What is your DVD Video worth? If it's substantial, Microboards' all-new CopyLock will help you protect it from being copied illegally.
These are the opening lines from Microboards in regards to their newest feature for their Microboards CopyWriter Pro tower duplicator series. It's a great catch line and you can read the entire press release here. How important is your content? We've seen a couple of solutions in the past but most or our clients hesitate at the cost which ranges from $1.00/disc for higher volumes to as much as $3.00/disc for low quantities. The difference with this new product from Microboards is the protection is billed out per master instead of per disc. It costs the same to do thousands or a few, it's per master. Protection costs for larger quantity runs can literally be pennies now.
So, if you think you are losing sales because of piracy this is an exciting solution at a very reasonably price.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
CD-Lab Introduces the House Disc
I was out to dinner a while back with my wife and we were dining at our local dive and we ordered the "house wine". I didn't have to swirl it, smell it, taste it or even look at the bottle. It was simple and actually very acceptable. It occurred to me that maybe a long standing tradition at the company needed to change.
Since our inception we have been media snobs, I admit it. If it wasn't made by Taiyo Yuden or MAM-A we simply didn't want to deal with it. We were very aware that our competitors had entered the "junk" disc market but we chose to stay on the high ground. The problem with the low end market is knowing who really made the discs, what standards did they use, did they pay the royalty, etc. Most of these discs come out of Asia and that is not where you are going to get honest answers or find the attention to detail that we felt was critical. Enter India.
The factory we have chosen runs an extremely tight ship. We have researched and tested extensively. They pass muster and we're willing to put our name on it. The discs record well across a variety of burners and the print surfaces are good. We will have a fairly simple lineup with CD and DVD offered with either Silver Gloss, White Inkjet or White Thermal.
We're offering an introductory special that allows our buyers to sample as few as 100 at the price of a pallet. So check them out and let us know how they taste, er, uh, work.
Since our inception we have been media snobs, I admit it. If it wasn't made by Taiyo Yuden or MAM-A we simply didn't want to deal with it. We were very aware that our competitors had entered the "junk" disc market but we chose to stay on the high ground. The problem with the low end market is knowing who really made the discs, what standards did they use, did they pay the royalty, etc. Most of these discs come out of Asia and that is not where you are going to get honest answers or find the attention to detail that we felt was critical. Enter India.
The factory we have chosen runs an extremely tight ship. We have researched and tested extensively. They pass muster and we're willing to put our name on it. The discs record well across a variety of burners and the print surfaces are good. We will have a fairly simple lineup with CD and DVD offered with either Silver Gloss, White Inkjet or White Thermal.
We're offering an introductory special that allows our buyers to sample as few as 100 at the price of a pallet. So check them out and let us know how they taste, er, uh, work.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
CD/DVD/BluRay Disc Printing Methods
There are a handful of methods used to print text and images on optical media. Each has its own niche depending on whether the info is basic text or elaborate art with photos and color logos. The number of discs will also have a huge impact on choosing the best method for a particular job. If you are interested in purchasing a printer you can click on any of the bolded headlines for a link to those printers on our website. Here's a brief description,and review of each of the available methods.
Paper labels printer with Laser or Inkjet systems:
Bad method, turn and run from this. Applying a paper label to a disc can cause potential vibrations due to imbalance and can cause severe data degradation.
Thermal:
Good for basic text down to 6 pt. fonts. Very low cost per disc and is able to print to the lowest cost, lacquer surfaces. The two best known manufacturers of these printers are Rimage Corp and CopyPro. Stand alone printers cost between $3,500.00 and $8,000.00 with automated transporters available for high volume operations. These printers are known for their durability and reliability.
Thermal Retransfer:
Excellent for color work requiring an indelible or totally durable print. Cost per disc are high. Print ribbons runs about thirty cents per disc plus about an extra dime for the special surface. This does not include the base price of the disc. These printers are made by Rimage and Teac. Stand alone printers cost approximately $8,000.00 with automation available.
Inkjet:
Excellent for color but not good in the durability column. These prints will smear or run if they get moisture on them. Costs per disc vary from under a dime to over thirty cents per disc plus the additional cost of the special surface, about a dime more. Entry level printers can be found for a couple hundred dollars while fairly robust production printers with automation exist for about 2,000.00. It would appear that there are a lot of manufacturers of these printers but the reality is they are either made by HP, Lexmark or Epson. For instance the Microboards printers are all based on HP engines.
