H.U.G. the Official HR500 User Group > Light bulb and speed
It seems like it is possible. Anecdotally, I had an enlarger that wouldn't give me any functionality without the exact model bulb that it asked for installed (even though it was the same wattage bulb I replaced a burned out bulb with).
Also, there is a danger if you up the wattage you are going to start doing damage to the film if it is in the gate too long. With the 2,000W bulbs we use on movie projectors, the 35mm 4-perf. frames start to melt after just a few seconds paused in the gate.
XXLtdLab
Hi Jan,
Bad, bad, idea!!! First off, the Plus is not that much faster than the Universal (approx. 10-15% faster). Second, the scanner was designed and optimized around the specific spectral characteristics of the GE ELC bulb, that is why you should not use any other bulb. Also you would be risking your IR glass, dichroic filters, and Spectralon rod (all very expensive parts). Thirdly, you would be drawing more amperage than the lamp power supply was designed for, which will shorten its life or worse. And finally, you would be generating more heat at the bulb, which would cause the lamp fan to work harder to cool the bulb and the scanner has a curcuit that monitors the amp draw of the lamp fan, if it draws too much it will generate an airflow and/or fan failure error and shut down the machine.
If you are not getting the speed you think you should be getting, there may be something else wrong with your machine, give us a call. Or, if you are just looking to get the maximum performance, also get in touch with us, we have some tricks!
Hope this helps,
Ray Alpern
HR500Scanner.com
Ray Alpern
Hello Ray,
I was not thinking of putting a 500W bulb in it; I knew of all of the constraints. I was just wondering if we could add more light with a fiber (xenon in external housing) or LED and if that would speeding up the scanner?
Jan.
Jan Meeremans
Jan, I thought that LED had problems with color reproduction due to spectral deficiencies across the spectrum. IDK how this would translate into scanning film.
My only knowledge of LED light sources come from what horror stories I've heard about impossible-to-color-correct film photography.
Ray, do you know what the outlook is on the ELC model bulb now that incandescent lighting is practically a back-alley source of illumination? From what I hear they are practically illegal to own over in the EU now, along with lead sodder.
XXLtdLab
On the broader topic of light bulbs, I hope we are "in the loop" as to availability of the ELC. Otherwise, I guess that we all will place orders for 100 or so.
Some time ago I could not get the GE lamp, and had to use a Fuji something instead. It seemed to work OK, but perhaps my standards were lower then.
Question: A poster on another thread was talking about doing some tests with SAM that involved turning the lamp on and off, which they did without burning it out. Does SAM Lamp On/Off stress the bulb?
Lately I have taken to Lamp Off for about five minutes before shut down. My logic is that it provides a steady cooling instead of the lamp sitting there cooking in its own heat for a long time. A cooling run-down was common in the days of slide projectors (and my 1984 turbocharged Mitsubishi).
Otto Mellar
Hi,
I was just wondering if we could crank up the speed of the HR500 if we could add more light then the 250W light bulb that is now used. The HR500 plus is significantly faster then the HR500 universal because the light is more concentrated than the light bar used to scan the 4 x 5 inch film. I guess a special (smaller) light bar might also do the trick. Does anyone has an idea on how much faster it could scan 35mm long roll film if we could give more light?
Kind regards.