John, what you're discribing is the same thing I've read from different sources. This is why I haven't spent the money.

Kevin, I'm very happy to hear that you're having success with your DVD printer!

J--

Well John, I use the 960 and while it is a bit on the dull side it is ok
for what I do. It should print out the same as standard inkjet paper
which of course is not that good.

JJK

Guess I'm just easy to please ; )

None of this sounds very encouraging, but thanks for the responses.

John

You guys are just like the clients I have to deal with every day. They bring in their nice label printed out on glossy photo paper and it's all shiny and perfect, then we print them a proof on a printable Cd or DVD and then they complain.
There is a big diffrence between glossy photo paper and the clay surface of the printable CD's and DVD's, no matter what you do they will never look the same. Same diffrence between printing on regular paper and glossy paper, it will never look the same. If you think you're ever going to get the exact same results printing on 2 completley diffrent mediums then you will be waiting a loooong time for your printer, becasue it isn't happening. If the 960 prints as good as my Epson 900 does, then you are getting a VERY good print compared to the top of the line inkjet printers out on the market today, ones that cost $1500 and up.

If you want that "Glossy Look" there really aren't many options. The 1 company that actually produced glossy printable CD's has now gone out of buisness and you simply can't find them anymore. The other option is to laminate your discs after you print them. I know Primera just came out with a new laminator but It's about $4000.

They bring in their nice label printed out on glossy photo paper and it's all shiny and perfect, then we print them a proof on a printable Cd or DVD and then they complain.
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Nonsense, I am comparing it to an Avery label not photo paper. And it's a comparitively dull label at that (which I said at the onset). This is duller than dull.

Anyway I figured out what has to be done (short of sending it back). I just ran the DVD through TWICE at the default settings and it looks as good as the label now. The colors actually have some depth and the DVD doesn't scream "amateur" at you. I'll probably keep it.

John

That's exactly the issue. It's the media that you're printing to not the printer. I have some clear stick on laminate which will make the printed CDs look very shiny but that kind of defeats the whole purpose so I just stay with the results straight out of the printer. I think it's a case of understanding the media and working with it, much the same with many things in this business.

You're never going to get the same results using thermal, inkjet or screen printing. If the appearance of the label is important then the artwork has to be designed to take into account the printing process involved, the type of inks and the media being printed onto.

If one of you guys wants to mail me one of your printed disks, I'll mail you one of my labelled DVDs. I am curious to see just what these disks look like.

I've now done about 350+ Ritek G04 DVD-R disks and have used the Meritline glossy labels, printed with an Epson C80 printer (the "Durabrite" pigment inks). I've applied the labels with a Stomper tool, and then fixed the labels with my "rolling pin" method: thin cotton cloth on the table, disk with loosely tacked label on top, and a thicker cotton towel on top. Start with rolling pin in the center and roll out to the edges in three different directions (just like making a pie crust!). Labelled disks look nice and shiny, and the ink is smearproof, fadeproof, and waterproof (the labels are'nt waterproof, of course). Only question is what the disks will look like ten years from now, but then ten years is a couple of generations in the computer industry. I suspect they'll be just fine. After all, I have VHS tapes that date back many years, and the labels on those cases are holding up well.

One potential problem I've discovered is that the Amray-style DVD cases I've been buying are cheap, and until the center hubs are slightly reworked, they really don't want to release the disk. With paper labels, if you really put a big bend into the disk while wrenching it out of the case, you'll put a permanent crease into the label. Just a cosmetic thing, but it matters. I don't know what a white DVD would do in the same situation.

That's exactly the issue. It's the media that you're printing to not the printer
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The whole thing is insane.

We go back and forth trying to figure out which combinations of burner + burner program + bitrate + authoring program + labels vs non-labels + media brand + who ACTUALLY manufactured it for them depending upon whether you bought the same brand in a 5 pack, ten pack, spindle of 25 or 50 + burn speed + programs possibly misreporting actual burn speed and file sizes + printer availability + printer performance + who knows what else will give us universal compatibility combined with professional looking and professional perfoming disks.

Are we getting what we are after?

Read enough forums and take a guess.
The answer is no. We want to provide people with what they most often want. A DVD which plays in their DVD players. They are cheap and virtually everyone has them and likes the look of them so they figure that for us to give them a quality DVD that will play in their players and look nice as well isn't all that hard. The problem is that the industry has made it hard, by individually competing for chief honcho status at our expense. The DVD standard is a joke and the joke is on us.

John

I was just happy as hell that the 960 would print on the printable discs so I wasn't very hard to please. There is a densiity setting in the software but not very much range. The printing is very clear but flat and the colors seemed to
loose a bit of saturation. If the discs were coated with glossy or perhaps the same plastic film that Epson uses on their glossy film it would be fat city. But I suspect that the present coatings are a compromise.

JJK

Reason a lot of the commercial stuff looks very good is they use the underlying silver as part of the label. The only way you'll achieve that is with screen printing which has a high setup cost.

Personally I don't know what all the fuss is about. Sure it'd be nice if the thing looked like a Hoolywood DVD. It'd be great too if whats on it looked like a Hollywood production. It'd be great too if there was the money for me or the client to pay a graphic artist to do the layout.

So far my clients are blown away by getting any label, stuck on or printed. My clients fall into one of two categories. Stuff that's family memories from film or tape. That always goes onto archival grade DVDs. Corporate stuff, played once or twice and then in the bin. I give them the choice, 80 cent stuff that should last 6 months or archival grade ones that'll last at least 50 years for 6 dollars. You can guess which one they go for.

I buy from only two suppliers, both products come under their own brand names. The cheap ones are consistently rubbish and the good ones are consistenly excellent. I don't buy any of this stuff retail except in emergencies.

If anyones interested in the good stuff you'll find it at:
www.prodisc.com.au
I believe they'll ship world wide. It's worth a look just to see the results of independant tests done on CDs. The differences are staggering.