Are CD labels a good idea?

spectorbass83 · #1 05-15-2006, 07:48 AM

My band just finished putting together our demo cd. We purchased a cd label maker kit and put labels on every cd. Should we worry about cd's not playing in cd players because of the labels? Does anyone have any experiences they can share where cd labels were to blame for no cd playback??

bassguitar · #2 05-15-2006, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spectorbass83

My band just finished putting together our demo cd. We purchased a cd label maker kit and put labels on every cd. Should we worry about cd's not playing in cd players because of the labels? Does anyone have any experiences they can share where cd labels were to blame for no cd playback??

I've never had one not be able to play because of the label, but I have had a few get a bit stuck because of improper label application.

Make sure you get blank silver CD's though. If they have any writing on them (like a Maxell logo or something) you'll be able to see that through the white label. Get a spindle of RiData CD-R's if you can. They've been working great for me lately at home and work and I go through about 150/month at work.

Chunk-O-Funk · #3 05-15-2006, 08:20 AM

I used one before. The only trouble I had was with the cd's I would keep in my car. The label adds to the thickness of the cd so it needs a little help when the cd player is trying to take in the cd. Also the label will bubble in time from the temperature changes.

So I would say they are fine for tray loading cd players.

detracti · #4 05-15-2006, 08:27 AM

I just got a Canon Pixma ip4200 printer for labelling our demos. It has the ability to print directly onto "printable" CDs.

Epson owns a patent on the technology in the USA, and Canon doesn't offer the feature on its printers in N America... but if you do a little research, you can figure out how to make it work....

Either that or get an Epson printer that does the same thing.

I tried a Lightscribe burner too. The results are b&w laser-etched into the surface ... again, of a Lightscribe-compatible CD. But they take a very long time to burn the label onto the CD... like 20 minutes for the label I was burning.

Philbiker · #5 05-15-2006, 08:35 AM

I don't trust this kind of label and never use them.

Thunder Lizard · #6 05-15-2006, 09:03 AM

When we were manufacturing our cd, we didn't want to go with the paper label thing, just to not be "the same old thing"... we hunted around, ended up with a Light Scribe burner... using special cd's, you burn the music, flip it over, and burn on the label!

Thats an actual CD I stuck in my cheapo scanner. It doesn't yet do color, but I hear it's coming! We liked the way the thing kind of had a "sepia"- like look to it, and the labels are tough......plus, if you want to add something later, you can stick it back in, and it will let you add information (say you got all excited and forgot copyright info or something......like I did, on this first run). There is a special set of marks that allows the software to make sure things stay lined up.
Drawback? It's slow..... on a really decent machine with the HP740i burner, it's about 22 minutes per disc...but if you're sitting around, watching tv, it's surprising how many can get done in a single night!

Richard Lindsey · #7 05-15-2006, 10:03 AM

I've tried the paper labels and don't like them. I have a LightScribe drive; those work, but they're monochrome and, at least on my system, take forever (about 26 min/CD).

What I really like is using my Epson R220 printer on directly printable CDs. I recommend printable Taiyo Yuden blanks, which you can get with either white or silver backgrounds. I believe these may be mail order only, but a quick Googling will find you lots of sources.

Only thing is, you will burn through the ink if you have a color-intensive design, use the higher-quality print settings (which you should, for the more professional look), and/or print a lot of CDs.

spectorbass83 · #8 05-15-2006, 01:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thunder Lizard

When we were manufacturing our cd, we didn't want to go with the paper label thing, just to not be "the same old thing"... we hunted around, ended up with a Light Scribe burner... using special cd's, you burn the music, flip it over, and burn on the label!

Thats an actual CD I stuck in my cheapo scanner. It doesn't yet do color, but I hear it's coming! We liked the way the thing kind of had a "sepia"- like look to it, and the labels are tough......plus, if you want to add something later, you can stick it back in, and it will let you add information (say you got all excited and forgot copyright info or something......like I did, on this first run). There is a special set of marks that allows the software to make sure things stay lined up.
Drawback? It's slow..... on a really decent machine with the HP740i burner, it's about 22 minutes per disc...but if you're sitting around, watching tv, it's surprising how many can get done in a single night!

Wow, looks pretty sharp!

tplyons · #9 05-15-2006, 09:28 PM

I would recommend printing directly on CD's with a printer, or getting a Light Scribe device.

I won't put paper labelled CD's in my CD player since I had one actually get stuck.

It's now broken somewhere on the highway with one half the label still stuck in my CD player.