What is CD Replication?

CD Replication is an industrialised manufacturing process for audio CDs, CD-ROMs, video CDs and other CD formats. As an industrial process, CD Replication is only economical as a means to manufacture larger quantities of CDs (i.e. 500 units +). The reason for this is that the set up costs of CD Replication are very high. However, the benefits of a high standard of data authenticity and extremely low unit production costs make it highly preferable to CD Duplication if the quantities are sufficient.

CD Replication Applications

CD Replication can be used for the manufacture of any type of CD content. Audio CDs, software CD-ROMs, training CDs, promotional CDs, video CDs and much more can all be reproduced with CD Replication. The result is a pressed CD, rather like the sort you would find in a high-street music retailer (all your favourite music CDs at home will have been made using CD Replication).

Replicated CDs have a silver data side, differing from their Duplicated counterparts (which are usually dyed blue or green). The data itself is not visible on the silver surface, whereas the ‘burned’ are of duplicated CDs can be seen as a slightly different shade of colour.

The CD Replication Process

CD Replication begins in the same way as CD Duplication. From your side, very little is different in that you submit your CD master in the same way. The artwork templates are sized slightly differently for CD Replication, so we have specialised templates for these. However, the rest of the process is the same as for smaller quantities.

The process pans out in the same way for each content type as CD Replication simply involves the reproduction of whatever you give us. If you were to give us a CD full of PDF files, Word documents, photos or spreadsheets, that’s what you would end up with. It is exactly the same if you send us your band’s latest album or the new internal training material – you just get professionally manufactured copies of whatever you give us.

This makes CD Replication a highly versatile and popular method of disc manufacture.

Glass Mastering for CD Replication

The first stage in the CD Replication process is the glass mastering process. Glass mastering is the process of taking your CD master (called a pre-master) and creating a mould that can be used to press the replicated CDs. In order to maintain data integrity, the data is extracted from your pre-master and printed onto a large glass disc. From this disc an aluminium ‘stamper’ is made and this is what is used to press the replicated discs.

The glass mastering process, along with the film creation and output for the artwork, is where most of the set up costs of CD Replication lie. This process uses precision instruments to create the end product and cannot be done cheaply.

CD Replication Data Quality

The data integrity of CDs manufactured during the CD Replication process is higher than that achieved during CD Duplication. Not only that, but CDs made using CD Replication are much more resilient to damage: they less susceptible to degradation from scratching, sunlight, moisture and grease. They are designed to last much longer and are also compatible with a wider range of CD players, including old models from the 1980s!

CD Duplication has made great strides to match the quality of CD Replication, but the CD Replication process is still superior.

How long does it take to do a CD Replication job?

Once the artwork has been correctly set up and approved, and once the master has been received at our end (along with all other required documents), it usually takes anything from 10-15 working days (2-3 weeks) to complete a CD Replication job.

Turnaround time for CD Replication can vary considerably depending on seasonal variations in demand and public holidays. Always allow much more time than you think you need as seemingly simple processes like setting up the artwork or ironing out any copyright issues can take several weeks.