Summit photofix SP5 scanner review

[minhhich]

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HI guys, I am fed up with the quality of the scan from my local lab. So i decide to get a scanner of my own for the net. As I dont need and dont have the budget for a nikon coolscan. I recently look at a website and they have the Summit Photofix SP5 Scanner for 100quids. So I would like to ask for your advise from any user her using the scanner.

 

I appreciate your help

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[marcg]

I've just spent a lot of time researching to replace my Canon FS4000 film scanner.

The Canon had started to show scratches on the image. I don't know how it happened but there may be some damage inside it. I tried a clean of the sensor but it made no difference. Also, the Canon drivers and the excellent Filmget software wouldn't work on my 64bit Windows machine.

However, I could drive the Canon using Vuescan.

 

I had a really thorough look round. The Canon was a great scanner in its time and if you have a windows 32 bit machine which can use Filmget then I would recommend it if you can find it on Ebay.

 

I found that one of the most informative scanner sites with really good critical reviews is Scandig.

Have a look. Even if the scanner you want is not listed there, the reviews that they do have will give you a thorough education into the whole business of scanners.

 

What eventually became clear to me is that you can't beat a film scanner. Flatbed scanners which are capable of doing the same job, simply can't do it as well.

 

Get a dedicated film scanner.

 

Secondly, don't be fooled by manufacturers claims as to DPI. It tends to have little meaning. It is just marketing hype. I'm not too sure how you can find the true DPI but you want to find out the dynamic dpi of each scanner and it seems that it is always lower than the claimed value. Sometimes the true DPI can be as little as 50% of the published figure.

 

By and large the dynamic dpi figures given for Nikon scanners are fairly close to their published level and by and large Nikon film scanners tend to provide the best resolutions.

 

Some scanners are capable of scanning 8bit, others - 14 bit and a few are capable of scanning 16bit.

 

At your budget, you probably won't be able to afford a 16bit scanner but you will notice pretty well no difference between 16 and 14bit scans.

 

There are no really good scanners in production now. They have all been discontinued so it worth making sure that the scanner which you do buy is well supported for your operating system now and in the future.

This means that it is worth checking that what you are looking for is supported by Vuescan or by Silverfast -which are the two main third party scanning software providers.

Both of these products are capable of producing superior scans to that which is provided by the scanner's own provided software.

Make sure that you check up not only that the scanner is supported but that it will run on an 64 bit Vista or Win 7 platform - or the relevant Mac platform if you are a Mac user.

 

In the end make up your own mind but I decided that a Nikon Coolscan 5000 was the way to go for me. I would have considered a Coolscan 9000 if if wasn't such a large machine.

On your budget - if you could stretch it a bit, you might consider a Coolscan V.

 

the Minolta elite 5400 II also looked very good.

 

All of these scanners seem to be holding their prices very well which is unfortunate if you are buying but if you only want to scan a collection of images and then sell on - it won't matter very much to you.

 

Finally, the reviews on Scandig are really good, but you can buy software and accessories much more cheaply elsewhere - and eBay, of course for the scanner

[minhhich]

Hi Marcg. Thank you very much for your very informative post (comment). I will have a look around at sandig. ATM, I only need a scanner that I can use to scan my own film aka less dust and have more control of the scan. I only use my scan for the web anyway so a hi-res -> hi-cost is out of my consideration. I have used my friend's Coolscan 5000 on my Mac and I loved it (not the software that comes with it tho). Maybe I'll consider a coolscan in the future when I am converted to full-time film shooter (use it for my wedding work). But now, I think I will stick with some cheap starter film scanner, and save the money for more gear and bread

[cidereye]

HI guys, I am fed up with the quality of the scan from my local lab. So i decide to get a scanner of my own for the net. As I dont need and dont have the budget for a nikon coolscan. I recently look at a website and they have the Summit Photofix SP5 Scanner for 100quids. So I would like to ask for your advise from any user her using the scanner.

 

I appreciate your help

 

If you are looking for a cheap film scanner for that sort of money then I don't think you will do better than a Plustek OpticFilm 7200 or variant of, far, far better than the Photofix. One going on eBay right now I notice for £72 at the minute, auction ends tomorrow :- Plustek OpticFilm 7200 Film Scanner Used for 3 Months on eBay (end time 13-Dec-09 19:19:57 GMT)

 

I had one for a while and whilst it's no Coolscan it's as good as you can get for the price. My Epson V700 Pro cost me almost 4 times as much but I only find my positive film scans slightly better than the Plustek.

[marcg]

Yes, I think that Plustek are one of the few scanner names which are still in production.

There are reveiws of two other models here Detailed test reports and experience reports about film scanners slide scanners: market overview, application in practice although not the 7200

 

 

According to the reviews, the dynamic (actual) DPI is about 53% of the manufacturers published figure.

 

This is a huge reduction and makes me feel quite resentful about manufacturers which pull this stunt.

However, an actual resolution of over 3500 is certainly pretty good anyway and this 7200 which has been referred to in the above post has got to be a hugely better purchase than the Summit which you were considering - although it was never an expensive scanner anyway.

I see that Scandig sell it for 185 Euros including a basic copy of Silverfast. For that you get a new guaranteed scanner - the 7400 - preumably a slightly improved model and if you have the extra money, that might be the way to go.

 

I would avoid the Summit until you have a read up a few reviews about it - and I haven't found any proper tests of it at all.

[minhhich]

Yeah, as all the suggestions lean toward the Plustech I will prob get one. Thank you all for your advises:):)

[the.ant]

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I would be highly interested how it fares. Will you post some testscans?