DSLRUsers.com

Hi,
Wondering if anybody has been in a similiar situation and/or can offer some advice.

My Nikon Coolscan V ED has played up and the repair bill is a further $400 on top of the of the $50 quote fee which I have paid.
I'm not sure whether to have it fixed or buy say a flatbed scanner such as an Epson V700 or a dedicated film scanner such as a Plustek 7400 or 7600i.

Look forward to any views as although a member for a few years, this is my first posting.

I found a site I didn't know about with what seem quite credible reviews of a number of scanners. They find the resolution of the Coolscan V is 3900dpi, the Epson V700 is about 2300dpi and the Plustek 7400 3800dpi and the Plustek 7600 curiously less at 3250dpi.

You are presumably only wanting to scan 35mm film since you have a Coolscan V. So on the basis of those reviews, perhaps the best option is to get a Plustek 7400 from a store with a return policy and if it doesn't work for you, get the the Coolscan repaired. After all, you can pick one up from under $400. It's not going to be any better than the Coolscan but perhaps a new one will last longer. However, you'll need to spend more because it only comes with Silverfast SE Plus. You'd really need Silverfast AI and preferably AI Studio but you could use a trial version to test the scanner in the first place. There's quite a learning curve there but you can download a full manual from the Silverfast site as well as many videos. Other than that, you could get Vuescan which is cheaper and not scanner-specific. Personally, I prefer Silverfast though many prefer Vuescan.

You can read about the usability of those scanners in the reviews. The Epson may also be an option. The resolution won't be as high but whether that matters will depend on your output requirements. It's more expensive but the Epson software is OK though Silverfast or Vuescan may be somewhat better. The v700 is probably easier to use than a film scanner I would guess but then I haven't used a film scanner (I used to scan 5x4 and 6x17 on a Canon 9950F).

Sounds like a specialised scanner with a definite purpose to me.

If it was doing the job you required before it broke down, I would suggest that you repair it.

The other scanners you mentioned are more like utility models.

What are your usage requirements for this?

Do you do a lot of scanning? If so, perhaps repair would be a better option.

Otherwise, the V700 comes highly recommended.

Thanks for the replies.

Murray, that's a great website for anyone interested in scanners - wish I'd found it earlier. My reading of the site suggests the Nikon V ED is just as good in quality if not better than any of the units that I am considering.

I have quite a few slides taken with Nikon F100 or F80 with good glass all on Velvia as well as family slides going back to the early 1960s. The Nikon had not done a lot of scanning as i only scanned a slide when required rather than taking a solid month to complete the task. The Epson would be easier to use as it does up to 12 at a time and the plustek 4 but i was happy with the autofcus on the Nikon and the overall quality of the scans - just worrying that it decided to dump itself after a few years but not a lot of use.

The Epson appeals but the price is around $700. My thinking after reading your replies and searching a bit more is to repair the Nikon but I will wait a few days as there may be some more good replies/advice over the weekend.

I would consider repairing the unit....otherwise I am with Gary +1 for hte V700

Monsoon wrote:The Epson would be easier to use as it does up to 12 at a time...

Which is nice in theory but not really all that practical unless you are only doing draft scans.

I've had my V700 for a few years now and haven't once scanned more than one slide at a time. Being a flatbed scanner it does tend to attract some dust, as can the slides while they are sitting there - unless you have a pretty dust free room. Additionally, the slides don't always sit straight in the holder and you may have to adjust them between the preview and the final scan. Finally, I usually need to adjust the scan settings for each and every slide (even if they were taken on the same film under similar conditions).

ATJ wrote"Which is nice in theory but not really all that practical unless you are only doing draft scans

Thanks for the info re your use of the V700. It seems that unless you spend a lot of money on a top scanner, the process is slow.

I've found the Nikon to provide good results and the auto focus is reasonable and only had troubles with some older slides that may have had some slight bending in the mount. The Nikon also has programs to get rid of dust and small scratches but I always use a blower with each slide. The Nikon also overscans the slide a bit so a small crop and rotation if needed fixes that issue and reduces the file size.