The Logic Off Topic list

Hi,
This OT has been bugging me.
When you use samples from a sample disk, you pay a licence fee(included in the price of the sample disk) to use samples.
What happens if you have some synths and you sample the sounds of those synths and you use them when recording a project?
Are you doing something illegal?
With samples you get those tiny letters that say something about copyrights. But in my synth manual there isn't anything that says that the samples in the synth are protected by copyright.
I wanted to discuss this since a lot of musicians do this when going on the road. But there are also people who distribute free samples of known synths on the net for free; I won't mention the link, but there were some pretty nice Soundfonts of some of the big name synths like Waldorf, Novation and Korg Oasys.
I've also done some sampling of my synths, in case they go to synth-heaven, :-). Put them sounds nicely on CDR.
So, when is it legal to use samples and when not?
TIA,
Yoonchi.

Hi Yoonchi,

No one can of course answer our question exactly, as no case has yet been up for trial. But as copyright laws are written, in most countries, it's either the musical composition or the actual sound recording that is protected. And a sample is a "sound recording". But a synth patch is definitely not. So my personal guess is that a recording of a sound created by a certain synth patch (= a sample) is not protected. 

A synth patch can however be protected by a certain patent but then it's also understood that the patch behave in a certain way regarding to the instruments hardware knobs (filters, lfo etc etc). And these things are nothing a sampler can rip from a real synth. So I guess you're safe here as well. 

Regards

Per Boysen
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  Ämne: [L-OT] Are synth sounds protected by copyright?


  Hi,
  This OT has been bugging me.
  When you use samples from a sample disk, you pay a licence fee(included in the price of the sample disk) to use samples.
  What happens if you have some synths and you sample the sounds of those synths and you use them when recording a project?
  Are you doing something illegal?
  With samples you get those tiny letters that say something about copyrights. But in my synth manual there isn't anything that says that the samples in the synth are protected by copyright.
  I wanted to discuss this since a lot of musicians do this when going on the road. But there are also people who distribute free samples of known synths on the net for free; I won't mention the link, but there were some pretty nice Soundfonts of some of the big name synths like Waldorf, Novation and Korg Oasys.
  I've also done some sampling of my synths, in case they go to synth-heaven, :-). Put them sounds nicely on CDR.
  So, when is it legal to use samples and when not?
  TIA,
  Yoonchi.


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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

>Hi,
>This OT has been bugging me.
>When you use samples from a sample disk, you pay a licence fee(included in
>the price of the sample disk) to use samples.

Actually you pay a license fee even if you buy the CD but
don't use the samples ;)

>What happens if you have some synths and you sample the sounds of those
>synths and you use them when recording a project?

You should feel good. Anyway, how the hell do you use a synth
in a recording if you don't sample or record it?

>Are you doing something illegal?

Only if Megacorporate entities completely get their way.
In other words no, err,  not yet... Though I believe
Microsoft has copyrighted Algorithmic Composition(!!!)

>With samples you get those tiny letters that say something about
>copyrights. But in my synth manual there isn't anything that says that the
>samples in the synth are protected by copyright.

The design of the synth is copyrighted by the designer/manufacturer...
The sounds you produce with it are copyright free. It would be
absurd to have things otherwise.

>I wanted to discuss this since a lot of musicians do this when going on
>the road. But there are also people who distribute free samples of known
>synths on the net for free; I won't mention the link, but there were some
>pretty nice Soundfonts of some of the big name synths like Waldorf,
>Novation and Korg Oasys.
>I've also done some sampling of my synths, in case they go to
>synth-heaven, :-). Put them sounds nicely on CDR.
>So, when is it legal to use samples and when not?

Here is how I unsderstand it. Note that I am not an IP Lawyer and  the
apparent fluidity of legal interpretation may render my  opinions
completely wrong, but:

Generally, you can use any sample you like without concern for licensing
provided the sample is not a musical *phrase*  from a pre-existing composition
a spoken phrase from a film or audio recording, or if it is a trademarked
sound.
(AFAIK Harley's  sound is trademarked for example, but this is mainly to
prevent
other motorcycle manufacturers from reproducing the Harley Sound\ufffd  in their
bikes,
not to prevent sampling...)

I really would not worry about sampling synths you own. And if that ever were
a serious  issue I would say 'Fight the power... dakadakadakadakadakadaka
da da da'