Cost of soundbanks - often expensive

[BBFG#]

Double post...

[synaesthesia]

$10usd
High quality = 8 to 12 months of work for each set regardless of the quantity.

Crikey. 8 to 12 months for each soundbank? I couldn't be in this business if I took that amount of time. And I like to think my soundsets are still high quality!

Also... I'd struggle with $10 for a soundset.

But, like I mentioned in my original post, there's a huge amount of factors involved in pricing a product - which synth, what genre, potential longevity of product, etc.

And I tend to err on the side of thinking that each sound designer puts a lot of thought into how much they charge. I know idea. And I think it can be a little bit insulting to suggest otherwise (not that many people do).

I'm enjoying this thread though. Very interesting read.

[mcnoone]

$10usd
High quality = 8 to 12 months of work for each set regardless of the quantity.

Crikey. 8 to 12 months for each soundbank? I couldn't be in this business if I took that amount of time. And I like to think my soundsets are still high quality!

Also... I'd struggle with $10 for a soundset.

But, like I mentioned in my original post, there's a huge amount of factors involved in pricing a product - which synth, what genre, potential longevity of product, etc.

And I tend to err on the side of thinking that each sound designer puts a lot of thought into how much they charge. I know idea. And I think it can be a little bit insulting to suggest otherwise (not that many people do).

I'm enjoying this thread though. Very interesting read.

Well I'm no business minded person. Not much of a public relations guy either.
My artwork is kind of lame, I'm flawed in so many ways...but one thing I do have after all my time and effort is a collection of sounds that I find inspiring. I really don't care what others think of them, as I do the sounds to make me say "wow that sounds cool" and that's it.

[synaesthesia]

Yeah, I always think that's the most important thing. You have to make sounds that you like and that you would use, otherwise how can you expect others to?

[PatchAdamz]

Yeah, I always think that's the most important thing. You have to make sounds that you like and that you would use, otherwise how can you expect others to?

Well Said!

[trimph1]

Yeah, I always think that's the most important thing. You have to make sounds that you like and that you would use, otherwise how can you expect others to?

Well Said!

[Astralp]

Interesting thread.

I've been a sound designer/programming synths for decades. HGS started in 2003 selling samples many of which were sounds designed on various hardware synths. I've only recently moved into actually selling presets, which require much more finishing/finesse than sounds to be sampled such as aftertouch/mod wheel assignments. It does take a lot of time and this is a factor in the pricing.

It also varies from synth to synth, some are much easier to work with than others mainly based on how a synth speaks to me. As an example I can work much quicker with Dune 2 than I can with Zebra, my zebra soundset took many months of work and I wouldn't even like to think of the hourly rate of that one... whereas my latest Dune 2 set was probably around 50-60 hours. It isn't that I find Zebra hard to use, it's great but it seems to require a lot more tweaking.

In terms of income, HGS doesn't bring a lot in, but I have a passion for it which I imagine is why most people do sound design, there are many more profitable ways to make money. I also do design particular types of sound which appeal to me, I wouldn't have a clue how to create a genre related product, I think most synth presets can be used in most genres.

I actually charge less these days than I used to and I haven't found that has increased sales at all, I've done a few experiments over the years with low priced products and it never seems to make much difference, just a lower hourly rate. A couple of my soundsets haven't even covered the cost of the synth they are for.

Anyhow I thought I'd share my experience

[NatLife]

I actually charge less these days than I used to and I haven't found that has increased sales at all, I've done a few experiments over the years with low priced products and it never seems to make much difference, just a lower hourly rate. A couple of my soundsets haven't even covered the cost of the synth they are for.

Same thing) My pretty well done soundset with a House/Tech Basses have a very low sales, why? Bad advertisment? Dont think so. People want lower? They get it..here is it, buy it,i puted the lower coast but with a big work for this 32 super bass sounds. btw 10 pounds for this - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oddh6ItyyEg how u think?
For me i shared one of really TOP sounds, where u can do a super hit's actually, i'm more than sure!

So your words about the difference of coast for soundset's - is right. No any difference, if producer need the sounds - he will buy it, and don't care how much it will coast, just not more than 1/3 of the synth coast.

[Spip]

My pretty well done soundset with a House/Tech Basses have a very low sales, why?

Just curious. What do you call low sales ?

And what (or how many) did you expect ?

[Xenos]

I actually charge less these days than I used to and I haven't found that has increased sales at all, I've done a few experiments over the years with low priced products and it never seems to make much difference, just a lower hourly rate. A couple of my soundsets haven't even covered the cost of the synth they are for.

Same thing) My pretty well done soundset with a House/Tech Basses have a very low sales, why? Bad advertisment? Dont think so. People want lower? They get it..here is it, buy it,i puted the lower coast but with a big work for this 32 super bass sounds. btw 10 pounds for this - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oddh6ItyyEg how u think?
For me i shared one of really TOP sounds, where u can do a super hit's actually, i'm more than sure!

So your words about the difference of coast for soundset's - is right. No any difference, if producer need the sounds - he will buy it, and don't care how much it will coast, just not more than 1/3 of the synth coast.

It's a tough game out there. Low sales is to be expected in this line of work, especially if you are new on the scene. If you get a good seller, it's a nice surprise, but it's not something to be expected on every product you make. Also, it takes a long time to build up sales volume. Every year, my sales have consistently improved, but it's been a very sssssllllllooooowwww process. I've been at this 7 years and still have a long way to go in the economics department lol. I know the feeling - those nagging questions "Maybe I just suck?", "Am I doing something wrong?", etc. When I first started out, my sales were absolutely horrible, the covers sucked, the videos sucked, and I made some poor decisions along the way. Overnight success is not the normal way things happen. It's more of a long-term plan with many bumps and bruises to the ego along the way.

