| Dead, no power |
If a scanner is dead with no power to the
unit at all, check all of the cable connections. If the power supply has failed, the power
supply should be sent back to your reseller for replacement. Note: there are no
internal fuses in the Astra scanner. |
| Mechanical noises |
Check the lock mechanisms - turn off the
scanner, lift off the scanner lid and check the lock wheel at the back right hand corner
of the scanner; this should be in the Unlocked position. If a transparency adaptor is
being used, check its lock (switch below the UTA glass).
If the scanner head moves during scanning and the image on the screen appears correct, the
noise may be caused by vibration in the scanner, speed/resolution issues or possibly a
cabling problem - Astra scanners are noisier when scanning at higher resolutions
(>300dpi). |
| Vertical lines in scans |
Faint lines throughout the scan are probably
due to dirt on the underside of the scanner glass, which can be cleaned by removing the
scanner lid and two screws at the back of the scanner's top surface: the top plastic cover
of the scanner can be rotated off and the underside of the glass cleaned.
Vertical lines in transparency scans are normally caused by dirt - clean the small window
at the back of the scanner glass and make sure that nothing is blocking this calibration
area. For further information, please see the separate technical
note.
Two or three fine vertical lines through a scan of a photograph may also be caused by a
scanner fault if the glass has been cleaned - contact your reseller. |
| Horizontal lines in scans |
Horizontal lines or "shearing" are
usually caused by conflicts with other devices. If you are using a parallel scanner with a
printer attached, turn off and unplug the printer from the scanner (also try setting the
parallel port to "SPP" or "Compatible" mode).
If you are using a SCSI scanner with a UMAX SCSI card, ensure that the SCSI Terminator is
fitted to the second port on the scanner; check the cable connections; check that the SCSI
ID switch on the back of the scanner is set to 5; see the separate technical note for information on jumper settings and
port addresses. [advanced version]
If you are using a SCSI scanner with an Adaptec card, remove all other external SCSI
devices, set the scanner's SCSI ID to 5 and check that an appropriate terminator is fitted
to the spare port on the back of the scanner. |
| Link failure, "link
or hardware error" |
Parallel scanner: ensure that the Update Disk
has been installed, or that VistaScan CD1.05 or later is being used.
SCSI scanner: see the separate technical note
[alternative advanced version]. |
| Poor focus |
Check the resolution of the scans: the
resolution in dpi multiplied by the scaling factor should not be greater than the
scanner's resolution. When using the AutoScan driver, the resolution is fixed at a low
setting of approx 100dpi. [related notes] |
| Incorrect colours |
See the related notes
for information on using MagicMatch, AutoAdjust, scanner software controls, desktop colour
printers. |
| Scanner LEDs keep
flashing |
When SCSI scanners are turned on, the LED on
the front should flash for a couple of minutes while the self-tests are completed. If
after a long time the LED is still flashing there may be a problem with the scanner: check
that the SCSI ID switch on the back of the scanner is set to 5, check the cable
connections;make sure that scanner, and transparency unit if attached, are fully unlocked.
If the problem persists, contact your reseller. On the 610P/1210P/1220P/2000P and
1220U/2000U/2100U the scanner will come straight to ready with no flashing lights. |
| Error: "SCSI command
fail" |
When using a SCSI scanner, a "SCSI
Terminator" must be fitted to the spare connector on the back (or if the scanner is
in a chain, fitted to the last device); also check the cable connections. |
| Software installation
problems |
If the scanner software quits or errors
during installation, check that you have sufficient free disk space (eg 40MB). Try
reinstalling the software using the "Custom Install" setting: use the DEFAULT
location of C:\vstascan,then just install the Scanner Driver - install the rest of
the components one at a time. "MagicMatch" will sometimes have problems
installing if another piece of software has already created a file called
"kpcms.ini" in the Windows directory - for further information, contact
Technical Support. |
