This is topic Anyone Experience with B.A.C.P. Products in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.
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Posted by Marc Jones (Member # 29) on 05-18-2002, 01:01 PM:
Anyone used or installed their products
Specificly DSTR -20 Penthouse Dolby Digital Reader
and/or RSTR 2000 LED analog Reader.
Any input would be appreciated.
Thanks
Posted by Darren Briggs (Member # 1071) on 05-18-2002, 02:57 PM:
Im testing a Penthouse reader for our company at the moment, Great product, error rates low , just the same as my basement reader that has just been re-aligned(Cinemeccaninca reverse scan kit) Dead easy to set up and it only needs the one cable from the DA20/CP500/650 , it takes the power for the LED form the DA20 etc. Solid built, recomended if you need a penthouse.
Darren
Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 05-18-2002, 03:54 PM:
I'm in the process of writing up a review on the BCAP Cinemecanicca analog scanner and I took lots of pictures to go with it. Itallian machines are not know for ease of install of any stereo add ons but this install was exceptionally easy. All in all its a fine product and when installing it on a Vic 9 there was only one minor glitch which was easily corrected. The pickup of the BACP scanners are in my opinion the best in the buisness and the built in switching mode power supply makes installation almost TOO convenient. Machining quality of the alumnium parts is also second to none and the LED head is replacable without removing the braket! What more could one ask for...
Mark @ GTS
Posted by Richard Fowler (Member # 893) on 05-18-2002, 04:26 PM:
The BACP Digital penthouse has been a winner for us so far due to the ease of installation. The BACP Cinemeccanica analog reader has some nice features such as read out on the pull out pre-amolifier card for troubleshooting and if you are not planning to utilize a Cinemeccanica basement digital set-up which requires a new style almost full surface drum. The kit gives you a spacer to mount on the existing drum to give you the protection that is afforded the factory upgrade drum at reasonable cost. The only complaint has been the little power supply for the analog unit ( a wall wart type ) that scare people since it does not look as durable as the rest of the kit. the unit draws so little power, the power supply is fine...but we have had to supply a din rail power supply for some people to give it the "industrial" look.
Richard Fowler
TVP-Theatre & Video Products Inc. www.tvpmimami.com
Posted by John Walsh (Member # 168) on 05-18-2002, 04:40 PM:
How much compared to a Cat.701?
Posted by Barry Hans (Member # 477) on 05-18-2002, 04:56 PM:
I put in two B.A.C.P. analog readers in Vic 8's. Very easy install. Work as good as any other brand out there. I will consider B.A.C.P. when it's time to upgrade to red led at my theatre without a doubt. I saw something on the Ultra page about their ASTDII Analog Sound Track Digitizer http://www.uslinc.com/products/ccd.htm . Anyone have info on it?
Posted by Richard Fowler (Member # 893) on 05-18-2002, 06:18 PM:
The Digitizer is one of Jack Cashin of Ultra Stereo "toys". the system utilizes a cdd camera to read the analog sound track. He had it on display at ShoWest a few years ago but was pricy compared to the then new red LED reverse scan kits that arrived at the same time.
Richard Fowler
TVP-Theatre & Video Products Inc. www.tvpmiami.com
Posted by Ray Derrick (Member # 1001) on 05-30-2002, 07:04 AM:
Richard, actually the ASTD (analog sound track digitizer) was developed by a Californian company called DTSC and was originally a laser scanning device. I believe Ultra took it up later but DTSC ultimately found the laser system too unreliable and changed to a CCD method.The idea behind the original system was that by scanning the sound track from one side to the other at a frequency of around 44kHz you could effectively produce a dual pulse width modulated output which could then be digitally processed. In other words the sound track is A-to-D converted by the scanning process.
Because the PWM signal "sees" just the boundaries between the clear soundtrack area and the black edges of the soundtrack, any noise on the film (other than right at at the boundaries) can be completely ignored. Of course Dolby would not be interested in any system that did not need their proprietary noise reduction as it would reduce their financial advantage so they never went this route.
We did some work on a similar idea about seven years ago using a high intensity laser beam mechannically scanned by a peizo driven mirror onto and large mono solar cell, but found the system problematic and stopped further research. At that time, line array CCD chips were too slow for the purpose but the current version being offered by USL is an extension of the same theory and as I understand it works rather well, albeit rather expensive.
------------------
Ray Derrick
President/Chief Engineer
Panalogic Corporation Sydney, Australia
Phone: 61 (0)2 9894 6655 Fax: 61 (0)2 9894 6935
Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 05-30-2002, 08:41 AM:
Years ago there was I think a system called Colortek which had placed 5 optical tracks on the film that was to be read by a video style camera
somehow i sort of rememebr that one of the quintaphonic people were involved in it
Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 05-30-2002, 08:56 AM:
Information about the ColorTek sound system:
http://www.widescreenmuseum.com/sound/colortek01b.htm ------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: +1 585 477 5325 Cell: +1 585 781 4036 Fax: +1 585 722 7243
e-mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion
Posted by Richard Fowler (Member # 893) on 05-30-2002, 09:27 AM:
I remember attending a screening of a John Wayne ( Branigan? ) film with the Colortek sound track in the early 1980's during a SMPTE convention in Los Angeles....it was impressive. The decoder box was attached to the 70mm magnetic output and the reader replaced the components in the Century optical soundhead. I remember the concern they had if the lab did a poor job of color correction or processing which would effect the quality of the sound.
Richard Fowler
TVP-Theatre & Video Products Inc. www.tvpmiami.com
Posted by Clint Koch (Member # 1179) on 05-30-2002, 01:22 PM:
The BACP reverse scan units and digital penthouse reader are manufactured by USL, Inc. They were designed in a joint effort by Jack Cashin, Sam Chavez and Roger Hibbard of USL, Inc.The ASTD (analog sound track digitizer) was originaly the concept of DTSC and USL, Inc. did get involved with the design and testing on the CCD side. USL, Inc. new the laser system too unreliable. USL, Inc. is no longer involved with the ASTD or DTSC. As Derrick points out, the units work well yet are rather expensive.
Posted by Manuel Francisco Valencia (Member # 710) on 05-31-2002, 03:38 PM:
I believe that these are great readers but I seem to be having a few problems with mine. After about two months of having them they both do not work. The LED went out on one of them which is the same one I posted about before. The other can no longer track worth of crap! I was getting solid 0's 1's and 2's out of it and now 4 5 6 and then all of a sudden F! And I know it is not defective prints. But then again it is probably just my two readers that have the problem and not related to design.
Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 05-31-2002, 10:14 PM:
If they jumped that fast I would be looking at the aginment and focus being off the wall.
Since these have been on the market for about a year or less then the dealer who installed and supplied them should be bound to send out an engineer and realign them.