest - searching for the best product at lowest cost. Half the time when I send bands a detailed quote I never even get a response at all. Communication is half the battle with these people, because if there's a problem, they will rarely ever address it face to face and say for instance 'hey, can you drop your rate $50 per song, because we can't meet it'. If you're lucky you'll get a 'sorry, that's too much for us, good day'. Normally you just won't hear anything from them ever again. If you think of it as dealing with disorganized, unprofessional, egocentric children, then you tend to have a better set of expectations for these interactions (that is to say, next to none). You will then value the clients who exceed these expectations and realize that you are dealing with the few who are truly driven, professional etc.

Free test mixes send the idea that your time is worthless, so they will treat you as such. I only ever do them if the project is really lucrative, or really high quality, and I have the free time to spare. You can't do them on a regular basis and expect to be treated respectably.

yet another post where Ermz said what I would have said haha

 

[nwright]

The only mixes besides my band's I've ever done for free were strictly for my own enjoyment, and completely unsolicited.

Paying for a test mix and then giving them a discount if they go with you is a nice idea.

 

[dcb]

Haha that's funny, thanks man. Drums are live, not programmed. It's a home made kick sample, from his kit, and the snare is Slate 22 and D4 "standard". Some original snare in on fills. Toms are slate I think, which is weird because since that album I only use tom samples from the real kit... I guess that's why I hate the toms on that record now, hah..

anyways not to derail the thread... agreed it sucks to to free test mixes. I only do them when I have time to spare. In fact I just did one last week so given the counterparts reference it's highly possible that I am the one stealing this mix from you... I hope not!

maybe you are, we'll see when their stuff comes out.
im not gonna drop names here. but they said "the guy" does it for less.
and i cant imagine your rates are lower than mine, haha.

 

[dcb]

I can't really see why you're angry, to be honest.

nah actually im pissed because bands still choose the guy who is cheaper or deliver the louder master.

thats just something we cant change,but please let me be angry about that fact. just a little. fuck, this day sucked. gonna go to bed now.

 

[JeffTD]

TBH, I hate the whole "test mix" thing, especially for free. If you like my work and trust me to deliver an awesome sounding record/ep/whatever, then hire me and be done with it. If you're only going to pay like a grand for a full length, anyways, it's not like you can be super choosy.

 

[Plec]

... If you think of it as dealing with disorganized, unprofessional, egocentric children, then you tend to have a better set of expectations for these interactions (that is to say, next to none). You will then value the clients who exceed these expectations and realize that you are dealing with the few who are truly driven, professional etc...

Hahaha! Good one Ermz!
This doesn't stop at bands though... dare I mention A&R people. :Spin:

 

[dcb]

TBH, I hate the whole "test mix" thing, especially for free. If you like my work and trust me to deliver an awesome sounding record/ep/whatever, then hire me and be done with it. If you're only going to pay like a grand for a full length, anyways, it's not like you can be super choosy.

yeah. same with all these offers in forums like this :

" here is 400$ to mix our album (sorry we spent all our money on crack and hookers AND cars so we cant ((dont want!)) to pay more) - competitions"

 

[P-E]

^ I think that these are pretty good for hobbyists that are trying to get better and better but don't rely on that for a living - like me.

 

[scorpio01169]

There was a band here in San Antonio that almost got theirs done for nothing....here's how they did it. they go to a studio and tell the owner that they want him to record one song for 25 bucks (tracking and mixing) an if they liked it they would record the rest of the album with him for the standard rate. they even got some home studios to record a song for free. it eventually caught on to some of us seeing what they were doing, but by that time their stuff was done. test mixes with bleeps would be best

 

[Melb_shredder]

^^^ Good idea. I also watermark, I think that's the word, any stuff I do as tests etc. But I figure when I get a few more bands under my belt, I'll have a good enough resume to say, well hey, here's some eg of my work, if you want a test, pay for it, and I'll take it off the total if you chose to work with me.

I think that's a good idea for sure