The Recordex StudioJet 50 CD Printer offers value and performance. It uses non-proprietary ink cartridges that are half the cost of other CD printer manufacturer's ink cartridges. The Recordex StudioJet 50 features HP printer technology using out of the box HP56 black and HP57 color. The HP inkjet engine is very quick and the Discus LE label software is very intuitive so you are not sitting in front of a CD printer for an hour trying to get everything to work. I have demo'd a lot of units and this was the easiest and actually worked right out of the box. The Recordex StudioJet 50 features a 50 disc input hopper and a 50 disc output. Essentially the disc drops down from the hopper into the printer tray (using a singulator that only allows one disc to drop at a time) the disc prints, the tray opens and the disc is ejected out into a bin that sits to the right of the unit. No robotics and a very short path between input and output.
It's very easy to set-up and operate: Snap on the output bin, screw in the input hoppers posts, USB 2.0 connection, install 2 ink cartridges, install the driver and disc software and you are ready to print labels. Works with all inkjet printable media for CD-R, DVD-R,DVD+R and recordable Blu-ray. It only supports PC and comes with a one year warranty Link
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There are several different print technologies for on-demand CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray discs duplication and disc printing. Inkjet, thermal transfer and thermal re-transfer / dye-sublimation. This is a discussion on inkjet printing.
Inkjet CD Printers can be used for DVD and Blu-ray discs that have a special inkjet printable surface applied. Inkjet CD printers use print engines primarily from HP (Hewlett Packard) and several from Lexmark. This means for the most part the ink cartridges are off-the-shelf. Several manufacturers use modified cartridges that require the purchase of ink from the manufacturer's sales network which increases the cost per print. Inkjet CD printers come in Single print PC connected models and autoloading print stations that can output a high volume of printable CDs , printable DVD and printable Blu-ray discs.
The resolution of inkjet printers is 4800 dpi (dots per inch) which produces an excellent print image. Inkjet CD printers use a liquid ink that is sprayed onto the inkjet printable surface. It mixes Magneta, Cyan and Yellow to produce color and black is usually produced by a second cartridge. This makes it a "wet" process. Ink application can be controlled by setting the software driver between photo quality and draft on the printable CD. The less ink the faster the job is completed. The less ink the more washed out the color is and horizontal print lines show up on the finished disc.
There are some systems that use separate CMY inks, the Microboards Print Factory Pro is an example of this technology. The Print Factory Pro is a automated Printer system that can be loaded with 100 discs. It is PC and Mac connect via USB 2.0 The Microboards Print Factory Pro relies on a singulator with stacked discs instead of a robotic arm. Designs vary for several different reasons but the most important is speed. The closer you can get the disc to the print head the faster the job goes. Also reliability is a big factor.
Disc print design software for printable CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray discs comes in several different versions. SureThing and Discus seem to be the most popular. These programs allow you to design your CDs, DVDs and Blu-ray discs and save the print file for future use. Some rely on special print files that can only be used with the specific model so make sure you know what you want. .prn files contain all the print meta data for a specific printer and can not be shared with other printer models. Recently there has been a move away from this with some systems. Usually Discus can support this feature. One of my favorite inkjet CD printers is the Recordex StudioJet 50 . This auto-loading CD printer uses off the shelf HP ink cartridges for a great print job. Fast and efficient. I believe it's the cheapest per print. Very easy to set up and calibrate.
There are some Epson inkjet document printers that have a little disc caddy as a means of printing on a printable CD, DVD or Blu-ray disc. They do work for an occasional disc. Bad idea for any quantity of discs. The caddy wears out along with the rollers in the printer.
Drying time is a critical issue in choosing printable CDs for your CD printer. If you are laying down any amount of ink drying time is important to keep the ink from getting on your other discs. The idea is to use enough ink to do the job and not over apply for economy and quick drying. Printable CDs, Printable DVDs and Printable Blu-ray discs all have different formulas specific to a manufacturer. Taiyo Yuden and a new brand, FTI or Falcon have great surfaces and quick drying. Taiyo Yuden also offers a Watershield printable CD and a Watershield printable which give a glossy finish and water-resistant properties. Other excellent surfaces include Falcon premium white inkjet printable DVD-R
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