Distribute Review: Microboards CX-1 Disc Publisher

The Microboards CX-1 Disc Publisher combines fast performance and high print quality in a tidy DVD duplication unit.

My favorite products to review, at least initially, are camcorders and notebook computers. Every time I open a new one, it feels like Hanukkah morning. In the long run, however, the products I like keeping around are automatic DVD duplicators. To very roughly paraphrase Lt. Col. Kilgore from Apocalypse Now, I love the sound of DVDs dropping into the output tray — it sounds like money printing. If you're in the market for such a device, you should strongly consider the Microboards CX-1 Disc Publisher, which costs around $2,100.

After having the CX-1 for about four months, and having produced about 500 DVDs, I can recommend the unit with some confidence. There are some caveats, however, such as the lack of a Mac client or network capabilities (although it now supports Vista). On the other hand, as you'll see, it's a very fast performer; offers the best print quality I've seen in any similar disc-publishing product; has a mature, generally functional software bundle; and comes from a reputable company that's been around since 1989.

Let's take a tour of the CX-1 in the order you'd probably approach it after purchasing: hardware installation, label design, pre-mastering software, and finally, recorder/printer functionality.

The CX-1 combines a DVD recorder, printer, and input area in a 42lb. unit that's 24in. wide, 24in. long, and about 11in. tall — not counting the output tray for completed discs that hangs off the front, extending below the printer by about 5in. This means that you'll have to set the unit on the edge of a desk or table; I have mine sitting atop two HP workstations of equal height that are beneath my desk. The output tray screws on with thumbscrews, so it's easy to take off and replace. The uncovered input bin is on top, and it can hold up to 100 blank discs.

You connect to the CX-1 via USB 2.0. Installing the bundled software takes only a few moments. After installing your ink cartridges, you should be ready to go.

Figure 1. SureThing, a separate labeling program, is a trusted and well-known app that I use for its many features, such as business-oriented templates and bar-code support.

Because I always produce the DVDs I replicate with the CX-1 in either Apple DVD Studio Pro or Adobe Encore DVD, my first step when using the CX-1 is producing the label. The SureThing labeling program has been around since I was printing labels on a laser printer and sticking them on CDs. It's a mature and known commodity.

I like SureThing because it has many business-oriented templates that I can use for data discs or quick-and-dirty DVD video labels, with reasonably comprehensive text effects, such as circular text, shadows, and outlines. It also has exotic features such as bar-code support and the ability to serialize your discs. It has libraries with all the necessary symbols for DVD video, CD audio, or DVD data that many programs lack. It makes it easy to choose the right inner diameter for your printable DVDs, which if you've printed DVDs before, you know can be a significant design hurdle.

When I want to insert a picture from my production on a label, it's simple to do. And if you design your labels in another program, such as Adobe Photoshop, you can easily import the finished label as a background bitmap and print it.

Note that you can print directly to the CX-1 from the SureThing software, which is definitely recommended with all new projects. This way, you can perfect the label, make sure you're printing to the right diameter, and then save the SureThing project.

Figure 2. The main interface of Prassi Zulu2, the program that drives the CX-1's duplication features, is sparse and plain.

Prassi Zulu2 recording software

The unspoken truth about the software that comes with disc duplicators such as the CX-1 is that you generally want to use the software as little as possible, and then only for those functions essential to the duplicator. Although Prassi Zulu2 software, shipped with the CX-1, can create audio CDs and compile data CDs and DVDs, the software you currently use for those tasks — whether it's Adobe Audition (for audio CDs) or Roxio RecordNow or Toast (for audio or data CDs) — is invariably easier to use and more functional.

Bring a finished CD or DVD to the CX-1 and reproduce there; don't create your compilations in Prassi. I would even recommend creating the image that you'll duplicate using the Prassi software; that way, you avoid any incompatibilities.

The Prassi Zulu2 software itself is sparse and plain. You choose different functions by clicking an icon within the main interface (Figure 2), which includes functions such as extracting a disc image, stream production, and simple disc copying. Next, you identify the source image or disc and the target label, choosing from some relatively simple print options as well as the desired quantity.