Silk Screen:
This is not a method you will do at your office or home due to the enormous cost and difficulty in operation. Screen printing has been widely used in the mass production of discs since the inception of CD. The results are generally decent although photos and colors are not at their best here. If color matching a single color is required this is a good solution. PMS colors are routinely run on these printers.This method is expensive until the quantities reach 1K and above.
Offset:
A relative newcomer to the field, offset has become the choice of many for mass produced discs requiring high end color work. Like screen this is a very expensive and massive system to operate and won't be found in general business environments. Also, like screen, costs are high until the volume reaches about 1K.
Paper labels printer with Laser or Inkjet systems:
Bad method, turn and run from this. Applying a paper label to a disc can cause potential vibrations due to imbalance and can cause severe data degradation.
Thermal:
Good for basic text down to 6 pt. fonts. Very low cost per disc and is able to print to the lowest cost, lacquer surfaces. The two best known manufacturers of these printers are Rimage Corp and CopyPro. Stand alone printers cost between $3,500.00 and $8,000.00 with automated transporters available for high volume operations. These printers are known for their durability and reliability.
Thermal Retransfer:
Excellent for color work requiring an indelible or totally durable print. Cost per disc are high. Print ribbons runs about thirty cents per disc plus about an extra dime for the special surface. This does not include the base price of the disc. These printers are made by Rimage and Teac. Stand alone printers cost approximately $8,000.00 with automation available.
Inkjet:
Excellent for color but not good in the durability column. These prints will smear or run if they get moisture on them. Costs per disc vary from under a dime to over thirty cents per disc plus the additional cost of the special surface, about a dime more. Entry level printers can be found for a couple hundred dollars while fairly robust production printers with automation exist for about 2,000.00. It would appear that there are a lot of manufacturers of these printers but the reality is they are either made by HP, Lexmark or Epson. For instance the Microboards printers are all based on HP engines.
Silk Screen:
This is not a method you will do at your office or home due to the enormous cost and difficulty in operation. Screen printing has been widely used in the mass production of discs since the inception of CD. The results are generally decent although photos and colors are not at their best here. If color matching a single color is required this is a good solution. PMS colors are routinely run on these printers.This method is expensive until the quantities reach 1K and above.
Offset:
A relative newcomer to the field, offset has become the choice of many for mass produced discs requiring high end color work. Like screen this is a very expensive and massive system to operate and won't be found in general business environments. Also, like screen, costs are high until the volume reaches about 1K.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Why 24K Gold ?
Archival CD and DVD media should be made with 24K gold. Period. No excuses or half solutions.
If you are truly wanting to archive any data whether it is photos, videos, records or anything of significant importance then there is really no reason not to do it the absolute best way. Unless you have budget constraints that make this impossible the peace of mind in knowing that you have preserved these precious memories for your grandchildren and beyond is priceless.
So you're wondering why the big deal about gold. Not just gold but 24K gold. Right? It has to do with oxidization. Oxidization on a disc occurs when oxygen comes in contact with the metal reflective layer. You know how those silver rings you got as a kid turned your finger green? That is the metal oxidizing. Now imagine your data relying on the silver staying shiny so it can reflect the microscopic details that make up your data. Once the silver loses it's reflective qualities you lose your important photos, etc. Gold does not oxidize at anywhere near the rate that silver or aluminum does. 24K gold, being pure, is at the top of the chart for its ability to resist oxidization. There is no better material to make discs out of. None.
This is especially important with DVDs. The metal on a CD is encased with polymer, therefore affording it a decent amount of protection. This is why a quality silver CD can have an archival rating of 100 years. The DVD on the other hand is made up of two pieces of polymer laminated together. This joint is where the oxygen comes in contact with the metal and starts the oxidizing process. If you're using DVDs for your vital information be sure to use 24K gold with an archival rating of 100 years. Don't trust any disc that doesn't display this attribute. There are some gold/silver discs out now for about half the price that should be avoided if you're serious about archiving. Even weaker than that are some products now that are "gold colored". This is simply a dye in the lacquer surface and is completely bogus as far as archival quality goes.
If you are truly wanting to archive any data whether it is photos, videos, records or anything of significant importance then there is really no reason not to do it the absolute best way. Unless you have budget constraints that make this impossible the peace of mind in knowing that you have preserved these precious memories for your grandchildren and beyond is priceless.
So you're wondering why the big deal about gold. Not just gold but 24K gold. Right? It has to do with oxidization. Oxidization on a disc occurs when oxygen comes in contact with the metal reflective layer. You know how those silver rings you got as a kid turned your finger green? That is the metal oxidizing. Now imagine your data relying on the silver staying shiny so it can reflect the microscopic details that make up your data. Once the silver loses it's reflective qualities you lose your important photos, etc. Gold does not oxidize at anywhere near the rate that silver or aluminum does. 24K gold, being pure, is at the top of the chart for its ability to resist oxidization. There is no better material to make discs out of. None.
