Question about Epson 4990 lamps?

[lp331518]

Hello everyone,
old hobbyist here, wanting to remove some dust off this passion.

I have an old Epson 4990 Photo scanner, that years ago I used to scan all my negatives and some prints. After years of zero use, I am trying to scan some more recent negatives, butI find that they come up always rather darker than the analog print done in the darkroom.
The reason could be I'm pretty rusted in my workflow (probable), but another reason could be that only the lamp under the flatbed is working during the operation.
It may be a false memory, but I remember this model uses two lamps, one under the flatbed and the other inside the cover, to scan the negatives; but I cannot for the life of mine find this kind of info.
Is there some kind soul that can clarify this for me, please?

Thank you,

L.

 

[Les Sarile]

I have the 4990 and it has two lamps - one on the base and the other in the cover. When you select the option to scan film/transparency only the top lamp will turn on. There is a cover on the top that is there when scanning paper/reflective material and you will need to slide it off in order for the lamp to show through when scanning film.

Hope this helps and welcome aboard.

 

[brbo]

What Les said + you need to verify that the cable from the lid is still plugged (properly) into the base of the scanner.

 

[xvvvz]

In the past, they sold replacement bulbs here. You might check to see if they still sell them:

https://www.replacementlightbulbs.com/

Doug

 

[Kino]

And, to be Captain Obvious, make sure your opaque scanning mat is removed from your transparency lid!