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

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Operations   » Film Handlers' Forum   » Does SONY still make and market SDDS players? (Page 4)

This topic comprises 4 pages: 1  2  3  4

Author Topic: Does SONY still make and market SDDS players? John Hawkinson Film God Posts: 2273 From: Cambridge, MA, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 08-22-2010 11:33 PM                     Err...OK, Tony, your case is if you connect your unbalanced signal to ground/+ and your amp is expecting to see voltage between -/+ not ground/+, then it might think your voltage is half as much as it really is? Ummm...I guess. I think there's something wrong with this. If you only hook up two wires (i.e. don't connect the shield), don't you generally tie the ground of your unbalanced cable to the signal - input anyhow? Scott: basically lots of people don't have the choice. Historically Dolby processors only offered unbalanced outputs. So you had to jump through hoops to convert to balanced. I also think the risks/dangers of unbalanced are probably overstated. A lot of people have no problems. And if your amplifier has an input transformer, then does it even matter at all? (That said, we have transformers.) --jhawk  |  IP: Logged Tony Bandiera Jr Film God Posts: 3067 From: Moreland Idaho Registered: Apr 2004 posted 08-23-2010 12:12 AM                     John, Not my case and don't try to make it into mine. I'm telling y'all what those makers have said (See the MXa manual) about their inputs' requirements. I don't know precisely why they claim that and I don't care. As long as my systems work without noise and gain issues it's all good. You are correct, in that I use the (-) for my unbalanced signal ground, for example, coming from a CP-65, using Belden 8451/9451, at the CP-65 end, red goes to Center channel, black goes to "E" (earth terminal in Dolby-speak) and the shield is not connected. At the amp, red goes to (+), black goes to (-), and the shield goes to the amp's ground terminal. Now according to the MXa manual, I am supposed to connect the (-) and the ground together at the amp end. I think if I were to connect my black wire in the example I gave above to the gnd at the amp instead of the (-), I'm willing to bet there would be problems. To whit: quote: Monte L Fullmer ....The have CE-M100's for their monitors. leads for the monitor's input are tapped from the processor's outputs to the amplifiers (ASHLY's) in which the leads to the amplifiers are connected in the balanced fashion (plus, minus, shield) Yet, the plus leads are running up to the monitor amp are heading up to the plus connections, yet the sheild is floating (unconnected, or like a drain of sorts). I told the owner to disconnect the leads from the rear of the monitor amp and his sound return to normal. How should his setup been connected so the house sound would not have been affected and can still use his monitor amp? Monte, more important is how is the output of the CP-55 tied in to the system? IIRC when feeding the outputs of the Dolby into the balanced inputs of a Sony SDDS you would connect the channel (+) outputs to pin 2 of the xlr, and tie pins 1 (gnd or shield) and 3 (-) together. If you don't tie the pins 3 and 1 together with unbalanced sources you can get the thin sound you describe. (Try lifting pin 3 or 2 of a microphone and you'll get the same effect. ) If the SDDS and the CP-55's outputs are "piggybacked" onto the amp's outputs then that is the problem. The Dolby should feed through the SDDS system. (Another thing I never liked about the whole SDDS debacle..you have to feed your optical processor through the SDDS to ensure reliable fallback..) The connections to the CE monitor are pretty much normal, I have seen where all the processor sides have only the (+) leads connected and one of the speaker side (-) is used as a return. (My experience with CE MS-100 is that it seems to work best when I connect only one of the processor side (-) to the monitor and do not connect any of the speaker side (-) to the monitor.) Bear in mind that the CE MS-100 sometimes fails and loads down the processor outputs.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 08-23-2010 01:15 PM                     Thx Tony for the help. No, they do have the optical feed from the Dolby going into the SONY as you described, thus I do believe that it was how the monitor was connected. But I'll check to see how the XLR is connected for unbalanced signals.. Monte  |  IP: Logged Dominic Espinosa Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1172 From: California, U.S.A. Registered: Jan 2004 posted 08-23-2010 01:55 PM                     This has little to do with the topic but is an amusing anecdote nonetheless. I recently visited the US assembly line for the 4K projectors, it's in my backyard actually. They have an SDDS unit set up on a test-bed in the lab but no one, at least none of the folks on the tour including a veteran trainer, had any idea what the thing was. When I explained the history in brief you could see light bulbs going on. Sort of like the Sony guys going "so THIS is why theater people don't like us..."  |  IP: Logged Tony Bandiera Jr Film God Posts: 3067 From: Moreland Idaho Registered: Apr 2004 posted 08-23-2010 05:43 PM                     You're welcome Monte. Let us know what you find... Dominic, That is funny and sad at the same time. But not surprising considering their track record in the cinema (and according to Mark G., the broadcast) business.  |  IP: Logged Frank Angel Film God Posts: 5305 From: Brooklyn NY USA Registered: Dec 1999 posted 08-23-2010 05:47 PM                        Re: how to deal with vexing ground loops that can't be resolved by the usual apparent methods. From the RCA Technical Service protocol -- 1) Turn on the system so you hear the offending hum 2) start at the signal origin point 3) if the sheild not connected to ground, connect it 4) if the offending hum gets louder, disconnect it 5) if the offending hum gets lower, solder it Repeat until you get to the amplifer If none of this helps, tell the exhibitor he needs to call in an Ampex Service technician.  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

This topic comprises 4 pages: 1  2  3  4

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.