I finally spoke at length with the tech that works on the Ernemanns. He told me that he has had one laser failure (not bad out of 27), and problems with the plane of the light pipes being untrue, as well as an inboard light pipe that was cracked. He said the main problem that he has found with the sound head is that most of them don't hold an a-chain very long.

He also said that he has found that the teflon on the gate rails starts chipping over time. Once this happens, the rest of the teflon has to be removed by sanding. Another issue is the separation of the velvet on the bands from its backing, requiring frequent band changes. There have also been ongoing problems with the pad arm springs falling out. As I mentioned previously, there is a problem with the motor hunting which makes it impossible to run interlock. Compared with other projector types, the turrents require frequent alignment and maintenance.

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I think we're on the same page here, re: the operator makes a difference.