FAQ’s

Ordering

How can I pay?
By cheque, bank transfer, credit card or by PayPal.

Can you convert vinyl LPs?
Yes, it takes longer, and is more expensive.

Will you digitise my photos? Convert DVDs?
Yes - please ring 07 5569 2655 for details.

What’s the minimum order?
The minimum order we will process is 50 CDs.

Can I send my iPod or other portable MP3 player to you so you can load it for me?
We will gladly load your music onto your iPod or other portable digital media player.

When I order what am I agreeing to?
When you accept our estimate and order the packaging cartons to be sent to you, you are warranting that you are the owner of the source material you send to us, and you will use any copies created in a legitimate manner consistant with the copyright laws of Australia, and not for any improper or otherwise illegal purpose.

Pick ups and deliveries

How do you deliver my music after its been converted?
This depends on how you requested them to be returned. Most people want them returned on high quality DVD’s, readable on virtually all computers. You may though choose to have them on a new hard disk or directly on your iPod

Will you collect less than 100 CDs?
Yes, but our minimum charge is $100 plus contribution to transport.

Will I get my original CDs back?
Of course! We return your original CDs to you along with your new digital library.

Will you collect my CDs in their jewel cases?
Yes.

Can I deliver my CDs to you?
Yes. Give us a ring first.

Do you offer a local pick up and delivery service on the Gold Coast?
Yes. We offer local pick up and delivery within specific areas in and around the Gold Coast. Please contact us if you’re unsure about your location.

How long does it take for my order to be processed?
On average, it takes four business days to process your order and return the CDs to you. Please call us for orders over 500 CDs, as the processing time will be longer.

Converting and Formats and Quality

What encoding format and bit rate do you use?
Our default encoding format is MP3. It’s the most common format and is supported by virtually all media devices.

Does it matter if my computer is an Apple Mac or a PC? Or if I switch from PC to Mac?
No, our DVDs can be read equally easily on both platforms.

What is the benefit of an external hard drive? Is this instead of DVDs?
All clients are supplied with their music secured on DVD. Additionally we can supply your music on an external drive. This adds massive storage capacity at modest cost; if you upgrade your computer you simply plug this disc into your new machine.

What quality of file do you recommend?
Our default bit rate setting is 192 kbps CBR. It’s the ideal balance between sound quality and file size.

Can I choose a specific bit rate?
You can choose a different bit rate from the default at no extra charge. This must be specified at the time you place your order.

What if I want a special bitrate or codec?
Certainly, just let us know.

Do you convert to MP3, WMA, OGG, FLAC or AIFF?
Yes.

Can I choose an encoding format such as AAC or WMA?
You can choose a different encoding format from the default at no extra charge. This must be specified at the time you place your order.

Will you convert at VBR (Variable Bit Rate)?
Yes, but as its not our standard you need to say you want this option.

Do you do lossless?
Yes.

How many albums do you put on a DVD?
Around 60.

What encoding format does my media player support?
MP3 is the most common encoding format and is supported by virtually all media players.

Can I get CD Ripping to load my music onto an external drive?
You can send us your external drive and we will load it for you. If this is in addition to the DVDs we give you as a default medium, a fee will apply.

What if I don’t have a DVD drive on my computer?
We can put your music onto CDs rather than DVDs at an extra charge. CDs have 1/7th the capacity of DVDs therefore it takes seven CDs to equal one DVD. You can also have your music on an external drive or we can load your digital media player for you.

Transferring to your computer

How do I load my music onto my computer?
This will depend on the form you choose to receive your music in. (DVD, Hard Disk, iPod) We supply full instructions and it is a simple process that you only have to go through once. If you have difficulties we can coach you through it. In the case of receiving the music on a Hard Disc you will be ready to go virtually straight away.

How do I load CDs after you’ve converted my collection?
You simply use iTunes import feature or purchase music from iTunes Music Store or any other online source.

Transferring to or from your iPod or MP3 player

How do I load my music onto my iPod or iPhone?

iPod iTunes has a synchronisation process. The tracks will be loaded on to your computer through this process.

How do I load my music onto my MP3 player?
You copy your music from the DVDs onto your computer’s hard drive, then import the files into the music management system you use, finally you sync your player with your computer.

How can I get music off my iPod and back onto my PC?
This is not the normal way to do things but it can be done with the help of special software

How do I transfer my new digital library onto my computer?
Once you receive your DVDs simply insert them into your computer and copy them to your hard drive.

How much free space do I need on my hard drive?
You will need about 13 Gb of free space on your hard drive for every 100 CDs.

Legally enjoying your music

How do you organise my library?
They are organised by album, by artist, by genre

Is it legal to load music on to my iPod in Australia?
The Copyright Ammendment Act 2006 received Royal Assent on the 11th of December 2006. The intention of items 6,7,8 and 9 of schedule 6 is to allow private copying into different formats. It is permissable to copy, without infringing copyright, a sound recording from CD, tape, or record to any other format.

