This is topic Who makes Hi-Tech automation? in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.
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Posted by Aaron Flack (Member # 517) on 07-23-2000, 03:26 PM:
Our theater and several other theaters around town use Hi-Tech automation. I can't seem to find out who makes it. Does anyone know or use it?
Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 07-23-2000, 04:11 PM:
Hi-Tec automations are made by Megasystem.
www.megasystem.com They suck big time. I had one unit fail on me and they couldn't tell me how to fix it. They kept saying that it was a power supply issue. I had both units removed and replaced by two 20 year old Kelmar Maxi 10C automations. They work great and all the replacement parts are available at your local electronics store.
Posted by Aaron Flack (Member # 517) on 07-23-2000, 04:54 PM:
One problem I've been having with several of them is cues. When the credits begin the lights are supposed to go up 50% on the first sound side cue. Instead, the scope lens will change back to flat. The lights may or may not go up, depends on how its feeling I guess. On the shut down cue, the lens changes again to whatever and the lights either go up or go down. But the masking always works.Another problem I keep having is audio formats changing during a lens cue. But I think that mostly has to do with our fully programmable Smart MODIV processor, which the software never remembers what was programmed. But that is another story.
Posted by Joe Redifer (Member # 3) on 07-23-2000, 04:59 PM:
Whatever happened to Neumade's up and coming new automation that has a touch screen and is supposed to do everything you could possibly think of, including tune your auditoriums, turn on your parking lot lights, flush your toilets, do your taxes, and even start your movie?How was that for a run-on sentence?
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-23-2000, 08:29 PM:
The High Tech automation has been troublesome for me in the past. I ended up pulling them out and replacing them with other units. With all the driving that I had to do to get to the locations it was the best way to deal with it. I ended up eating two of the units. I have not used them since, but reportedly many of the old, previous problems have been delt with by High Tech.
Mark
Posted by Richard Hamilton (Member # 321) on 07-23-2000, 09:29 PM:
AARON, please E-mail me with any problems @ RHamilton@megasystem.com and I'll see what i can do to help. Are you sure that all of the cues are correct??? Sounds like there might be some human error involved!
Ian, Why do they suck??? Please restrain from badmouthing a product when you have one product out of two fail. How old where these units if they were replaced by 20 year old units?
Hey Mark, What is so bad about Hi-Tech?? Just curious??
Rick
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-23-2000, 09:32 PM:
Basically very poor quality parts, particuluary the switches. The designs are ok, but the execution of them leaves something to be desired. I had used them on a few installs. That was enough. Thanks for your interest though.
Mark
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-23-2000, 09:36 PM:
By the way Richard,
How's the 10kw lamp comming here at your installation in SLC? You guys seem to be dragging along on that one. The light level is very unacceptable there with the 7kw lamp. Running a 10kw lamp is a very simple thing to do if you select the right components. I could fix the problem in about 2 hours.
Mark
Posted by Oscar Neundorfer (Member # 458) on 07-24-2000, 05:56 AM:
Aaron,I am curious about the problem you are having with the MOD IV processor not remembering the format changes. It could be a bad memory-backup battery.
Why not e-mail me at oscar@smartdev.com and lets see what we can do to straighten this one out. Or you can call me at 1-800-457-6278.
Also, there are ways to connect a MOD IV with a simple automation in order to get multiple sound format changes. We can discuss that too, or you can stay with the simple changes offered by the automation.
Best regards,
------------------
Oscar Neundorfer
Chief Engineer
SMART Devices, Inc.
oscar@smartdev.com
Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 07-24-2000, 06:15 AM:
Mark/Richard:Relative to replacing a 7K with a 10K lamp in SLC --- I assume this is a 70mm installation? In my experience, 7K is about as high as you can go with any standard 35mm format without frying the film.
------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-24-2000, 08:52 AM:
Hi John,
Its actually a 70mm 8 perf system.
Mark
Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 07-24-2000, 09:41 AM:
Mark: I'm thankful it is 70mm, so all that energy is spread out over a larger frame area. Even 5-perf 70mm has 4.5X the area of "flat" 1.85:1 35mm, and 2.9X the area of "scope" 2.39:1 35mm. The much larger image area allows "spreading out" the energy over a larger area of film, so heat damage and thermal effects are much less of a problem for 70mm on big screens.------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-24-2000, 10:53 AM:
John, Speaking of putting high power through a 5 perf 70mm frame, take a look at the pictures of the AA-2 70mm gate I have that has a Cinefocus modification. Pretty neato. Brad will post pics of it later under my topic of the AA-2 gate with Cinefocus.
