8mm Forum: The hard work of Mr. Faulkner (a tribute to Kevin)

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Posted by Ugo Grassi (Member # 139) on October 20, 2007, 05:10 AM:

Dear friends,like tale, I want let you know some technical features of the Elmo Xenon, and, expecially, how much Kevin Faulkner was nice, kind, lovely… GREAT!
Three years ago I bought on ebay an Elmo GS1200 Xenon. It appeared in good state. And infact when I received it the look was nice, but inside… oh! Totally worn out the lamp, the cam shaft (!!), and the heads were not GS1200 genuine (were from a GS800).
With many hours of job my Xenon became like new! Perfect picture steadiness, new lamp from Superior quartz (I have to open a thread about these very good new lamps), new and genuine heads!
So until some weeks ago I thought to have a perfect Xenon machine. But a bad surprise around the corner was waiting for me…
Two weeks ago my home cinema hall was completed! And with it the amplifier system was set up: a Denon amplifier with 5+1 B&W speakers (of course I’m using to connect the Elmo ext outputs to the amplifier. Oh, friends, it’s incredible the clear sound arrives from my GS1200!). The problems arrived when I connected the Xenon machine I’m talking about. The sound wasn’t good like the others GS. Not too much, but a little bit distorced! For example, in the dialogues, the “S” was dirty, like to have a fly in the speakers.
So the machine came back on my surgeon’s table!
And on that table I discovered a lot of hidden bugs in the electronic boards.
At first, the STK was not that one for the Xenon version. Someone mounted the 439 instead of the 443. Note the STK439 is a 15+15 watts, and the 443 is 25+25. The halogen machine has the 439, and the Xenon has the 443. The rest of the main board was right for the Xenon series, but the STK was wrong. It means someone repaired the board with the wrong spare parts. At first I changed the wrong 439 with the 443, but the sound problem wasn’t fixed. So I went to give a look to the preamplifier. The surprise was it came from an halogen machine. It meant too much supply vultage arrived to it (the supply vultage on the boards is higher in the Xenon).
How to resolve the problem? By sending an help request to Kevin!!!
In the late afternoon I sent the mail to Kevin and in the late night I received a datasheet with a comparison of the different resistors in the Xenon and halogen preamplifiers!!! Kevin had made for me an incredible (and boring I fear) job! By the readingof the diagrams he identified the differences between the pre.
By this job and by the replacement of the “wrong” resistors, the sound became better that the first tests. But yet not enough like the others machines.
My final decision was to replace the whole main board! That’s because the capacitors of the main board were probably exhaust. It doesn’t mean the “old” main board will go to the garbage can. I’ll spend my next days to replace every capacitor on that board, so I’ll have a spare part like new.
But due to the replacement of the board a new problem was born. I have some new boards like spare parts, and among that a new board for a 25+25 watts machine. That kind of board was on the Xenon and PCOM series, and, like spare part, it was sold in “default state”. It means without – for example – some extra capacitors soldering on the some IC. But the problem was that the board was able to work in a standard machine. And the heat filter is driven in different way in the halogen and in the Xenon projectors.
Keeeevviiiinnnn help me again!
And Kevin sent me a datasheet to explain how to configure the board for the Xenon series…
How to say “THANK YOU KEVIN”?

[ October 20, 2007, 10:24 AM: Message edited by: Ugo Grassi ]

Posted by Kevin Faulkner (Member # 6) on October 20, 2007, 07:24 AM:

Gee thanks. Yet another big blush [Embarrassed]

One thing it did make me do was to study the difference between the std and xenon circuits. The differences are there and they are quite subtle.
The main difference between the machines is as Ugo says the output stage of the Xenon is 25W instead of 15W per channel. To achieve this Elmo used a higher output version of the output IC which runs at 45V instead of 35V. This means that the whole amplifier is fed with 45V instead of the normal 35V. Because of this there are several resistor changes to bring the voltage back down for other parts of the amp.
It means that you should never interchange the amp units between Xenon and std machines.
The other major change that Ugo noted is with the heat filter. This again uses the circuitry on the main board in a slightly different way and once more means that they are not interchangeable between the std and xenon machines unless you know how to modify the boards to make them work.

