shimokita
白黒
Just caught a brief notice about Epson scanners in Japan. Seems the following will be available in October this year. Note, the scanners have different names in Japan...
International V600: Japan GT-X820 -> GT-X830 as of October 2014
International V700: Japan GT-X970 -> GT-X980 as of October 2014
Looks in part like a rename with some changes. The price difference between the GT-X820 and GT-X830 is only Yen 2,520 (about USD 24). The GT-X970 is heavily discounted at the moment (Yen 41,700 / about USD 408) and the GT-X980 is listed at Yen 64,770 (about USD 635).
Seems you can buy the film holders for the GT-X980 separately... and they seem to be redesigned (?). No information yet on the GT-X830 film holders. The user manuals are not yet available for download.
The new versions (price up only?) are listed on the web sites of the big discount camera chains.
Casey
International V600: Japan GT-X820 -> GT-X830 as of October 2014
International V700: Japan GT-X970 -> GT-X980 as of October 2014
Looks in part like a rename with some changes. The price difference between the GT-X820 and GT-X830 is only Yen 2,520 (about USD 24). The GT-X970 is heavily discounted at the moment (Yen 41,700 / about USD 408) and the GT-X980 is listed at Yen 64,770 (about USD 635).
Seems you can buy the film holders for the GT-X980 separately... and they seem to be redesigned (?). No information yet on the GT-X830 film holders. The user manuals are not yet available for download.
The new versions (price up only?) are listed on the web sites of the big discount camera chains.
Casey
bence8810
Well-known
Casey, thanks for that!
I have the GT-X970 but I think it's the V750 equivalent rather than the V700. Isn't that so?
I also bought mine for 37000 Yen in December 2013 on Amazon brand new, but at the time it was still 59,000 Yen on Epson's site.
Just checked, it's still 37,000 on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.co.jp/Colorio-フラッ...&qid=1410500063&sr=8-1&keywords=epson+gt+x970
Will be interesting to see the new holders. I will stop using the flatbed for 35mm as I thought it was a pain, and will only use it for 120. For 35mm I got the Pakon F-135 just yesterday and will expect to have it in two weeks time as it ships from the States.
If the 980's holders are much improved, I might actually upgrade, but if it isn't that great, I'll just get one from the guys at betterscanning.
Thanks again for the heads up!
Ben
I have the GT-X970 but I think it's the V750 equivalent rather than the V700. Isn't that so?
I also bought mine for 37000 Yen in December 2013 on Amazon brand new, but at the time it was still 59,000 Yen on Epson's site.
Just checked, it's still 37,000 on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.co.jp/Colorio-フラッ...&qid=1410500063&sr=8-1&keywords=epson+gt+x970
Will be interesting to see the new holders. I will stop using the flatbed for 35mm as I thought it was a pain, and will only use it for 120. For 35mm I got the Pakon F-135 just yesterday and will expect to have it in two weeks time as it ships from the States.
If the 980's holders are much improved, I might actually upgrade, but if it isn't that great, I'll just get one from the guys at betterscanning.
Thanks again for the heads up!
Ben
shimokita
白黒
hahaha... I could never figure out the exact equivalent models...
The prices I quoted were the sticker prices at Yodobashi... they have matched online pricing for me in the past...
Also looking for more details... Good luck with the new 35mm scanner... I have the Nikon Coolscan V ED and so far no complaints ;-)
Casey
WJJ3
Well-known
This came out on dc.watch.impress recently.
The new version is updated with LEDs and new film holders that use anti-newton ring plastic inserts to hold the film flat. The release specifically said the new holders will not be compatible with the older machines and their software/drivers...
The new version is updated with LEDs and new film holders that use anti-newton ring plastic inserts to hold the film flat. The release specifically said the new holders will not be compatible with the older machines and their software/drivers...
bence8810
Well-known
Well, the body and optics are the V750 exactly but the Japanese version (or at least the one I bought) didn't come with the bundled Silverfast and also didn't have the glass for the Newton rings, which i think the overseas models have. But the scanner is top notch otherwise and I am happy with the EPSON Scan.
