FAQ:

What’s the difference between a pressed disc and a burned disc?

A CDR, or blank CD is manufactured with a layer die layer that can be alterd by ’burning’ information (music or data) with laser onto the disc. A pressed disc is molded from liquid polycarbonate plastic and your content is stamped right into the disc. That thin silver layer you see inside the disc is aluminum, and reflects the CD players laser so that the information can be processed. If you need less than 200 discs, it may be less expensive to burn (duplicate), depending on what type of packaging and label art you need, but for runs of 250 or more, pressing (replicating) is the most cost efficient way to go.



What is CMYK printing:

When your artwork is printed, it is “gang-run“, which means it will be printed with several other CD projects on one large sheet at the printers. This allows us to keep your costs much lower than what many other industries spend on custom printing.

CMYK or “process” printing is used to create that full colour look, so that each project on the sheet will be accurate and match the PDF proofs that you approved during the pre-press stage. Please note that while PDF proofing is not THE most accurate proofing mechanism in the print industry, (hard copy proofing can result in truer colour), it is the overwhelming favourite in our industry, and results in your project being retail ready a few days sooner. Please ask about hard copy proofing, if you have concerns about your design, or need to match to existing assets.




Why can’t I see a sample of my CD before I get a large run made?

The CD pressing process is a very involved process and it takes several hours in glass mastering and production time before your disc is ready to press and silkscreen. This is not the stage in your product development where you want to ‘discover’ errors or problems. The RED BOOK audio standard, which all CD technology companies follow, ensures that your disc will play properly.




I found this place that makes CD’s for a LOT less. How is that possible?

Not to be too sceptical, but you get what you pay for, and in this case, you may not be paying the royalties to the inventors of all this great technology. Phillips, Sony and several other companies own the patent rights to every CD player and disc on the planet, and they get a few pennies every time a cd or dvd is pressed. If you’re being offered ‘too good to be true’ pricing - beware. Your manufacturer may be shut down - with your assets locked inside.




What do you mean by 'COMPLETE ARTWORK'?

In order for Sonrise to use your artwork for insert printing, your design files must be complete and formatted correctly to allow for CMYK colour separations. Not all page layout programs are capable of this (see below).

Make sure that any linked images and fonts are included with your files. We're happy to update text or nudge a graphic element to keep your artwork safely with the templates, but our pre-press charges do not include the time it takes to re-build your work from incomplete or substandard files.

It is also imperative that you proofread your content - again and again. And again. Any corrections that need to be made after we process your files may result in additional charges, and more importantly a delay in the date of completion.

We do check your supplied files for technical errors to make sure they are ready for print production and if there are any significant problems, we will contact you to make the necessary changes. Our objective is to help you get the best possible final product and sometimes that means questioning the quality of the files we receive.




What Software should I use to layout my graphics?

We love:

Indesign
Illustrator 
QuarkXpress

We get nervous when we see

PHOTOSHOP

We're not big fans of:

Adobe PageMaker
CorelDRAW (see below)

We get ill when you present us with:

Microsoft Publisher
Easy CD creator
Nero
Discus
Sure Thing

Acceptable image file types:
TIFF (.tif)
EPS (.eps) - with 8-bit TIFF preview and text saved as outlines
PDF

We discourage the use of the following formats for image files:
GIF (.gif) - great for the web, but not recommended for print output
JPEG (.jpg) - ditto.




Can I re-use my website graphics for CD art?

Graphics created for the web should not be used for print work, unless your goal is to make your artwork look really bad on purpose. 
  
For commercial printing, images should be scanned at 300 dpi and remain uncompressed, in CMYK color. A CD cover, for example, might be 10 MB in size or larger.  For the Web, you want your images as small as possible for quick downloading: 72 dpi, compressed, in RGB color. Often, these files are under 100k. If you try to incorporate one of these tiny Web images in your printed work, the images will be suffer a serious case of "jaggies", and the color quality will be poor.  If you're taking your own photographs, set your camera to it's highest resolution. (camera phones are perfect – for conversing, but less than stellar as a professional graphics tool).




What's the difference between a Raster image and a Vector image?

An Image usually exists in one of two states. It will either be a raster image, that is, an image made up of a finite number of tiny pixels that have been assigned a colour value, or it will be what is known as vector art. Vector graphics are displayed on the screen as your computer interprets geometric information such as radius, x-y coordinates etc. Photographs are examples of Rastor images, while corporate logos are typically designed as vector art. 

A circle, for instance can be stored as a raster image (TIFF, JPEG) and will contain a certain number of dots that show on your screen. If you increase the size of the image, the dots become easier to see and the circle gets a serious case of the “jaggies”.

in contrast, a circle created as vector art in a program such as Adobe Illustrator has an actual radius (inches or mm) and instructions built into the graphic that help draw the shape, correctly. And in any colour you choose. If you zoom in (way in) on a vector image, the edges will remain sharp. Try creating a circle – first in Photoshop, and then Illustrator and you'll see the difference right away. 

It's important to know the difference between vector and rastor art when deciding how to incorporate the various images, logos and text elements into your design. Refer to your software manuals for more detailed information.

Or ... contact us for design help. Professionals are standing by.