DPL users/owners of Howtek/Aztek scanners

[Sasquatchian]

I like 1/2" for taping the top edge of the film to the drum and 1" to tape the perimeter of the overlay. And depending on how it all goes down, you often have to put an extra layer of tape over parts of the overlay, mostly due to Kami fluid seeping out as you pull the mylar tight, even after wiping it down before the tape. You want to check to make sure that there are no little tunnels where fluid can escape. What you really don't want to have happen is for the whole thing to come undone while the drum is spinning.

[Dean Wilmot]

I like 1/2" for taping the top edge of the film to the drum and 1" to tape the perimeter of the overlay. And depending on how it all goes down, you often have to put an extra layer of tape over parts of the overlay, mostly due to Kami fluid seeping out as you pull the mylar tight, even after wiping it down before the tape. You want to check to make sure that there are no little tunnels where fluid can escape. What you really don't want to have happen is for the whole thing to come undone while the drum is spinning.

Thanks mate, regards dean

[brbo]

Can fellow DPL users share experience on max. horizontal dimension (in direction of drum rotation) of scans with DPL?

Whenever I scan anything that is longer than 10.992px (so that would be like 2.73" at 4000dpi, 5.46" at 2000dpi, etc.) I get a dpl32 error with "Buffer Transfer - Length Too Big" message. This seems to be a DPL limitation and not a scanner hardware limitation. I successfully completed a narrow band of 8" in horizontal direction at 4000dpi in Silverfast. I know that scanning the whole 8x10" area would present another problem (file too big), but still, this limit is not present in Silverfast...

I'm using Howtek 4500 with DPL 8.1 on Windows XP (32bit). I've send a question about this to Evan at Aztek, but would like to hear what your experience is on that matter while waiting for his thoughts.

Well, after a few days of swapping various SCSI cards, drivers, etc. I located the problem. It was the wnaspi32.dll file in C:\Windows\system32\ that was a problem. I needed to stop and delete Windows Service named "ScsiAccess" (otherwise I couldn't delete the file) then delete the wnaspi32.dll and then reinstall the correct version of the file. I used the file from C:\Program Files\Aztek\Digital PhotoLab 7.8\Devices\SCSI_support\.

The wrong wnaspi32.dll file was probably installed by a CD burner software (the author of the file was "NexiTech, Inc").

Now I can scan up to 5.2" in length at 4000dpi in DPL. Still interesting Silverfast can scan 8.1" in length.

[nbagno]

Nice!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[assanto]

I was wondering if anyone could help me with my Howtek 6500 Scanmaster. I acquired the scanner with no software dongle, computer, or SCSI cable. I got an old PC and got that to communicate with the scanner using a demo version of Silverfast for Win XP. The scanner worked fine for a few days of tests. Now the scanner fails at the lamp calibration stage. I cannot get the lamps to turn on using the "test" menu functions. I've tried replacing the bulbs and that does not remedy the problem.

Does anyone have any suggestions? Please let me know. I greatly appreciate any help you can provide!

[Sasquatchian]

You may be at a point where you need to take the cover off the scanner and remove all the internal boards and clean all the contacts with DeOxit, then re-insert each board multiple times to make sure each one has good contact everywhere, then try scanning again. Do the lamps come on at all during the period of time before calibration fail? There may be bad electrical contacts there too, and don't rule out bad bulbs even when new. I've seen a lot of those over the years. Those are 8v 20w bulbs so you probably don't have a independent power supply suitable laying around. Then call Evan at Aztek.

[chanto]

hello i have an Howtek 4500 with Silverfast and read all the tread from the beginning
the scanner is working well but the pictures seems to be more accurate than my old scans.
could someone have the maintenance manual for this scanners,i think it will be fine to do a lot of maintenance
where is the rest button of the boards, because sometimes I have an error .
all the advices are welcome
it is fred from France
take care all of you
@+fred

[nagairaj]

hello i have an Howtek 4500 with Silverfast and read all the tread from the beginning
the scanner is working well but the pictures seems to be more accurate than my old scans.
could someone have the maintenance manual for this scanners,i think it will be fine to do a lot of maintenance
where is the rest button of the boards, because sometimes I have an error .
all the advices are welcome
it is fred from France
take care all of you
@+fred
Hello Roger from NY. Could you be little more specific. What do you mean exactly"more accurate" than old scans. You mean out of focus, color balance etc.
Thanks