Mark
Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-24-2000, 11:41 AM:
Most of the HiTech automations I have to deal with have the following repating failures
Timer transistor failing to have repeatable timing functions (one is in a changeover house and the changeover rarely happens on cue after the motor starts)
The switchs are low cost devices that fail repeatably
The timer I eventually replaced with a raven UJT type
Posted by Dave Cutler (Member # 515) on 07-24-2000, 02:11 PM:
Mark, that wouldn't be a iWerks 8/70 installation in SLC, would it?
Or is it the Megasystems installation I have heard about? Just curious.
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-24-2000, 02:45 PM:
Its a Mega. Projector is the dual intermittant job. Runs nice but the Peavey processor and speakers leave something to be desired. I can now understand why Peavey has shut down that end of its operation. Its a 60 by 80 foot matte white screen, and the light level is around 5 fl give or take a bit. Pretty poor, and with dark corners. Probably should have been a coated screen.
A Kinoton retrofit assembley installed in the existing shell would probably do about 7 to 9fl with a new 7kw lamp. A 10kw version of the Kinoton is also available. It only costs about the price of 3 new 10kw lamps!! They are running a huge Strong High Reactance rectifier. Also somewhat questionable practice from my past experiences. The projector runs very well, nice and steady, and quiet. The lamp is the main problem here though.
Mark
Posted by John Eickhof (Member # 323) on 07-24-2000, 06:29 PM:
I too have ended up removing all the Hi Tech units I serviced in four states...poor cue
activation, poor quality switches, and of course...soldered in relays of substatially under rated size! Long live the Kelmar and Eprad systems!!! ( I have thrown away over
two dozen of them!) Oh well, "lowest price
often reflects quality level"
Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 07-25-2000, 08:29 AM:
quote:
Ian, Please restrain from badmouthing a product when you have one product out of two fail.
Hey, that's a 50% failure rate! 
------------------
Better Projection Pays!
Posted by Richard Hamilton (Member # 321) on 07-26-2000, 07:36 AM:
Hey Tim,
I'm surprised nobody made any remarks about that comment sooner! What I meant was to have ONLY one unit fail Rick
Posted by Ian Price (Member # 14) on 07-26-2000, 02:39 PM:
How did my Hi-Tech Automation System fail?Hi-Tech HTD-11 serial #1329
The first time we noticed something was wrong was when the film shut down in the middle of the performance. We spent some time looking for errant cues.
It shut down in the middle of shows for about a week usually one or two shows per day. We just started them up again.
The problem was that it shut the shows down randomly but multiple times per show. The it would shut down but continue motor so by the time the audience got restless and sent someone out to find an employee and they found us and we went to the back booth 10 minutes of the film had run through the projector.
Then it would close the dowser and run merrily along.
Then, and I really like this one, it would turn off the projector motor and leave the lamp on, thus treating the audience to the melting, burning film show. Of course with polyester film it didn't break and drop the fail-safes.
I called Megasystems and they told me it was a power supply issue. I tried all the connections but that didn't seem to solve the problem. Megasystems didn't offer to send a new power supply to find the problem.
Finally we ran manually for two months before we could get the units replaced with the afore mentioned 20 year old Kelmar Maxi 10 C Automations.
Now the films start and stop with pleasant assuredness and we no longer risk cracking a lens because the xenon light is shining through the unprotected lens. And we no longer have pissed off audience because there show was ruined. We don't have to give out canceled show passes anymore.
Our 30-year-old projectors and 20-year-old automations keep singing along and earning us a dime.
Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 07-26-2000, 02:47 PM:
Rick:
Yeah, I know what you meant, I'm just foolin' around...
I know how stuff like that goes and I can empathize with you. If there's one unit in a hundred that has a problem, it'll be installed in a single or a twin somewhere; one that can least afford to have trouble, or swap parts easily!!!! Happens every time! 
------------------
Better Projection Pays!
Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 07-26-2000, 04:15 PM:
Ian,If Megasystems doesn't want to be bashed in a public forum (or via private conversations), they SHOULD have made the attempt to take care of you. Had they offered to send you out a new power supply and your original one was defective from years and years of use, I'm sure you wouldn't have minded footing the bill. Of course, if your automation was only a couple of years old, they should be paying for it. Now I have no problem believing MegaSystems puts out a good product and for all we know you have the ONLY unit that has ever failed. However, since they basically didn't offer anything to help you, as rude as this may seem...they've got it coming. I guess it's a good thing Joe doesn't have one of those units to review.
By the way, those Kelmar automations may not do 1000 different functions like some of the new fancier ones can, but they are pretty darned reliable!
Posted by Aaron Flack (Member # 517) on 07-27-2000, 12:11 AM:
I actually have not had any problems with the High-Tech automations, except for the one that I mentioned earlier. All 8 of them are nine years old and very basic. Our Smart processors do more commands than the HT's. Of course our MODIV processors have not worked right in months(according to the other projectionist because I've only been here less than two months).IF ANYONE IS ON THIS TOPIC, READ THIS STORY, YOU MIGHT RELATE TO IT.
