Dischromatics Releases Documentary on the Future of Physical Media

With the recent bad news of more store chains like HMV closing on the high street, Dischromatics has commissioned a short documentary film produced by Dischro Creative to investigate this important aspect of our lives.

With the increasing popularity of digital downloading of music and games along with illegal copying, surely the end is in sight for CD’s? We have certainly seen the continual year on year decrease in sales of DVD with advent of Blu-ray discs with the ability to hold HD and 3D films as well as some fantastic games with their subsequent special effects and features so that DVD now has no place in future for movies and high quality games. DVD’s will almost certainly be used solely for specialist markets where low numbers are required and DVD Duplication using recordable media will prevail albeit on a relatively small scale.

The documentary film includes interviews with people in the various industries related to these products including Spillers Records in Cardiff, HMV and Music Wales, as well actual artists and members of the public and gives a most interesting insight into people’s thoughts. Furthermore, their opinions are mixed with a certain feeling of loss if music CD’s ceased to be available. There is a feeling that by having the CD with its packaging in physical form there is an added value and that the playback quality is far better than the quality of the same music downloaded digitally over the internet. Equally, for some the convenience and the ability to store great volumes of music on portable devices like IPods have a better value for them.

Is there a parallel here with vinyl and in fact we are experiencing a similar small revolution when CD’s came onto the market almost obliterating the demand for vinyl. Only for the resurgence in demand for vinyl to re-emerge when not only the purists who remained loyal to the product continued seeking out the vinyl alternatives but new demand was generated from a small but growing group of enthusiasts and once again there are various brands of new decks available to play your records on. 

There has been an undoubted drop in the sales and demand for compact discs but unlike DVD where there is an alternative physical media like Blu-ray, CD’s do not have a physical rival. The decrease in demand is purely down to piracy and digital downloads but there can be little doubt that CD’s will see life continue for a good number of years yet. Cost of downloading music from the internet is of course much cheaper than the physical product but as some of our interviewees have expressed they like to read about the artists, have the lyrics at their disposal as well as having the feel of a CD. Bizarrely, many games downloads are more expensive than the actual physical product.

We see the future of CD changing, where similar to DVD in the short term, orders for lower volume Music CD will be the norm, leaving the only alternative to full manufacture to be CD Duplication, we are seeing many groups and bands looking towards this recordable medium as a way of promoting their music and this is set to continue and increase. Smaller volumes also allow them to produce new albums at less cost with much more flexibility. Dischromatics is well placed to work with all these groups and bands as they have the ability to produce the whole package and help to promote through their creative arm Dischro Creative. Consequently we believe CD’s will be with us for many years yet.

Go to:  http://youtu.be/V5daimJ1rqE to see the Documentary

 

Dischromatics Sponsors The Charlie Sloth Music Competition at the Riverfront Newport.

 

The legendary Wu-Tang Clan will be performing live during the Big Splash weekend in Newport. With Charlie Sloth the BBC One DJ also performing and other personalities on hand, it promises to be a memorable event. 

The Charlie Sloth Music Competition which is part of the Urban Edge zone at this year’s Big Splash at the Riverfront in Newport, is open to all groups and artists that wishes to enter. Once the finalists have been selected they will have the opportunity to perform their track at Urban Edge to a live audience and more importantly a panel of guest judges. This panel will include Charlie Sloth one of BBC One’s top DJ’s. The groups and artists who are interested in entering must upload a video or audio of themselves performing their track to the Pentalk Lab Recording Studio Presents page.

Five of the uploaded tracks will be selected and announced as finalists. They will then have the opportunity to perform live at the Urban Edge on two occasions.  The first performance will be in front of a live audience followed by a second in front of Charlie Sloth and the rest of the guest panel who will consequently choose the winner. The winner(s) of the competition will gain a fantastic opportunity to record an EP at the Pentalk Lab Recording Studio, at the Riverfront in Newport over two days with their resident DJ and Producer Jamie Winchester.

Following the recording session Dischromatics, a major UK supplier of CD Duplication and DVD Duplication who are based in Abercarn, just north of Newport, will design and print 100 colour copies packed into originally designed 4 page full colour Digipaks which will be presented free of charge to the winners. This professionally produced and manufactured prize is an exclusive opportunity for local musicians and could pave the way for greater success within the music industry. The prize will be presented to the lucky winner(s) by Charlie Sloth. The event itself takes place between 17.00 and 20.00 on Saturday evening.

Dischromatics has for many years, worked closely with a multitude of groups, artists and bands from all over the UK including many locally based performers. They can help with Licencing advice including performing rights and have contacts at MCPS-PRS to make the process easier. They are also a Sony DADC UK partner being the only one in the whole of Wales. Formed in 1989 they have been in the digital media business for many years and have a vast amount of experience to help their customers. This company has recently moved into video, producing Showreels for companies and other organisations. Performing the filming, editing and mastering of the whole production process.

The Big Splash weekend promises to be a memorable time in Newport with plenty of live music, theatre performances, film screenings and fantastic street performances along with a giant Bhangra dance-off, as well as drop-in workshops, dance and music competitions, arts and craft  stalls, a sunset fire spectacular, plenty of different foods and drinks to choose from and special guests. The event takes place over a long weekend from Friday 13^th July. Why not come along and join in the fun. Monday the 16^th will have the Wu-Tang Clan minus of course ODB, performing Legend of the Wu-Tang.

CD Music Duplication

Dischromatics works with many artists groups and bands throughout the UK and Europe to produce their singles and albums. For quantities up to 500 it is most economical to have CD Duplication which we will produce in-house. For larger volumes we supply Replication which are fully manufactured discs and therefore has a longer lead time.

