my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Operations   » Digital Cinema Forum   » Animated Test Files for NEC

Author Topic: Animated Test Files for NEC Justin Hamaker Film God Posts: 2253 From: Lakeport, CA USA Registered: Jan 2004 posted 07-07-2019 06:13 PM                        I am trying to make an animated checkerboard test file because I have a stuck red pixel on one of my NEC NC2000C projectors. I saw a suggestion in another thread that playing such a clip for an extended period might resolve the issue. I know I can upload PNG files with the TI software, but I was wondering if there is anyway to upload an animated file. Or would I need to create a DCP and play it from the GDC server.  |  IP: Logged Marcel Birgelen Film God Posts: 3357 From: Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands Registered: Feb 2012 posted 07-08-2019 01:59 AM                     AFAIK the TI engine doesn't really support animated files, so the route should be via a DCP or alternate content input. You can find some of those "DLP repair" videos with some highly animated content on YouTube. (Warning: May not be suited for epileptics.) I'm probably not supposed to show you how you can download a movie from YouTube, but I've heard it's possible. From there, you can use the known route of creating a DCP from it (DCP-o-Matic). Alternatively, you could switch your input to HDMI and connect your notebook to it, that would save you the process of downloading (possibly illegal) and creating a DCP from it. I guess it doesn't have to be a checkerboard, it can be anything that gets those mirrors a good workout... I'm in the realm of the skeptics here, I think the chances of it actually working are pretty slim, but we've heard some sporadic success stories. Let us know if it worked for you.  |  IP: Logged Justin Hamaker Film God Posts: 2253 From: Lakeport, CA USA Registered: Jan 2004 posted 07-08-2019 02:30 AM                        I created a DCP with a pattern I made in Photoshop. I ran it for 10 minutes and it didn't do anything, but I've seen the suggestion to leave it running over night. As for the YouTube videos, I'm already ahead of you. I used to use this as a source for trailers for a lobby trailer reel. Unfortunately it was a moving target finding the most up to date information on how to download.  |  IP: Logged Marcel Birgelen Film God Posts: 3357 From: Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands Registered: Feb 2012 posted 07-08-2019 05:48 AM                     Downloading videos from YouTube doesn't help Google's business model, so that's why they're constantly changing their stuff to frustrate downloading the content. Yes, the idea is that you leave this running for a long time to increase your odds, but you should be able switch off the lamp. I've fixed some image retention problems on some LCDs in a similar way, but fixing a stuck mirror in a DMD device this way is pretty much a lucky shot.  |  IP: Logged Carsten Kurz Film God Posts: 4340 From: Cologne, NRW, Germany Registered: Aug 2009 posted 07-08-2019 06:05 AM                     One would guess that a simple (max allowed frame rate) frame flicker between black and full red is the most effective pattern in this case. Also playing it in 3D could help (flashing increases effective pattern change frequency). But I think the time span you play this is more relevant than the actual pattern. Maybe an alternating checkerboard on the pixel level (one pixel on, one off, then flip) could also help, since it also moves individual neighboring mirrors against each other. - Carsten  |  IP: Logged Marcel Birgelen Film God Posts: 3357 From: Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands Registered: Feb 2012 posted 07-08-2019 06:18 AM                     quote: Carsten Kurz Maybe an alternating checkerboard on the pixel level (one pixel on, one off, then flip) could also help, since it also moves individual neighboring mirrors against each other. It will be interesting to see how that will work out with JPEG2000, not only during compression, but also during decompression on the server.  |  IP: Logged Carsten Kurz Film God Posts: 4340 From: Cologne, NRW, Germany Registered: Aug 2009 posted 07-08-2019 06:39 AM                     I have done a lot of 2k and 4k per-pixel checkerboard tests a while ago with standard J2K data rates. At least visually, they don't suffer much from compression. http://www.film-tech.com/cgi-bin/ubb/f16/t002306/p1.html Unfortunately, most of the sample images that were linked in this thread are invalid links now, but most of those I linked to are still there: https://www.dropbox.com/s/hpnoer0yirohq5h/4kchecker_j2c_crop.jpg?dl=0 (this is not a 'screenshot', but a decompressed J2C of the test pattern, so you notice that J2C deals with it gracefully. Haven't tested monochromatic patterns, though.) https://www.dropbox.com/s/gnzhg88cbcp0qhr/4k_lines_sony515.jpg?dl=0 - Carsten  |  IP: Logged Marcel Birgelen Film God Posts: 3357 From: Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands Registered: Feb 2012 posted 07-08-2019 12:08 PM                     I guess those patterns compress sufficiently not to come close to the edge of DCI bandwidth constrains. I remember that we've talked about some strange behavior on Doremi hardware in the past, where it was clear that the image that was rendered wasn't the full 4K JPEG2000 image in certain cases.  |  IP: Logged Carsten Kurz Film God Posts: 4340 From: Cologne, NRW, Germany Registered: Aug 2009 posted 07-08-2019 06:41 PM                     Yes, there was a 4k glitch in the Doremi IMB. Don't know if they ironed it out since. I think it did never occur with real world footage, though. - Carsten  |  IP: Logged Dave Macaulay Film God Posts: 2321 From: Toronto, Canada Registered: Apr 2001 posted 07-12-2019 05:20 PM                     The alternating checkerboard is not a normal pattern, it's internal in the ICP, not part of a Barco clone, and not visible in the pattern folder in the ICP. I don't know, but maybe it's actually in there accessible via the ICP/Enigma control program?  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

Printer-friendly view of this topic

Hop To: Select a Forum: Category: Operations -------------------- Digital Cinema Forum Film Handlers' Forum Large Format Forum Ground Level Feature Info, Trailer Attachments & REAL Credit Offsets Category: Community -------------------- Film-Yak Film Handlers' Movie Reviews The Afterlife Bob Maar's Joke-A-Thon Category: Classified -------------------- Equipment and Supplies Wanted/For Sale Help Wanted/Seeking Employment Category: System -------------------- Software Beta Testing Forum

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.