Mark Dunn

Auto gain (ALC) is much better than it used to be so you could try it when you get your mic sorted out. With your VU meter, I'm pretty sure you can drop the level down quite a bit- it's easy to do a test, if the app will control the phone mic.

I've reshared those links- hope it works now ST600/900 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DIDLxsTPFdAW05pfkGWXmsNu4Uz8Afjj/view?usp=sharing St1600 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mj5fHrV5yfRikvn8GnACIOJoSdX-99D7/view?usp=sharing Robert- sent them separately in case I've got it wrong

I would agree with the larger machine with the furniture legs.. What the pix don't show it that the 1600 has box section legs which angle forwards so it would resist popping out. I should add that the prop master's van may have uprated suspension to keep the lurching to a minimum, which OP probably won't have. But then American vehicles are as soft as jelly compared with ours ;) When in the back of the car the legs come off (not an option for OP's model) and it sits strapped down on the motorcycle ramp supported by a wooden box. That's for short distances in town though. I charge a lot for delivery because I don't really want to do it.☺️

Someone with more knowledge will chip in, hopefully, but generally you need directionality to get rid of off- mike sound. Lavs can be directional or not- check which you have. Everyone remembers rifle mics with the fluffy covers which were very directional. Normal speech shouldn't get near the red zone- it's to stop really loud sounds from distorting. I'm no expert but I think I would aim for -5 or -3 tops. Also, are you sure that the app actually does override the Iphone's automatic gain control?

Be nice if Dwight gets some work out of this, he shares so much freely. If it's the one in the thread you referenced, I think it's the ST900. Here's the manual and circuit diagram, if you don't have it. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DIDLxsTPFdAW05pfkGWXmsNu4Uz8Afjj/view?usp=sharing The ST1600 manual has more in English including the speed setting procedure. This is my 4-plate, but the procedure's very similar, and a lot of the circuit boards as well. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mj5fHrV5yfRikvn8GnACIOJoSdX-99D7/view?usp=sharing

The playback stutter can also be caused by the line voltage being out of tolerance- unfortunately the older Steenbecks have a lower control range than the permissible variation in line voltage here- I don't know about the US. There's a fairly complicated adjustment process to deal with it if you don't have a variac, but Dwight has a simple fix for that as well. Robert's right about the fire risk, it's because old Steenbecks are usually very dusty, the cooling fan no longer works and the deck is made of wood. You're going to be doing a lot of vacuuming, and get yourself some brake cleaner or similar stuff. Dwight can help with any components that are already toasty, or come back here and I can share what I've learned, from him or on my own. Likely candidates for replacement are capacitors. Watch out for burnt patches on the circuit boards- when a capacitor fails it often takes a resistor with it. I replaced the fan with one from our old boiler. A Steenbeck is a bit like a puppy- for life, not just for Christmas. Look after it. Besides being useful, it's a classic of industrial design. Incidentally, mine also puts food on the table.

Dwight Cody cutfilm.com Last time I had mine shipped as a practical prop they sent a big van with a tail lift and a man with lots of foam and straps. You probably haven't got one of those. Before that, a couple of times in the back of a car (not recommended- very heavy) and before that, I drove it myself in a smaller van to Scotland (only 500 miles lol). Note the motorcycle ramps, with Dexion rails bolted on. Remember the weight, probably north of 200kg. for a 6-plate. Shame you don't have a customs union with Canada. We used to have one of those with.....never mind.

I agree with your diagnosis- the rebate isn't sharp all round, which means that the film isn't sitting flat in the gate. Again, as you say, since it's happened with two different stocks, it's unlikely to be a problem with the cartridges. Is this the first time you've used the camera? If not, what have you done! If it is, you need to have a look inside. It's the edge of the film away from the sprockets, nearest the back of the film chamber, that's not in the correct position. Maybe there's some obstruction, or a chip of film or dirt on the gate or runners. Your "best" image is with a different cartridge, so maybe the fault went away for that one.

It's a preennial digital sound problem. One wonders why sound mixers don't have an actual TV in the suite so they can actually hear what the audience will.

Can't help with the lighting, but modern vehicle windscreens are bonded to the body and are only removed for replacement when damaged. I doubt they can be removed intact, so unless you budget for removal and replacement I would forget that option.

Why do you need to do it?

Just put up a post saying "sold"?

The fall down the stairs is a process shot. I agree it could conceivably have been practical, but I think Hitchcock preferred the abstraction of a visual effect. Either that, or he just didn't care too much about so-called "realism", or believe that audiences did. I'm sure there must have been theses written about this. If not, I'd better get cracking on my PhD. One sees so many visual effects of this period that, to our eyes, are so clearly artificial that I do wonder if they were actually accepted as "real" by contemporary audiences prepared to suspend disbelief much further than we are- or were before the digital age.

That would be called..........let me think about it......a "zoom"?

Pilotone. The camera generated a speed-dependent pulse which was recorded on 1/4" tape along with the production sound in a way which rendered it inaudible. When the sound was transferred to sprocketed magnetic film for editing, the mag film recorder in turn used the pulse as its speed reference. Some over-generalisations here but a fair description: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilottone BTW it's 35mm according to the references. I think I spy a 2C in the trailer as well.

Dennis Toepen referred rather disparagingly to "Bolex sparkle" elsewhere just now. Conversely, I think these benefit from "Panatar patina".

Any thoughts as to why they will only process current stocks, and how they determine expiry date on professional stock that doesn't have one- or is there one on Super-8 ECN? I haven't seen a fresh can of MP stock since '97. (That's 7297 btw, not 1997?)

It's a prism reflex camera so you're not looking directly at the gate. I don't know Bolexes but I think the glass behind is the face of the prism- which needs a bit of a clean btw!- and the brass frame is just part of the prism assembly.

Ah, a 6-plate 35mm. ST400 I think. Spectacular but a bit pricey to get one to me. Thanks for a great find though. The older ones are real bricks, like Chippendale furniture. Not in my league although we are fixing a couple up at the Cinema Museum in Lambeth: https://www.facebook.com/londonsteenbeck/photos/pcb.2960423437612538/2960423354279213/ As it happens, it's Charlie Chaplin's workhouse.

So what you see on the listing are the slots for screwing the C-mount male thread unit into the cup?

Surely a Viking would just axe down your door and steal it?

I know nothing about scanning so if you haven't seen the neg I can't say whether or not it's down to scan settings. But if it's ungradeable maybe you should be asking for a rescan. Perhaps someone who has a clue will chip in here. There are a few owners of scanning houses on the forum.

ISTR that b/w neg has a soluble anti-halation dye (not the same as remjet) which is supposed to be washed out in processing but isn't always. If it's the clear part of the film that has a different tint, that could be the reason. When I used to develop b/w neg a little difference in tint was nothing to worry about, but if you've never seen it before your concern is understandable.

Do you mean that the neg looks different, or have you already had it scanned? In the same way that film was graded shot-to-shot for printing, it can be done with the scan output, as long as the exposure and processing are within bounds. B/W film developed at different times, or from different batches, can vary in appearance a little, although I have to say that usually happens with different stocks. There's no single process for b/w as there is with colour so as you say it may have been different.

Well outside my budget- not many Steenbeck rentals recently, and not really my department anymore. I lost track in 1982. Although the NTFS did enquire about renting one a few years back- they scrapped theirs years ago.