2 bits of advice I can offer:

1. Adopt the mindset of sound design being a paid hobby, not a job, even if it's how you pay the bills and put a roof over your head. Better to be doing this than slaving away in a factory doing menial labor. I can't stress enough the psychological benefits of doing what you enjoy, even if the pay is 'meh' at times.

2. Always strive to improve, learn new programming tricks and step outside of the comfort zone. Never lose that mindset. If you are serious about this, potential buyers and your customers will eventually see it in time. There is ALWAYS room for improvement, no matter how much experience we have under our belts. You can learn from anyone. Even amateurs often have cool underlying ideas we never thought of, and that's inspiring as hell . This strategy may not benefit you immediately in terms of finances, but it's a winning long-term plan. It's not only a benefit for your customers, but YOU as well, because learning and exploration is what keeps things entertaining and enjoyable.

[Ghostwave]

My opinion on the matter is that if you want to be successful as a freelance synth programmer, you have to make sounds you wouldn't hear anywhere else. You have to stand out from the crowd.
For example, there are many EDM sound libraries coming out every day and most of them sound samey.
How you relate to your customers and how you present your work is also very important.

[Monkberry]

I feel the cost of soundbanks overall tend to be on the low side. I guess I'm a "mug" but I tend to spend my time composing with piano, guitars, strings, brass, and woodwinds and building around that with soft synths. I usually go looking for sounds with specific tonalities in mind. I start a preset from whatever soft synth best fits and then tweak as much as needed. I often get inspiration from soundbanks, if they offer something different from the norm. If I get 20 to 30 great and interesting sounds from a soundbank of 128 sounds I paid $30 for, I'm happy. I'm not talking the typical EDM sound banks that Reveal Sound sells on their website. Nothing against Reveal Sound and Spire, I love that synth, just think they need to step away from the redundancy of that genre. Anyway, I am one whose perspective is that sound designers do me a large favor and let me concentrate on writing.

[NatLife]

My pretty well done soundset with a House/Tech Basses have a very low sales, why?

Just curious. What do you call low sales ?

And what (or how many) did you expect ?

2 sales from start selling. 40 days left. I think to close this pack for selling, coz better will use this really exclusive and massive sounds in my tracks than sell it like 2 sales in a half year.

[NatLife]

I actually charge less these days than I used to and I haven't found that has increased sales at all, I've done a few experiments over the years with low priced products and it never seems to make much difference, just a lower hourly rate. A couple of my soundsets haven't even covered the cost of the synth they are for.

Same thing) My pretty well done soundset with a House/Tech Basses have a very low sales, why? Bad advertisment? Dont think so. People want lower? They get it..here is it, buy it,i puted the lower coast but with a big work for this 32 super bass sounds. btw 10 pounds for this - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oddh6ItyyEg how u think?
For me i shared one of really TOP sounds, where u can do a super hit's actually, i'm more than sure!

So your words about the difference of coast for soundset's - is right. No any difference, if producer need the sounds - he will buy it, and don't care how much it will coast, just not more than 1/3 of the synth coast.

It's a tough game out there. Low sales is to be expected in this line of work, especially if you are new on the scene. If you get a good seller, it's a nice surprise, but it's not something to be expected on every product you make. Also, it takes a long time to build up sales volume. Every year, my sales have consistently improved, but it's been a very sssssllllllooooowwww process. I've been at this 7 years and still have a long way to go in the economics department lol. I know the feeling - those nagging questions "Maybe I just suck?", "Am I doing something wrong?", etc. When I first started out, my sales were absolutely horrible, the covers sucked, the videos sucked, and I made some poor decisions along the way. Overnight success is not the normal way things happen. It's more of a long-term plan with many bumps and bruises to the ego along the way.

2 bits of advice I can offer:

1. Adopt the mindset of sound design being a paid hobby, not a job, even if it's how you pay the bills and put a roof over your head. Better to be doing this than slaving away in a factory doing menial labor. I can't stress enough the psychological benefits of doing what you enjoy, even if the pay is 'meh' at times.

2. Always strive to improve, learn new programming tricks and step outside of the comfort zone. Never lose that mindset. If you are serious about this, potential buyers and your customers will eventually see it in time. There is ALWAYS room for improvement, no matter how much experience we have under our belts. You can learn from anyone. Even amateurs often have cool underlying ideas we never thought of, and that's inspiring as hell . This strategy may not benefit you immediately in terms of finances, but it's a winning long-term plan. It's not only a benefit for your customers, but YOU as well, because learning and exploration is what keeps things entertaining and enjoyable.

I can agree with your words. Just can add a little thing. I'm a newcomer in proffesional sound design, i mean as selling presets etc, but i'm using the VST from the first synth's) and used it very well in my production. So for me it's much easier to do a great sound. And of course when you spent alot of time for doing something, you want to get a result.It's a strange but all my high prices bank selling well, this one (BASS sounds) selling worst) So as someone said before - "it's no difference between coast of the bank".

[Phorous]

I would have paid 2-3x more for Luftrum's Diva soundbanks or Pluginguru's Omnisphere libraries, if anything I believe quality sound banks are often too cheap when they offer insane amounts of quality.

Ironically in my experience the more expensive banks are generally the ones that have let me down sound wise... so there is that.