See also: CD LP Albums
CD DVD DigiBooks with Trays
CD DVD DigiBooks with Hubs
CD DVD DigiBooks with Sleeves
Fabric Wrapped CD DVD Books
Double Disc CD DVD DigiBooks

CD Books are usually requested in a 5inch height to go along with the 5inch tray. We can of course make it any way you'd like! Here are some examples of cd books with clear, plastic 5inch trays:

DVD Books are usually requested in a taller, 7.5inch height and we use the clear dvd trays. Of course any variations are possible!

Paper Trays are eco - friendly substitute for plastic tray. They are 100% recycled paper stock with a cork hub. They look like this:Trays are a very popular option for folding the disc. You can choose from the following types:
Clear Plastic or Solid Color
Clear Plastic: 5", 7", 7" Dbl disc ...and you can use two 5" trays to make a 10"
Paper Trays: 5" only, 100% recycled paper cork hub
Foam Tray: awesome for creating a well for the disc or a usb, custom made in any size

Paper Trays
A variation on the plastic tray is the Natural Paper Tray. Paper trays are made from 100% recycled paper and have a cork hub. It's a very earthy look:

Foam trays are a fun way to hold discs and we can create a custom size package. Black is a popular option but we can also apply a printed wrap over it. Check these out:

Keep in mind that everything we do is custom built. There are no pre-existing units sitting on a shelf, waiting to printeries doesn't work that way. These are manufactured to your spec so you can change most features. But, the "classic" hardbound book has a few basic features:

• Thick Chipboard Core
  The cover is a lot heavier than the cover on a paperback or a jacket. We use a thick chipboard core. Construction can be one pice or three piece depending on the other features and wrap material. Thickness can be 390gsm, 24oz or 32 oz.. It all has to work together!
  
• Inner Pages / Booklet
  The inner pages can be flush with the book or smaller. They can be stapled and attached to the spine, or glued to a panel. They can also be part of the sleeve mechanism, If you have enough inner pages, you can do a perfect bound book so the booklet has a spine. You need at least 28pp to have a perfect bound book.
• 
  Outer Wrap
  The outside material that covers the chipboard can be a paper wrap (120gsm) printed 4C with a matte or gloss lamination, kraft paper, uncoated paper, or fabric. Fabrics come in many different types and textures. Linen, leatherette, hemp, etc etc etc. Printing on fabric can be silkscreening, metallic inks or foils depending on how well the fabric can take the print.
  
  Holding the Disc
  Lots of options here:
  Trays, plastic or paper
  Hub, foam or cork.
  Sleeves, glued or swinging.
  LP style Pockets
  
  Dimensions
  Don't they vary! As a very general rule, cd books are about 5inch and dvd books are about 7.5 inch.
  

Simulated Bookbinding is a good alternative approach if the budget will not allow for actual bookbinding. Actual bookbinding uses a chipboard core which is very rigid and a 4C wrap is glued to it. An alternative is to use a heavy stock (18pt or 21pt) and make double wall panels. The main art for all inside and outside panels is printed onto one side of the stock, then, after die cutting, the cover is made by folding panels over and gluing, resulting in double thickness panels (aka: DOUBLE-WALL CONSTRUCTION). Of course, with this method, you can use the double thickness to create disc pockets, or (as in the case of the plum colored example below) a clever way to hold the book in place you still allow it to be removed. If you want to, you can put the inside border that looks like the 4C wrap into your art, like our "Natural Sound of Japan" project!

We can do your CD or DVD book with binding cloth and make you a stellar "Limited Edition" release. Printing on binding cloth or binding paper is a lot different from printing on standard paper. Ink is generally silk screened, rather than offset printed, so solid-color designs are generally recommended over art containing halftones.

The inks available include the Pantone™ metallics, or you can even choose hot foil stamping!

binding paper and cloth samples:
fabric, leatherette, and patterned styles

Check out our Fabric Wrapped CD / DVD Book Page!

Fabric wrapped hard bound book packaging can give your release just what it needs to get the attention it deserves! (Fabric can also be printed on)

Saddle stitch is the traditional way to create booklets for disc packaging. Basically, saddle stitch means "stapled". Typical page count for saddle stitch is 8 to 24 panels*, but twice that is not uncommon. The page count for saddle stitch almost always includes the covers. If the cover needs to be a different stock, the inner pages can be run separately. Most of our booklets are full color throughout, including Pantones, although black-only is an option, too.

Perfect binding is the process of creating books by gluing a block of pages at the spine, which gives a square back. As any reader of Dune on paperback can confirm, a perfect bound book can have a nearly unlimited number of pages, but for CD and DVD projects, the higher-end page count is 100 to 200 panels. As an entry point, we'll say 40 panels and up make a good thickness for this type of construction. It gives a square spine and has at least a bit of bulk to it. Page count for perfect-bound books excludes the covers, as the covers are made from heavier stock and provide the spine.
*Note: "Panel" or "Page" both refer to one side of a printed sheet. A single print spread will typically contain 4 panels.

See more examples at our Perfect Bound Book and Spiral Notebook Page

You can also do some fun things like die cuts and embossing - check this book out, done on a cloth cover:


Here's a sample sheet we have from our foil manufacturer:

.

Foam hubs are a great way to mount your disc, showing it off in its full glory. Hubs can stick on any surface and are available in black or white. We can also do clear gel hubs. Hubs are great alternative to plastic trays.


Cork hubs are another option:



Pockets are a popular way to hold the discs in many types of CD and DVD packaging, since the standard jacket construction style inherently gives you both sides of a pocket. Pockets in a book package are generally up-facing or out-facing. The out-facing pocket style is also very popular in LP disc packaging / cd albums.