Studying the circuits allowed me to list all the changes so that Ugo could get his Xenon working properly again. It meant he had to replace about 14 resistors on the preamp and change some wiring on the main board along with one diode which had to be unsoldered at one end and soldered to a different point.

I think that the whole project of Ugos was an interesting one. We have both learnt more about the innards of the GS especially the Xenon version.

Glad it all worked out Ugo [Smile]

Kev.

Posted by Osi Osgood (Member # 424) on October 20, 2007, 10:27 AM:

As we say in America ... SUCK UP!!!

Just kidding! The works of the Faulkner are well appreciated by all on this forum. It may take him awhile to get things done, but by Gawd, the results are no doubt worth the wait.

(hint)

Which reminds me, hows about a little history as to how the forum began and how it connected the Faulkner, Meltzer and Moore?

Posted by Dan Lail (Member # 18) on October 20, 2007, 12:00 PM:

Anyone who drives a green motorcycle named after a frog is "alright" with me. [Big Grin]

Posted by Alan Rik (Member # 73) on October 20, 2007, 12:28 PM:

Kev has helped me numerous times...and i'm on the other side of the pond!
Great stuff Kev and for the GS-1200 owners you are a godsend. [Smile]

Posted by Mark Mander (Member # 340) on October 20, 2007, 01:01 PM:

Mr Elmo has looked at my machine a couple of times in the past and has always done a fantastic job,he really knows these machines inside out and thank goodness he does Mark

Posted by Keith Ashfield (Member # 741) on October 20, 2007, 02:12 PM:

I'll second that - "We are not Worthy!!". By the way Kevin what happened about Ealing - your presence was sorely missed by all attending forum members [Smile]

Posted by Kevin Faulkner (Member # 6) on October 20, 2007, 03:18 PM:

Blimey! Now I'm really blushing!!! I suppose I just have a real passion for these machines. The GS especially was a real piece of modern engineering and electronics in its time. They were well built and as I have said before there is always a way to keep them going. Understanding what makes them tick is the real trick.

Yes sorry about Ealing but a personal family problem reared it's head last night which meant giving Ealing a miss today. [Frown]

Still it wont be long before the May one comes around. [Smile]

I did mail Mark and one or two others so hoped my apologies would get through but the mails were probably not read in time.....never mind.

Still I hope you enjoyed yoursleves.

Kev. [Smile]

Posted by Douglas Meltzer (Member # 28) on October 20, 2007, 04:09 PM:

It's a good thing we have Kevin signed to a long term contract with this forum. Well worth the signing bonus, stock options and the provision regarding promotion and tenure. [Big Grin]

Doug

Posted by Keith Ashfield (Member # 741) on October 20, 2007, 05:07 PM:

Hi Kevin, No doubt Mr Clancy will give his usual excellant report on the BFCC. You were missed and as you said I think the mails weren't read as no one that I spoke to had any ideas.
The question of the day was "Where is Mr. Elmo?"
The convention was up to its usual standards aside from a few teething problems at the begining, which I'm sure John will enlighten us on. Attendance was good and the "trade" was brisk amongst all the dealers, as far as I could see. Hope everything has sorted itself at home now and, as you say, it wont be long till May 2008. I wonder what Mr. Wilton has up his sleeve for that one?

Posted by John Clancy (Member # 49) on October 23, 2007, 10:49 AM:

Yes, that Kevo's certainly a mine of information when it comes to those Elmo's.

Teething problems? Remind me what they were Keith. Probably nothing out of the ordinary otherwise I'd remember them.

I've just returned home so I'm catching up but the first job I did was slap a page up on bfcc.biz.

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