Because we also have a digital printing facility on-site, we can produce the CD and DVD packaging which will allow us to offer a more competitive price than other suppliers who have to buy in their print from third party printers. The additional bonus for our customers is that we can produce small run CD and DVD specialised packaging normally only available in large volumes, this includes Digipaks.

By having the equipment and expertise to complete the whole project including the mastering, graphic design, the CD duplication and printing, as well as the printed parts, we have complete control over costs and lead times. We believe our prices are most competitive and fairly priced.

Sometimes we are asked to fulfil the job by sending the discs out direct to individuals. With the variable data software we use with the digital printer we can actually personalise each packaging print with changed graphics as well as the names and addresses. This is what we use for direct mail clients who ask us to send out brochures, booklets, postcards and so on.

This specialised print can be applied to Digipaks, CD card wallets and the paper parts fitted into jewel cases. So if you are looking for help with your projects for music, audio or any kind of data reproduction, we are convinced you will not find anybody better. We are happy to supply samples if required and are confident you will be impressed by the results.

Why not give us a call on 01495 243222 or send an email enquiry to sals@dischromatics.co.uk
Our website will give much more information and detail.

Digital Printing is the Future with Flexibility

Dischromatics offers digital printing for small runs of CD and DVD packaging along with the ability to have personalisation of printed material such as inlays, Digipaks, booklets, brochures, leaflets, flyers postcards etc. The Digital Printing process is absolutely ideal for smaller runs up to a thousand.

Dischromatics is probably the only supplier of CD Duplication and DVD Duplication in the UK that can provide in-house services at the front end like graphic design and authoring of the master, through to the duplication and printing of the CD or DVD, Followed by digitally printing the paper parts for CD and DVD cases, wallets, Digipaks and booklets and finally packing and fulfilment to customers’ clients if required. Digital Printing has the flexibility that lithographic printing cannot match.

At Dischromatics, they strive to satisfy their customers’ changing requirements. They believe any project is best managed by one individual supplier. By continually investing in new machinery and computer equipment along with highly qualified staff, they have maintained an excellent reputation with their customers. The ability of this Company to supply every aspect of the projects they undertake ensures they are always in total control. There is no necessity to rely on third party suppliers like their competitors for CD and DVD Duplication and packing.

One of the most attractive services Dischromatics offers is Direct Mail Marketing using variable data printing with software from Adobe Creo Darwin for the digital printing process. This type of direct mail has many advantages over the previously supplied lithographic printing which requires orders in the many thousands to bring the unit cost to an acceptable figure. Furthermore lithographic printers can only economically produce the same graphic on every print with a sticky address label being the only unique feature. Is it any wonder the majority are quickly tossed into the wastepaper basket?

The real attraction of digital printing for direct mail is, as well as having a different name and address actually printed directly onto the mail out, there is also the opportunity to have individual graphics on every single printed item. It can be provided in small batches up to one thousand if required. This type of direct mail has proven to increase the return on investment (ROI) up to tenfold. This type of digital printing can be applied to flyers, leaflets, postcards, booklets, brochures and even CD and DVD packaging like Digipaks, wallets, inlays etc.

Dischromatics has been in business for over twenty two years, with ISO accreditations for quality and the environment displaying professionalism in business none of its competitors can rival. To enhance and streamline the digital printing process, the company will soon release a new web to print site which will allow customers to choose from a selection of available templates or create their own. With professional Graphic Design available to help with logo design, branding and re-branding.

Dischromatics is aware that many companies have made the claim to be the proverbial one stop shop but with the additional services and staff and state of the art equipment added over the last couple of years their boast can be backed up by facts. With a Digital printing press, Graphic design, DVD and Blu-ray Authoring facilities along with duplication and production and packing departments emphasise this. With links to local universities, working in collaboration with highly talented graduates they will continue to innovate and introduce new and attractive products in the future.

By Johnio Muccles

Dischromatics CD and DVD Duplication

Dischromatics only supply top quality CD, DVD and Blu-ray Duplication and Replication. We do not compromise on quality and we have proven our credentials with accreditation to ISO 9001:2008.


We believe in building long term relationships with our customers and we understand that there may be times when customers require product and services more urgently and always respond positively to their needs.

Our CD Duplication and DVD Duplication production department staff, using our in-house professional duplication equipment are well trained and knowledgeable in procedures and are keen to satisfy our customers. All our duplication machines carry out verification on each individual Duplicated CD and DVD prior to packing and despatch.
Post written by Johnio Muccles

We are aware that other duplication companies supply lesser graded product which could possibly fail with the loss of valuable data. These companies offer CD and DVD copying at a cheaper price in some cases but the cost to their customers will actually be far higher due to failure of the disks.  Dischromatics only uses product from Sony DADC and Taiyo Yuden which comes with guarantees and will not let customers down.

Some CD and DVD Discs are manufactured using less material resulting in a far thinner disk which when offered up to the light allows you to see through the disc. Also the result of this thinner disc could be that the grooves are not as deep so the data copying may not be retained. Certain dyes also under perform in direct sunlight.

We understand how difficult it is in these times to find reputable suppliers on the internet due to the ability of some companies to be able to rate highly on search engines like Google because they have discovered an unconventional way to fool the search engines and finish up higher in the rankings than these more reputable and established organisations. All the more reason for customers to carry out checks, including credit checks to find out if the company is even viable as some are already trading whilst insolvent, and in many case are very small in comparison to claims on their websites, so are unable to maintain a professional service.

Dischromatics established in 1989 is a Sony DADC UK partner who are the largest Manufacturer in the EU of CD, DVD and Blu-ray.