This is especially important with DVDs. The metal on a CD is encased with polymer, therefore affording it a decent amount of protection. This is why a quality silver CD can have an archival rating of 100 years. The DVD on the other hand is made up of two pieces of polymer laminated together. This joint is where the oxygen comes in contact with the metal and starts the oxidizing process. If you're using DVDs for your vital information be sure to use 24K gold with an archival rating of 100 years. Don't trust any disc that doesn't display this attribute. There are some gold/silver discs out now for about half the price that should be avoided if you're serious about archiving. Even weaker than that are some products now that are "gold colored". This is simply a dye in the lacquer surface and is completely bogus as far as archival quality goes.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Microboards Print Factory Pro Review
We arrived at this number of discs based upon the lower cost per disc as compared to other ink jet solutions in its price range. In round numbers an entry level CD/DVD printer will cost you as much as $.30/disc just for the ink. These systems are easy to spot on the market place as they only have one cartridge. If any of the colors run out this type of cart will need to re replaced. The next step up from this type of printer is the dual cartridge system where you have one for color and one for black. These generally average around $.20/disc although some can run as high as $.30/disc. The Microboards Print Factory Pro has four separate cartridges. If you run out of red you replace only the red. Cost per disc drops to below $.10/disc. Of course results will always vary because of color saturation and coverage but these are some pretty decent averages that we've accumulated over the years. Entry level automated systems start around $1,000 and the MB PF Pro sells for $2195.00 right now. So you can do your own math and compare to whatever you can find but at some point this system will undoubtedly pay for itself if compared to other inkjet systems using single or dual cartridges.
In addition to saving on consumables the PF Pro brings a very durable platform to the jobs. We use these in our own production lineup and have printed many tens of thousands of discs on each with excellent results. The robotic system is the simplest (and best) there is. Yes, that's a bold statement but we've seen lots of methods and this one is consistently the most reliable and durable. It utilizes a gravity fed system that is so simple it makes all these swing arms and carousels look bad. Watch the Microboards Print Factory Pro demo video from Microboards.
To summarize the Microboards Print Factory Pro is an excellent solution for anyone printing CD/DVD/BluRay of sufficient volume and with a color requirement. The cost per disc is very low, the robotics are reliable and Microboards has had a great reputation for a very long time.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Duplication vs. Replication
No discussion is complete without the explanation for these curious industry buzz words. If we had a dollar for every time we've explained this we could probably take the rest of the day off.
In general folks in our business refer to duplicated discs as a disc that was burned or recorded with a PC style drive. Replicated discs are produced using a molding process. The method chosen is usually related to quantity. Most replicators require a minimum 1000 discs in order to justify the high cost of making the first one.so let's look at them in more detail.
We'll start with replication since it is the original way discs were made. In this process the first step is creating a "glass master" or mold. This master can be created from any data source whether it is audio, video or data files. The information is turned into a series of high and low spots in the tracks of the disc. The laser that is reading the disc discerns between the highs and lows and converts them to zeroes and ones, which is the root of binary language. The final product is known as a ROM, as in CD-ROM or DVD-ROM. ROM stands for "read only memory". This method is always used for mass production jobs and most commercial discs you have purchased have been molded. They are compatible with all readers ever made which is where they outshine a burned disc. It has become rather rare to find a reader that won't handle a ROM but in the very beginning of both CD and DVD media there were some made. Cost is a huge advantage to this process as well as the availability of color printing at lower costs.
Duplication is a technology that came along after the original concept of optical media was developed. By now most people with computers have at one time or another "burned" a disc. It's easy, doesn't require mass quantities and it's fast. CD-Lab came into this business in 1997 when the latest recorders were operating at 4X and it took up to twenty minutes to burn a disc. Now the average drives are up around 50X and a disc is burned in under two minutes! There are many CD and DVD print systems available for everyone from the home user on up to industrial applications which has made the versatility of recordable discs a huge asset to millions of people. One rarely used advantage to recordable media is each disc can be verified by comparing its content to that of the master. After the disc is burned it is then immediately read and that data is compared bit for bit to the original.
We are often asked which is "best". Well as you can see by now that is going to depend upon what your individual needs are. Give us a call anytime and we're always happy to go over all the intricacies to determine the best solution for you.
