Red LED Basement Reader

General

      With the pace of this revolution, about 80-85% of US screens have already converted to use red light readers. In China, there are also more than one thousand screens have installed with red light reader basements. In recent years, most major projector manufacturers in the world are intending to evolve into the cyan dye track format and manufacture projectors with red light readers. In China, Red LED readers are currently installed on 70% of the new projectors. If you own or operate a theatre that is not yet equipped with the red light reader in your projector's analog sound heads, we recommend that you install one as soon as possible.

Origin

      From 20th century, the voice of environment protection is rising. The traditional print industry is also striving to eliminate sources of environmental harm, improve lab productivity and theatrical efficiency.        The traditional 35mm release print is made in environmentally unfriendly chemical process, which produces wastewater and manufacturing waste, pollute the air and introduce an array of caustic chemicals into the environment, that’s why the cyan soundtrack emerges. The new track not only eliminates silvers and caustic chemicals, but also enables a significant reduction in water usage.        Comparative trial shows that red light can playback dye cyan, high magenta and silver soundtracks in very high quality, while the traditional white light can only effectively playback silver track, and for high magenta, the playback quality is low. The worst is white light can not playback the upcoming dye cyan track. Therefore, it is inevitable that white light will be replaced by red light technology in the industry.

Products

       Red LED basement reader has different formats, which are all installed onto film projectors. Due to the differences in wavelength, structure, effect and cost, red LED basement reader can be divided into three types, add type, replace type and refit type.        “Add type” means install the red LED reader in the space between projector head and film arm. This type is designed for digital sound playback, and especially aims at those projectors, which are unsuited to replace red LED reader completely and add digital playback function, so the cost is higher. Often used on Dolby CAT701, CAT702, Songhuajiang 5502 and 5505 projectors.       “Replace type” is the most prevailing type in our country at present. It is also the most integrated and mature type in the industry. On the basis of saving the gearing of projector and retaining the stability of system, the red LED reader basement is installed at the place where the excited lamp installed. “Replace type” not only apply to analog reader but also digital and analog dual reader. All components in the playback system for this type need to be updated, including LED, lens array, CCD digital signal receiving board, mechanical part and others. Now we have already developed the second generation of reader basement for this type, which features smaller lens aperture, better light transmittance, lower LED current and longer service life comparing to the first generation.
      Owning a series of advantages like high S/N ratio, sound frequency performance, low power consumption (less than 1W), long life (more than 15,000 hours), small volume, easy operation and stable sound quality, “Replace type” is now widely recognized by the market. At the same time, it also brings a lot of benefits to cinemas, the quality of sound and picture is improved, the cost of equipment maintenance is lowered and the box office increases. Because of the high price performance ratio, “Replace type” red light basement reader becomes an excellent source of signal for cinema sound systems.       “Refit type” consists of two parts; the first part is retain the original sound system of projector, including solar cell, mechanical slit or optical slit, and the second part is refit the light source and noise reduction circuit. This type can only be used for analog playback system. Low cost is the greatest benefit, but the S/N ratio and the frequency performance are poor.       At present, most of the imported projectors adopt replace type, such as CHRISTIE、STRONG、CINEMCCANICA and KINOTON. In China, the yearly output of 35mm projector is close to 1000 units, about 600 units choose replace type red LED basement reader, and 400 of which are digital/analog dual projectors, and 200 are analog projectors.       Shanghai Paradise Technology Development Co.,Ltd is the leading force in China to research and develop red LED basement reader. In 1996, we introduced Dolby’s patented technology and components. After two years’ research and test, we launched the first generation of red LED products in China. Shanghai Paradise’s analog basement reader G3M and digital dual basement reader G3S had been thoroughly and successfully approved by Dolby Laboratories and got certified in year 2001 and 2003.       Now the second generation of red LED products installed onto the China manufactured projectors are all developed by Shanghai Paradise. We also help hundreds of cinemas and theaters to reconstruct their red LED systems every year. Because of the high quality, sound performance, reasonable price and perfect technical support, our products own the recognition and praise of customers and experts at home and overseas.

Pic10 Basement reader certificates represented by Dolby Laboratories

Effect

      At the turn of the century, leaders from the State Ministry of Culture industry have proposed to vigorously develop red light playback technology of motion picture. Now China has already owned numerous of cinemas equipped with red light basement readers, and 3/4 of the cinemas ranking the top 30 of China box office already have the ability to bring red light playback into effect, all these will definitely impulse and speed the movement to environmentally friendly dye cyan soundtrack in China.       According to the survey, Environmental-friendly, cyan dye soundtrack eliminate caustic chemicals and silver used in the old print manufacturing process and significantly reduce the use of water needed for silver-replicated tracks, it is estimated that the new process of film production can conserve enough water to supply a town of 75,000 people with drinking water each year, to China, which is poor in resources, this is undoubted a great approach benefit to our nation, to our people, to our children and children’s children.
      Let’s work together to create a whole new era of motion picture industry.