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Author
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Topic: Murphy's Luck bit my ass today
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Jason Black
Phenomenal Film Handler
![](http://www.film-tech.com/ubbmembers/0684c.jpg)
Posts: 1723
From: Myrtle Beach, SC, USA
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 01-25-2003 11:11 PM
Tonight was the epitome for Murphy's Luck. Not only did we have a sneak of Chicago (how can it even be classified as a sneak when it's been out for weeks now?) that was agency placed in the paper with INCORRECT time, but on start up my operator reported no sound output from the CP500. They call me at home and I run down the list of things to check to no avail. I arrive abck to work about 40 minutes later to find that a sold out house went down for the show, which I knew was happening anyway, so it was no surprise bt I hoped for a miracle anyway! At any rate, I get to the booth and run thru the things I know to check, solar cell (LED type) is lit, reboot the CP500, try bypass, mono, SR to no avail. The DTS processor power supply took a shit so no luck there. The solar cell power supply could be bad.. I start the print back up and VOILA, sound in SR-D only. By this time, it was into reel 2. I cut the print and ran R1 thru again. No SR-D encoding! With no DTS to fall back on and no SR out, I have nothing....
At any rate, that bastage Murphy got me again. I will admit, it doesn't happen that often but when it does... it BLOWS!!!
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Jason Black
Phenomenal Film Handler
![](http://www.film-tech.com/ubbmembers/0684c.jpg)
Posts: 1723
From: Myrtle Beach, SC, USA
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 01-26-2003 07:42 PM
Steve,
The culprit was the pre-amp for the reverse scan solar cell. The cat 661 chekce dout good after swapping to another CP500. I determined that there was no SR-D track found (for reasons unknown) on R1 of the print I have. The DTS p/supply was already bad so I had only SRD and optical to resort to. With the pre-amp for the solar cell down, I was screwed for the first reel.
The show is up and running with no problems today (in another house). I must note that this brings up a past discussed topic..
When the print was screened, it was played in DTS with no problems.. how would one have known that there was going to be problems with the SRD track? And isolated to R1 to boot! The SRD track appears to be there, between the perfs, but the reader saw nothing until R2.
These things, unfortuantely, will happen and as the theatres get more and more 'electronic' these problems will only compound themselves, IMO. I wish I knew everything about the tech side of my equipment, but, unfortunately, I don't. I try and learn as much as I can, and I know more than a lot of "our" managers, yet in still, things of this nature might still happen on a freak occurence. Not good for our reputation because we all know that no-one remembers all the flawless presentations, but F* up ONE TIME....
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Jason Black
Phenomenal Film Handler
![](http://www.film-tech.com/ubbmembers/0684c.jpg)
Posts: 1723
From: Myrtle Beach, SC, USA
Registered: Nov 2000
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posted 01-27-2003 11:07 PM
Michael, You present a good point. I did, in fact, know that the DTS power supply was bad, and I have no valid reason for not getting it taken care of immediately. I don't think that this was an 'invitation' for Murphy however. As you may know and as I have found out, the reverse scan LED readers will still show the LED illuminated even if the preamp P/S is dead. End result, NO ANALOG, without knowledge. I know my equipment to a degree, altho I am not a tech. I wish I knew more that I do, but I learn more each time something happens. The times that I miss a show are very few and far between and sometimes things will happen. BUUT, how would I have known that the SRD track wasn't encoded to the film? The track appeared tp be there, yet it was not able to be read. The prescreening was fine in DTS, but we all know that you can't possibly screen in all formats for continuity....
Hindsight is 20/20 and this was a blunder created by a myriad of unforseen problems, sans the DTS unit.
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