In general folks in our business refer to duplicated discs as a disc that was burned or recorded with a PC style drive. Replicated discs are produced using a molding process. The method chosen is usually related to quantity. Most replicators require a minimum 1000 discs in order to justify the high cost of making the first one.so let's look at them in more detail.
We'll start with replication since it is the original way discs were made. In this process the first step is creating a "glass master" or mold. This master can be created from any data source whether it is audio, video or data files. The information is turned into a series of high and low spots in the tracks of the disc. The laser that is reading the disc discerns between the highs and lows and converts them to zeroes and ones, which is the root of binary language. The final product is known as a ROM, as in CD-ROM or DVD-ROM. ROM stands for "read only memory". This method is always used for mass production jobs and most commercial discs you have purchased have been molded. They are compatible with all readers ever made which is where they outshine a burned disc. It has become rather rare to find a reader that won't handle a ROM but in the very beginning of both CD and DVD media there were some made. Cost is a huge advantage to this process as well as the availability of color printing at lower costs.
Duplication is a technology that came along after the original concept of optical media was developed. By now most people with computers have at one time or another "burned" a disc. It's easy, doesn't require mass quantities and it's fast. CD-Lab came into this business in 1997 when the latest recorders were operating at 4X and it took up to twenty minutes to burn a disc. Now the average drives are up around 50X and a disc is burned in under two minutes! There are many CD and DVD print systems available for everyone from the home user on up to industrial applications which has made the versatility of recordable discs a huge asset to millions of people. One rarely used advantage to recordable media is each disc can be verified by comparing its content to that of the master. After the disc is burned it is then immediately read and that data is compared bit for bit to the original.
We are often asked which is "best". Well as you can see by now that is going to depend upon what your individual needs are. Give us a call anytime and we're always happy to go over all the intricacies to determine the best solution for you.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Basic CD History
Once upon a time (mid 70's), there was a company in Europe named Phillips that invented the optical disc and changed the way we live. When you consider the billions and billions of discs that have been made since then and the evolution to DVD and now BluRay you must wonder what we would have done without this technology.
The original optical discs were about the size of an old vinyl LP but quickly evolved to the compact disc or CD. All manufacturing was done via injection molding until the mid 80's when a Japanese company, Taiyo Yuden, came up with the concept of using dyes and burning the data on demand. This was initially a very expensive process but by the turn of the century became affordable and common in desktop computers.
Today the CD is still the media of choice for many industries. Musicians rely on this media because it is universally playable on all disc players and remains the easiest tangible method of selling their music at live venues or brick and mortar stores. Other popular uses include software, marketing pieces, audio books, data records.
The CD is also the absolute best portable media for archiving purposes. 300 year archive ratings are possible when the disc is made with 24K gold, a number that is far beyond anything else. It should be noted here that DVD media is available with 100 year ratings when made with gold.
The original optical discs were about the size of an old vinyl LP but quickly evolved to the compact disc or CD. All manufacturing was done via injection molding until the mid 80's when a Japanese company, Taiyo Yuden, came up with the concept of using dyes and burning the data on demand. This was initially a very expensive process but by the turn of the century became affordable and common in desktop computers.
Today the CD is still the media of choice for many industries. Musicians rely on this media because it is universally playable on all disc players and remains the easiest tangible method of selling their music at live venues or brick and mortar stores. Other popular uses include software, marketing pieces, audio books, data records.
The CD is also the absolute best portable media for archiving purposes. 300 year archive ratings are possible when the disc is made with 24K gold, a number that is far beyond anything else. It should be noted here that DVD media is available with 100 year ratings when made with gold.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Rimage 3400 Review
The Rimage Corporation has just released two new machines into the market. Today we'll be talking about the 3400. For all the technical details you can check the website.
Let's start with some basic details on the unit. It has a new version of the Everest printer, they're naming it the Everest 400. This utilizes the same thermal retransfer process that they first introduced to the industry with the original Everest several years ago. That was followed by the Everest II, III and today's version the 600. The original printers had 300 dpi resolution while the Everest 600 is, yes you guessed it, 600 dpi. Now we have the 400 dpi model being exclusively used in the 3400 and 5400 model machines. We will say that it takes a very fine font and a very sharp eye to tell the difference between these printers. Bottom line is they all look great and yield a very durable high gloss finish. It features an all new enclosure with an impressively small footprint and a new picker. The people from Rimage tell us they have bench tested this unit with over 700,000 discs with excellent results. This comes as no surprise given our twelve year history with them and knowing how well they make their machines.
