Used pro flatbeds - who are they ?

[Matus Kalisky]

One very short question on top of the previous ones. What does it mean if the the resolution of the scanner is different in each direction eg: 1200x2400 (Heidelberg Linoscan 1440) or 1250x2500 (Agfa DuoScan T2500) .. ?

thanks

[Peter De Smidt]

With the Cezanne, you can scan a 35mm frame at 5300 spi, a 120 film at 3650 spi, and a 4x5 at 1400 spi in one pass, assuming you lay the long edge of the frame parallel with the front of the scanner. It's really easy, though, to scan multiple strips. The Color Genius software gives a good readout of scanning position, and you can queue up a bunch of scans all at once, and so you don't have to wait for the end of the a scan before specifying the next ones. No doubt this is less convenient than the Eversmart, at least for high resolutions with 4x5. However, as I said earlier, I paid less than $1000 for mine in good working shape, and I've never seen an Eversmart with 16-bit software for that little. The choice will really depend on what you can find locally, the price, condition, included elements, and whether there's a local service place or not. These things are very big and heavy, and shipping should be avoided if possible.

[Matus Kalisky]

- Peter -

could you please list all the accesories that should come with this scanner?

Also - what is the difference between Ultra and non-Ultra models?

thank you

[jetcode]

Peter there is no need to compare or discount the Cezanne because someone gave it to you for gas money. It's a fine scanner. I routinely scan 4x10 negs at 3600spi and get great results with scans containing interpolated data. I paid $5900 for mine shipped.

[Peter De Smidt]

You'll need:

The Standard tray. (This is a very expensive piece of acrylic with a very fine anti-newton texture. It does scratch fairly easily.)

Hold down sheets. (These are thin acrylic sheets with a very fine anti-Newton texture on one side. They are meant to be laid on top of the negative to hold it flat. They have a very fine anti newton texture. You don't need them if you're going to wet-mount, which I recommend.)

Calibration strip. (This is a very delicate white reference strip. It's installed on the left end of the scanning bed. If it is damaged, you'll need a new one, which could be expensive.)

Bulbs (The FT-S5000 has four, two for transparencies and negative and two for reflective scans. These bulbs are about $200 a piece. Make sure they look in good working condition.)

Software. (Colorgenius EX version 1 will work only on Mac OS 9. Version 2 will work (with the right scsi card) on a G5 with OS10.)

If you're going to do dry scans, make sure that the Standard Tray has a big enough area that isn't scratched. (Here in the USA, a new Standard Tray costs $1000.) Personally, I made a custom tray with clear optical glass. I wet-mount to the top of the glass with Prazio Anti-Newton oil. Kami fluid works OK as well, but the Prazio is a little easier to work with.

The Cezanne Elite FT-S5500 is faster and has two bulbs instead of 4. Screen claims higher image quality but Seybold Report rate the original Cezanne a little higher. Honestly, I'd pay a little more for the Elite, mainly because it'd likely be a newer machine. I have the regular Cezanne FT-S5000.

[Peter De Smidt]

Hi Joe,

I'm not discounting the scanner. I'm very happy with it. And I didn't include the costs of my driving to pick it up, which easily doubled the price. That said, if cost were no object, I'd prefer one of the newer Kodak/Creo scanners, assuming 16-bit per channel output, or an Aztek Premier drum scanner, the former for their stitching abilities and the latter for ultimate scan quality.

[claudiocambon]

Do the high end flatbeds such as the Eversmart that are still being made new today still use SCSI and OS9 or have they been brought forward into the 21st century with USB or, heaven forbid, even firewire?! Which ones have updated hardware?

[Ted Harris]

Claudio,

We're into the 21st C .... firewire and run on OS 10.4.x with an upgrade to 10.5 due momentarily.

Matus, the Seybold report referenced above i probably the most comprehensive report on these scanners. Email me if you want a copy.

[sanking]

Still, I would have a few questions considering the accessories. I have not found yet any webpage with detailled descriptin or technical specifications for any of the scanners mentioned so I would like to ask which hardware and software should come along with following scanners so that nothing is missing and the scanner can be used. What would be optional accessories that are not necessary but useful? Pleas, if possible, be detailled:

- Creo EverSmart Pro
- Creo Eversmart Pro II
- Screen Cezanne (FT-S5000)
-

You need EverSmart Scanning Application for the EverSmart Pro, and oXYgen for the EverSmart Pro II. The software is similar in operation, but oXYgen allows 16 bit saves.

You will also need a calibration slide to install the scanner and set all of the parameters.

Masks are useful but not essential unless you plan to do a lot of batch scanning.

You don't need any kind of hold-down sheets becaue the top glass is spring loaded and automatically presses down on the material to be scanned when you close the top. Also, both the glass on the bed and the top glass have an anti-newton coating so wet mounting is not needed to prevent Newton rings, though it may be useful for giving a clear scan that requires less work in the post-scan.

Sandy King

[sanking]

One very short question on top of the previous ones. What does it mean if the the resolution of the scanner is different in each direction eg: 1200x2400 (Heidelberg Linoscan 1440) or 1250x2500 (Agfa DuoScan T2500) .. ?

thanks

This means that the optical resolution is greater in one direction than the other. This is due to the travel of the stepping motor as it takes more samples in the direction of travel.

My EverSmart Pro scanner, for example, has optical resolution of 3175 spi X 8200 spi. Anthing over 3175 spi is considered to be interpolated resolution, but in fact part of the resolution in one direction is real. For example, if you were to scan a target with bars in the horizontal and vertical direction at 8200 spi with this EverSmart you would find that the bars in one directions would indicate much higher resolution in lines/mm than the bars in the othr direction.

Sandy King