[chanto]

the scan are not so sharp than the first I have made

[Sasquatchian]

Are you using auto focus? Maybe it's not properly calibrated. Try using manual focus with the built-in scope on the 4500. You will be able to see it pop into focus. And, of course, I'm assuming the lens is clean and there are no obstructions in the fiber optic path. Are you sure you drum is concentric. Try another part of the drum and see if that changes things. Lots and lots of things to consider. These are just a few.

[Dean Wilmot]

Hi all, Has anyone used a different sort of tape other than scanning tape made for wet mounting with Gamsol that doesn't craze the drum. I started using 3M scotch green tape #2060 concrete, brick and grout tape that t a contact in NZ suggested to use as its cheap and easy to get locally. Looks like this tape may be causing the start of minor crazing. Im located in Australia so a locally sourced stable scanning tape is my preference rather than having to import from Aztek as it becomes very expensive. Thanks regards Dean

[sanking]

Hi all, Has anyone used a different sort of tape other than scanning tape made for wet mounting with Gamsol that doesn't craze the drum.

I have used a polyester splicing tape with Kami purchased from Tape Jungle.
https://www.tapejungle.com/products/polyester-splicing-tape-70xxx.html

I think the splicing tape should work with Gamsol but so far have only used it with Kami.

Sandy

[FOTOdeLUXE]

Hi, guys! My name is Miguel, come from Madrid, Spain and I am a proudly owner of a Howtek 4500.

I am trying to recover this machine from years unused and I have a problem with my FST4500 software because, when I launch it the program says that "We have and initialization problem!!!" and "Init failed to find the necessary driver"

I run Windows XP SP2, Trident and Silverfast software and do not find driver to install but the scanner works properly at first sight with this software. But can not perform any test with FST4500.

Anybody could help me? Thanksssssss!!!!

[nbagno]

Aztek has a Howtek download section on their website, maybe they driver you need http://www.aztek.com/Howtek%20Pages/Download.html

[brbo]

You can't run FST4500.exe from Windows XP. You need to make a system floppy disk, boot the computer off the floppy disk and then run FST.

[FOTOdeLUXE]

Ok folks, starting from system Floppy disk, but I do not have the archives included into FST original disk. Only FST4500.exe and need the full contents. That's the point, I wish.. Somebody knows where I could find them? Thank you again!!!!!

[brbo]

Then why didn't you say so in the first place ;)

https://www.dropbox.com/s/98gnkyu4e0j7f4d/Field_Service_Tests_D4000_4500.zip?dl=0

[FOTOdeLUXE]

Then why didn't you say so in the first place ;)

https://www.dropbox.com/s/98gnkyu4e0j7f4d/Field_Service_Tests_D4000_4500.zip?dl=0

hehehe… I thought I got it, but I was wrong. Excuse me!!

[FOTOdeLUXE]

I don't know why, but I can't load FST4500 properly… Always the same issue with the drivers...

[Steven Ruttenberg]

I now own an 8000Hiresolve Howtek. Just bought it. Should be here in about 4 weeks or so.

[ethanfg]

Does anybody have the 4500 FST software for windows? I didn't get a chance to download it before everything was deleted off the Scan-Hi-End group.

Thanks!

[brbo]

There is no FST for windows, DOS only.

[ethanfg]

There is no FST for windows, DOS only.

Sorry, I meant DOS.

[brbo]

I posted what I have a few posts back. I'm not aware of any other version of field service test for 4000/4500...

[ethanfg]

Not sure how I missed that. Thank you!

[csbrk9]

Hi All,

I'm trying to get our Howtek scanmaster 7500 up and running at work. We are running DPL 8.1 in Windows 10 using bootcamp, on a 2013 iMac, with a Ratoc SCSI>USB adapter. Our current problem is that DPL does not see the scanner, in Device Manager we get an error with the USB device. All the drivers have been installed correctly, we're working with evan at Aztek and sending in our adapters to him to inspect. However, I wanted to see if any of you on here who are running a similar set-up could share any advice, since I know that Bootcamp Windows can be a bit quirky and maybe there is some strange thing I need to change in the drivers or the Registry Editor or something. Has anyone had a similar issue? It has been so much work to get this scanner here and we are so close yet so far!

