Recent content by JohnCT

Your post triggered a memory... years ago I used to repair 8mm and Mini DV camcorders - 10 or more a week.. A problem I saw often was an invisible schmutz on the upper head drum that would raise all sorts of havoc with the performance. One of the clues was the back tension band jerking...

The option to turn off the auto exposure is great, but it also means you might have to baby sit the digitizing. I ran a small reel my dad shot in the early 60s, and I needed to readjust for every segment - some were perfectly bright, others were too dark and would have benefited from the auto...

It was in the takeup hub. Mine is a late 2025 build - maybe they changed them. If the motor is just a DC motor, adding a resistor will indeed drop the speed and the torque. Alternatively, you can always build an adjustable current supply that will allow normal speed but reduced torque. John

I removed one of the two washers the heavy wound coil spring pushes against inside the hub (there is one on top of the coil spring and one below). Since the spring doesn't rotate on the washer, there's no issue with the spring sitting on the plastic as the washer isn't a slip bearing. The...

Even before I attempted my first scan, it was my impression that the take-up reel had too much pull, so I took the take-up section apart and removed a washer to increase the clutch slippage. It occurred to me that these films are a lot more fragile than they were 60 plus years ago. John

The bottom of the frame seems to jump more than the top which seems mechanical to me... if I'm off base on this, feel free to yell at me.. but any chance you didn't get the film under all four of the locating tabs before closing the door? I literally use my Opti-Visors when threading the film...

Annnnnnndddd... you were right! I honestly thought I had done it correctly, but what I did was start the recording, the perform what I thought was a "pause" - it clearly isn't just a pause like a VCR or audio tape pause. Once the machine is actually scanning, I was able to make those...

OK, I reinstalled the latest D firmware (FW271), and I'm still in the same boat - very dark scans (and still no frame or zoom but that's my machine apparently). I'm interested in improving the performance, so I'd love to get an updated firmware to work for me. In the Capture menu, I navigated...

Yes, when I flash with the latest version you posted in #775, I get the OSD and I also now get "FW271" in the upper right side of the screen just like the pic you posted in the same message which says the latest firmware took. Unfortunately, I also still have the dark scans with the new...

As far as I know, the camera itself is fine, but the optics are the biggest bottlneck. There are people who replace the lens to gain improvement on the scans. There are youtube videos on people who have replaced the camera, but to be honest, I don't see a huge improvement, and I don't think...

Same - my reflash also says "Type D- WIP" but it's otherwise identical to the original firmware. I just tried the file in #731 and it flashed and now I have the OSD. But I took a second scan and it's a lot darker than my first try on the same film. I put the exposure up as far as it would...

I have tried the factory reset in the menu on both the new D and the original D .bins. It says reset successful, but still no change. Two questions: 1) Getting back to the firmware - is it possible this unit may be something newer than a D? The build date of the camera board on this machine...

I tried on both 8mm and Super, and the adjustments have no effect. The arrows on screen blink, but no changes occur. It's like it's sitting and locked at full zoom out. Here is what I'm getting. I highlighted in green the LCD screen and the scan frame I'm getting. Assuming that there is no...

After I posted it, I tried to move the frame and zoom with the software controls. The arrows blink in response to when I hit the buttons, but nothing actually changes. I tried reflashing the firmware to stock D but nothing changes, so I have a hardware issue I'm afraid. Thanks. John

Thank you so much. Unfortunately, there's something else going on. I followed your instructions and flashed the stock firmware, but it's got the same problem. Every other adjustment works except the frame positioning and zoom. Again, the arrows blink as I push the buttons to affect the...