7" vinyl sales are the highest theyve been in years

gumdrops

Well-known member
if 7s are selling so well and 12s are too costly for grime or dance/garage/whoever guys to release (or so they say), then why not convert to 7s? might be a good move. and i dont think it has to be seen as only an indie rock format, esp when jamaican music still is very 7" reliant. to the point where i recently read a reggae journalist complain that the island has been too slow to adapt to new format trends. i dont see that as being soo bad personally, if only because im quite fond of 7s and im not so sure how many people in jamaica are all hooked up to the net to download mp3s etc.

also, 12s often seem a waste of space when all you get is two instrumentals between both sides (i know the grooves and fidelity is better but 33rpm 7"s cant be that bad).

http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2106373,00.html
 

john eden

male pale and stale
Well I've certainly done my bit. :)

However I think a lot of people buy grime twelves (and reggae sevens) to get the instrumentals...
 

swears

preppy-kei
Don't a lot of people just buy seven inches as collector's items in the UK anyway?
You see loads of them in HMV by new bands.
 
S

simon silverdollar

Guest
i also think that DJs get a little more hung up than they need to be about the sonics of different pressings etc...most people in the audience won't care- if its got a good beat and you can dance to it, that's enough.

and it's not like grime artists are too hung up about sonic perfection: most grime DJs i've seen just play CDRs.
 

nomos

Administrator
i recently heard rhythm and sound dropping mostly 7s and some 12s over a massive system and the devastation was total. the pressure only eased when the soundman dialed down the bass ahead of the next drop.
 
I could be wrong but i don't think mastering and pressing 7"s is any more viable for small labels than 12"s are. More expensive, I bet.
I see bigger bands diong well with the format but presumably they shift 10000+ copies?
 

Dusty

Tone deaf
I agree with Swears, from what I've seen the 7" comeback is being spearheaded (at least in the UK) by indie bands releasing them for pocket money.
 

ramadanman

Well-known member
it's more to do with how 7 inches are obviously smaller, therefore if you wanted to put 6 minutes of music on it, it would have to be at a really really low pressing volume. also since genres like dubstep and drum and bass are reliant on sub low frequencies - which take up more room in the groove - 7" aren't the best option.
 

mms

sometimes
I could be wrong but i don't think mastering and pressing 7"s is any more viable for small labels than 12"s are. More expensive, I bet.
I see bigger bands diong well with the format but presumably they shift 10000+ copies?

they're quite pricey to make well, and they bowl up a bit easier, also the margins are obviously tighter.
bigger bands i bet you do them as a loss leader nowdays.
they are of course wonderful things.
 

outraygeous

Well-known member
there will be about 3 people in the whole room who might notice that your playing a 7''

a 7 will always sound better than an mp3
 

outraygeous

Well-known member
someone told me there is a contraption that turns a 7'' into a 12''.

i will try and hunt it if it really does exist.
 
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