Keeping the equipment going during a shutdown

[Jay Wyatt]

You may get this in an email but here's the official QSC statement on processors and amplifiers. Nothing too out of the ordinary unless you are using BASIS for processing.

As many cinemas consider temporary closings, it’s important remember some basic guidelines when powering down equipment racks that contain power amplifiers and sensitive electronics. While QSC products are known for providing many years of reliable service, it’s good practice to follow these recommendations:

• In general, all amplifiers should be powered down first before any processor is powered down.
• Q-SYS Cores can be powered down without any specific procedure. They will re-boot and the design will restart automatically when power is restored.
• Q-SYS amplifiers should be shut down before the Core is powered down. When re-starting, amplifiers should be powered on after the Core processor is running.
• If you are using legacy QSC Basis series processors, they should not be shut down at all. They need power to maintain backup information, since their batteries may be depleted, especially if they are many years old. If Basis units are powered down, they may not be useable when the power is reapplied.

Please also pass this on to onsite cinema technical staffs, and feel free to contact us if you have any questions or need support.
Thanks you for continuing to be a valued QSC Cinema partner.

[Carsten Kurz]

And...Christie:

* Christie IMB-S2 Security FIPS tamper management technical bulletin<https://info.christiedigital.com/ct/...eef728bb6391b4>

* (For all exhibitors using a Christie IMB-S2 in their projector)

* Christie PCM battery technical bulletin<https://info.christiedigital.com/ct/...eef728bb6391b4>

* (For all exhibitors using a Series 1 projector)

* Christie ICP battery replacement technical bulletin<https://info.christiedigital.com/ct/...eef728bb6391b4>

* (To be performed every 5 years for all exhibitors using a Solaria Series 2 projector)

* Christie PIB battery replacement technical bulletin<https://info.christiedigital.com/ct/...eef728bb6391b4>

* (To be performed every 5 years for all exhibitors using a Solaria Series 2 projector)

* Christie TPC battery replacement technical bulletin<https://info.christiedigital.com/ct/...eef728bb6391b4>

* (To be performed every 5 years for all exhibitors using a Solaria Series 2 projector)

* What to do while your theatre operations are temporarily suspended? – Recommendations by Christie<https://info.christiedigital.com/ct/...eef728bb6391b4>

[Carsten Kurz]

Thanks Leo. Good stuff - especially on the CAT745 battery upgrade!

[Leo Enticknap]

Here is an updated version of the table, with corrections and additions based on posts and links that have appeared since the last one.

media_block_battery_info_v2.pdf

[Carsten Kurz]

And GDC...

Leo - the Dolby document I linked to above quotes up to 3 years cert retention for the DSP100 battery. So, quite possible.

[Leo Enticknap]

Advice from Cinionic for Barco projectors.

I will incorporate all of this into an updated version of the table soon - probably going to give it until the end of today, in case other manufacturers come up with info sheets.

Conversely, I've had CAT862s off for over a year and without incident.

I once had a DSP100 that its owner claimed had been unpowered for nearly two years, that we needed to use in an emergency after the flash boot drive on the Doremi DCP2K4 that had replaced it failed. The certificate was still OK.

[Carsten Kurz]

I received something through a different channel (Dolby and Doremi products):

https://dolby.app.box.com/v/Dolby-Pr...uring-Shutdown

[Steve Kraus]

Are there links to the manufacturers recommendations?

No apparent marks on the visible side of the brown devices. But the silk-screened legend says B3 and B4 next to them (with B1 and B2 next to the green ones).

[Steve Guttag]

Dolby and GDC have now written their recommendations for their respective servers (including legacy products).

Note, those with the CAT745, I would recommend power them daily for an hour. I had one site that due to the death of the owner, shut down for several months and when the theatre powered up several months later, one CAT745 was dead and another made it just a week later...the other 5 have been fine but, as it turns out, the two that failed were the oldest two in the plex. As such, I believe that the effects of no power on the CAT745 are cumulative...the longer you leave it off over its life, the closer you to battery failure (certificate loss) you become. Conversely, I've had CAT862s off for over a year and without incident.

[Bruce Cloutier]

Greens are the BR2477A lithium cells. Maybe someone could solder on to the test points and hook up an other source while messing with those two cells.

These green cells are lithium and in fact the same that we used on the series 3 JNIORs. I regret that by the way. The cells for Series 4 are in holders for your convenience.

There could be two for really only two reasons. (1) if 3V isn't enough these would be used in series. And (2) these cells cannot provide much in the way of current. If they might be called upon to run something other than backup memory they might be in parallel doubling their ability to supply current or marginally increasing their longevity. And, well, I guess there could be two separate backup circuits each with its own battery.

The shelf life on those cells were originally quoted at 10 years. We have found them dead (in JNIORs) in just over 6 years. The JNIOR relies on the battery only when it was was powered off. A unit that was always powered should have seen the maximum life out of the cell. You can still find these cells on DigiKey and the link to their datasheet. Soldering (or really desoldering) can be a challenge because of the mass of metal acting as a heatsink. We usually cut them off first and desolder the remaining tabs in replacing with a new cell.

Lithium should retain most of its voltage right up until it is ready to die. Those green batteries should have a little over 3 volts on them when new and for quite a while. If you see 2.9 or 2.8 volts then they are on their way out and it won't be long. Also the voltage should drop significantly with load as they cannot provide the high currents.

The voltage across the brown cells should very slowly drop once the charging is removed.

[Carsten Kurz]

Right. Is there some mark on the brown cells as well? Maybe both are lithium cells, but one type is rechargeable. Then wondering why there are two of both types. Maybe on the CAT862, they are used in a serial connection (6volts)? There is a public FIPS report available about the CAT862, but those that I read do not cover the backup batteries.

Those brown-edged cells could be the same/similar type as used on LD/Enigma Boards - VL3032 rechargeable cells. While we're at it...


LD_Board.jpg

[Steve Kraus]

Caps are probably the brown circles. Greens are the BR2477A lithium cells. Maybe someone could solder on to the test points and hook up an other source while messing with those two cells.

Click to enlarge.

[Leo Enticknap]

Those bare bones will work in the case of boards that have rechargeable cells and/or supercaps on them (and agreed that this is perfect advice for theater managers who do not have technical expertise at their disposal, as a starting point), but not for boards that have one-time batteries on them.

The zombie apocalypse is ramping up - California's governor just issued a curfew order for the whole state.

[Tony Bandiera Jr]

BTW, we are working on our own advice sheet for our customers, and my boss wants me to pare down detail and distill it to barebones stuff. But there are so many equipment combos in use in the field, that this is darn nearly impossible.

Here ya go, this is the bare bones for ya:

"Due to the possibility of many generations and types of equipment installed in your theatres, it is recommended that ALL projection and server equipment be powered up for at least 4-6 hours, once per week to avoid any issues with dead batteries or lost security certificates."

With the costs involved in a bricked media block/LD module et al, it is FAR CHEAPER to pay the electric bill and some labor to avoid a costly failure.

[Carsten Kurz]

The trouble is, many exhibitors do not even know their specific set, e.g. wether it's IMB or HDSDI/LD based. Then some have a mix of different generations. Some had upgrades/module swaps. Im am pretty sure that most systems will survive a shutdown of 2-3 months - but, it may still be advisable to power them up for shorter periods every one or two weeks.