Making a Music DVD

A Music DVD can be played in a set-top DVD player or in a Macintosh or a Windows computer with a DVD player. A Music DVD should not be confused with a DVD-Audio disc. DVD-Audio discs require a special DVD player. A Music DVD is a standard DVD that contains music (and can also contain photo slideshows and videos), has full navigation menus for song selection, and can be played in any set-top DVD player.

A standard Music DVD can contain over 50 hours of music with Dolby Digital sound. If your recorder supports dual-layer recordable DVDs, you can create a Music DVD with over 100 hours of music.

To make a Music DVD:

1At the left side of the Toast window, click Audio and choose Music DVD.

2Choose optional disc settings:

Menu Style: Choose the style for the menu background image, text and buttons.

Auto-play disc on insert: Select this option to automatically play the first playlist when this disc is inserted into a DVD player. The DVD main menu is not displayed, but is accessible by choosing the MENU button on the DVD player remote control. Some players may not support Auto-Play.

Play all items continuously: Select this option to automatically play each playlist on the DVD without first returning to the DVD main menu.

Include Shuffle play: Select this option to include a Shuffle button for each playlist and SmartList in the DVD menu. Clicking the Shuffle button when playing this DVD will play the tracks in a random order.

Include SmartLists: Select this option to include SmartLists in the DVD menu. SmartLists are automatically generated playlists for all Artists, Albums and Songs on the DVD.

I am guessing that the claim of 50 hours on a single layer disc, and 100 hours on a dual layer disc is subject to the actual number tracks individually identified in the disc structure. Since this format uses the traditional DVD file structure as a a traditional DVD to make it compatible with standard DVD players, it is supposed to be limited to a maximum of 99 tracks - typically associated with chapter markers on DVDs, and theoretically 99 songs on a Music DVD, making each song its own track (or chapter). But that is just a guess. I am not actually certain that this limitation is imposed in a Music DVD.

-Jon 12/9/11