jprestondavid's Full Review: Primera Technology Bravo II DVD Duplicator DVD±R B...
What It Is
The Bravo II is a robotic DVD burner and printer. Using the accompanying PC software, it burns data onto blank DVD-R and DVD-RW media and prints full-color high-resolution ink-jet images onto the disc label (provided that the blank discs are ink-jet printable). What makes the Bravo II unique is its robotic behavior. The user simply places up to 50 blank discs into this machine and starts a duplication "job". The unit will robotically move the discs from stack to burner to printer to stack. The Bravo II only contains one DVD burner (a Pioneer DVR-A07 with special firmware), therefore it duplicates discs in "serial" fashion - one at a time. It can, however, print and burn simultaneously.
Solid and Stable
I've been using the Bravo II for about 4 months. I've probably burned and printed 300 DVDs and 100 CDs on this machine. Until last month (more on that later), I had only created one "coaster", and I believe that was my own fault...I had some other high priority application running and the burn crashed. That's right...one coaster in 400 burn cycles.
First Impressions
When I pulled the Bravo II from its box, I realized that all of the pictures that I'd seen of this device online had deceived me. It it somewhat heavier than I expected. The plastic outer shell is just that, covering an all-metal inner chassis.
The unit comes packed in custom foam rails, and the printhead/robot arm is held in place by a custom die-cut cardboard sheet. Once it was clear of all packaging, I installed the included ink cartridges and plugged in the AC power adapter. I did NOT plug the printer into the USB port of my computer!! Instructions clearly indicate that the printer driver should be installed on the computer prior to connecting it to the Bravo II. I placed the included CD into my computer and went through the install procedures for both the printer driver and the accompanying PC software (PrimoDVD by Sonic). Once that was complete, I went ahead and checked the Primera web-site for updates to the printer driver and PrimoDVD...both were available, and I updated them both. I plugged in the USB port and turned the printer on. Windows XP Pro recognized the printer and loaded the driver without issue.
One other thing to mention here...this device is somewhat deeper than I envisioned. It's rounded shape also precludes the ability to set objects on top of it (probably a good thing). I mention all of this to those to whom desk space is precious. I would advise checking the mechanical specifications to make sure it will fit where you intend to put it.
There are a couple of printhead alignment procedures to go through to finish off the setup. One is done to calculate the offsets for the color and black printheads. The other calibrates the printer to the center of the disc. Once these operations are done, the offset values are entered into the calibration dialog. Note that these values are stored in the host computer, not in the printer. These values should be recorded somewhere so that if the device is used on another computer, they can be entered without having to ruin another blank disc. I placed them on a card and taped them to the back of the unit.
A Closer Look
As I'm sure you can see by the picture above, the unit is equipped with a hinged smoked-plastic cover. There are disc storage stacks for up to 25 discs on each side of the machine, and the burner and printer are in the center of the device, the printer on top of the burner. In "normal" mode, blank discs are placed in the "right" stack, picked up by the robotics and placed into the burner, burned, then picked up from the burner and placed into the printer, printed, then picked up from the printer and placed on the left stack. If a problem occurs during the burn process (coaster), the unit can be configured to print "REJECT" on the disc. Rejects are dropped and slide out from the center of the device. If multiple discs are to be processed, the software can be configured to burn and print simultaneously.
The unit is equipped with an optical sensor that inhibits robotic motions when the cover is open. The top surface of the cover is textured, which makes it impossible to see what's going on under it. The "front" surface of the cover is clear, so if you are sitting down right in front of the machine, you can see it operating. The cover sensor is easily defeated using a small scrap of paper taped to the right place (for the more adventurous). One would expect the robotics to freeze in place when the cover was opened. That is not the case...the printhead/pickup device is typically "parked" over the right stack. Whenever the cover is opened, the arm is moved to the center. I assume this is to clear the path for blanks to be loaded. To me, it doesn't feel right that the arm should move when the cover is opened.
Primera makes and sells a "kiosk" mode attachment. This device is essentially a small piece of sheet metal bent to the appropriate dimensions, and a plastic stack housing that holds up to 50 discs. This device can be placed in front of the "reject" tray and the software can be placed in a "kiosk" mode to allow both internal stacks to be used as blank discs storage. This gives the Bravo II the ability to burn up to 50 discs in one session without any user intervention. I purchased this device, but if I had known how simple it was, I would have improvised and made one myself.
The Software
Included in the Bravo package is a custom build of Sonic's PrimoDVD. I've used the general market version of that program and I've found it to be one of the better programs for burning and copying DVD material. Code has been added to the general market version of PrimoDVD to support the robotics and the print engine on the Bravo II.
PrimoDVD is a "job-based" program that allows creation of audio discs, data discs, disc-to-disc copying, and creation of discs from a "global image". If you own CD or DVD burners other than the one in the Bravo II, they are supported by PrimoDVD, also. Jobs can be configured and saved, so that they can be rerun later. Jobs can also be sequenced (do 10 of these, then 10 of those, etc.).
Also included with the Bravo II package is a program called "SureThing" that provides the only means to create disc label graphics. I find SureThing a bit cumbersome, so I typically create the graphics in Photoshop and import the finished work into SureThing. SureThing creates an .STD file that must be referenced in PrimoDVD. If the job consists of only burning and not printing, a check box can be cleared to disable printing. If you need to print and not burn, printing can be done from within SureThing.
Problems
They've been few. I've had a couple of instances where the pickup mechanism picked up two discs. Fortunately the burner is smart enough to recognize that, and it opens and halts. I've found that some blanks have a tendency to stick together, and I now make sure that I've separated them completely before placing them in the blank stack.
Last month I bought a Sansui set-top DVD burner. It apparently creates two "sessions" on the disc upon finalization, and the Bravo cannot seem to duplicate them. I'm currently in contact with Primera tech support over this. They say (and I agree) that it is an issue with the burn engine in PrimoDVD. I'm hoping to have a beta version to fix it this week...I'll update this if I get it. This problem has generated a lot of coasters.
Incidently, I've found Primera tech support to be quite accessible, knowledgable and friendly.
Ink Usage
I've found that color ink cartridges last for about 200 to 250 discs (obviously your mileage will vary based on color coverage). Each cartridge costs $37. I suppose I shouldn't complain, that's about 20 cents per print.
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