The most significant aspect of this new product is the price. $6,950.00 is well below anything else they have ever offered with this print system. The stand alone EV600 is the same price and with the 3400 you get two recorders and a really nice robotic system. The 3400 has the same software suite that powers the Producer series machines with the exception of the networking tools. This is offered for an optional $1,950.00. The Network Software Suite makes it possible to submit jobs from anywhere on the network as well as developer tools for creating automated applications.
In summary, we're really excited about the possibilities this product brings to the market place. For those that are unhappy with their ink jet systems there is now an affordable system from the world's leader in disc publishing. For others who currently own something from the Producer lineup and have seen their volume decrease, the 3400 might be a welcome sight.
Let's start with some basic details on the unit. It has a new version of the Everest printer, they're naming it the Everest 400. This utilizes the same thermal retransfer process that they first introduced to the industry with the original Everest several years ago. That was followed by the Everest II, III and today's version the 600. The original printers had 300 dpi resolution while the Everest 600 is, yes you guessed it, 600 dpi. Now we have the 400 dpi model being exclusively used in the 3400 and 5400 model machines. We will say that it takes a very fine font and a very sharp eye to tell the difference between these printers. Bottom line is they all look great and yield a very durable high gloss finish. It features an all new enclosure with an impressively small footprint and a new picker. The people from Rimage tell us they have bench tested this unit with over 700,000 discs with excellent results. This comes as no surprise given our twelve year history with them and knowing how well they make their machines.
The most significant aspect of this new product is the price. $6,950.00 is well below anything else they have ever offered with this print system. The stand alone EV600 is the same price and with the 3400 you get two recorders and a really nice robotic system. The 3400 has the same software suite that powers the Producer series machines with the exception of the networking tools. This is offered for an optional $1,950.00. The Network Software Suite makes it possible to submit jobs from anywhere on the network as well as developer tools for creating automated applications.
In summary, we're really excited about the possibilities this product brings to the market place. For those that are unhappy with their ink jet systems there is now an affordable system from the world's leader in disc publishing. For others who currently own something from the Producer lineup and have seen their volume decrease, the 3400 might be a welcome sight.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Archiving Your Memories
There has been a lot of talk lately about the best way to store your personal photos, videos and documents. Nearly everyone on the planet has these assets and most of us don't have a solid plan on how we are going to keep these for the future. Do you?
The most common options are hard drives, online storage vaults and optical discs. Each of these solutions has merit and should be considered when developing your own storage plan. Most of us initially transfer pictures from our cameras directly to the hard drives on our computers. Unfortunately too many people stop right there. What happens if your computer is stolen? Your house burns down? And the big "if, not when" your hard drive fails?
Rule #2 is common knowledge to any decent IT person but often overlooked by personal users until they have a bad story to tell. You have to consider the possibility of fire and theft. Be sure to keep a copy at your office or the house of a friend or relative.
Rule # 3 is really easy to cover if you use optical media as your storage solution. Once you have made your archival copies, give one to a family member. This way if something bad happens to you the discs will be harder to miss. There is some risk to using an online storage facility because you may be the only person who knows it exists.
We will dig deeper into optical media solutions in upcoming posts. The various types of CD, DVD and BluRay discs will be looked at and each one will be scrutinized. This is something we have been involved with for a long time and can offer much expertise regarding this. We welcome any posts about other alternative storage methods as our intention is to inform and educate the general public about how to best preserve their family memories.
The most common options are hard drives, online storage vaults and optical discs. Each of these solutions has merit and should be considered when developing your own storage plan. Most of us initially transfer pictures from our cameras directly to the hard drives on our computers. Unfortunately too many people stop right there. What happens if your computer is stolen? Your house burns down? And the big "if, not when" your hard drive fails?
- Rule # 1 ALWAYS have two copies of your important files.
- Rule #2 The second copy needs to be at a different location than the first copy.
- Rule # 3 Remember where you put the backup and tell someone else.
Rule #2 is common knowledge to any decent IT person but often overlooked by personal users until they have a bad story to tell. You have to consider the possibility of fire and theft. Be sure to keep a copy at your office or the house of a friend or relative.
Rule # 3 is really easy to cover if you use optical media as your storage solution. Once you have made your archival copies, give one to a family member. This way if something bad happens to you the discs will be harder to miss. There is some risk to using an online storage facility because you may be the only person who knows it exists.
We will dig deeper into optical media solutions in upcoming posts. The various types of CD, DVD and BluRay discs will be looked at and each one will be scrutinized. This is something we have been involved with for a long time and can offer much expertise regarding this. We welcome any posts about other alternative storage methods as our intention is to inform and educate the general public about how to best preserve their family memories.
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