Labelling DVDs

[GDalton]

Hey Guys,

With our first baby on the way, and family a long way away I've been getting into video editing (a new camera allows me to record 720p movies) and I ultimately went with Corel VisualStudio Pro X3 as my video editor of choice after playing with the awesome free demo. Movie editing is a breeze, and I've gone so far as to create a simple demo DVD in DVD Movie Factory 7 SE (downloaded via the "Do More" option in VS Pro X3) which I sent to my parents to test that we had a working end to end process. Short story, everything seems to be great.

I am now completing the first projects which I intend to burn onto DVD soon, and hopefully sending a copy out to them within the next couple of weeks. But I've been having such a blast doing this that I thought I'd just go the whole distance and was considering doing a custom label on the disk. The online video demo for MF showed how easy this can be to create, so I was doing some research into different papers/gloss products, and applicators etc etc. I have an Epson CX8400 btw.

Now the question. Are these worth the investment? For a review of any applicator/product type you see people complaining that either they're more trouble than they're worth trying to attach, that its impossible to do without bubbling, and for those that are simple to apply seems that you run the risk of the disk not even being playable. I searched the forums here and saw a lot of hints on Light Scribe technology but I don't think I have that on this DVD, so am stuck with either doing paper labels, or a permanent pen.

Push comes to shove I can just spend some time producing some boxes and labelling the disk with a pen, but would rather avoid wasting the $$$s, time and resources on label technologies if they're prone to error and the general concensus is to avoid them.

Appreciate your time and thoughts on this

Cheers,
Greg

[DVDDoug]

I just recently bought an Epson Artisan 710 which prints directly on printable discs. Very nice!

But, I've been using Neato MediaFACE software with the supplied applicator gizmo for several years to make labels for CDs & DVDs.... I've been labeling CDs since the early days of CD burning. I've labeled hundreds of discs and the results have been excellent! (I have discovered that the labels don't stick properly to printable discs.)

For me, the cost is well worth it. But over time, the real cost is in the labels (and photo-paper if you're making a DVD cover/wrapper) and ink.

(I've had the Neato software for a long time, and I've never actually tried the Movie Factory utility.)

Some people report problems like discs getting out-of-balance or the the adhesive "eating-into" CDs, but I have not experienced this. The data-layer on a CD is on top, and you can damage a CD by scratching the top. This means that a label can actually protect the CD! (The data-layer on a DVD is in the middle and it's practically impossible to damage from the top.)

Once in a while I've got a label mis-aligned and wrecked a disc, but the Neato device works well if you don't get careless. Oh, I also I found the clear labels somewhat "difficult".

I usually buy cheaper "Neato compatible" labels, rather then the name-brand product. (I did get one batch that was slightly off-center, and I made the mistake of buying labels that are not "photo quality" printable.)

The Neato package has the ability of printing the cover that slips into a standard DVD case (and the front/back inserts for a CD jewel case).

Frequently, I'll create (or scan) the artwork with another program. The big advantage of the Neato (or similar) software is that can re-size and align the image(s) to print on the labels. (For CD & DVD covers, I just use regular photo-quality paper... I don't buy the blank "labels".)

I have not tried Lightscribe yet, and I've never actually seen a Lightscribe disc. The pictures I've seen in the Net look good. One nice thing is that you don't have to buy ink or labels. But, I like the option of having a full-color photo/image. I have a new Lightscribe burner, but I haven't installed it in a PC yet and I don't have any Lightscribe discs.

[sjj1805]

Please click here.

[GregK]

I only use a permanent black marker to write on the label side and that is it. It's generally known that any form of adhesive stick-on labels are not good...I had done that with the first few discs I ever burned, and eventually had playback problems because of those darned labels. I ended up carefully removing them all and guess what? No more playback problems.

One should always stick with either a permanent marker to write on the label side, discs which can be printed on directly (which I've never used and likely never will), or the Lightscribe process (which I use once in awhile)...but right now Lightscribe only does black-and-white printing of the label side. One thing I've read recently about Lightscribe is that the discs must be kept away from direct sunlight (or probably light in general) shining on the label side...because it will cause the label print image to fade through prolonged exposure to direct sunlight. I've seen proof of that through photos posted here and there online.