The answers to everything duplication blog

Quality control is an important step of CD duplication, CD replication, DVD duplication and DVD replication process. When we first receive a customer’s master, it is checked for playability on a DVD player, computer and stereo. We look for errors in menu navigation, skipping, freezes in video, extreme audio levels. The disc is inspected for physical damage such as scratches and dust. Customers are notified of any potential problems before we start actual production. The duplicated or replicated discs are randomly checked under the same guidelines to ensure consistent quality.

In large run replication, specialized machines are used to verify data on the discs by comparing the 1’s and 0’s of the discs, to ensure the highest level of quality among the thousands of discs that are being produced.

With double layer blank DVDs (abbreviated as DL DVDR here) it allows longer videos to be placed on a single DVD. Is it possible to duplicate a DL DVDR like a regular single layer DVD? While DL DVDR has been around for a little while, there are not many choices in the brand of media, and some media tend to have compatibility issues in older players. We would suggest against making mass duplication of a DL DVDR master; instead opt to compress the entire disc to a single layer DVD for DVD duplication, or split the content onto a 2-disc set.

CD audio files come in many formats today, there is the most common mp3, mp4, and also the AIFF and WAV. Which one is the best format for CD duplication and CD replication? Let’s start with talking about the different file formats that can be used to create an audio CD:
MP3 and MP4 are compressed formats that are most popular with online downloads, however not the best choice and quality for duplication and replication.

AIFF is commonly used on Macs and is an uncompressed audio file format that provides excellent sound quality.

WAV is a comparable format that is mostly used on PCs, still an uncompressed audio file format and tends to be large in size.

Therefore, making an audio CD master from AIFF and WAV will preserve the best sound quality. When making a CD master we should always burn as an audio CD, not data CD. Most CD burning softwares today will convert the mp3, AIFF or WAV into an audio CD format when it is set up as an ‘audio’ CD. An ‘audio’ CD will play in any home, car stereo and computer, while a ‘data’ CD containing MP3, AIFF or WAV files will only play in computers and stereos that are equipped to play audio files.

This might be a bit confusing, the song and artist names that show up on iTunes, are they the same as the ones that show up on car stereo and certain CD players? There are 2 different methodologies here: CD-Text and ID3 Tag. CD-Text is hardware based with track information embedded on the physical CD. ID3 Tag is metadata that stores song, artist, album, genre, year, composer and other info about a particular song.

iTunes and other software audio player reads ID3 Tags from database such as Gracenote to retrieve song information, while certain car stereo, home stereo and DVD players can read CD-Text.

Both types of codes can exist on the same CD, to add CD-Text you need to have a CD writer and burning software that are capable of writing CD-Text. To edit ID3 Tags check out this iTunes Gracenote guide.

If you got a DVD and need to make some copies to send over to some clients over in the UK, here are some of the things to consider:

- Decide whether or not to make a PAL DVD master. Consider this: the majority of PAL players will play NTSC discs, you will probably be able to get by without a PAL master if the quantities you are distributing is small. However, if you are planning a considerable amount of copies distributing to overseas, creating a PAL master will give you a highest possible compatibility.

- Make sure the DVD is region free or in the region that you are distributing to. Region codes is a way that studios control releases in different regions. In the US we are region 1, therefore, if the DVD is set at region 1, it cannot be played in Asia, or Europe. If you are not sure, ask for a region-free master, which means it will play anywhere in the world.

For every order we ask the client to fill out an Intellectual Property Rights form, which basically states that the customer owns the rights to reproduce all the materials on the CD or DVD. The materials includes music, video clips and software. Every customer is required to fill out this form for every job that we produce, without it the job will be on hold.

Sampling and other third party materials
If your content contains materials that you do not own, you need to obtain the appropriate license for legally be using it. If you are recording a cover of someone else’s song, then you are required to obtain the Mechanical license in order to legally reproduce it. If your content contains an existing recording, you need to purchase a Master Use Licensing from the record label or the rights owner.

If your content contains third-party software such as Quicktime, Window Media Player, check their website for special licensing agreement for distribution. Even though they are free software for download, a distribution license maybe required to put it on a disc.

Do I need a license if the products are not for sale?
Many clients wonder if can use other people’s material if they are not for sale or for private use only. The answer is no, you need permission to use licensed materials even if it’s not for sale.

Before you hand off your DVD to a replicator, an important step is to sign off on the DVD master, these are just some of the essentials to look for:

• Platforms: Check the DVD master on as many platforms as possible, in a set top player (new and old, different brands), and on both Mac and PC. Never test the DVD master on a computer only, as it tends to be more “forgiving” as far as compatibility goes
• TV standard: check whether the title is NTSC or PAL on a TV set, a computer will play both PAL and NTSC
• Menu: it should starts up properly, all menu buttons should be functional, check for general flow of navigation
• Aspect Ratios: Make sure that the aspect ration look acceptable on both a 16:9 and 4:3 tv
• Video: Make sure that the quality is up to expectation, play it all the way through and look for skips and freezes
• Audio: Check for audio levels throughout the video and make sure it is acceptable

Replication and duplication are different methods of copying a disc. The main difference is that duplication is burning the disc and replication is molding the disc from a glass master. The results are the same: a copy is made. Usually the method to use is determined by the quantity and the timeframe the copies are needed.

Duplication - mainly for short run discs (<500) and faster turnaround time
Replication - higher minimum (>500), lower cost per disc and longer turnaround time

For example, a client who needs 100 discs will opt for duplication because the minimum for replication is 500 discs. A client who needs 2,000 discs in 3 days will also be doing duplication because the normal turnaround for replication is about 10-12 days.

The quality of the copies on replication and duplication are the same. However one thing we should point out: since duplication makes use of blank media for the burning, it is possible that certain (older) DVD players will have compatibility issues. The number of incompatible machines are minimal and should not be a concern. Another way to minimize the problem is to use high quality grade A media, which in general has higher success burn rate and is more compatible for DVD players.

DVD-5 is a single layer DVD with 4.7GB of storage. It is the most common type of DVD format.

DVD-9 is a double layer DVD with 8.5GB of storage. It is also very common for a feature length video.

Now, what about DVD-R and dual layer DVD-R (DL DVD-R)? These are blank media formats for duplication only, which is burning with DVD recorders. DVD-5 and DVD-9 are created by molding from glass masters, which does not involve any blank media. This is also known as replication.

Tomorrow we’ll tackle the issues that everyone asks: Are replicated discs better than duplicated discs?