Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: LMT 300 Media Block Ingest Issues

This is topic LMT 300 Media Block Ingest Issues in forum Digital Cinema Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Scott Bruffey (Member # 5308) on 12-22-2011, 02:42 PM:

Just got a pair of these in the booth yesterday and one of them is having some interesting issues. It's hit or miss when recognizing USB devices and while trying to ingest War Horse it refuses to see the asset list; it only displays a stack of folders. The other server had no issue importing the feature and other content, nor did our Doremi. Any thoughts?

Posted by Dave Macaulay (Member # 813) on 12-22-2011, 03:46 PM:

Hmm. Any thoughts?
You got these yesterday, one is buggy...
My thought? Call your dealer or Sony.

Posted by Paul Mayer (Member # 355) on 12-22-2011, 04:23 PM:

And of course, try a total cold reboot first.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 12-22-2011, 05:57 PM:

"Total Reboot"

Wasn't that a Schwartzenager film?

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 12-22-2011, 09:15 PM:

Welcome to the world of the hated SONY units.

Things are as tempermental as an APPlE computer - very propreitory.

Sometimes, you have to wait for a good 100 minutes for the Media Block to recognize a USB drive" .. but, in all due actuality, plug it in, walk away for a few minutes, get a drink and popcorn and come back and it should see the USB drive.

Also, SONY has major issues with seeing TECH drives..they're good with seeing DeLuxe drives.

Get a TMS in the building and all the ingest problems disappear with this danged things.

Posted by Scott Bruffey (Member # 5308) on 12-22-2011, 10:00 PM:

Thanks for jumping in everyone! The cold reboot did the trick. Initially, that's what I would have started the troubleshooting process with but I had been reassured by another op that it had been done...which then became "No, I said it SHOULD be done." [Smile]

So now I know what to look for on these things. I have no doubt I'll be hitting the forum with other questions as at this point it's looking like we have little to no tech support on these...we couldn't even get Sony to get around to signing us up for their online web training. But our cues are working well with our automation so, so far so good.

Thanks again, everyone!

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 12-22-2011, 10:51 PM:

The real trick with the Sonys .. and other servers..is to do a full SMS shutdown every other week.

This cleans out the memory to help prevent future "brain cramps" with these things - is what I do with my SONY and other digital units.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 12-23-2011, 02:26 PM:

quote: Monte L Fullmer
but, in all due actuality, plug it in, walk away for a few minutes, get a drink and popcorn and come back

Yea, pour a little butter and carbonated beveredge into it so it'll kill it. Then ask the manager to get you a real projector!

Mark

Posted by Scott Bruffey (Member # 5308) on 12-24-2011, 04:28 PM:

Ha ha! Thanks, guys! And Monte, I'll definitely make sure that the other booth ops incorporate your suggestion.

And yeah, as a certified Barco tech I'd much rather have one of those in my booth, but hey...

So NOW I'm getting a "media block's alert led is lit" error and I have no idea what that means outside of the server's upset about something. So far I can't find anything online about it so if anyone's had THAT issue and can point me to where I can find out more info, I'd greatly appreciate it!

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 12-24-2011, 05:10 PM:

Might have to do a total shutdown through the touchpanel, then hit the grey button on the status tower to power up the unit and see if that clears up the error.

Oh, if you get an "exhaust error" on the rear display, that is when you just flip the breaker underneath the USB port, wait a few seconds then turn it back on. That error is going to be the most common error that loves to pop up with these units.

If this pops up again, you might have a IMB issue where it might have to be replaced - bad drive or similar ... seen that a few times as well.. and wait when a ballast goes out on you in those things....

Barco = "designed for the technican", Christie = "designed for the projectionist."

Sony's = [Confused]

?

Changing out a Start Pulse Generator (igniter) in a Barco can be a PITA due to that cover plate.. but still a sweet unit!

Posted by Scott Bruffey (Member # 5308) on 12-24-2011, 06:08 PM:

Thanks again for the tip; I'll definitely run through a shut-down after the shows close tonight.

I agree with you about the Barco-Christie difference. But coming more from the tech side, I "get" the Barco menu and function layout better. I toured with Diana Ross last September with a FLM-20 and .8 lens for some extreme short throw front projection and the Barco was a dream the entire tour (though the fixed focus manual lens is a bit of a pain when you have to go up forty feet in a lift every damn day to focus it). But the Christies are a lot more solid and seem to handle the rigors of touring better.

Posted by Scott Bruffey (Member # 5308) on 12-28-2011, 11:02 PM:

So here's my latest question: what is the proper end-of-night procedure for these projectors? We've been going into Stand-by. Is this correct or should we just stick with selecting Lamp Off? This may seem a stupid question but some of us spoke separately with the install tech at different times and remember discussing different end-of-night procedures.

Posted by Scott Bruffey (Member # 5308) on 12-30-2011, 04:36 PM:

*UPDATE* We finally got someone from Sony to get back to us so the question's answered.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 12-30-2011, 05:30 PM:

You have to do lamp off on the "projector control" section if any of the show's playlist doesn't have a "lamp:off" cue in it, and always go into "standby" so it won't take long to power up to be ready to go.

EDIT: sorry on this since the questions were answered before I started to send.