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Author Topic: RCA MI-9030 sound head red light adjustment Sam D. Chavez Film God Posts: 2153 From: Martinez, CA USA Registered: Aug 2003 posted 06-12-2018 10:26 AM                       I probably have the Jax Lite you need. I ended up with some of the stock when USL was sold. As to adjusting the height of the bulb, the simplest way to check it is in the right location is to put a piece of paper right in front of the solar cell. You will see the image of the bulb with the filament/led on the paper. It should be in the middle of a round halo. Adjust as needed to center things. While you are at it, check where the sllt of light is hitting the cell. it should be toward the top of the cell you may need to twist the bracket arm a bit if need be. Don't move the cell bracket itself as it will move laterally and you need a scope for sure to get it back in place with Cat. 97 left, right alternate tone burst film. The lateral adjustment of the film should be done with Buzz track that centers the film so it projects the sound track onto the the solar cell. Notwithstanding all the above, my money is on an oil filled lens.  |  IP: Logged Randy Stankey Film God Posts: 6539 From: Erie, Pennsylvania Registered: Jun 99 posted 06-12-2018 10:43 AM                     I'm not a big fan of the Jax-Lite but I don't think that's your biggest problem. Like others have said, that machine looks dirty and in need of adjustment. Give it a good cleaning and a thorough P.M. and I bet you'll see a lot of improvement. After that, you can stand back and decide whether you want to upgrade. If you are going to keep this machine and run it for any length of time, I think you should ditch that Jax-Lite and install a good LED/reverse scan pickup.  |  IP: Logged Justin Frakes Film Handler Posts: 20 From: New Boston, IL, USA Registered: May 2018 posted 06-12-2018 12:44 PM                     It's very hard to keep it clean. The area is so dusty and there must be some seals leaking very slowly so after I clean it the oil seeps out just enough to let all the dust stick the next day. Once I'm through the season I have no problem taking it apart to find where the leak is but until then I guess I don't know the best way to clean it. I've tried compressed air but it doesn't do anything and I'm afraid to use a solvent because it might eat paint or melt plastic. What do you recommend for cleaning? Where can I get a reverse scan led and lens that will fit my sound head and what is better about it? Justin.  |  IP: Logged Barry Floyd Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1079 From: Lebanon, Tennessee, USA Registered: Mar 2000 posted 06-12-2018 01:14 PM                        I had an RCA 9030 back in our 35mm days fitted out with a Component Engineering LED Reverse Scan reader. Worked like a charm. They are all in storage now. The reader is still mounted in the soundhead.  |  IP: Logged Dave Macaulay Film God Posts: 2321 From: Toronto, Canada Registered: Apr 2001 posted 06-12-2018 02:15 PM                     Is the lens wrapped in electrical tape and jammed in the hole? Is that even the correct sound lens? Agreed that even a brute force alignment looking for the crispest sound from a trailer or whatever could make a big improvement. You work on getting the lens beam - a thin red line that should be visible on a white paper held at the film plane - to hit the centre of the solar cell pickup. Mono cell is just a black square or even circle, stereo is a black rectangle with a scratch down its middle. The dim red line should cross that scratch and be centred on it. The better/best alternative is a red LED reverse scan system. This puts the LED where your solar cell is and mounts a reader/preamp where your lens is. There were a few: Component Engineering, Kelmar, and Sam's own BACP. I preferred BACP and CE, but other people preferred Kelmar. They all work the same. I don't know if these are still available, and the RCA was an uncommon soundhead when tracks turned cyan so surplus used ones may be rare. I could trade you any number of 5-Star reader sets for a beer or two, but I don't know where to find a 9030 set. The main difference is in the LED mount, possibly one could convert a 5-Star unit to work? If I come across a 9030 in a corner waiting for the screppers I'll try to salvage its reader and LED bracket. I don't expect that to happen soon. Anyone know if a Simplex gearbox soundhead uses the same LED mount as RCA?  |  IP: Logged Sam D. Chavez Film God Posts: 2153 From: Martinez, CA USA Registered: Aug 2003 posted 06-12-2018 07:12 PM                       I may still have a couple of RCA 9030 reader kits around. On BACP readers, everything is the same between Simplex and RCA except for a lens adaptor bushing as the RCA lens barrel is larger than a Simplex. The LED bracket is the same but the bracket arm and base are quite different. The audio quality is superior to the Jax lite in every way. Most important, the original lens gets replaced by the new reader/lens assembly.  |  IP: Logged Justin Frakes Film Handler Posts: 20 From: New Boston, IL, USA Registered: May 2018 posted 06-12-2018 08:04 PM                     The lens doesn't have any electrical tape on it. It is stuck in the mounting block. I tried to take it out or move it last week but it won't budge and I didn't want to get too rough with it until I got some more information on it. If I can get the basic components I'm sure I can fabricate some brackets or bushings whatever is needed. I have access to a machine shop. I did use the white piece of paper trick last week too as it was described in the operating manual. The line is red and thin horizontal about 3/16 wide and it has 2 "tails that go up 1/8 inch. The tails are curved like a incomplete circle. The flat line hits the solar cell right where it "v's" Justin.  |  IP: Logged Sam D. Chavez Film God Posts: 2153 From: Martinez, CA USA Registered: Aug 2003 posted 06-13-2018 12:56 AM                       The red line should be in the middle of the halo. You can determine the jax lite optimum lateral position by sliding the bulb holder back and forth on the bayonet. The lens will come come loose if you losses the two flat head screws on the side of the block that holds the lens. The reader kits from all vendors have everything you need including a new solar cell inside the reader so no machine work is required.. The new LED fits in the space now occupied by the existing solar cell. The new reader/lens assembly fits in the space now occupied by the jax lite and lens.  |  IP: Logged John Eickhof Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 588 From: Wendell, ID USA Registered: Jan 2000 posted 06-13-2018 05:41 PM                        howdy! what you have is an early 9030 with a two piece slit lens the two holes hold eccentric cams that adjust the azimuth (left one) and lens focus (right one)there is probably oil coated on the surface between the front and rear halves. to remove the lens loosen the two fillister head screws above the cams then the front half will pull forward and the rear section can be pushed out towards the exciter lamp. remove the jax light first. i like these for the ease of adjustment but you would need the special rca cam tool to do so. you can install a one piece slit lens and adj. stop easily if you want to get rid of the old style unit. this is advisable since the old one has a wide slit making it limited for high frequency response.and yes, the rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated !  |  IP: Logged Sam D. Chavez Film God Posts: 2153 From: Martinez, CA USA Registered: Aug 2003 posted 06-13-2018 07:36 PM                       Welcome back! You've gone missing a long while. I was starting to think you owed Paul money.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 06-13-2018 08:01 PM                      |  IP: Logged John Eickhof Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 588 From: Wendell, ID USA Registered: Jan 2000 posted 06-13-2018 10:41 PM                        howdy sam and mark! been a tough year but starting to feel better and slowly catching up on medical expenses. ( sadly expenses required compromising internet and fone service over the winter )i have been trying to visit california but probably wont get to for another month or two. thanks for your concerns ! as for the topic the early two piece slit lens is replacable with the regular t type assy and does not need the adaptor like the later rca soundheads, the fillister head screws clamp the lens in place. so what is needed is the pickup assy for century or simplex and the led bracket for rca.  |  IP: Logged Gary Wachter Film Handler Posts: 21 From: Coppell, TX, USA Registered: Jul 2010 posted 06-19-2018 09:06 PM                     A number of years ago I retrofitted a laser LED into an RCA 9030. The device was a complete laser/slit/lens assembly from Future Projections in the UK. Power required is 5 volts DC. The original lens cylinder was gutted and it fit nicely inside. This kept the original focus and lock adjustments operational. It was not an easy conversion and took a good deal of time and patience to get it set just right. As mentioned earlier, the test films and a scope is essential. You don't need to buy fancy test equipment, as there are audio test programs available for download to your PC that have scope functions. The audio input to the sound card is employed with good results. This may be the only RCA sound head powered by USB! (LED only, output is still from solar cell).  |  IP: Logged Sam D. Chavez Film God Posts: 2153 From: Martinez, CA USA Registered: Aug 2003 posted 06-20-2018 02:17 AM                       Nice soundhead. Very clean. The problem with laser readers is they tend to emphasize dirt and scratches. The reason is a laser is the very essence of collimated light where what is needed is a non collimated light source. Non collimated light can go around a speck of dirt while a laser beam hits it head on. The other problem is the lasers sold by ACL and others tend to fail completely after a time and all the makers of said hardware are long gone. .  |  IP: Logged Justin Frakes Film Handler Posts: 20 From: New Boston, IL, USA Registered: May 2018 posted 06-21-2018 09:50 AM                     Nice retrofit! I'm going to see what I can do with some original parts I just got from Frank. Eventually I'd like to try to retrofit the reverse scan led if I can find the parts to do it at a reasonable price. Thanks for all the info you guys are a wealth of knowledge. What should I be using to keep it clean inside everything?  |  IP: Logged

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