Digipack 8P (three-fold)

The figure before the letter P is the number of printed board surfaces, not the number of discs in the pack.

An 8P digipak has eight sides: four outer and four inner. Folded, that gives four panels joined by three fold lines, hence the term "three-fold".

The number of discs is chosen separately under "Type" in the calculator.

From one to four, depending on the construction chosen.

The standard variant holds one disc. The "For 2 discs" construction has two trays and can be used for an album with bonus material, a compilation or a course split across two discs. The "For 3 discs" and "For 4 discs" variants are also available for multi-disc releases.

With two discs, two panels still stay free for graphics and text. The more trays, the less free surface - with four discs the content is arranged around them. You choose the right construction under "Type".

The most important difference is the surface available for content and graphics.

A 4P digipak has two panels and one fold, so it is the simplest and most compact version. A 6P digipak has three panels, two folds and the widest choice of constructions.

An 8P digipak has four panels joined by three fold lines. It is the fullest form in the family, meant above all for releases where the board has to carry more than a cover and basic information.

Four panels let you lay out practically the whole presentation of a release.

One can serve as the cover, another can hold lyrics or a description of the project, the next photographs from the session or shots related to the production, and the last the credits, line-up, acknowledgements, partner logos or contact details.

With training material you can use them to separate the course programme, module descriptions and information about the trainers.

Just remember that the panel with the tray is largely covered by the disc. It is not worth putting long text there, or information that should be visible straight away.

Best to treat the whole design as one spread rather than four independent pages.

An 8P digipak works a little like a fold-out folder. Each stage of opening reveals another part of the design, so it is worth planning in advance what the viewer sees first, where the tray will be and how the content moves between panels.

With so much surface you can achieve an interesting effect of wide, continuous graphics. You just have to remember the three fold positions and allow for them at the design stage.

In the number of trays and in how much surface is left for the design.

Each additional tray takes up one of the four panels. With two discs, two panels stay entirely free; with three, one; and with four there is a tray on every panel and the graphics are arranged around them.

It is worth thinking this through at the start of the project. The panel with the tray is largely covered by the disc, so it does not suit longer text or information that should be visible straight away.

Not always. Four panels give enough surface that in many projects the texts, information about the release, photographs and credits can go directly on the board.

A booklet helps when there is really a lot of material, or when you want a separate booklet form that can be taken out and browsed.

Booklets and inserts are available from us as a separate product. The 8P digipak has no dedicated slot or pocket for a booklet - if you want that, look at the 4P, 6P or A5 digipak.

With lyrics, descriptions and larger blocks of content, matt film usually works well.

The surface reflects less light, so text reads more calmly and without strong glare. Fingerprints are also less visible on it.

Gloss film emphasises colours more strongly and presents photographs well, so it may be the better choice in a design built mainly on images.

You choose the right variant in the calculator under the finishing option.

Soft Touch is a film with a matt finish and a characteristic, delicate surface that feels like suede.

Visually it behaves much like classic matt film. Colours are more restrained and the surface does not reflect light strongly. The biggest difference is felt when you pick the pack up.

For that reason Soft Touch is often chosen for collector's and anniversary editions, and for presentations prepared for clients.

A clear tray lets you see the printed board under the disc. The interior graphics therefore stay visible in that spot too, and no large area is cut off completely from the rest of the spread.

With an 8P digipak this can matter especially, because the whole construction allows wide, coherent compositions.

A black tray creates strong contrast and displays the disc clearly. It can be a good choice when the board underneath is an even colour anyway.

It is a clear tray meant for a credit-card-format USB drive instead of a traditional disc.

Material can then be handed over on USB media while keeping the form and look of a full disc release.

This can be used for company material, presentations and training aimed at people working on computers without optical drives. The four panels are still available as extensive graphic treatment.

With this construction it matters more than with 4P and 6P digipaks, because there are three fold lines.

If the inner spines are left unprinted, three white strips at regular intervals may be visible on the unfolded board.

With light graphics this is usually not a problem. With a black, navy or intensely coloured interior, white lines can divide the design sharply, especially if the graphics were planned as one wide image.

In that case inner spine printing is worth choosing.

Assembly means the finished sets are prepared on our side.

Without assembly you receive the packs alone and put the discs in yourself. With disc assembly we place the media in the trays. On larger runs, and especially in the double-disc variant, that saves a lot of manual work.

Wrapping means protecting the finished, closed pack with sealed film. It protects the release during transport and storage, keeps dust out and gives the whole the look of a product ready for sale.

Wrapping is done on the assembled set.

The available runs are 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 1000, 2000 and 3000 pieces.

The minimum run is higher than for simpler digipaks, because the 8P is the fullest construction in this family.

You choose the run in the calculator together with the construction type, finishing, tray, inner spine printing, assembly and wrapping.

The price and lead time are shown directly when the chosen configuration is priced.

Prepare the artwork as a spread of all four panels, that is the full unfolded form of the digipak. Do not prepare the panels as separate pages.

Work in CMYK, not RGB. Automatic conversion can affect colour tone.

Prepare photographs at 300 dpi, and for fine elements 600 dpi is better. Add 3 mm bleed on every edge. Keep important texts, logos and other key elements at least 3 mm from the trim and fold lines.

Send the finished artwork as a PDF with fonts converted to outlines, or a flattened TIF in CMYK.

Remember that an 8P digipak has three fold lines. Logos, titles and important texts should not fall exactly on them.