WATCHING THE TOWERS: stand alone CD DUPLICATION ROUNDUP

Emedia Professional, Feb, 1999 by Hugh Bennett

although robotic disc-handling systems with integrated label printers may look cool and get all the attention at the trade shows, without a doubt, the Minivan of the CD duplication market is the standalone CD-R duplication tower. When it comes to straight-ahead, no-nonsense disc duplication, nothing beats it for economy, ease of use, and unadulterated throughput. Unlike their fancy automated cousins, standalone CD-R duplication towers are nothing much to look at and typically consist of simple chained banks of CD recorders housed in computer-like tower cases. Standalone duplicators operate more like photocopiers than printing presses, and just as you would normally print all original document using a laser printer and duplicate it with a photocopier, so you write a CD-R disc with a CD recorder and make copies using the duplicator. Standalone technology offers incredible convenience and ease of use and can typically be operated after only minimal training.

Contrary to some opinions, standalone CD duplication systems are not intended to be piracy factories. As the lowest common denominator writable format readable in any CD or DVD drive, CD-R has attained the privileged position previous held only by the floppy diskette and paper. Legitimate uses for making multiple copies of CDs include distributing everything from computer software to technical documents to church music to syndicated radio shows to the infamous Starr Report.

bits and places

At the heart of the standalone CD-R duplication system is the controller, which acts as the brains of the operation and point of interaction with the user. A number of proprietary controllers are commonly used in the various systems as well as some standardized models available to the industry from several manufacturers including JukeBox Information Systems (JIS), R-Quest, and Extreme Technologies. Capabilities vary widely between controllers so it is important for the prospective user to compare and determine the functions needed as opposed to superfluous features or downright gimmicks.

CD recorders are the other principal hardware component. Although Yamaha CD recorders dominated the CD-R duplication landscape for nearly three years, the mantel has been passed to Matsushita and TEAC with the introduction of their new quadruple speed models in 1998. TEAC's CD-R55S 4X/12X and Matsushita's CW-7502 4X8 recorders are now the mainstay of the production market and have proven their mettle as low-cost, reliable workhorses. Generally speaking, the CW-7502 has gained greater favor among duplication equipment manufacturers due to its lower cost and its use of MMC (Multi Media Commands), which make it easier to support in software.

At its current OEM pricing, four-speed recording provides better bang for the buck compared to moderately lower-priced 2X models. A quad-speed recorder is able to write a full 650MB disc in roughly 20 minutes, so a CD duplicator employing eight 4X recorders can write eight discs every 20 minutes or 24 discs per hour. For cases in which only half that amount of input data is written (as is the case with the majority of CD-bound data sets), the disc throughput is doubled. Keep in mind though that if finished copies are verified against the master source after recording, the throughput dips accordingly.

However, in a market where speed is king and you are only as good as your next product, CD duplicator manufacturers are already looking forward to the next generation of higher-speed 6X and 8X recorders to satisfy customer demands. Several new products now dot the high-speed landscape including TEAC's 6 x 24, Sanyo's CRD-R800S 8 x 20, and Plextor's PlexWriter 8/20 8X write, 20X read recorders. Observers generally feel that six speed will soon become the recording speed of choice for the majority of the market given lower hardware costs and the greater availability of compatible media. Eight speed is expected to come into its own later on in 1999. In terms of comparison, an 8X recorder, which writes a full 650MB disc in roughly 10 minutes, provides only an incremental improvement over 6X recording, which enables the same task to be performed in about 12 minutes. Put another way, a duplicator outfitted with eight 8X recorders copies 48 discs per hour as opposed to 40 per hour if loaded with 6X units.

choices, choices

Shopping for any new piece of gear is always an intimidating experience, but it can prove downright frightening with something as unfamiliar as choosing a CD-R duplicator. As with any purchase, it is important to get the lay of the land and see what is available and not to jump at the first product you see, which may or may not suit your needs. In a few short years, the market has blossomed and is currently served mostly by the players in this roundup. The most prominent names among today's tower contenders include Alea Systems, CD CyClone Duplication Systems, Hoei Sangyo, Integrated Network Solutions Corporation (INSC), JukeBox Information Systems (JIS), Media FORM, and MicroTech Systems.