Disc Makers ElitePro User manual

Getting Started Guide
Instructions to get your ElitePRO duplicator
set up, powered, and running
Setting up the equipment
The ElitePRO duplicator has been engineered for easy setup and simple use. Fol-
low the instructions in this guide to start using the equipment quickly. The proce-
dures take you through the steps necessary to connect the duplicator to a monitor,
cable the components together, prepare the printer for use, run the FlexWare dupli-
cation software for the first time, and perform a simple disc copy and print opera-
tion. Once you have completed the steps in this guide, refer to the Elite Series User
Guide for more information about using your duplicator.
Choosing a setup location
Set up the duplicator on a sturdy, vibration-free work surface away from sources of
airborne contaminants and strong electromagnetic fields. The duplicator should
also be set up away from direct sunlight or very strong artificial light; the optical
sensors inside the unit may not operate properly if ambient light levels are too high.
For consistent duplication results, whether attended or unattended, we strongly
recommend the use of an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) for isolating the
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2 ElitePRO Getting Started Guide
duplication system and printer from the effects of AC power fl uctuations or brief
power outages. An AC power strip with line fi ltering and surge protection offers
some protection if you do not use a UPS device.
Connecting the keyboard, mouse, and monitor
1 Unscrew the knob on the access door directly beneath the printer and pull it
open to expose the connectors for the keyboard, mouse, and monitor. The
ElitePRO 2 can be used with a standard LCD or analog CRT monitor with a 15-
pin VGA connector.
2 Push the individual cables for the keyboard, mouse, and monitor through the
opening on the left side of the duplicator cabinet, as shown in the fi gure, to
where you can reach them through the access door.
3 Plug each cable into its corresponding connector. The symbols next to the con-
nectors indicate the monitor, mouse, and keyboard cable placement. Secure
the monitor cable by tightening the two screws on either side of the connector
until snug.
Monitor connector
Keyboard connector
Mouse connector
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ElitePRO Getting Started Guide 3
4 Close the access door and secure the screw that holds it in place.
Note: After connecting the power cables, as described in the following steps, do
not power up the system until you have completed the procedure in the next sec-
tion, titled Preparing the printer.
5 At the back of the duplicator cabinet, connect the AC power cord to the unit.
Connect the other end to a UPS device, AC power strip, or AC wall outlet.
6 Connect the AC power adapter for the printer to the AC power cord. Plug one
end into the printer DC input connector and the other end into a UPS device,
AC power strip, or AC wall outlet.
7 Ensure that the cable that emerges from the middle of the duplicator cabinet
and connects to the Printer Control port is securely attached.
8 Connect the USB cable from the USB to Printer connector on the back of the
cabinet to the USB connector on the back of the printer enclosure (directly
above the printer power input).
Preparing the printer
The self-contained printer included with the ElitePRO duplicator features its own
power supply and individual controls. Before using the printer or the duplicator,
install the two print cartridges provided as described in the following sections.
Printer Control
Printer USB
AC Power Connector
Duplicator Power
Printer DC Input
USB to Printer
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4 ElitePRO Getting Started Guide
Powering on the printer
1 Check to ensure that the AC adapter at the back of the printer is connected to
the printer power input and a power source.
2 Press the upper button with the power symbol on the printer cabinet. The
green and amber lights cycle for a moment as the printer starts.
3 Once the green light beside the printer power button is illuminated, follow the
procedure in the next section to install the print cartridges.
Installing printer cartridges
The ElitePRO duplicator includes two print cartridges: one black and one color.
Do not unwrap the cartridges until you are ready to load them into the printer.
When you do unwrap them, handle them only by the edges and do not touch the
ink nozzles or metal contacts. The cartridges are color coded for easy loading, as
described in the following installation procedure.
1 Open the cover of the printer cabinet. The print cartridge assembly positions
itself in the center of rail for easy access.
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ElitePRO Getting Started Guide 5
2 Open the latch on the left cartridge holder, labeled 57, by pushing upward on
it.
3 Unwrap the color cartridge, remove the tape from the ink nozzles, and insert the
cartridge into the holder. The cartridge should slide easily into place—you do
not need to force it.
4 Lower the latch and snap it into place to secure the cartridge.
5 Repeat this same procedure for the black cartridge that inserts into the right
cartridge holder.
