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REVIEWS
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And, finally, you can also access the printer's configuration utility (separate from Discribe), which provides controls for alignment, cleaning and changing cartridges. As I mentioned, it also includes a utility for correcting the printer's centering, though I was never able to get this to work.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Discribe, as I say, does have its flaws. It locks out control of your burner and reader while it's running. And it can also conflict with other applications that access your internal drive. For example, during the course of my review period I went to burn a CD from iTunes, forgetting that Discribe was running, and I got a catastrophic error, one that locked me out of my own iTunes library. And it also has a of of little flaws, things like cryptic dialogs, illogical layout, etc. But I don't want to go too far off on a tangent here about Discribe because, like it or not, it gets the job done.The Bravo Disc Publisher also ships with a goofy utility called Discus from Magic Mouse Productions that allows you to lay out your label. Fortunately, it's unnecessary, since Discribe could print any file format I threw at it (BMP, TIFF, PSD, JPEG, etc.) And, as I mentioned, you can print directly from any application. If you really need a CD label layout program, there are plenty of shareware and freeware utilities available. But Discus will work fine for you.
Disappointments
I have few disappointments with the Bravo Disc Publisher. I've mentioned my qualms about the software included with the system. I'd also like to see the print drivers updated to provide more color control, and I'd like the configuration utility to recognize my centering adjustments.
In terms of hardware, there's one thing that bothers me, and it's the unit's smoked lid. The lid has to remain closed during operation, and it's difficult to see through it in normal lighting situations. The reason this is a problem for me is that the device provides no feedback when a job is done printing and does not report errors when the drive becomes disconnected in some fashion, such as interference causing the device not to be recognized. So, hearing no noise coming from the unit, you think the job is done and open up the lid to pull out your discs, only to discover a half-printed job sitting in the printer tray with no way to resume the job. (Note that this shouldn't be an issue with a solid USB connection, but, then again, you won't know whether you have a solid USB connection until you give it a go.)
So you can either jimmy the button that detects whether the lid is closed so that you can operate it with the lid open, or you can take your chances. I think a better alternative would be, simply, a clear lid. (And, hey, who doesn't want to watch something like this in action the first few times anyway? It's a robot arm, for Pete's sake!)
The bottom line
For anyone who creates DVDs from the desktop, Primera's Bravo Disc Publisher will prove an outstanding productivity tool, one that will automate your production process, save you time and free you up to move onto other things as it churns out disc after disc. It isn't flawless. You'll have to do some tweaking of your color to get great prints, but you will get there eventually. And hopefully we'll see some updated software in the near future to help alleviate this. But, on the whole, it does what it's supposed to do with very few hitches. And it's priced within reason. Though it lists for $2,495 for the CD/DVD configuration (Mac or Windows versions), actual street prices are far lower--anywhere between $1,550 and $1,995 as of this writing--so it's not much more than the cost of buying an external FireWire DVD burner and a standalone manual disc label printer. (Incidentally, the color and black ink cartridges run about $40 each.) What you're paying for here is, of course, convenience, and to me it seems well worth it. This unit will pay for itself in a short time, and so I give it a Strong Buy recommendation.
The Primera Bravo Disc Publisher (CD-R/DVD-R) is available for Mac OS X and Windows. The Macintosh version reviewed here includes a Pioneer A05 mechanism (4x DVD-R, 16x CD-R) and integrated 2,400 x 1,200 DPI inkjet label printer. It comes bundled with CharisMac Discribe Robot for DVD and CD burning and robotics operation and Magic Mouse Productions Discus for laying out disc labels. It also includes all necessary drivers and cables. For more information, visit http://www.primera.com.
Contact the author: Dave Nagel is the producer of Creative Mac and Digital Media Designer; host of several World Wide User Groups, including Synthetik Studio Artist, Adobe Photoshop, Mac OS, Adobe InDesign, Adobe LiveMotion, Creative Mac and Digital Media Designer; and executive producer of the Digital Media Net family of publications. You can reach him at dnagel@digitalmedianet.com.
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