WTS - CD/DVD Duplicator Review
By Brad Herring
As originally published in the October Edition of Technologies for Worship Magazine
I recently got my hands on an 11 bay tower duplicator from WTS Media. The unit that I reviewed was the “WTS Autostart DVD 11”. This is one of WTS’s own products. As you might guess from the name, it duplicates CD’s and DVD’s.
Normally, when I receive a product I sit down and read the manual from front to back – while this isn’t my normal routine for my own purchases, it only seems fair in a review. However, when I opened the package, I must admit I skipped the manual reading. It just looked too simple – and indeed it was.
This is a direct copy machine. What I mean by that is that you place the original CD or DVD in the top tray and your blank media in the trays beneath it. The machine will then copy from the original to all of your blank media. There is no hard drive used on this particular machine – it does require an original CD or DVD to be used with each run. (WTS does offer units with a hard drive feature if needed).
To begin with, I inserted a DVD-R in the top drive, slid my finger down along the row of the eject buttons, and watched with a smile on my face as the drawers began to quickly slide out in response. I inserted my blank DVD-R’s and pushed each tray back into the unit. Suddenly, I noticed the unit began to whirl and recognize each drive. When I inserted the last DVD, it figured out that I was ready to copy and automatically began the process! A few minutes later, 11 trays pop open – no failures. To quote a rather well known TV commercial – “THAT WAS EASY”.
So for my next test I chose to only copy 4 CD’s. I inserted the original CD plus four blank CD-R’s. There is a big green “PLAY” button just waiting to be pushed – so I did. That old faithful whirling sound began, and the copying process started. Again, a few minutes later – out pop the CD’s. Four copied – no failures. What a country.
I did everything I could think of to make this unit fail – but it never did. I left it on for extended periods (looking for an overheat) – no problems. I did long-run duplications (again looking for glitches) – again, no problems.
I kept looking for a reason to call tech support as I often like to do for reviews. But I had no reason to call. The unit was seemingly idiot-proof. It set up easily, is completely self contained, and worked as expected.
In fairness, I did go back and read the manual, but there was nothing there that I didn’t figure out on my own within minutes of turning the machine on.
WTS has nailed this – even down to the aesthetics of the unit. It’s sleek black case is outlined with a chrome looking finish, the buttons are neat and well backlit. What more could you want?
With each copy the unit automatically did a verification of each disc. If there is a problem it lets you know by not automatically opening the tray when the duplication is complete – it also tells you on the LCD readout. Now, I am having to take the manuals word on this as I never had a failure in all of my testing – but I can attest to the LCD telling me there are no failures and each tray opening as expected at the end of each copy session.
If you need quick CD or DVD duplication and don’t need to store multiple images on a hard drive for reference, this unit is a home-run. To sum up my feelings, I hated to finish the review, knowing I would have to return the duplicator soon after. It’s a workhorse that’s both reliable and fast.
For more information on this unit, call WTS at: 1-888-987-8273 or visit their website: www.WTSmedia.com.
Re-printed with permission.
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