Figure 3 shows the Record DiscImage screen. I chose the Nutcracker disc image, which I previously created using the Extract DiscImage icon in the Extraction & Tools section of Figure 2. Then I clicked the Select Print File button to load the SureThing print project containing the desired label, which the asterisk on the button verifies is loaded. Next, I chose whether to test and verify the discs, input the number of copies, and clicked Record to get started.

Figure 3. The Record DiscImage screen provides simple steps for recording and printing discs from a disc image.

Although you can record direct from a disc to multiple discs using the Disc Copy, there are several reasons you should create the disc image first and then record from that. First, each time you copy a disc, it has to record the image to your hard drive anyway, so recording the disc image first doesn't cost you any time. Obviously, if you record the disc image first, you can use that if you need additional discs later, eliminating the subsequent read time.

Second, if you're going to have a problem with the drive, you want it to occur as soon as possible. If you're recording disc to disc, the robotics don't start until the disc image is recorded to your hard disk, and by that time, Elvis may have left the building. Worse yet, if you do have a problem and recording doesn't start, Prassi doesn't use the disc image it just created — it starts over by creating another, costing you more time. Create the disc image in the Prassi software first, then reproduce from that image.

To produce multiple projects in sequence, note the When Done list box on the bottom rightof Figure 3. The default option is Result Dialog, which displays the results dialog for the selected action once it's complete. If you've set up multiple production runs, the next activity won't start until you close this dialog. To make the batch run through to the end, you have to select “Do nothing” in this list box.

Of my experience with the CX-1, 99 percent has been with the Disc Copy and Record DiscImage functions. One other feature worth noting is the Stream option, which lets you produce multiple discs from multiple sources. You start by inserting the target discs into the input bin, each followed by the desired number of blanks. You click the Stream icon to choose the labels for up to eight discs. This worked well in my limited tests.

Proof of the pudding

The CX-1 uses the Sony Optiarc AD-5170A recorder, which can burn all relevant disc formats — including dual-layer discs in both -R and +R. This proved a screamer in my tests. Using 16X discs, I saw burn speeds in excess of 11X, compared to maximum of about 8X for similar products that I've tested. The CX-1 reproduced and printed 10 4.4GB DVDs in 74 minutes, which is the fastest I've ever seen on the Windows platform by almost 20 minutes.

Print quality was fabulous. The CX-1 uses the same HP print engine found in the HP Officejet 5600 all-in-one printer, and output quality equaled that produced by my Epson Stylus Photo R380. This was the first disc duplicator I've tested that could make that claim.

Microboards' print cartridges cost $50 for color and $40 for black and white — and no, you can't use cartridges from the HP 5600. Although consumption will vary by disc content, Microboards claims you should get 225 prints at 100-percent coverage with the color cartridge and 100 prints with 10-percent coverage with the black and white. I printed 496 mostly full-color DVDs. Although the preferences software said I was out of cyan and magenta, the last disc looked perfect.

My other caveat with the CX-1 is finding discs that work well. Once you do, stick with them. During my early testing, I used both Verbatim and Ridata without problems, but a new batch of dual-layer and higher-speed Ridata discs failed miserably. I switched to Verbatim exclusively and haven't had a problem since.

Microboards will probably have shipped new interface software for the CX-1 by the time you read this review; there's no new functionality, but it's a lot easier to use, and it should be available as a free upgrade. Also coming is Blu-ray. If you're interested in producing HD discs, you should probably wait because Microboards hasn't announced if the units will be field-upgradeable to Blu-ray or not.

bottomline

Company: Microboards

www.microboards.com

Product: CX-1 Disc Publisher

Assets: Fast performance, good print quality, comes with functional software.

Caveats: Lacks Mac version and network capabilities, limited selection of discs that will work with the unit.

Demographic: Any content creator needing a professional distribution method.

PRICE: $2,100