Oh, Yodobashi does price matching? Never knew that. I always just go, check the item in question, deduct 10% from it's price as that's how much reward they give with the Yodobashi card, and then check Amazon and buy whichever is cheaper.
The Coolscan is a great scanner for sure. I was thinking about the 5000 with SA-21 and hack it to accept whole strips of film. But then I found out about the Pakon and I couldn't resits. People seem to love it so i hope I will too!
Nevertheless, if you hear anything about the GT-X980, please post back
Thanks,
Ben
bence8810
Well-known
Thanks for that.
I don't read Japanese so I relied on Google Translate.
What I don't get is how can a software package prohibit the use of a different holder? I'd understand if it physically didn't fit the GT-X970 like the entry holes would be at different places but if that isn't the case, I think it should just work, no?
Ben
WJJ3
Well-known
the article said because of the new design with the plastic inserts the new 35mm strip holder only holds 3 strips, and the driver for the old machine isn't going to support that. Not sure if the MF holder will have the anti-newton ring plastic inserts or not...
WJJ3
Well-known
Kinda sounds like all the film holders are going to have anti-newton ring acrylic in them.
bence8810
Well-known
I just wonder why would the driver need to support the holder? As long as it's within the area...
Maybe the thumbnail pictures won't show but we can surely create our on marque as it's also a function currently in "normal" mode.
Anyways, I am set for 35mm and can always just buy the betterscanning solution for 120.
Thanks
Ben
regular
Member
Does the article gives details about auto-focus? Current Epson models dont have autofocus.
Fernando2
Well-known
No autofocus.
Moreover, no references to adjustable filmholder height: it may be that those new filmholders are fixed-height.
Anyway there's a note about improved quality control. They say each GT-X980 will be checked individually (!), so hopefully the focus plane position will be consistent across units.
Moreover, no references to adjustable filmholder height: it may be that those new filmholders are fixed-height.
Anyway there's a note about improved quality control. They say each GT-X980 will be checked individually (!), so hopefully the focus plane position will be consistent across units.
shimokita
白黒
according to the Epson Japan web site the GT-X980 has height adjustment as follows:
ホルダーの高さ調整
5段階で高さ位置調整が可能。納得のいくピント位置調整が可能です。
Google Translation:
Height adjustment of the holder
Adjustable height position in five stages. It is possible to focus position adjustment convincing.
http://www.epson.jp/products/scanner/gtx980/tokucho_2.htm#feat02
ホルダーの高さ調整
5段階で高さ位置調整が可能。納得のいくピント位置調整が可能です。
Google Translation:
Height adjustment of the holder
Adjustable height position in five stages. It is possible to focus position adjustment convincing.
http://www.epson.jp/products/scanner/gtx980/tokucho_2.htm#feat02
Fernando2
Well-known
Excellent, thanks! 5 positions vs. 3 in the V7x0 then.
kubatyszko
Newbie
I do think it's all about thumbnails and the software "knowing" where the film is located - and it seems that in all the cases it will be placed differently compared to the 900/970 (700/750).
It might just work with 3rd party software like silverfast or vuescan (this is what I use with my 900).
Seriously considering selling the 900 and getting the 980 - but I might wait for review to see whether the problem of film flatness is solved so that I don't need my betterscanning holder (which I do have)...
My only concern is that acrylic glass, whether it's the same as the Epson F-3200 (which I used to have and sold), mine got some scratches and wasn't as transparent as it should be after a while...
bence8810
Well-known
Yes, that's how I see it too, as long as the holder physically fits the scanner (holes aligned etc), it should work - maybe with Thumbnails being off etc.
How do you like the betterscanning holders? Is it a lot of work to get it right? I hear you can adjust the height which sounds like trouble to me. I guess I just need to find a negative I know 100% sure is sharp and then go bit by bit.
Ben
kubatyszko
Newbie
That depends on how annoying Epson wants to be, ie. whether the holes are in the same place on 900/970/980.
I've had a GT-X750 for almost 8 years (bought it in early 2007 soon after coming to Japan - impulse buy when a shop asked over 1000JPY per frame scanned from my Holga).
That scanner has one major flaw where the 120 film holder's opening is too short and fits roughly 3-3.5 frames of 6x4.5 and barely 3 of 6x6,
therefore betterscanning holder was my only choice to avoid rotating the film strip and wasting my time.
