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A
Closer Look
First
impressions when I pulled the DC 300 from the box
was that it seemed unnecessarily big but when you
look at how tight the CD carousel packs the slots
it's not really feasible to reduce the dimensions
easily. Remember we're talking about 150 CDs here,
that's some stash!
As
you can see from the front, some thought has gone
into the styling of the DC300. It would have been
so easy to throw the storage mechanism in a boring,
rectangular box with a slot cut in the front but instead
we have a stylish, curvy, black and beige unit with
barely a straight line in site. Office or home the
DC300 should fit right in.
Front
View
The
back of the DC 300 boasts three connectors, an A-type
USB port, a B-type USB port and the power connector.
These are all recessed to make damaging them less
likely.
Back
View
The
main feature on the top is the round window. This
is removable though I'm guessing the only time you'd
need to is to help free a jammed disk or something
similar. We can see that the fit and finish of the
case is good with no seams or badly aligned sections,
at least not in my sample.
Top
View
The
bottom bares the indents, recesses and moldings that
go to form the internal mechanism and eletronics mounting
points. There are also four rubber feet to help keep
the unit secure and to no doubt reduce transmitted
noise levels when stood on a hard surface. Although
the USB standard allows you to connect up to 127 CD
libraries DACAL suggest you stack them no more than
three high.
Bottom
View
Like
the round top window the front sliding cover is manufactured
from very dark plastic. Not only does this help to
keep dust out it also keeps light out which is handy
because not only will the UV component of bright,
direct light eventually damage the reflective foil
on a CD and the dye on a CD-R/RW, it will also fade
your hand written labels. When the sliding cover is
closed the carousel will rotate to the requested slot
but it won't try to eject the disk and for added security
the cover can be locked in the closed position essentially
disabling the eject procedure. I use the term "added
security" in its loosest sense because although
you get two keys with which to operate the lock you
don't exactly need to be a member of the master guild
of locksmiths to get the barrel to turn, in fact pretty
much anything flat enough to push into the slot will
do. Think primitive deterrent rather than security
feature.
Front
Cover, lock and Arm
That
surfboard shaped thing in front of the sliding cover
folds down to catch the ejected disk and allow you
to get a hold of the edge or to place a finger through
the center hole for picking it up. This is a great
idea but I kind of wish it felt a little more sturdy
than it does. The entire disk ejection procedure is
automated and the disk is presented to you as below.
An
Ejected Disk
The
good news is you don't even need to own a computer
to benefit from the DC300. If you know the location
of the disk you want or if you've logged it in the
management booklet then you can key in the number
directly using the front mounted keypad and press
enter. There's also a recessed reset button that re-calibrates
the carousel should it need it. The keys themselves
are rubber and the action feels positive.
Above the keypad is a three digit, seven segment green
LED status panel.
Keypad
and Status LED Panel
Taking
a glance in through the top window reveals how simple
the electronics involved are. Positional sensing is
carried out with a photo interruptor unit that feeds
a signal to the motor which in turn rotates the carousel
using a belt drive mechanism. Although belt drives
aren't always as reliable as direct drive it should
rule out any serious damage if something manages to
jam things solid.
Internally
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