[csbrk9]

Hi, We are trying to run a very similar setup to yours, did you ever have issues getting your Windows 10 shell to recognize your USB adapter?

[brbo]

FYI, you can put together a PC and use a number of SCSI cards that are proven to play nicely with Howtek scanners. All that for half the cost of a Ratoc SCSI-USB adapter alone.

[tgwilkinson]

Hi csbrk9. I got an Aztek Premiere running with DPL 8 on a 2013 Mac Pro with Windows 10 running in Parallels using the Ratoc SCSI to USB adapter that way I could just flick back and forth between the Mac OS and Windows without needing to reboot. I vaguely remember trying it in Bootcamp, but found Parallels better since it has a nice interface for determining which USB devices I wanted connected to the Windows OS and which ones I wanted to keep with my Mac OS, which might have helped me avoid device conflicts. Parallels basically pulled the mouse and keyboard over virtually, so the Ratoc adapter and sometimes an external drive were the only devices attached to the Windows OS.

I usually ran into problems if I didn't have the drum scanner fully booted up before I started Windows. If for some reason the drum scanner didn't appear in the drop down menu within DPL I could close DPL and open Device Manager, right-click on the name of my computer in device manager, and select Scan For Hardware Changes and the scanner would show. Then when I reopened DPL the scanner would be listed there as well. I was also running the Ratoc adapter without the included extension cable attached; I don't know if that made a difference. I never had to change anything with the registry or do anything fancy when I installed the drivers. The hardest part was figuring out the best way to install Windows. I also had nothing else installed on Windows 10 when I set up the scanner, so that probably also helped avoid device conflicts.

Those are the things that worked for me. But it sounds like you're getting a yellow triangle error next to the device in device manager. The build you're trying for is definitely possible, but it there's clearly a conflict somewhere. You've probably tried most of these things, but to troubleshoot you can try (1) try plugging it into a different port, it could be a problem with the bus the port is on and an allocation of shared resources there, (2) unplugging all other devices from the Mac and do a fresh install of Windows. Hopefully without any other devices attached there wouldn't be a conflict in resources, which is what the yellow triangle often means, (3) trying going through the same steps to set it up, but on a different Mac to see if the issue is the particular internals of the Mac you started with, (4) try installing Windows 10 through Parallels instead of Bootcamp to see if that gives you more control over what devices Windows 10 is seeing to cut down on sources of conflict.

I hope that helps!

[csbrk9]

Hi csbrk9. I got an Aztek Premiere running with DPL 8 on a 2013 Mac Pro with Windows 10 running in Parallels using the Ratoc SCSI to USB adapter that way I could just flick back and forth between the Mac OS and Windows without needing to reboot. I vaguely remember trying it in Bootcamp, but found Parallels better since it has a nice interface for determining which USB devices I wanted connected to the Windows OS and which ones I wanted to keep with my Mac OS, which might have helped me avoid device conflicts. Parallels basically pulled the mouse and keyboard over virtually, so the Ratoc adapter and sometimes an external drive were the only devices attached to the Windows OS.

I usually ran into problems if I didn't have the drum scanner fully booted up before I started Windows. If for some reason the drum scanner didn't appear in the drop down menu within DPL I could close DPL and open Device Manager, right-click on the name of my computer in device manager, and select Scan For Hardware Changes and the scanner would show. Then when I reopened DPL the scanner would be listed there as well. I was also running the Ratoc adapter without the included extension cable attached; I don't know if that made a difference. I never had to change anything with the registry or do anything fancy when I installed the drivers. The hardest part was figuring out the best way to install Windows. I also had nothing else installed on Windows 10 when I set up the scanner, so that probably also helped avoid device conflicts.

