Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Unusual Simplex Sound-Head

This is topic Unusual Simplex Sound-Head in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Steven J Hart (Member # 2340) on 06-23-2004, 09:28 PM:

I recently went to help out a fellow theater owning friend change out his ancient projection and sound heads with a pair he salvaged out of his (now closed) drive-in. He told me they were Simplex 35 projectors on 5-star sound heads. I went ahead and ordered the Kelmar IR reverse scan reader kits and thought we'd be home free. When I arrived to do the job, I found that the soundheads were a model I had never seen before (SH7200) and that the Kelmar reader conversion kits would not fit. My friend told me that his father purchased these units in 1972. Any help you can give identifying these machines is appreciated.

We removed the existing Super Simplex projector heads and temporarily mounted the Simplex 35 projector heads on the theater's existing RCA 1040 (yuck) sound heads using kits from Strong (really really expensive), but would like to use the sound heads in question.

Front View Closed: Looks pretty standard from the outside.

Front View Open: Note the weird pressure pad roller mounted on the same bracket with slit lens.(slit lens removed) The Solar Cell has also been removed.

Model Tag: S/N 2294

One equipment dealer told me that my best bet would be to melt them down for scrap metal. I'd sure like a second opinion!

Thanks a lot!

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 06-23-2004, 10:38 PM:

Yea, I'm very familiar with them. These are the infamous Simplex "No Star" sound reproducers. The best thing to do is to use the 1040's if they have the flywheel type motors, or better yet get a pair of used 4 Star sound heads... thats about out the best it gets and they hold up very good for D.I. usage. Throw those 7200's in the trash!

Mark @ CLACO

Posted by Paul G. Thompson (Member # 655) on 06-23-2004, 10:47 PM:

I have seen those things somewheres before...can't remember if I was running relief operator for the Oakland Local, or whether it was on the off-the-wall service route I was saddled with in Wisconsin.

Wherever it was, I was not very impressed with them.

Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 06-23-2004, 11:59 PM:

There used to be a retrofit kit for them to make them into a 5 star

Posted by William Hooper (Member # 71) on 06-24-2004, 01:49 AM:

Wow, thanks for bringing this up & discussing it. I've just been asked to try to bring back from the dead & utilize two of those sound heads in another project. They're the same, right down to the broken knob on the door.

The Kelmar red readers don't fit? Does any mfr. have a red reader that fits those 7200's?

Posted by Steven J Hart (Member # 2340) on 06-24-2004, 08:40 AM:

Thanks for the information. It doesn't sound good for these "no stars" Were these sound heads made for a very short time? Were they designed and produced while National Screen Service owned Simplex?

Posted by Ken Layton (Member # 133) on 06-24-2004, 11:26 AM:

I'm sure that Greg Mueller ought to be able to fabricate an LED mounting bracket to use with Component Engineering's ASR-40 reverse scan to use in your soundhead.