Anyone used a LIGHTSCRIBE drive? If so, can you give me a little bit of insight as to how crisp the surface of the disc is after burning? I'm looking to get something like this for the office and one for the house... at a price of around $60 for a dual-layer drive with the LightScribe option, I think I'm going to be all over it! Can anyone provide a little insight?

For those of you that don't know what LightScribe is... check out THIS LINK.

 

Rockpick -

What a coincidence.

I just bought one about 3 days ago, an external La Cie that works with Mac OSX.

As for what you mean by "crisp", I'm not sure if you are referring to the tactile feel or what it looks like, so here's what it is with regard to both of those.

Disk feels no different than before the laser etches it. It is perfectly smooth.

Appearance wise, it may not be what you think. I was a bit disappointed although it is usable. It does not have the contrast of the discs you see in LaCie's or HP's ads. The surface of the disc is kind "gold"/"brassy" in colour. They tell you it prints in "greyscale" but that should be "goldscale". The overall image is kind of flat.

The Lightscribe software couldn't be easier. You can drag a background image into the work space, move it around over the disc template. You can drag any pic (as long as it's a supported format such as jpeg etc.) and you can bring in stuff you worked in in photoshop etc. You can change opacity of the background image or text. The text is applied in the program, if you want it curved just drag it where you want and it automatically happens and adjusts size and curve ratio. It's all rather slick.

Just be aware that it's not as contrasty as they demonstrate it to be. Also be aware that it takes about 23 minutes to burn a disc. So if you are planning on doing a large number, make sure you have a lot of time.

Hope that helps.

 

And forgot to mention, although I'm sure you're aware of it, you have to use Lightscribe discs for lightscribing. (The burner will burn to any discs for data and music, but if you want to burn the cover side with images/text, you need the special disc. They are about a dollar each).

K-

 

I bought an Epson Stylus Photo R200 printer instead. It will let me print directly onto the surface of the disc, and does not take long to print and dries basically instantly. The only downside is it is not as shiny as some storebought discs are, but the colors are all there and bright. My discs look almost identical to the real thing, but are just not as shiny.

As long as you buy printable CDs, you're set. They don't cost much more than regular discs.

I also needed a printer though, so this was definately the best route to go in my case.

 

Rage,

I have the R300, it uses the same ink cartridges as the R200.
I don't know where you buy your replacement ink, but I just received my 4th order from blankdvdmedia.com (located in Montreal), and my shipments always arrive 2 days after I order.

They sell R200/R300 inks for $44.99 (free shipping) for a complete set of 6 cartridges.
The more you buy, the cheaper it is.
I normally get the inks 10 sets at a time, this way they only cost me $29.90 per set.

They are a 'generic' brand, but the difference in price is so great, there's no way in hell I can justify paying Epson for their overpriced ink when an identical product is available.

Regards

 

I get mine through my old job, at a computer repair shop. They sell ink cheap to begin with, then I get a discount as well since I used to work there. Basically the more I buy the cheaper it is too
I might have to check out the site though, could be useful when I move in the fall

 

I have the Epson R320 and a Lightscribe burner. I use them for different things. I use the burner for CDs that I may reburn in the future. Things like MP3 disks where I keep adding songs to my collection. I use the inkjet printer for those things I really want to be colorful and will not reburn later. Things like movies and special collection CDs. They both have their uses. The quality of both is very good, although the Lightscibe is not in color, just a darker shade of brown, as if it was printed on. On neither can you really tell a difference in the surface feel of the disk.
These types of setups are much better than a label where it could peel inside your player. Also it doesn't make the disk thicker.

 

Thank you guys... I sincerely appreciate it.

Also, I appreciate you all bringing up the Epson printers... I actually think I'm going to end up with a Lightscribe and a R200 at my office for project management and document storage. I'm a bit disappointed in the time it takes to burn images to the disc but, I believe that it's something that will be worth it once we get the system implemented.

We burn very few discs with work but, I see the amount ramping slowly in to the near future. My hunch is that, like nearly every other piece of technology on the market, that we'll see the speed increase on the non-data side of the disc...

Quick question for you Epson printer guys... I've read quite a few reviews on the CD ink jet printers -- what is your take on the 'cd tray' where the disc actually resides while it's being printed? Reading reviews on amazon and yahoo (oodles of them), there doesn't seem to be much of a mediocrity on the issue. People seem to love the printer or absolutely HATE the printer for printing discs. The main focus of the folks who seem to dislike it is the tray. They focus on breaking primarily and the cost of replacement. Additionally, many mention that it's a poor design. Can anyone shed some light on that? Thanks folks!!

Again, thanks guys. I appreciate your insight and opinions.

 

Well, it's a little awkward to adjust to first of all. I expected something like a drive that would pop out, take the CD, pop back in and do its thing.
Doesn't happen like that.
What you have is a tray that is seperate from the printer. You lower a little slot on the printer and then slide the tray onto it,
matching up arrows with arrows on the tray.
Then, hit print like normal on the computer and this tray will slide back so it sticks out the back end of the printer, quite a ways.
The downside to this is you need to have the printer 6 inches or so away from a wall. May or may not be an issue for you.
Once in a while I have to adjust the tray position (didn't line up the arrows right) but otherwise it has worked well for me. Doesn't take long, ink comes out dry.

here's some pics... software first then of the printer and disc.







The last one, the tray is not all the way out the back. It goes a little more than twice that far out.

 

I have printed literally hundreds of CD's/DVD's on my R200. I print so many I even have 2 extra trays, so I can speed up the feed process.

Never had a single problem with any part of this process. Never broke a tray either. I can't even think of a way you could break it. What's to break?

Anyway, best $100 I have ever spent on a printer.

If you plan on printing large amounts of disks, you might want to consider a "Continuous Ink" system that uses large external ink bottles. Much cheaper than buying even the generic cartridges.

 

I find the tray no problem. You just have to make sure you have enough room at the back for it to work. it can't be right up against the wall. Quality is excellent. As I use this printer with HP photograph paper to do pictures, it's print quality is excellent.
Look for deals, I happened to get my R320 for $104. Office Depot had a $25 instant rebate and a $50 mail in rebate. List was $179.

 

Rage -- Thanks for the insight and the pictures! That definitely helps me out!

Kool Aid -- Thanks man. I will only be doing a disc on occasion so the need for a 'CD Press' probably isn't a necessity for our office... Sounds like you've had wonderful luck with the printer too...

kingfish -- I appreciate your help! I've been price searching and they're really not all that expensive... which makes it a much easier purchase to sell to the owners. I'm still leaning towards getting a Lightscribe AND a R200 though.

Another couple of questions -- are you guys using Ink Jet printable discs? If so, where are you snagging those? I know meritline.com has them bulk but, I'm wondering if it's a necessity -- I suppose that it is from a smearing standpoint?

One 'con' that I see to the printer is replacing all of the cartridges each time one of them goes out. This is true, correct?

Are the inks water resistant? I ask only because I'd hate to ruin a 'deliverable' to a client by something as simple as a 'sneeze' or a 'rain drop'.

THANKS AGAIN FELLAS!

RP

 

On the Lightscribe issue-
The disk & image are usually indexed so that you can 'burn' the image two or three times to darken it.

 

Where did you find it for $60?

 

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