Will I be able to buy music over the internet?
Yes you can, it will integrate seamlessly into your new music library. Our clients are more inclined to invest in music downloads once their backlog is converted for them.

What happens if one of the CDs I send you is scratched or damaged?
If we receive a scratched or damaged CD, we may not be able to rip it. After an initial attempt, we will clean your CD and try once again. We will try to extract as many tracks as possible. Please note that if we can get 3 or more tracks from the CD, we will charge you for the entire CD.

Do you keep a copy of my music?
No.

Do you rip all of the CDs I send you?
We will only rip original CDs. We WILL NOT rip copies of CDs, music mixes, or CDs with copy protection.

What are the advantages of having an external drive?
An external drive allows you to have your music stored without using up space on your internal drive. It also becomes a medium for storage independent of your computer that is portable. You can plug it to a different computer and have your music instantly available.

Can I discard my CD’s after I receive my music?
No you should not. Your CD’s act as your license for your digital music and proof that you purchased it legally.

What if I have trouble playing my DVD’s

There can be a number of reasons.

Here are some guidelines.

Playing DVD’s
There are two differing process for creating “copies” of DVD’s.
1) Duplication - under 1000 copies of each disc required
2) Replication - over 1000 copies of each disc required

Replication
Replicated discs are like those that you hire from the video library.
They are pressed from a “glass master” and will play in virtually all machines.
(We are not considering PAL /NTSC / SECAM issues here as most units sold now are multi-system)

Duplication
Duplicated discs are duplicated on either DVD - R or DVD + R discs
We mostly use DVD - R as they cover most of the commercial machines.
If you go to DVD Players  you can enter in a player and see if it can play.
For example we have a Panasonic S33

We can see here that it plays both types DVD - R and DVD + R.
If we search on a Medion MD 40651 a machine sold by ALDI supermarkets in Australia we get the following:

This does not play DVD+R. There are also machines that do not play DVD-R.
So when a customer complains that they cannot play a DVD the first course of action is to get the name of their machine and see if the specs of the machine can actually play “duplicated DVD’s (DVD-R & DVD+R)”.
In addition we should ascertain which country the customer is located in as all our DISCs are produced as NTSC which means they should be able to be played in every country in the world as only the USA doesn’t have good coverage of “multi-system” machines. In addition to this all our discs are “Region Free” which means they are able to be played in any country.

So to summarise:
1)    The player should be able to play a DVD-R or sometimes a DVD+R disc.
2)    The player must be multi-system or NTSC.
3)    The player also checks for Region and the discs we produce are Region Free.

If by learning the above a customer still has problems we have a number of alternatives we can try to satisfy them.
1)    If they are unable to play a DVD-R disc but can play a DVD+R we can burn the disc to a DVD+R disc.
2)    If they have a player that wont play either DVD-R or DVD+R, and they have not been able to play it in their computer due to not having the “codec” to play the DVD then we could convert the file on the DVD to a “Flash video”, then, burn it to a data DVD-R and they would be able to watch the movie on their computer in their Internet Browser as a flash video and not as a DVD.
3)    For others we could also use “DVD Shrink” to reduce the size of the video on the DVD as some players are a bit touchy if the content is over 2 hours.

In conclusion, there are lots of solutions depending on what equipment the client has. Your first choice should be to get them to try the disc on both their DVD player and their computer. If it plays on one and not the other then it is a hardware/software issue. Some computers simply do not have the ‘codecs” necessary to play some DVD’s. In the rare case that the DVD does not play on their computer AND also does not play on their DVD player then we must  take each of the courses of action above until we eventually solve their problem.
If you get the name of their DVD player you can assess what is possible on their DVD  player.

Then we can work out the next step.

We produce over 3000 discs a week and we have found in virtually in all cases of non-playing discs have that the customers physical hardware or software is the issue. They may be able to play “normal - replicated” discs but their machine may have other limitations. Two weeks ago we updated all our burners to the latest firmware so that we can handle all types of discs. However we use only Verbatim DataLifePlus discs as they are the best available and they have stood the test of time.

• Quality

  Our Gold Coast production facility for the production of Cd's and DVD's always uses Verbatim archival quality Cd's and DVD's. Over the years we have found if we use these discs we have virtually no problems. In terms of printing inks we use the original manufacturers inks because we have found using "generic" inks we do not get consistency of colour throughout the production run.

• Ring for a quote

  Give us a call on 07 5551 0188 or 0411 258 362 to discuss your requirements or pricing.

• Turnaround

  We work to a cycle of maximum 48 hours from receipt of a job until dispatch. If it is going to take longer we will let you know. Sometimes extremely large jobs over 2000 discs may take longer.