Rocksure Soundz

Royalty Free Sound Effects, Royalty Free Music

Frequently Asked Questions

TopQ: Why should we choose your sound effects and music?
A: Good question! Well, firstly our sound effects and music are high quality. Secondly, they are very affordable. Try to find anywhere else where you can get this level of quality at anything like this price! You will be hard pressed. Thirdly we have multiple formats and sample rates available to fit your needs.

TopQ: What benefits will I have if I pay a subscription fee and join your site?
A: You have two subscription options, either Gold or Silver

Silver membership: gives you access to thousands of sound effects at not further cost and all the music at half price.

Gold Membership: gives you everything on this website at no further cost.

TopQ: So are you saying becoming a subscriber is the best way to go then?
A: If you plan on using more than one or two sound effects or pieces of music then it makes sense to subscribe. For the duration of your subscription you will have ongoing access to all the files at the special rates ( free sound effects and discounted music), and that includes the new sounds and songs that are regularly added to the site.

TopQ: Can I cancel my subscription at any time?
A: Yes you may cancel your subscription at any time, but there won’t be any refund if you cancel a subscription in the middle of the term.

TopQ: When my subscription expires what happens next?
A: When your subscription expires you will not be re-billed. You will be sent a notice that your subscription is about to expire, but it will be up to you to renew the subscription if you wish to.

TopQ: What file formats and sound quality do you offer?
A: Music comes in WAV (PCM), 16bit depth at 44.1 kHz sample rate and Sound Effects come in 24bit at 44.1kHz sample rate. Included free with every product is an MP3 (320kbps at 44.1kHz sample rate), containing artwork, copyrights, usage etc.

TopQ: How long are the downloaded files?
A: The length of the sound effect files vary from less than a second to 30 seconds or more in length.

TopQ: Is there anyway to know the file size before I make a purchase?
A: The product home page shows you the size of the MP3 download. Its corresponding WAV is about 4-5 times larger.

TopQ: Will the downloaded files sound different than the demos?
A: The low resolution of the prevew files means the sound quality won’t be as good as the high quality file you’ll download. You should notice a marked improvement in the sound of the download over the sound of the demo. The exception to this rule is with the Production Music. To provide you with a preview closer to the original soundtrack, a higher bit rate sample of 192kbps was employed. By doing this it was necessary to protect this content by inserting a pink noise watermark, every 7 seconds.

TopQ: Do you sell sounds in packages, or are they only sold separately?
A: If you purchase a subscription you have free access to all sound effects and heavily discounted access to the music files. From time to time we will offer other special package deals as well.

TopQ: Why do some sound files seem to have a hiss in them?
A: The sound of wind, the ocean or other natural ambiences can sometimes sound like hiss.

Purchasing and Credit Card Questions

TopQ: What forms of payment do you accept?
A: We use PayPal for all our merchant services. You do not need to have a PayPay account to purchase our products, since PayPay allows direct payment for most major credit cards. This however is not the case if you wish to subscribe with us for Gold or Silver membership; for this you will need a PayPal account. If you do not currently have a PayPal account, it is easy to create one and you will find it very convenient for Internet shopping and for transferring money to people. See https://www.paypal.com/.

TopQ: I have a charge on my credit card, where can I find the invoice for this transaction?
A: You can see your order history and get copies past invoices through your Account page.

Licensing Questions

TopQ: Which music license should I use?
A: See our License Agreement page for descriptions of the different licensing types and prices.

TopQ: Do you own all rights to the material on your website and can you legally license us rights to air on all forms of television, in synchronization with our programming?
A: Yes we own 100%, of all of our content; both sound effects and music. The sound effects purchase price/license does give you complete rights to air on ALL forms of broadcast, in synchronization with programming without any hidden fees or third party negotiations.

TopQ: If I license some sounds from you, how do I know I won’t be hit with hidden fees or licensing terms down the road?
A: Because we create and own all the content, we own the rights to our library and guarantees you the right to use the content in accordance with our licensing terms without any hidden fees, copyright infringement or extra third party hassles.

TopQ: Can I use your sound effects in my video game?
A: Yes, our sound effects are royalty free, meaning you license (purchase) them once and can use them as many times as you want without further costs.