Oscar from Smart,
I called that number you gave and talked to a guy named Don about my audio problems. He gave me several solutions, including sending out a Smart technition. I told him we did have a regional tech. from Carmike who works on all our equipment, but is hard to get out here and has not fixed our audio problems in the past. I think Don understood that this was not an emergency, I just wanted some suggestions as to what I could do. Then tell my manager. He gave a number and told me to call a lady at Carmike's technical service. Apparently that was a HUGE mistake. I called the lady and briefly explained the problems. She told me to call our tech. back(we had called him a few weeks ago) and that he should be available, and if their were any problems just to call her back. She also told me our supply company,'Capitol City', was not at the time available for getting the booth supplies we need, which was important information.
Anyway, 10 min. after what I thought was a well understood conversation, one of the managers comes up to the booth and tells me the city manager just called told us never to do that again.
Apparently the lady from Carmike had immediatly called our city manager and informed him of my conversation. But I have no clue what she sayed. I then later got bashed by our so-called booth manager for making calls like that, especially to the home office. I thought I was talking to the technical department? He and everone else that knows that our Carmike technition is the most difficult person in the world who blames every single problem on the projectionist and then doesn't fix it. But he's under contract and is union, so nobody can touch him. I was simply trying to get some second opinions from people who ACTUALLY MADE THE THING!
I appreciate Don's help, but it backfired! This is what I get for trying to improve the booth.
I don't know about the rest of you and how you deal with your companies and management, but Carmike does not seem to give a damn about their employees, managers, or especially, their theaters.
Posted by Brad Miller (Member # 2) on 07-27-2000, 12:26 AM:
I have a feeling Don was trying to help. (I've heard nothing but excellent comments about the Smart reps backing their products and helping whenever they can. I've never had one of their units fail where I needed to call in myself.)A very pathetic story indeed. Is there a competitor you might move over to that would appreciate your efforts in striving for the best presentation possible?
Posted by Oscar Neundorfer (Member # 458) on 07-27-2000, 07:07 AM:
Aaron,First of all, PLEASE do not give up on trying to improve your presentation. Your customers are paying their hard-earned money, and they deserve the best you can do for them.
I do want to discuss your problems with you, but in view of the difficulties you encountered, I would be happy to discuss this privately with you if you will call and ask for Oscar at 1-800-457-6728.
I don't understand why management sometimes gets so upset when people are trying to do the right thing and make things better, but it happens. Sometimes the chain of command comes into play, and you have to play within the rules. I do not know what Carmike's rules are concerning projectionists getting directly involved with calling manufacturers, but you might want to investigate this to make sure you are handling it correctly.
My MAIN concern is that you have SMART equipment which you say is not working correctly. This does at least 2 things: it makes your customers and me unhappy, and it reflects badly on SMART's reputation. I do NOT want to be unhappy, and so I want to make sure we get this resolved to everyone's satisfaction. If you are so inclined, give me a call, or if you are hesitant, ask your manager to call me. One way or the other, we will get this taken care of.
Best regards,
Oscar Neundorfer
Chief Engineer
SMART Devices, Inc.
oscar@smartdev.com
Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-28-2000, 02:56 PM:
John Eickof wrote:"I too have ended up removing all the Hi Tech units I serviced in four states"
We had a 4 plex that had Eprad copoerators that expanded to an eight plex with the 4 new screens getting Hitechs.
After one month they wanted to know if they could get used cooperators to replace them with.
They had also had random shutdowns and switch failures.
The cooperators were not perfect but they were at least familiar with dealing with their quirks
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-28-2000, 03:33 PM:
Gord,
Actually the Co-Operators were not all that bad. The build quality was pretty good,relays plugged in and out, and they were about on a par with a Kelmar Maxi 7. The functions were very limited though. I had several theaters using them back in the Midwest, and I think one Drive In is still using them. I don't recall ever having to fix them either.
Mark
Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 07-28-2000, 07:11 PM:
The only big thing I disliked was useing them in changeover pairs and providing pulse type contacts for dimmers and curtains
The Eprad Auditorium programmer was a help
Posted by Bill Purdy (Member # 202) on 07-29-2000, 10:53 AM:
A lot of folks have kept their co-operators alive by adding one of our FM-35 cue detector/QX-10 cue expander combinations. This got them the extra functions they needed. In some cases some of the pulses from the FM-35 have to be stretched out long enough to allow the cams to rotate enough to operate the microswitch that keeps the motor running.------------------
Bill Purdy
Component Engineering
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-29-2000, 11:59 AM:
Bill,
Thats a really good idea!! I bet it would work for those using Kelmar maxi 7's too. They did make an accessory auditorium controller but I never liked them. Someone always managed to get things out of sync and have the curtains close when the film started, or vice versa.
Mark