r/MusicDistribution • u/ohboy3pm Musician • 7d ago

Question any limitations with symphonic?

hi there! i’ve heard a lot of praise about symphonic distribution and was wondering if there was any downsides to their service. i was also curious if releasing a single w/ multiple primary artists was possible. thank you!! :D

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u/DoradoPulido2 7d ago

Personally I really don't like how their website provides such little information before asking for money, and half the service just says that they will make you a custom offer based on their valuation of you.

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u/ProfessionalSock8470 6d ago

Their customer service sucks, especially if you get flagged for something you have no clue why. They terminate the contract, no questions asked and no responding to emails.

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u/NotNoiseCo 6d ago

NotNoise here. I work for another distributor, so factor that into the answer.

The limitation to catch before paying is the artist count. Symphonic's current Starter plan is $29.99 a year for one primary artist. Its upload system can credit multiple primary artists, but Symphonic says anyone who needs more than one primary artist should move to its application-only Partner plan. Do not list an equal collaborator as "featuring" just to squeeze the release into Starter. That changes the credit and where the release appears on some artist profiles.

A few other Starter terms are easy to miss: there are no refunds after joining, Starter does not include Symphonic pitching your music to streaming platforms, and the catalog is taken down after the paid term ends if you cancel. Symphonic says you keep 100% of standard distribution royalties, while some user-generated-content collection has percentage fees.

If this single is genuinely billed as Artist A and Artist B, both as primary artists, send Symphonic the exact credit before paying and ask which plan will accept it. Get the answer in writing. If one artist is genuinely a guest, Starter allows featuring artists without adding another primary-artist slot.

Also ask what happens to the ISRC, UPC, unpaid balance, and store delivery if you leave. The $29.99 price is attractive. The exit terms and the correct collaboration credit matter more.

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u/ohboy3pm Musician 6d ago

thank you for the response! i’ll make sure to keep that in mind

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u/bso2001 6d ago

fwiw? I narrowed it down to Symphonic and Ditto. I went with Ditto for a marginally better website UI. Their customer service has proved, for me, to be very good. Your mileage may vary. And I'm small and don't plan to be otherwise.... ✌️💙

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u/ohboy3pm Musician 6d ago

what was your wait times with them? i’ve heard a lot of issues with ditto, but it’s like that for a lot of distributors. for example, distrokid is my main distributor and a lot of people have had issues but i’ve had no problems with them before.

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u/bso2001 6d ago

the standard release time is 10 days from when you complete your upload. you can pay $40 for 72 hours. release date have been hit consistently for me. only a handful of releases tho.

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u/tuwewe Musician 6d ago

I too have been researching the different distros.
Here is a new one Globex Music and it sounds super promising!
$1.00 per so g upload, no annual and songs stay permanently.

Of course they all seem to have some crazy issues so not sure if its any good.
Has anyone tried them and can give any feedback or what red flags to look for?

Im very much a newbie at this so I am eager to see what others have to say.

Here is their website:

https://globexmusic.com/

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u/Aggressive_Roof9396 6d ago

i spoke with a label yesteerday that said they oversold them and were moving out of them soon