Alternative to Nero?

[elanvital]

Does anybody know a decent alternative to the Nero Express Suite? I need to be able to burn CDs, DVDs, data DVDs, etc. Plus I need to print litescribe labels. I really loved Nero, but since I reformatted my hard drive I decided not to load Nero to avoid further memory issues.

Thanks,

Bobby

[nicolasroy]

Hi, Alcohol 120% is a decent alternative to Nero.

http://www.alcohol-soft.com/

Nicolas

[Crossingsound]

I use toast on a mac, not sure if there is a windows version or equivalent. Toast is simple and reliable

[Jaybee]

CD Architect for Windows

[Exodus Studios]

Bobby,

If you're wanting to retain the ability to "do everything" CD/DVD related, then you'll be hard-pressed to find a better program than Nero. It's always been the program I reach for first, and if you set it up properly it's no problem at all.

Alcohol 120% has certainly evolved into a great program, though I would personally prefer to use Nero (as it's what I'm most accustomed to, and because it has always been geared towards being an "all-purpose" burning program). Alcohol (in the past) did a better job with CD-to-CD or DVD-to-DVD backups over Nero, but I think that Alcohol has grown out of the ol 'trader-Joe' design it was known for, and has tried to establish itself as a 'legitimate' CD/DVD burning suite (history: it's original claim-to-fame was that it let you make backups of 99% of the Games & DVD's out at the time). Today, however, it is an honest & legitimate program that is legally bound (like Nero) to restrict it's CD/DVD copy ability (for example, it isn't allowed to backup anything that has CSS protection on it), which I believe puts it back on the same level with Nero. Both Nero & Alcohol are comperable CD/DVD burning solutions, but I have always felt that Nero let you have a greater degree of control with your burning than in Alcohol, and it's what I'm most familar with. But that's mostly MY opinion!

Jaybee's suggestion about CD Architect is great except that I would only suggest it for making Redbook audio CD's (since that's what it's main objective has always been). Verison 5.2+ is really nice & easy to use, and Sony even makes a DVD Architect software that's great for creating professionally formatted DVD's. Still, these two products are mostly for professional use, and not really for making backups of your data, mp3s, pictures, etc. (I frequently use CD Architect for making mix-CD's since it's so easy to use!)

So to make a long-story short, if you can make Nero work on your machine (and I'm talking about Nero 6.0 or greater), you can't go wrong. Make sure you keep the program up-to-date, just like you would any of your sampler/sequencers. If you're still against using Nero (all hail Caesar!), Alcohol 120% is a solid alternative.

Cheers!
~Ben~

PS. Toast on Mac is the only choice I'm familiar with, and I seem to hear nothing but good things about it.

[kitekrazy]

IF you want a less bloated alternative to Roxio or Nero there.s Ashampoo Burning Studio. Burning Studio 6 is $19.99. Eventually they'll send you a link to upgrade to 7 for $9.99.

[fizbin]

The free Nero Essentials that comes bundled with nearly every DVD burner you buy has been excellent for me.

[belbin]

My HP DVD burner came with "Sonic Record Now!". Doesn't appear able to do any fancy stuff, but never gives me a problem, and all I do with it is data backup and transfer. Serves me just fine.

Best,
Belbin