6 Close the printer cover when both cartridges are securely installed in their hold-
ers. The printer goes through a brief sequence to prepare the cartridges for
printing.
Note: You can test the operation of the printer during the procedure described in
the section titled Operating the duplicator.
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6 ElitePRO Getting Started Guide
Powering on the equipment
1 With all cables securely connected and the monitor attached and powered on,
press the power switch on the back of the duplicator cabinet to the “1” posi-
tion.
2 Press the power switch on the left side of the cabinet once. The system fan
starts spinning, the green and amber activity lights illuminate on the face of the
cabinet, and the startup screen appears on the monitor, as shown in the figure.
3 If the system does not start up as described or the initial screen shown does not
appear on the monitor, refer to the section in the Elite Series User Guide titled
Troubleshooting FAQ.
Operating the duplicator
To help you get started duplicating discs, this section guides you through the initial
use of FlexWare, setting up a copy operation with a built-in wizard, including the
printing of a disc label. First, place two blank discs on the input spindle. Then,
select a non-copy protected CD to use as a master in this procedure and place it
on top of the blank discs on the input spindle. We recommend using a master disc
with a minimal number of small files so that the test will run more quickly.
Before starting, be sure that you have completed the earlier procedures in this
guide for connecting the cables, setting up the printer, and powering up the dupli-
cator.
Starting FlexWare
1 When you first power on the ElitePRO duplicator, the Windows startup screen
displays a small FlexWare shortcut icon in the upper left just below the My
Computer icon. Double click the FlexWare icon to start the program.
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ElitePRO Getting Started Guide 7
The main menu window appears.
2 You can view the various program options by positioning the cursor over each
item. FlexWare then displays the available functions for each selection.
3 Position the cursor over Duplicate and Print Discs. The program displays the
available selections to the left.
4 Click Duplicate Disc from Disc. FlexWare displays the application window that
supports this task.
5 Click the Wizard link just below the menu bar to initiate the step-by-step wizard
for duplicating disc from disc, as described in the next section.
Running the wizard
The self-guided wizard helps you through each of the steps involved in this duplica-
tion task. You can, of course, use settings of your own as you work through the
screens of the wizard, but to simplify the operation, we suggest using these values:
• Source: default drive
• Read speed: Auto
• Write speed: Auto
• Number of discs: 2
• Create new print file: selected
When you click Next from the Create new print file option, FlexWare launches
Discus, described in the next section, to produce an image for printing on the blank
disc.
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8 ElitePRO Getting Started Guide
Setting up labels
The Discus program included with the ElitePRO duplicator provides an intuitive
way to create visually appealing labels for printable surface discs. Discus lets you
either print labels individually, directly to the disc printer, or create disc images
that can be used in automated duplication operations. The following sequence
demonstrates how to create a label image that can then be used in the Disc to Disc
Duplication task.
1 As you start Discus from the previous wizard, the New Projects window appears.
Select the CD/DVD option to continue.
2 Discus displays a panel with five tabs—Canvas, Paint, Photo, Text, and Print—
that control different aspects of the label creation. Select a background for your
disc image from the choices on the Canvas panel.
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ElitePRO Getting Started Guide 9
3 Click the Text tab to display the options for adding text to the image. Click New
to open an entry box for typing in the text. You can then use the text formatting
options to change colors, fonts, placement, and orientation of the text.
4 Click the Print tab to display the printer settings and label options. These
selections let you determine precisely the region on the disc where printing
takes place. For Disc Makers media, the Outer diameter of the print region, as
controlled by the upper slider, should be set to 117 mm, as shown in the figure.
5 Confirm that the selected template, shown just below the tabs, is set to Disc
Makers Autograph VII. If not, use the Select Template button to change the
template.
6 Click the Print button. The Windows Print dialog box appears. You can fine tune
the quality settings and other options by clicking the Preferences button, but for
this exercise, default settings are fine.
7 Confirm that the Disc Printer is selected. Select the Print to file option in the
dialog box to direct the print output to an image file that FlexWare can use.
8 Click Print. The Print to File dialog box appears.
9 Type the filename and destination—c:\output.prn—into the Output File Name
entry box. Click OK to confirm the entry and start the printing process. An im-
age file will be created with the name output.prn. If an existing output.prn file is
stored in the default location, Windows will ask if you want to overwrite it.
