Authoring

At the Authoring House, Direct Corporate Design makes it affordable to achieve professional authoring, Menu Design, and Post-Production services for your CD, DVD and Blu-ray. We also make it easy to customise your release by adding options like 5.1 surround, director commentary, motion menus, custom editing, colour correction, and more. Whether you’re in the planning stages or putting the final touches on your project, we can provide the assistance and expertise you need to create a professional and functional CD, DVD or Blu-ray.

We can accept your masters on one of the following formats:

• CD-R master (16-bit/ 44.1kHz CDA format only)

• PMCD master (pre-mastered CD)

• DDP 2.0 

Handle all masters carefully, both before and after recording. Touch CD masters only by the edges and keep them free of fingerprints and scratches that can cause data errors. Make sure your master and box are labelled clearly with your contact information.

DVD Masters

Before sending in your master, test it thoroughly to make sure that it performs exactly the way you want it to. Your finished discs will be an identical copy of your master.

DVD+R or DVD-R are acceptable for replication of DVD-5 and DVD-10 discs, and can be produced on either an authoring or general drive. For DVD-9, you must supply two DLT masters or DDPs on DVD-Rs. DVD+R DL can also be used for DVD-9s DLTs and DDPs on disc are also acceptable for DVD-5 and DVD-10.

Any project requiring CSS or Macrovision copy protection must be authored as such and must be submitted on DLT or DDP on disc. All DLT masters must include DDP files.

Always use high-quality recordable (DVD-R or DVD+R) non-rewritable discs for your DVD masters. DVD-ReWritable (DVD-RW) discs should not be used for making DVD masters.

Not all DVD readers can read DVD-RW discs. This can lead to problems during replication.

Blu-ray Replication

Masters for Blu-ray replication must be submitted in Cutting Master Format (BDCMF or Sony CMF) on removable USB 2.0 hard drives formatted for Windows OR files should be submitted in Cutting Master Format (BDCMF or Sony CMF) image on BD-R: Playable BD-Rs are not acceptable for Blu-ray replication. BDMV folders submitted on BD-R (playable BD-R) can be converted to a BDCMF replication ready master for a £150 premastering fee.