Custom Vinyl Record Printing Guide

Estimated reading time: 12 minutes

The resurgence of vinyl records surprised many in the music business. Looking at the trend in hindsight, though, it makes sense why it happened. David Bowie commented in the early 2000s that “in the future, people will be comforted by tactile objects.” The movement of music into the digital realm has created a backlash and stimulated vinyl record sales on all levels, from indie to major. As those experienced with making records can tell you, having eye-catching and memorable artwork is immensely important to a successful release. Here are some suggestions on how to make the artwork for your custom vinyl release unforgettable.

Table of Contents:
• Introduction to custom vinyl record printing
• Overview of the vinyl record printing process
• Preparing your artwork for vinyl records
• Selecting vinyl materials, colors, and packaging options
• Working with a professional vinyl record printing service
• Maximizing the impact of your custom vinyl release
• Frequently asked questions about custom vinyl record printing
• Conclusion: bringing your custom vinyl record project to life

Introduction to custom vinyl record printing

It can be hard to know where to begin if you are unfamiliar with the process. First things first: Record some music! Then you’ll need to decide if a vinyl release is truly the best idea for where you are in your career.

Why choose custom vinyl records for your music release?

Perhaps you have already released music digitally or manufactured CDs. If your music appeals to those with deep pockets and/or deep listening skills, then releasing a vinyl record is a great idea, as you’ll have a receptive market. If it’s your very first release as a recording artist, consider if it’s something your potential audience will actually want to purchase.

The appeal of personalized vinyl for artists and collectors

Having your own vinyl release is legitimizing. It makes you seem like a real artist in your own eyes and in the perception of others. Vinyl enthusiasts love having obscure records in their collection — especially a limited release or special edition colored vinyl. If your fans or potential fans are vinyl collectors, then pressing records can be a great move.

Overview of the vinyl record printing process

Here’s a brief overview of what the vinyl record printing process entails.

What is custom vinyl record printing?

Custom vinyl record printing is the pressing of vinyl records based on supplied music, artwork, and designs.

Steps involved in creating your own vinyl records

If only you could put music in a magic machine and records would pop out fresh like cookies from the oven or Pop Tarts! The manufacturing of vinyl records is somewhat more involved than that, although not necessarily as complicated as one might think.

Audio mastering for vinyl

Often one must create a special master for vinyl that’s separate from the master that’s being used to press CDs or create digital files. The nature of vinyl as a medium dictates attention to sibilance on the master, different kinds of bass EQing, and different level limitations. Vinyl that is mastered too hot can lead to skipping on cheaper turntables; this happened with the first pressing of Led Zeppelin II in 1969. Work with your mastering engineer to create a suitable master that won’t cause problems after pressing.

Lacquer cutting and test pressing

After a pressing plant receives your final master, the first step is to cut a lacquer. This is the process of actually cutting the grooves in the surface of a lacquer disc using a lathe. The lacquer is then used as the master for the next step: plating. Metal stampers are created, which press PVC material (called a “biscuit”) into vinyl. Test copies (typically 5–10) can then be made from the stampers to make sure there are no audible encoded errors. Clean your test pressings before playing to remove any pops and crackles caused by dust, then listen to them closely to make sure they are error-free.

Vinyl pressing and printing

Once you have approved your test pressings, the plant will run the amount of units you ordered. Your packaging with the approved artwork printed on it will be run simultaneously and the finished albums will be packaged in the sleeves.

Preparing your artwork for vinyl records

Having compelling artwork is incredibly important for a vinyl release. Think of all the great album covers you know; the artwork can and often does stand on its own. So when creating album art, hire experienced designers who can help you choose images that will represent your music in a memorable and eye-catching way.

https://www.discmakers.com/design/vinyl

H3: Artwork requirements for vinyl labels, jackets, and inserts

Every company that prints artwork for vinyl records will have their own requirements for what needs to be supplied. Make sure you know exactly what the printing house needs! You don’t want to introduce any of your own errors into the process. If you work with an in-house design studio like the one at Disc Makers, they will take your supplied images and text and create album art that is prepared properly for printing.

File formats, resolution, and templates

Make sure all supplied artwork is in the proper file formats with all supplied images included as individual files. All images need to be at least 300 dpi resolution in order to print effectively; follow your print shop’s specifications, but in general that is the industry standard. If you are supplying your own artwork, make sure you have used the correct templates for the packaging you have ordered and that all supplied artwork has appropriate bleed and safety margin.

Best practices for eye-catching vinyl record designs

The time and care you spend on choosing the designs for your album will be well worth it. Choose images that align with the core concept of what your music is trying to convey. Having a point of focus on the album cover can be important to draw the viewer in (think Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon), unless lack of focus or a deliberate collage is something that represents what you and your music are about (more like the Stones’ Exile on Main St). Choose your fonts with care; the feel and look of the typography should coordinate with the overall image and vibe.

Common artwork mistakes to avoid

One thing newbies to the process might not know is that neutral tones — beige, gray, and brown — are prone to color shifting in commercial printing. Your brown record cover might come out looking slightly red or green depending on which way the color shifts, which is impossible to predict. It’s ok to use these neutral tones on your art if you are fine with color shifting; just be aware that it exists. Also, if you’ve supplied your own artwork and haven’t provided enough bleed and/or safety margin, your text and images may be cut off on the final product. Don’t ever submit low-resolution images! Digital pixelation looks terrible on a finished commercial print job.

Selecting vinyl materials, colors, and packaging options

Now it’s time to decide what the disc itself will look like and be packaged in. We are currently living in a golden age of custom vinyl options as people’s rediscovered love for the medium has led to the standardization of innovations that were once only available to those with large budgets. You have a myriad of affordable on-disc colors and patterns available to you in this current era.

