Forget about identifying a person. You really think you can listen to a complete mixed .wav or .mp3 and hear something you can identify as a sound you sold amongst thousands of sounds you sell?

And then, are you going to insert a .wav or .mp3 into a test tube and apply come chemical agent to reveal your digital information in there amongst all the rest?

And then, you think you can still digitally identify your sound after it was re-sampled and run through effects?

I don't pirate, but I do make use of sounds I've obtained through purchase or through people's projects with permission, or through a wandering microphone. But really, I don't see any scientific way to prove a sound originated from a particular source.


Proving a software package came from a particular source is a whole different story. There are unaltered bytes in there....usually.

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I can see it now, "Dear sir, we have listened to your track 'XYZ' and heard out kick drum 'ABC' from our sample pack 'qwerty.' Where did you obtain the sample?"

Hmmm, "Let me search through my billions of samples, remember which one I used, which ones were re-sampled and from what, remember that I got that from my buddy James, that he got it through micing a PBC pipe. Ok, I've tracked down something equivalent to my entire ancestory from memory. Now what makes you think it is your kickdrum exactly?

There is a documentary that talks a little bit about the skilled ears that they have working for them. Im pissed I cant remember the name of it.
They have people who can hear a single note sampled from a famous song and reliably nail you on it. I dont know how they would convince a judge in a particularly tricky case of what they hear, but they definitely catch some shit.

edit:
By "them", I obviously mean every Intergalactic Sonic Copyright Law Warrior.

Id be interested in seeing that, as i seriously doubt it.

I dont think its a secret that these people exist. How accurate they are is what is amazing. Its gotta be some of the same guys that can tell you what year and model the preamp used on a backing vocal was from an mp3 of the recording. Maybe not; Maybe the knowledge of the music is more important, but I bet they need above average ears.
I mean, they pull lawsuits off somehow, and they dont rely on lawyers and judges ears.

I cant quite place it, but I bet it was in one of these two docs:
http://ripremix.com/
http://www.goodcopybadcopy.net/

I think in one of them they touch on the company that creates like 99% of the elevator music on earth. They have full time skilled musicians who just figure out how to legally copy every song ever made and make it sound bleh.
Weird shit out there.

There's a lot of talk on the matter of "the people who pirated the CineSamples stuff would've never bought it anyway".. Which is most probably true. But has anyone considered the amount of people that will buy the stuff because they've had the chance to use it and learn it with the pirated version? They would've never bought it without that experience. Almost all musicians i know have started with pirated versions of Cubase, Cakewalk or Logic.. and now they have all bought them (including me! there i said it!!).

There have been studies that showed piratism has actually boosted music industries sales. Not from the people who are scared back to legal music sales, but by the ones that download the pirated stuff. This phenomenon is already taken into use by such software companies as Microsoft and Autodesk, who offer their products for free to students. Would there be any chance of music industry doing something similar for students? This would seem like a big cut of their profits on paper, but seriously, how many students you think is going to buy the 1000$ sample-library, rather than pirate it from the net for free. If students were offered a legal way to better themselves at music, they'd surely take it. And this would boost the industries sales on the long run...

But ofcourse. There's already very great free and cheap stuff. So just venting ideas here

And I'm in no way saying piratism is a good thing!! Just that it's viewed as the ultimate evil for businesses, when in reality it is actually helping them.

All talent doesn't spring from rich parents!!

A $1000 sample library isn't needed for that.
DAWs, Virtual Instruments or Samples aren't needed for that.


Exactly, there are many more affordable options out there.
At the right time you can get a complete orchestral package for under $300.

Also its not just students who illegaly download all this stuff.

The 1000$ figure was just to bring it to the average readers level.. in reality even 300$ is more than most earn in a month, even in a year.

Yes, DAWs, Virtual Instruments or Samples aren't needed for that. They could also hire an orchestra.

Students aren't the only ones downloading them, but they are most likely some portion. Why not address that area?

But yes, I know. Wishful thinking.

while true, none of that is needed for professional productions either. nor do you need to own a car to get to work on time when you can just ride a bike or catch the bus.

think that one through.

poor students... i'm pretty sure they would afford even $5000 lib per year if they would cut down the expenses on the booze

and ironically from what i have noticed that many students these days (at least in US and EU) have bigger bucks in a wallet to spend than actual professionals...

Whats to think through.
If all i can afford is a bike then a bike it is.
Or i save up for a car.

if i could snap my fingers and make a car appear, you'd turn it down, right? it would be totally legal. i'd just literally have god-like powers and make a fully new, perfect car appear out of thin air for absolutely nothing. you'd refuse it of course.

Sure, there are countrys where students have less than 300$ a year.
But i dont think they would be worried about not having multi gigabyte sample libaries on the state of the art computers needed to run them.
Not sure they would be studying composition but lets say they are.
Chances would be pretty high they know people learning to play their instruments who they could work with.

Sure, more sample developers would do well looking at educational discounts and stuff like that.
http://www.soundsonline.com/Educational-Program

But i am not surprised they wouldn't listen to people who break the law first to get something that is just nice to have and then justify it by saying they should get it for free anyways.

Well.. you could be right. That's actually why i left pro-music and went to Uni.
Just trying to help the sampling community here by offering ideas.



If anyone knows how Reaper is doing? That would be a great example if this type of thing works for the music making side..

If i can only afford a bike i probably wouldn't use it that much because of the costs to run it, or sell it.
But yes, if you made it and decided to just give it to me i would most likely take it.

So if rapidshare or torrentxyz would code a virtual instrument or record and build a sample library themselves and share it i am all for that.

That's just justification for stealing. How much do you think it cost them to make this? From the Cinesample website: We hired a world-class 70 piece orchestra in a gorgeous space....
Probably QUITE A BIT!
If you saw a bike on the ground, you don't say to yourself: 'Ohh a free bike for me.', do you? (unless you're in Amsterdam )