I am always looking for new record pools to try out. I have subscribed to all of the major ones and most of the smaller ones at one time or another.
From what I have experienced, there aren’t many (legal) record pools for house music.
So which is the best house music record pool?
In my opinion, Release Promo is the best house music record pool. Their library is incredibly extensive, it is updated very regularly and some of the artists and labels that they have on their site you will not find on any other record pool.
Many of the world’s big name DJs apparently endorse Release Promo.
“I always seem to find that hidden gem for my sets on Release Promo” – Sasha
The only negative I can mention about Release Promo is the cost. The standard monthly subscription fee is higher than any of the other record pools listed here today but, as the old saying goes – “you get what you pay for”.
Indeed, when you consider that buying tracks on Beatport will cost you $1.99 each time, if you download even a small percentage of the 500+ tracks that they add every week, it is definitely a cost-effective option for those looking to build a library of house music.
Website: releasepromo.com
Price: $59 per month
Billing Cycle: Monthly
Are there any other record pools for house music?
While Release Promo definitely has the largest selection of house music, there are other record pools that also have extensive libraries.
The Runner-Up
ZipDJ
ZipDJ is probably the most credible of all the other record pools listed. With tracks from label heavyweights Spinnin, Ultra, Armada, Strictly Rhythm, Ministry Of Sound and many more, you know that there is going to be something to satisfy every taste.
Their library is very extensive and what I like is that it dates back many years. I have subscribed to ZipDJ many times over the years and I would say that it is a perfect solution for those that are looking to build up a back catalogue of tracks as well as upfront anthems.
“ZipDJ has a great selection of house music from some of the biggest labels in the business” – Hijakz, Dance FM, Dubai, UAE
What makes ZipDJ stand out for me is their customer service. It is very personal and they really care about their subscribers.
During my time as a subscriber, I was given a significant lifetime discount from the monthly price as I supplied them with the tracks, remixes and bootlegs that I produced. No other record pool has ever offered that to me and I always make sure that I subscribe at least once per year.
However, ZipDJ is also quite an expensive option. At approximately $40 per month, it is up there among the more expensive record pools.
Having said that, they do offer a 10% discount if you subscribe for 3 months, a 20% discount if you subscribe for 6 months and a massive 30% discount if you subscribe for 12 months (although I appreciate that paying for a year upfront is not possible for everyone).
Website: zipdj.com
Price: $40 per month
Billing Cycle: Monthly (Significant discounts available if subscribing for 3, 6 or 12 months)
These All Seem Pretty Expensive! Are there any cheaper options?
While I appreciate that the first 2 record pools I have listed have been on the more expensive side, there are some cost-effective options too.
BPM Supreme
I am giving a special mention to BPM Supreme because, although it caters for the majority of genres, there are still in excess of 10,000 tracks within their house music section.
If you are looking for nu disco, tropical house, deep house, tech house, future house, electro house, progressive house or any other genres of house, BPM Supreme has you covered.
Similar to ZipDJ, the BPM Supreme library dates back many years, allowing subscribers to build up a collection of past and present tracks.
“Video files are also included on BPM Supreme at no extra cost, so this is a perfect solution for the VJs among us”
One thing that I find irritating with BPM Supreme is how they categorise their music. Sometimes you will find a house anthem listed in their “Dance Pop” category. While this isn’t a major issue, it could mean that you potentially miss out on a guaranteed floor filler unless you search for it manually.
Website: bpmsupreme.com
Price: $19.99 per month
Billing Cycle: Monthly
The best of the rest…..
Direct Music Service
The back catalogue available at Direct Music Service is INCREDIBLE! While it isn’t all house music, you will find many disco classics in there that you realise were sampled to create one of the house bangers of today.
As well as the back catalogue, there is also a fantastic selection of house music from the modern day covering every sub-genre that you can imagine.
However, the reason why I am not recommending Direct Music Service a little more is because of the pricing plan. They offer 3 subscription options:
- Starter package: $29.95 monthly, limited to 40 downloads per month
- Semi-pro package: $44.95 monthly, limited to 80 downloads per month
- Pro package: $64.95 monthly, unlimited downloads
Personally, I don’t like to have limitations on the amount of music that I can download. I also like to be able to move easily between the different record pools.
However, if you are willing to spend a significant amount of money and sign up for an entire year, then Direct Music Service does offer some great discounts that reduce the cost somewhat.
The 3 subscription options remain the same as above, but the prices are adjusted as follows:
- Starter package: $269.95 per year (or $22.49 per month)
- Semi-pro package: $359.95 per year (or $29.99 per month)
- Pro package: $449.95 per year (or $37.49 per month)
Website: directmusicservice.com
Price: $29.95 for the starter package
Billing Cycle: Monthly (Significant discounts available if subscribing for 12 months)
A record pool guide wouldn’t be complete without an appearance from…..
DJ City
As one of the biggest record pools out there, almost all of you will have heard of DJ City.
The music library on DJ City is updated regularly, which means that although a lot of tracks are added each week, a lot of tracks are removed as well.
This may be a problem for those of you that are looking to build a collection of tracks from yesteryear and beyond.
The concept of DJ City is to supply working, open format DJs with the freshest music. Due to the current musical trends, that means that the primary focus is currently reggaeton, trap, hip-hop and twerk.
However, there are still a lot of house tracks added to the site during the daily updates, but more recently they tend to be remixes of the more commercial chart hits, rather than house music aimed at the purists.
The main negative point of DJ City is that the subscriptions are billed on a quarterly basis. If, like me, you tend to move around the different record pools, then this can pose a bit of a problem.
Website: djcity.com or djcity.co.uk
Price: $90 every 3 months
Billing Cycle: Quarterly
Why aren’t there many record pools for house music?
As there are so many genres and sub-genres of house music, unless a track crosses over to the mainstream or gains support from the big name DJs, the number of purchases each track gets is relatively low.
Once you factor in the percentages that go to the record label and the online store, very little is left for the producer. This is the reason that Beatport, Traxsource etc charge upwards of $1.99 so you can finally get your hands on that elusive banger that all the headliners are playing.
Better DJing Top Tip
The tactic that I have always employed is to not stay with one record pool for too long. If you keep moving, you will always have that extra diversity in your sets that the other DJs in your city wish that they had.
Record Pool Conclusion
While none of the house music record pools listed above are ever going to supply you with every track you need, each one is definitely a cost-effective solution to stop you from breaking the bank each month.
Yes, you will probably still need to log on to Beatport or Traxsource from time to time to pick up those rare beauties or the latest track that is blowing up in Ibiza, but this list should allow each reader to build up their collection for a reasonable price.
I hope that this article has helped you in some way. If you have any questions or any suggestions for alternative record pools that I may have missed, please feel free to leave a comment.