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10 ElitePRO Getting Started Guide
10 Minimize Discus to return to the Disc from Disc Duplication wizard. The wizard
displays a selection box that allows you to choose the output.prn file as the
source for the automated duplication and printing task. Once this image file has
been selected, click Next to continue the procedure.
Note: Additional information on creating label images is included in the Elite Series
User Guide and the Discus User Guide, which can be accessed through the Discus
help system.
Duplicating discs for the first time
At the completion of the wizard, FlexWare returns to the main application window
with all the appropriate settings established.
1 To start the duplication operation, first check to see if you have a master CD in
the input spindle with two blank CDs underneath it.
2 Click the Play button in the center of the window. The ElitePRO duplicator pick
arm rotates to the input spindle, lowers to pick up the master disc, extracts the
master disc, and places it in the upper disc recorder. FlexWare then proceeds to
make a temporary image from this master to use during the copy operation.
3 Once the image is made, FlexWare unloads the master and places it on the
output spindle. The program then proceeds to load each of the blank discs
and copy the image to them. Each of the copied discs is then loaded into the
printer and the selected image is printed on the disc surface.
4 The operation ends when FlexWare unloads the completed discs onto the out-
put spindle.
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ElitePRO Getting Started Guide 11
Note: If these operations do not proceed as described, check the Problem Solving
section or the Troubleshooting FAQ for suggestions as to how to proceed.
Problem Solving
Refer to this list of common problems if you have trouble getting through this
Getting Started Guide. You can also consult the Troubleshooting FAQ in the User
Guide for additional information or use any of the support options listed at the end
of this guide.
Solving common problems
The duplicator won’t power on.
The ElitePRO duplicator has two power switches—a master switch on the back of
the cabinet next to the AC power cord input and a power switch on the left side of
the cabintet. Ensure the master switch is in the On position (1) before pressing the
power switch on the left side of the cabinet.
The duplicator drops discs or won’t pick them up from the spindles or trays.
Sometimes the alignment of the duplicator pick arm is affected during shipping. To
ensure that the pick arm is properly set up to move discs from point to point, refer
to the procedure titled Setting positions in the User Guide.
The duplicator repeatedly rejects the blank discs that I’m trying to use in copy
operations.
Make sure that you’re using recordable CD discs with a CD master and record-
able DVD discs with a DVD master. Also, the quality of the media and the selected
recording speed can affect the rejection rate. Try using higher quality media (such
as Disc Makers recordable discs) or setting the maximum recording speed lower
during copy operations.
The duplicator robotics will not complete operations as directed and sometimes
the movements of the pick arm are erratic.
The optical sensors contained in the duplicator can be affected by very strong
light—either direct sunlight or strong artificial light. Try moving the unit to a loca-
tion that is not as bright to see if this resolves the problem.
When I try to run FlexWare, a message appears saying that the Autoloader has not
been detected and the software won’t start.
FlexWare must be able to recognize the Autoloader each time the program starts.
Check to make sure that all cables are properly connected and restart the system. If
this doesn’t work, try reinstalling the software from the FlexWare installation disc.
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12 ElitePRO Getting Started Guide
Getting additional help
Each Elite series duplicator includes a variety of technical support options that are
available as long as you own the equipment.
• Many common problems can be resolved quickly by consulting the
Troubleshooting FAQ in the User Guide. Try this option first if you encounter
difficulties.
• You can access details about software upgrades, updated product information,
and other helpful owner information at www.dmelite.com.
• For prompt technical support by email, refer your queries to
[email protected].
Toll-free technical support can be obtained from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern time
Monday through Friday. Call 1-888-800-4041 for telephone support on any duplica-
tor-related issues.
Copyright and contact details
This document and related materials are provided “as is” with no warranties, ex-
press or implied, including but not limited to any implied warranty or merchantabil-
ity, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement of intellectual property rights,
or any warranty otherwise arising out of any proposal, specification, or sample. Disc
Makers assumes no responsibility for any errors contained in this document and has
no liabilities or obligations for any damages arising from or in connection with the
use of this document.
Elite and ElitePRO are trademarks of Disc Makers.
*Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.
Disc Makers®
7905 North Route 130
Pennsauken, NJ 08110-1402
1-888-800-4041 (Toll-free)
1-856-661-3457 (Fax)
www.discmakers.com
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