Standard black vs. colored and picture discs

Some audiophiles feel that black vinyl is superior to colored and picture discs. In the past this was often true; the carbon black pigment giving the vinyl its color absorbed surface noise and hiss. Colored vinyl used to be more prone to warping and imperfections, but advances in technology have rendered this mostly in the past. As long as you are working with a reputable plant pressing high quality records, you can put out whatever kind of vinyl suits you. There are tons of options available, including picture discs, solid colors, splatter effects, and marble tones.

Record jacket and sleeve printing options

Comparatively speaking, there are a limited number of packaging options for record jackets, but you do have some choices. Standard sleeves are always available, though some companies offer printing on the sleeve itself, where many artists have traditionally had liner notes and/or lyrics.

Gatefold, single, and custom packaging

The standard packaging of a single vinyl record is a jacket with a front and back cover. You can also have a single record in a gatefold or even a triple-gatefold jacket if the print house offers such an option. Double or triple records can come in custom packaging or standard variations on the gatefold with additional pockets.

Unique add-ons and finishing touches

Depending on your budget, you may want add something extra to your vinyl package to give it a unique flair and offer additional value to your customers.

Inserts, lyric sheets, download cards, and more

Some vinyl albums come with single inserts containing liner notes and lyrics or even multi-page inserts with essays, extra photos, and so forth. It’s a good idea to include a download card with the record so that listeners can download high-resolution digital files and own the album in more than one format. Whatever it is that you can afford and feel must be included in the vinyl package, by all means do so! But add-ons are just that – extras. Keep the bulk of your budget focused on the music and the cover artwork.

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Working with a professional vinyl record printing service

When the vinyl revival began, there were only 40 pressing plants in the entire world. Now there are about 100 major ones, though demand is still roughly double the available capacity. The rise of the boutique pressing plant means that at least short runs of vinyl records are quite easy to obtain.

How to choose the right vinyl record manufacturer

How many units will you need to press? If the answer is 1000 or more, you’ll need to work with one of the larger manufacturers. Your price per unit will go down the more you make, but make sure not to make more than you actually need. You don’t want the records sitting around gathering dust. If you are pressing 100 units or less, you can work with one of the smaller boutique pressing houses that can be found in most major cities these days. For runs in between 100 and 1000, companies like Disc Makers are ideal, as they bridge the balance between a high quality large-run manufacturer and a personalized boutique company. Read reviews, ask your friends who they have had good experiences with, and do thorough research to find the pressing plant that’s right for your needs.

Understanding proofs and approving final designs

Any printing house will have a proofing process so that you can see what the final artwork and packaging will look like. This process is generally digital these days; if you have concerns about color, you can request a hard copy proof from most companies. You’ll need to approve what goes into production, so proofread carefully, as they will print exactly what you approve. It can be costly and frustrating to have to fix mistakes on the final product.

Production timelines and what to expect

Currently in the US, vinyl turn times range from 8 to 14 weeks depending on whether you want test pressings and what kind of package you order. But custom manufacturing is not an exact process, and with vinyl demand exceeding the available supply, delays can happen. It’s highly recommended to not plan any events, release, or distribution of your records until you receive them on hand.

Maximizing the impact of your custom vinyl release

If a musician makes a vinyl record and it drops in the forest where no one can hear it, does it make a sound? While this parody of the old thought experiment is meant to be a joke, you don’t want your music to land on deaf ears or no ears at all. There’s a number of ways that you can cultivate the fertile soil on which an audience for your music may grow.

Creative packaging and merch ideas for your vinyl

Merch bundles are a great way to add value to selling your vinyl record. Whether bundled with a T-shirt, a poster, a mug, or some other more esoteric merch item (it’s great to have unusual merch), fans are more likely to purchase a bundle if they feel they are getting a deal. Making the actual release date of the vinyl into an event will also stimulate sales, as your followers will be incentivized to purchase records based on a feeling of community and being part of something.

Tips for promoting and selling your vinyl records

Even if you are new to the process, it should go without saying that the recording and pressing of your records is not where the game begins and ends. Preparations for marketing and selling your vinyl records should begin before recording starts and continue long after the album has been released. Creating a definitive marketing plan helps! The standard methods of promotion are tried and true and include building a following on social media, playing live shows, getting music played on terrestrial and internet radio, and running a publicity/PR campaign to get attention in newspapers, on TV, and from online outlets like blogs/podcasts/YouTube channels. In addition, you can host listening parties and have in-person record store events. It’s hard work promoting a record, but it can pay big dividends if you put in the hours.

Frequently asked questions about custom vinyl record printing

What if I don’t have the money? With boutique record pressing shops becoming more and more common, it is easier than ever these days to do short runs of vinyl including professionally printed artwork.

What if I know nothing? How can I navigate this complicated process? Reading the above should have given you some insight into how to proceed, but it’s also helpful to work with a pressing plant like Disc Makers who can walk you through the entire process and even create the artwork for you based on your supplied images and text.

Won’t vinyl records warp in the mail? Care is taken to ship records and pack them as tightly as possible so that they will ship intact. However, if this truly worries you, you can pick up your finished vinyl records in person at most pressing plants.

Conclusion: bringing your custom vinyl record project to life

If you have written a collection of songs that you are proud of and recorded them to your satisfaction, putting them on a vinyl record is a great way to give yourself the gift of completion and a lasting document of your endeavor. If you then wish to share this with the world, then you’re in luck! Right now is an excellent time to make vinyl records. They are more popular than they have been in many years, and the options to create something visually distinctive have grown. Plan your budget carefully and know what is needed from you in each step of production; you’re sure to end up with a record that you can be proud of forever. When you’re ready to get started, reach out to Disc Makers.