Those are the things that worked for me. But it sounds like you're getting a yellow triangle error next to the device in device manager. The build you're trying for is definitely possible, but it there's clearly a conflict somewhere. You've probably tried most of these things, but to troubleshoot you can try (1) try plugging it into a different port, it could be a problem with the bus the port is on and an allocation of shared resources there, (2) unplugging all other devices from the Mac and do a fresh install of Windows. Hopefully without any other devices attached there wouldn't be a conflict in resources, which is what the yellow triangle often means, (3) trying going through the same steps to set it up, but on a different Mac to see if the issue is the particular internals of the Mac you started with, (4) try installing Windows 10 through Parallels instead of Bootcamp to see if that gives you more control over what devices Windows 10 is seeing to cut down on sources of conflict.

I hope that helps!


Thank you so much for your generous response! Yes you are correct, we are getting the yellow triangle error. Just out of curiosity, what version of MacOS are you running? I'm wondering if that could be effecting it. I'm also trying to figure out the USB imlpementation in parallels and see if there is any trick there. For whatever reason, bootcamp detects the Ratoc/scanner with an error, but both Parallels and VMware don't even see/register them. I'm wondering if there is a trick to this in settings for parallels, like setting up a device or something. I've also sent our Ratoc over to Evan, he is going to test it in his setup and make sure it isn't a hardware issue.

[Kiwiartist]

Hello Everyone

New here to this forum.

I run a Howtek 7500 with DPL 8 software here in NZ.
We are experiencing a problem with scans from our small drum with a cyan/green/red cross in the shadows.
We have been in touch with Aztek many times trying to isolate the issue. Have looked at all the front end, ie bulbs, drums, cleaned fori and analyser lens.
Have replaced with new PMT's ( at great expense $2000 NZ $) ...
we have had the luxuary of swapping out boards with second set from old 7500....No joy!!
So it comes down to the optics bench and re alignment.

We don't have that special tool!! Have asked Aztek and they are getting back to us.

Does anyone who has a 7500 have that tool.....could we beg, borrow and return....we could get a 3D tool made here in NZ and then
return it to you ASAP.
If anyone has any insite to this tool or our problem, it would be great to here from you.
Cheers Graeme

[calebarchie]

Hello Everyone

New here to this forum.

I run a Howtek 7500 with DPL 8 software here in NZ.
We are experiencing a problem with scans from our small drum with a cyan/green/red cross in the shadows.
We have been in touch with Aztek many times trying to isolate the issue. Have looked at all the front end, ie bulbs, drums, cleaned fori and analyser lens.
Have replaced with new PMT's ( at great expense $2000 NZ $) ...
we have had the luxuary of swapping out boards with second set from old 7500....No joy!!
So it comes down to the optics bench and re alignment.

We don't have that special tool!! Have asked Aztek and they are getting back to us.

Does anyone who has a 7500 have that tool.....could we beg, borrow and return....we could get a 3D tool made here in NZ and then
return it to you ASAP.
If anyone has any insite to this tool or our problem, it would be great to here from you.
Cheers Graeme

Hi Graeme,

Sorry to hear your troubles - I am not in NZ but I do know a few labs there, they all use same tech who has some experience with Howtek machines I can give you his details but I don't think he has the tool. Your best bet is to get it machined locally, its quite simple and there are tech drawings on the scan hi end group. The tech may be able to assist with all this.

Send me a PM and we can discuss,
Bests,
C

[brbo]

Well, you CAN do it without the tool. All you need is a drum and lots of time since you won't be able to do adjustments in "real time". Instead, you bring the drum in position (so the drum is between the FOTI and the analyser lens), check the alignment, remove the drum, do an adjustment and then again install the drum and check the alignment.

And then... repeat that as many times as needed ;)

[Kiwiartist]

Hi Graeme,

Sorry to hear your troubles - I am not in NZ but I do know a few labs there, they all use same tech who has some experience with Howtek machines I can give you his details but I don't think he has the tool. Your best bet is to get it machined locally, its quite simple and there are tech drawings on the scan hi end group. The tech may be able to assist with all this.

Send me a PM and we can discuss,
Bests,
C

Hello
Thanks very much for replying....yes the thought of getting one machined would definitely be on the cards...I'll send you a PM to discuss!
Thanks Graeme

[Kiwiartist]

Well, you CAN do it without the tool. All you need is a drum and lots of time since you won't be able to do adjustments in "real time". Instead, you bring the drum in position (so the drum is between the FOTI and the analyser lens), check the alignment, remove the drum, do an adjustment and then again install the drum and check the alignment.

