Getting Distorted scans with Cezanne Elite

[pandpinc]

Has anyone ran into this kind of thing. The scans look distorted. At first it just showed a funky wavey pattern on the screens. Now i have noticed some lineart scans of text getting distorted. See the link below.
The Scanner is a 2000 model of Screen's Cezanne Elite

http://www.pandpinc.com/untitled-1.jpg

[David]

Have you looked at the scanner bed to see if there is anything on the glass?
It could be distorted due to fingerprints (greasy smeared stuff on the glass will reflect/distort the light as it scans).
Is the glass perfectly smooth? No nicks or anything that may distort the image?
Could also be something up with the lamp.
Is it still under warranty?

[pandpinc]

I dont think its the glass i clean it very regularly. Its not under any kind of warranty. I wouldn't mind replacing the bulbs. Do you know a good source for them. I contacted screen and they want $370 for a set of 2.

Could it be possible that i dont have enough memory? Its on a machine with 512mb of ram and a pretty slow processor (dont remember the exact speed, but its a early model G4)

[David]

Do you use it a lot? Like all day every day, or just occasionally?

It could be it's just wore out. You can get some a new scanner for a decent price now-a-days. Probably get one for less than the price of the bulbs for the one you have.

What kind of scans you doing?
Extremely high res?
What are you using as the scanner interface?
You going through Photoshop or the Scanner software?

If you're doing just plain, grayscale, 300 ppi scans, the Mac should do just fine.

I doubt the Mac is the problem.
I run a Fuji C-550 Lanovia on a 400Mhz G4 w/ 1 GB RAM. The G4 is still running OS 9.2. (The OS X interface was about $8k last time I checked)
And that's not a "bad" price on bulbs. I paid close to the same for new bulbs on the Fuji. It made an incredible difference when I changed them.
I found/contacted the company who made the exact bulbs for our Fuji scanner.. they wouldn't sell me the bulbs - they specifically told me I had to call Fuji. :roll:
Maybe a Rip-off.. but I had no choice.
Vee

[pandpinc]

I'm doing copydot scans. Which those kinds of scanners are extremely expensive. I use it everyday and we are currently in the process of going all digital by converting our negs to files.

I guess i will try to buy a set of bulbs and see how it goes from there.

[pandpinc]

Yeah i ruled out the mac. I did a high zoom preview and everytime in that same spot i would get the same distortion. I guess its the bulbs, because i cleaned the crap out of the glass and its cystal clear. If i move the neg to a different spot on the glass it clears up, so its not the neg itself or i would have the same problem no matter where i put it.

The only experience i've had in purchasing bulbs is for a eversmart supreme. I think they were around $100 a piece, but its good to know i'm not getting totally ripped off if the lanovias are about the same. I checked around to try and find a company that makes the bulbs, but came up with nothing. The bulbs actually has screen's logo on it, so i guess its manufactured by screen.

Originally Posted by prepress_vee

I doubt the Mac is the problem.
I run a Fuji C-550 Lanovia on a 400Mhz G4 w/ 1 GB RAM. The G4 is still running OS 9.2. (The OS X interface was about $8k last time I checked)
And that's not a "bad" price on bulbs. I paid close to the same for new bulbs on the Fuji. It made an incredible difference when I changed them.
I found/contacted the company who made the exact bulbs for our Fuji scanner.. they wouldn't sell me the bulbs - they specifically told me I had to call Fuji. :roll:
Maybe a Rip-off.. but I had no choice.
Vee

[pandpinc]

Okay need a little more help i replaced the bulbs and still have the same thing going on. Any more suggestions?

[pandpinc]

nevermind. Figured it out...
the reg pins i was using were too close to the wheels the bed rolls against and it cause a slight jarring when scanning, causing the effect.

Hate i bought bulbs when that wasn't the problem, but it probably needed them anyways.

Thanks for all the help guys.

Can you see a difference in the scans you're getting w/ the new bulbs?
I could. It was well worth it to me.
Glad you got it solved!!
Vee