TopQ: Can I use your sounds in my iPhone application?
A: Yes you can

TopQ: What is a cue sheet?
A: cue sheet is a document that lists all the music used in a project, allowing organizations like APRA, BMI, ASCAP, and SESAC (and others worldwide) to properly compensate composers for performances of their work. It shows the length of the music used, the track’s title, the composer and publisher of the music, and where it was used in the film, and has some general information about the project.

TopQ: Do webcasts require the filling in of cue sheets?
A: No cue sheets are required for TV and radio broadcast only. They are not needed for webcasts or podcasts.

TopQ: I want to use your music in podcast. Which license do I need to purchase? Do I have to submit a cue sheet?
A: You need to choose license option B. Cue sheets are not required for webcasts or podcasts.

TopQ: If I use your music will I have to pay the composer of the music? Am I considered the broadcaster?
A: Broadcasters are the TV stations, Radio stations, etc. They are the ones responsible for paying performance fees to the performing rights societies (PRS). Then the PRS pay the composers. Broadcasters always pay a regular fee to the PRS. You only need to report what music was used, via the cue sheet system. The composer is then able get their portion of that fee.
The music license purchaser (you) are never responsible for making any payments to PRS.

TopQ: Do I have to fill out a cue sheet to use the sound effects too?
A: Nope, only for music.

TopQ: Can you tell me how I could purchase your sounds and use them on my cell phone?
A: You must download the sounds to your computer first. We do not offer over the air transmission to your phone. Your phone must also be audio file compatible.

TopQ: Do I have to credit the composer if I use one of your music tracks in my film?
A: You are not required to include a composer credit in your project, although it is standard industry practice to do so. However, you may not claim any work as your own.

TopQ: I used one of your tracks in my film. Who do I give credit to?
A: The appropriate credit information is supplied on the track’s preview page and is also embeded in the metadata of the MP3 audio download. You should generally give credit to the composer of the music.

TopQ: I like your music, but I need something written exclusively for my project. Are you able to help me here?
A: We offer music composition and recording services for projects in need of original music. Please Contact Us we will be happy to quote you a price and offer any assistance you may need.

TopQ: How can I identify my product or find its Internet home page?
A: Every product you purchase from us has a SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) which we use to identify each product. This SKU number is stored in the MP3 metadata.

To go to the homepage of your product you use the URL http://rocksuresoundz.com/store/product/ where is substituted with you own SKU number. e.g pm37

Note: The SKU is case sensitive and always starts with two letters followed by a number.

The letters define the product type that is…

pm = Production Music, st = Stings and Transitions, jc = Jingles and Commercials and se = Sound Effects.

The Home Page URL is also embedded in the MP3 metadata. If you go to Windows Explorer, right click properties, then details, the URL will be shown. You can copy this and paste into a web browser to find its home page.

TopQ: What does royalty free mean?
A: Royalty free (or buyout) music ( or sound effects) and their use is governed by the the Rocksure Soundz licensing agreement. The license type will determine whether you can use the song or sound effect in a commercial production or in a personal or non-commercial production. When you purchase a piece of music or a sound effect from us, you buy the rights to synchronize the song or sound effect with your productions. The sounds effects or music and their copyright will however, always belong to either Rocksure Soundz or the copyright holder of the product ( sound or song).

TopQ: What about cue sheets, why do we need to fill them out?
A: One thing that can be confusing for some is the issue of the broadcast of shows on television. Television stations pay royalties to the Performing Rights Societies for the right to broadcast music in their shows. Music usage in Television show broadcasts are tracked by documents known as Cue Sheets. It is important for cue sheets to be submitted so that the composer of songs receives the royalties from the broadcasting of their music. The broadcasters still pay their royalties to the performance rights societies regardless of whether or not a Cue Sheet is submitted. If no cue sheet has been submitted, the royalty money paid does not go to the person who wrote the music. Instead, it goes into the “general fund”, which is then distributed to whomever is topping the charts during that quarter. Wouldn’t you rather that the composer recieved the royalties they are entitled to rather than someone else getting them? This is why we require cue sheets be submitted when the music is to be broadcast on a TV show.