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ScanMate 11000 Z-test hangs, drum doesn't lift, no focus activity

pkr1979

Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2019
Messages
579
Location
Oslo
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Multi Format
Hi all – I'm working on a ScanMate 11000 drum scanner and running into a problem when attempting the Z-focus test from the service menu.

When I select Z (Find focus automatically), the scanner responds with:

Seeking aperture 3 at position 457
Done
Waiting for drum to settle, with integrator enabled.
Drum speed is ok.
StartData : 160
Filling palette 0

At this point:
  • The scanner hangs indefinitely
  • The drum does not move up to the scanning/focus position
  • No audible focus movement happens
  • The service prompt >> does not return
  • I have to power-cycle the scanner to regain control
I'm using Tera Term (also tested PuTTY) via USB-serial on a Win XP machine, 9600 8N1, flow control set to none. All other service functions work.

What I suspect:
It seems the scanner expects the drum to already be in scanning position before running Z, but it doesn't move automatically. Possibly it's waiting for a signal from the PMTs or a reflection it never receives because the drum is too low.

I can move the drum using option 1 in the menu (Z/P/L), but not after Z has been triggered – it appears locked. Unfortunately, the lid can't be opened while the scanner is in service mode, so I can't insert a scan target once Z has started.

Additional context:
  • Lamps do turn on when Z is triggered
  • Focus calibration in ColorQuartet has previously worked fine
  • No ERROR light has ever flashed
  • Running a white balance calibration (via ColorQuartet) did update PMT gain values from 255/255/255 to more realistic ones for most apertures – so it seems some internal adjustments are working correctly
Questions:
  1. Is this Z-hang behavior normal? Should the drum be moved manually before calling Z?
  2. Could this be a firmware or software quirk in this version of the service menu?
  3. Has anyone seen this behavior before – and is there a known fix or workaround?

Any insight or tips would be greatly appreciated!
 
Just a quick update: I’ve now successfully performed both focus and white calibration using ColorQuartet. The scanner behaves as expected in that environment – the drum lifts, the focus mechanism engages, and the lamp operates normally. White calibration no longer fails, and the PMTGain values now appear correct across all apertures, except for Gain constants aperture 6-9 still at 16. PMTGains are all fine.

This leads me to believe that the hardware (lamp, sensors, focus motor, and optics) is functioning properly, and that the issue is somehow limited to the behavior of the scanner when controlled through the service program. Can it be an issue that I am doing this using PuTTY for instance?

If anyone has seen similar behavior – where ColorQuartet works fine, but certain service mode functions like the Z-test (focus calibration) hang or appear to stall – I’d be grateful for any insight.
 
Putty worked fine on the 5000. There was one or two commands that didn't seem to do anything useful, but I don't remember which. It's been a while now.
 
It might be the order in which things are executed maybe. I'll try running 1 and leave the drum in the specific position before Z to see if that makes any difference.
 
Last edited:
I actually figured it out - I needed to run 1 and place it in position Z before running command Z.
 
Great!

Do you have the field (service) manual? I found it helpful when adjusting PMTs etc. I only have the 5000 manual, but it's probably similar to the 1100 version.
 
I do. And I have tried to set the PMTs. But I'm still getting pretty persistent White Calibration failure though, using both ColorTrio/ColorQuartet software.

The failure seem to be caused by a persistent Red Channel analog PMTGain error on the smallest aperture. I manually set the Red PMTGain for the smallest aperture to 220. However, Color Quartet seems to ignore this stored value and forces the gain back to 255, which I assume fails the white calibration?

Any ideas on how to sort this?
 
Have you adjusted he potentiometers for the 3 PMT channels? Maybe the red channel is out of range so you can't actually set it correctly in software?

One of my PMTs was so old and tired I couldn't adjust the pot in range. So I fixed it by switching the PMT consistently reading low for the one with the highest value. That way I got all PMTs in range with each other, without needing to replace any. And I could white balance again.
 
Thanks @FotoD - I dont even know what the potentiometers are. I assume it is something physical I need to deal with rather than i software setting? I dont know that it is anything in the way with the red PMT though - as it seems to be working on the other apertures.
 
Yes, the pots are variable resistors you can adjust with a small screwdriver. On the 5000 they are appr 10x5mm blue boxes with a screw on them. They are placed on the larger box that contains the PMTs.
 
Thanks - I'll take a look at that. Before I adjust anything though... is there anywhere else I should look - for anything that could block light for instance when using the smallest aperture? I tried to se if I could find the actual apertures but I am not sure where they are. I have not opened the larger box that contains the PMTs yet though.
 
There is an aperture plate in the light path. I think it's spring loaded and a motor moves in position (to select the aperture).

You can remove the aperture plate and clean it with a solvent. If a speck of dust is caught in the smallest apertures it can give strange results.
 
Yes, if it's anything like the 5000 I think the plate is inside the red part. I remember the allen screws took some force to remove.

If you remove the aperture plate, remember to make sure it's correctly seated when you put it back. I don't think there are any sensors stopping the motor if the plate gets jammed.
 
Thanks - this kind of stuff makes me anxious
 
I get it. It's not like you can easily buy a replacement part if something breaks.

I was afraid of breaking the fiber optic cables. They get pretty inflexible when they're this old.
 
Indeed. I really enjoy what these PMT scanners deliver. I compared scans from my SM11K with scans from my CoolScan 8000 (same resolution linear 16 bits scan), and I really wanted to prefer the CoolScan scans as it is a much more convenient scanner. But what the drum scanner delivers just is much more pleasing.
 
I know. My Coolscan 4000 been demoted to an 'index sheet' scanner.

I only scan B&W, and there is no comparison. The Scanmate shows film grain when the Coolscan shows scanner grain. And the linear response in shadows and highlights makes it so much easier to invert the image.
 
PMT technology needs a revival

I adjusted the red PMT gain for aperture 0 and calibrated aperture positions now, and then ran a white calibration which succeeded. I checked the log and the software kept my input gain. I then ran another white calibration which also succeeded, but now the software had turned up the gain to 253 for the red channel aperture 0. There might be something there - like a dust or something in connection to aperture 0. But I think Ill leave it like that and adjust red pmt gain for aperture 0 and calibrate aperture positions if it fail again. I'd rather leave the hardware alone for now.
 
Great! I'd also leave the aperture plate alone unless it absolutely needs fixing.

Happy scanning!
 
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