I agree with the above... Fewer people are willing to buy CDs for $15, 12, even $10 anymore. If you can save on pressing and sell for $5, do it. A hard-copy CD is a good promotional tool, but IMHO/IME, most fans are okay with (and prefer) digital files, anyway. The expensive part is the recording and mastering, which is a 1-time expense, and doesn't change whether you distribute digitally or physically.
You still need some physical copies for all sorts of reasons (promotional, some folks still want hard copy, etc), but proportionally speaking, very very few indie bands will need 1,000 full-length copies of their latest record, doubly so if this is your first record. Your money is better spent on some professional promotion or even just an emergency fund for gas $ etc when you're playing shows that don't pay well (take it from someone who still has $3k left to pay on his last CD, which came out in March '07!)
Set up iTunes, Snocap, etc accounts and promote the hell out of 'em. "Releasing an album" doesn't mean "releasing a CD" anymore. Save your money for touring and promoting yourselves. A hard-copy CD used to be an art form in and of itself; nowadays it's more of a promotional tool, not unlike posters or a website. The recordings themselves are still an art form, but don't confuse a CD with a recording, which is intangible (but can still be sold!!). Making this distinction is an important part of staying ahead of the majors, IMO... and in this competitive world, we indies need all the help we can get!
), they also offer graphic design as a service (typical rates, which might be a tad high for a band just starting out tho)