And then... repeat that as many times as needed ;)

Ohh that is great to know!!....thankyou....I will look into this in the interim while we are chasing down the tool.
Thanks for your help
Cheers Graeme

[Dimitrios]

HELLO TO EVERYBODY. MY HOWTEK SCANMASTER 4500 STOPED WORKING. BEFORE IT SHOWED ERROR: data available-length too big=6228
THE TECHNICIEN HERE IN FRANCE FOUND OUT THAT POWER BOARD WAS DAMAGED, HE REPAIRED IT, THE SCANNER WORKED FOR A LITTLE AND AFTER SHOW SAME MESSAGE ERROR data available-length too big=6228 WENT OFF AGAIN! i AM SEARCHING A NEW POWER BOARD OR ANY OTHER IDEAS YOU MAY GIVE TO HELP

[Dean Wilmot]

I highly recommend Michael Streeter of scan solutions USA . He can go through repairs even over the phone.

I bought my 4500 from Michael and his knowledge is at a masters level. He can also supply spare parts

[Dimitrios]

I highly recommend Michael Streeter of scan solutions USA . He can go through repairs even over the phone.

I bought my 4500 from Michael and his knowledge is at a masters level. He can also supply spare parts

Thank you Dean, i will contact him ASAP.
:)

[assanto]

Armando,

Just wanted to let you know that the 70924 tape from tapejungle.com is a great substitute for the OEM tape from Aztek. I bought a 20-pack of the 1" wide tape and I am very impressed with its holding power and lack of residue on the film.

When one scans 12X20" negatives on a drum scanner there is a premium placed on the holding ability of the tape, otherwise the negative itself is a great risk. Just image a negative that size flapping around at the high RPM of a drum scanner!! Not a pretty result when one lets go.

Sandy

Found the tape on Amazon for those who prefer to use them: https://www.amazon.com/Polyester-Splicing-Tape-2-4mil-Acrylic/dp/B06X97RR9V/ref=sr_1_14?crid=3HH5M13V4OZTC&keywords=alanson+polyester+splicing+tape&qid=1645641074&sprefix=alanson+polyester+splicing+tape%2Caps%2C92&sr=8-14

[sjbadham]

I am trying to recover this machine from years unused and I have a problem with my FST4500 software because, when I launch it the program says that "We have and initialization problem!!!" and "Init failed to find the necessary driver"

Bumping this thread to see if there's a solution to the above problem. I have an SM4500 that I operate with DPL 8.1 that I'd like to be able to occasionally check with the FST. I'm using a Dell workstation (Windows 10, 64-bit) equipped with an Adaptec 29160N SCSI card. I've made a bootable USB stick with FreeDOS that contains all of the FST files. I can successfully boot into FreeDOS and run FST4500.exe, but when the FST loads it fails the initial test, which is to check for the SCSI (identical to Miguel's problem quoted above). As a result of this failure, I'm not currently able to run any of the tests in FST.

Is there a "trick" to getting the computer to load the SCSI driver when booting into FreeDOS from a USB?

[fade_to_grey]

Is there a "trick" to getting the computer to load the SCSI driver when booting into FreeDOS from a USB?

Hi sjbadham,

don't know if it is still relavant, but you have to load the SCSI-driver in your config.sys:

copy the adaptec driver aspi8dos.sys in the smae directory as the config.sys on your stick. Then add in your config.sys the following line:
device=aspi8dos.sys

save it.

That's all (provided aspi8dos.sys is the correct driver for your card)

Good luck

Christian

[lrochfort]

Hello all,

I'm a new owner of a Howtek 4500 using DPL 7.8.6.

I've been slowly reading through the back history of this post.

My scanner is working well, the only issue I have is that DPL Autofocus does not work for transmissive media. The scanner shows it's running the autofocus routine then displays "LAMP/MIRROR R ERROR F719". Autofocus seems to work very well for reflective media. FST4500 passes all the tests.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

[Steven Ruttenberg]

Email Aztec and ask them. Evan I think is who you want to talk to. I am still on DPL7 with my Howtek HiResolve8000