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Author Topic: Mobile Digital Projector - Help Michael Voiland Expert Film Handler Posts: 219 From: Naperville, IL US Registered: Aug 2009 posted 05-20-2010 02:23 AM                     Ok here it goes. In the land of hackish aka the place I work we just got 2 silver screens with 2 more on the way. We got the new series 2 strong / nec digital projector the sc2000 model and the strong base with the racks built in. We got a gdc2100 server its a nice setup they got wheels for the base (crappy plastic double casters) - strong ships them They have some crazy ass scheme to move this thing around. Now after cropping the image to fit our main screen this thing is intense it looks great Real D by the way they were back ordered so we have the zscreen system temped in Our booth tech keeps saying their mobile we lower the projector to the wheels by lowering the 6 leveling feet and roll it to the other theater load a new config set and edge it into place with a crowbar.. Now this sound like a big old croc of shit. After watching the guy set the cropping up it looked great but i don't see it taking moves well. This is also an issue because our film proj is out of commission right now in that theater because they had to move the digital one so close into the center of our window to get it to fit around our decor. (please don't ask) so now our film machine is way off to the side and there is 6 inches between it and the base of the machine. This makes threading nearly impossible. So now we are screwed. First what do you think of this plan Second does anyone have the manuals for the series 2 projector from nec and the communicator software. Three where can I get the tms software for the gdc servers. Four any other suggestions would help me not rip my hair out well i'm sleeping.  |  IP: Logged Sean McKinnon Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1712 From: Peabody Massachusetts Registered: Sep 2000 posted 05-20-2010 10:53 AM                        quote: Michael Voiland Second does anyone have the manuals for the series 2 projector from nec and the communicator software. I would be careful about asking for this it may cause people to consider you suspicous.  |  IP: Logged Michael Voiland Expert Film Handler Posts: 219 From: Naperville, IL US Registered: Aug 2009 posted 05-20-2010 06:24 PM                     I am more concerned about the fact that we will be forced to move them and then when it wont line up we will be totally screwed. They don't listen to the projection department about anything until its to late.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 05-20-2010 09:21 PM                     It's simple... They can create a macro for each theater a given projector will be used in and tied to the buttons. So you might have scope and flat 2-D and 3-D buttons for each theater... This way you don't have to go in and change the screen file each time you move the projector. You can create all these macros in just a few minutes time once all the masking and color files have been saved. By the way Michael... I don't consider you suspicious at all since I've known you for some time now. Check your e-mail.... Mark  |  IP: Logged Michael Voiland Expert Film Handler Posts: 219 From: Naperville, IL US Registered: Aug 2009 posted 05-20-2010 10:29 PM                     They set the projector us strange their are 6 formats because its got reald so its 2 resolutions of 3d scope 2 resolutions of 3d flat and flat and scope the problem i see with moving it is taking a crowbar to wedge it into its final position between theaters.  |  IP: Logged Demetris Thoupis Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1240 From: Aradippou, Larnaca, Cyprus Registered: Apr 2001 posted 05-21-2010 01:25 AM                     Its actually not that hard to do this configuration. As Mark said you need separate files for each theater UNLESS they are completely identical! What's this with the crowbar issue? Demetris  |  IP: Logged Michael Voiland Expert Film Handler Posts: 219 From: Naperville, IL US Registered: Aug 2009 posted 05-22-2010 02:14 AM                     Our booth tech wanted us to lower the projector down on the wheels. Line it up as best as we can in front of the glass. Then level it out with the feet on the base their are 6 leveling feet then use a crowbar to do fine adjustment for the left and right.  |  IP: Logged Pete Naples Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1565 From: Dunfermline, Scotland Registered: Feb 2001 posted 05-22-2010 02:19 AM                     I've done this, successfully. You need an accurate locking mechanism to get it into place in each screen, we use something that looks like a bathroom door bolt, only stronger, longer and with no slop in it. One of those on diagonally opposite corners. A metal plate on the floor for the locking pins to engage in. Done. Use a commando socket for the power, and a EDAC for everything else. Fine alignment is done as described, you have multitple sets of macros for each theater, multiple sets of measured colour data, lamp power trimming etc. One thing to be aware of it that Dolby servers only 'see' the macros associated to the first 14 buttons on Barco machines for some reason. I've not tried this with NEC's so I don't know what will happen there. The caveat I always add to theatre owners/operators is that whilst the machine is mobile it is not a 5 minute job to move it, so don't be programming 11:00 in screen 1, 13:30 in screen 7. Usually they move it on Thursday night, with the programme.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 05-22-2010 02:44 PM                     Heaven help the poor slob that requires more than those 14 macros!!!  |  IP: Logged Pete Naples Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1565 From: Dunfermline, Scotland Registered: Feb 2001 posted 05-22-2010 06:21 PM                     You only need to have it mobile between 3 screens and you're up against this. Let's assume flat/scope + 3D flat/scope, that's 4 per screen. Now on a Barco you've only got 12 buttons. With 12 macros this isn't an issue, but if you want to have scaler, satellite, BluRay etc that means more macros. So at first you think to yourself, no problem, I'll put the ones I'm never going to need as server cues, on the buttons. The theory is good expect you now find that the format macros you really want as server cues have vanished from the server. The workaround is the nice touch screen or cheap laptop, you can use that to call up the more obscure macros, putting your daily use ones on the first 14 presets. If you try to make it mobile between more than 3 screens, at this time of the morning, I'm stumped!  |  IP: Logged Michael Voiland Expert Film Handler Posts: 219 From: Naperville, IL US Registered: Aug 2009 posted 05-22-2010 09:54 PM                     Its a bad idea still in my mind. Our booth tech came out the other night and tried to move it 4 inches well it was on the leveling feet with a crowbar... he failed.  |  IP: Logged Pete Naples Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1565 From: Dunfermline, Scotland Registered: Feb 2001 posted 05-23-2010 05:18 AM                     It's a bad idea if it's not planned and executed carefully. The ones I've done do not require levelling feet as such. The weight is taken by the castors at all times. As they are positioned on centre, no horizontal or vertical rake, on a level floor the picture alignment is all taken care of on the lens shift. and macros. By contrast, there's another I've seen mobile, NOT by us I hasten to add. The booth does not have two ports at the same height above FFL, the floor is not level or smooth, and the projectors is sat on what I can only describe as a contraption. It's difficult to align everyime it moves and with the use of car screwjacks to change its height (yes you read that right), downright dangerous!  |  IP: Logged Danial Simmonds Expert Film Handler Posts: 107 From: Kota Damansara, Selangor, Malaysia Registered: Jan 2008 posted 06-02-2010 10:55 PM                        When the cinema here first got a 3D projector they kept moving it from big hall to small after a week... for almost a year... imagine moving those christie CP2000-S, heavy projectors... Car Jack is the perfect solution for getting the tilt desired. It would be best to just stick the projector into a medium sized hall and get rid of the 35mm projector...  |  IP: Logged

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