DIY: Disc Maker
To burn several CDs at once, you need some type of disk duplicator. These are machines that allow you to insert several disks and burn them all at once. These machines can be expensive, if you buy one at retail price. You can, however, build your own inexpensive disk maker from an old computer tower and several DVD/CD writing devices. Once you assemble all the computer devices, you only need to install CD burning software that can burn more than one CD or DVD at a time.
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Things You'll Need
- Old computer tower
- 3 to 5 DVD/CD write devices
- Phillips screwdriver
- Data cables
- DVD burning software
Instructions
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Place an old working tower computer with at least three upper CD/DVD expansion slots on your work table. Identify the expansion slots in the upper front of the tower. These are the slots in the upper part of the computer where a CD or DVD device slides in. In most cases, unused expansion slots are covered with plastic inserts.
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Connect the tower to a display and turn it on to make sure it is working. The only parts the tower must have are a working operating system with at least a 40 to 60 gigabyte hard drive.
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Buy three to five DVD/CD rewrite devices. You need as many rewrite devices as there are expansion slots on the tower.
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Disconnect the tower computer from the power outlet and unplug any other cables running from the back of it. Turn it so the back is facing you. Remove the screws holding the right metal tower cover in place. Slide the cover back toward you and remove it from the computer.
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Turn the tower so the front faces you and slide each of the new CD,DVD devices into an expansion slot. Pop out the plastic cover from the inside of the expansion slot if necessary to insert the device. These pop out simply by pressing them out with your finger or a Phillips screwdriver.
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Align the data cable connector cables with the connector on the back of the DVD/CD device. Connect each cable connector to the pin connectors on the back of the DVD/CD device. Press firmly along the connector edge to ensure a tight connection.
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Connect the other end of the cable to the corresponding connector on the motherboard. This connector will sit next to the hard drive data cable connector. Locate it by following the hard drive cable to the connector on the motherboard and looking for an additional connector next to it.
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Replace the computer cover you removed and reconnect the computer to the power outlet. Connect the display, keyboard and mouse so you can use the computer.
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Turn the computer on and install a DVD burning software like Nero, BurnAware or Roxio EZ CD creator to the computer. These programs have the capability of burning multiple disks on multiple drives.
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Open the program and drag and drop the files you want to burn in the center window, or choose the copy CD option if you want to copy the CD. Locate and select the multiple drive option to burn all the DVDs or CDs at once. Press the “Burn” button to start the process. Expect the burn process to take as long as an hour or two, depending on the file format you are burning.
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References
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