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Topic: CDR Promo format

21st Aug 2013, 11:20 AM
	musicmasters Completely ready when you are Shaky Member since Dec 2011 1533 Points	Promo CDs normally fall into two types, one is just a standard cd single with the word promo on it as part of the design and usually a warning like "Promotional Copy - Not For Resale" - they will also have a unique catalogue number. The two types are: Same track listing as standard issue - these often have a letter "P" added to the cat. no. or "DJ". The second type can have many variations from just a single track (often marked 'radio edit'), or a selection of mixes which are different to the commercial release, or even be used to promote an album, in which case it may have a selection of tracks from the album - often the catalogue number on these is not related to the commercial release, so can be based on the title of the single/album being promoted e.g. I have one for U2's "Please" single - where it's a 1 tracker with the cat. no. "PLEASE 1" - each record company has its own way of numbering these so a bit of a minefield. Usually you will find the cat. no. on the playing side near the centre - engraved into the plastic. All of the above are pressed from the glass mastering process. CD-Rs tend to look totally different on the playing surface - and near the centre hole, you can normally see something like CDR 60, CDR 74, CDR 80 - these relate to the maximum possible recording times on the disc and should not be confused with catalogue numbers. ALL promo cds on these type of discs should be labelled on here as CDR Promos. The actual recording substrate is an organic compound and varies in colour - you will see blue/green/silver/dark red and even yellow. Care should be taken with these discs as this compound is light sensitive, so a disc left in bright sunlight will become unplayable - the damage is permanent! Best to keep cdr promos in the dark when not in use. The label side can be silver or white, with some companies printing custom labels. Usually CDR promos do not have a catalogue number, and often contain unique mixes which don't get commercially released. The info. on these can either be printed on the disc, these are the ones that go out to radio stations etc., there are also custom pressings, these are usually handwritten, and produced in much smaller numbers - and some are the cd equivalent of the acetates of records, i.e. a test pressing. I have quite a large collection of these going back to the mid 1990's - some are probably one-offs? Please be aware that these type are extremely easy to fake, so care should be taken if you are paying a high price for something apparently rare.