In the meantime I also had the Epson F-3200 which I didn't like - acrylic attracting a lot of dust and the sensor cover glass was embedded in the body in a way that would make removal of all the dust/hair too hard (and Epson knew it - they supplied a special mini-insert with fabric brush to keep that clean).
I've actually build a fishtank-like box with sleeves and film feed to keep the dust minimal but even that didn't help...
One day I took the 3200 apart to clean it, and then it never regained sharpness - sold as junk.
I've also had a Minolta 5400 (I) which was amazing (also provided the film was flat - but the holder had each frame locked so it wasn't too bad) but I sold it when I got rid of all my 135mm equipment (now I'm coming back to 135mm and I might buy the Minolta again...).
The GT-X900 which I bought just recently (finally decided to retire my old GT-X750) to improve the workflow by having double capacity (4 strips of 125 and 2 strips of 120).
The original holders work just fine provided the film is flat,
I just received my double betterscanning holder a few days ago and had no chance to try it out.
From my experience with the previous scanner - I couldn't see any improvement with sharpness trying minor adjustments, might have been caused by not-sharp-enough film or simply poor optics that couldn't benefit from that at all.
I've always used it with the ANR glass, I found the T-lock method too cumbersome - and better yet, betterscanning is retiring the t-locks as most customers always get ANR glass anyway, so the holders will now come with ANR glass by default, no T-locks.
I need to find a good sharp negative as well
Greetings from Shinagawa-ku.
bence8810
Well-known
From my experience with the previous scanner - I couldn't see any improvement with sharpness trying minor adjustments, might have been caused by not-sharp-enough film or simply poor optics that couldn't benefit from that at all.
I've always used it with the ANR glass, I found the T-lock method too cumbersome - and better yet, betterscanning is retiring the t-locks as most customers always get ANR glass anyway, so the holders will now come with ANR glass by default, no T-locks.
I need to find a good sharp negative as well
I just checked their site and saw the notice. They really need to update that page, it's so early 90's...
Anyways, as long as what they sell is good, I am all for it. Please drop us a note back when the announcement is made and the holder goes up for sale.
By the way, for 35mm, I just bought myself the Pakon F-135 scanner. It isn't perfect but people seem to love it for the fact it takes only 3 minutes for a whole roll to be scanned and it even keeps the film flat. I'll let you know how that works out.
*3 minutes is for black and white and 24 frames (non digital ICE) - which is all what I shoot with. Color needs Digital ICE and will take up to 5 minutes to scan - obviously blazing fast still.
Ben
Greetings from Mitaka-shi
shimokita
白黒
Scanners in store in Japan
Scanners in store in Japan
The new Epson flat bed scanners V800 (GT-X830 in Japan) and V850 (GT-X980 in Japan) are now in store here in Tokyo as of 9-October-2014. It seems that the film holders are different between the two models. The anti-newton design film holders are only available on the V850/GT-X980... the less expensive V800/GT-X830 has the old style holders. List price at Yodobashi is:
GT-X830 (V800): Yen 31,100
GT-X980 (V850): Yen 64,580
Price difference of around USD 300 between the two models...
Casey
Scanners in store in Japan
The new Epson flat bed scanners V800 (GT-X830 in Japan) and V850 (GT-X980 in Japan) are now in store here in Tokyo as of 9-October-2014. It seems that the film holders are different between the two models. The anti-newton design film holders are only available on the V850/GT-X980... the less expensive V800/GT-X830 has the old style holders. List price at Yodobashi is:
GT-X830 (V800): Yen 31,100
GT-X980 (V850): Yen 64,580
Price difference of around USD 300 between the two models...
Casey
brbo
Well-known
$300 for V800?! V700 was like 500+ EUR.
I wonder if V800 is now a crippled V700 and not an upgrade.
edit: I'm almost sure that GT-X830 is not a V700 upgrade. It looks too much like V600.
lynnb
Veteran
I have a V700 and still use Epson Scan, which I like. Does anyone know if the new scanners will come with an updated version of Epson Scan that works on OSX Mavericks? The version I have only works on Snow Leopard.