Discussion Forum Leica S System S2 Ugg! The dreaded thin red line : -(
  • May 4, 2013 at 8:14 pm #3814
    fotografz

    Murphy’s Law says … if it can go wrong, it’ll go wrong at the worse time.

    I just sold my stalwart Hasselblad system of almost 8 years to consolidate my pro kit with the S2P.

    Did some shots mid-week that were fine. Shot some product work today, and discovered a row of dead pixels almost centered in every shot. The dreaded thin red line.

    Same card, same reader, same everything. Did tests to confirm: it’s in the CF RAW and SD jpgs.

    If I recall, the S2P warranty is two years which lapsed last Nov. : -( Actually, that was the date of original purchase, that camera was replaced due to a cracked sensor, then the new camera had to have the shutter release fixed. But since then it has seemed okay, and reliable.

    Any suggestions to check before I go through the repair hassle … er, process?

    -Marc

  • May 4, 2013 at 8:26 pm #3815
    Jack MacD

    Ouch!
    Very sorry to see your name attached to this post.

    I believe that the fix is not as difficult as one would think. You send it back, they do a software fix and it’s solved. Of course, that means sending it back.

    I know there was a program someone did for M8 files that allowed you to accomplish it yourself, but of course on each and every file after the fact. You want it before.

    Call the Leica Specialist in NJ. David or Josh probably have dealt with it too, but they are off on the Everglades trip.

    Jack

    Jack
  • May 4, 2013 at 9:57 pm #3816
    peterv

    Sorry to hear this, Marc. Wasn’t there a thread here about the same issue? I think I recall someone mentioning that sending a file to Solms would suffice. Leica would map out the bad row and send you a firmware fix …

  • May 5, 2013 at 1:32 am #3817
    Arif

    Sorry to hear that Marc, I had a similar problem and Eric Chan helped me out. Please take a look to salvage the existing files.

    http://www.reddotforum.com/showthread.php/410-Any-ideas-on-the-purple-line-in-the-following-images

    fotografz;4490 wrote: Murphy’s Law says … if it can go wrong, it’ll go wrong at the worse time.

    I just sold my stalwart Hasselblad system of almost 8 years to consolidate my pro kit with the S2P.

    Did some shots mid-week that were fine. Shot some product work today, and discovered a row of dead pixels almost centered in every shot. The dreaded thin red line.

    Same card, same reader, same everything. Did tests to confirm: it’s in the CF RAW and SD jpgs.

    If I recall, the S2P warranty is two years which lapsed last Nov. : -( Actually, that was the date of original purchase, that camera was replaced due to a cracked sensor, then the new camera had to have the shutter release fixed. But since then it has seemed okay, and reliable.

    Any suggestions to check before I go through the repair hassle … er, process?

    -Marc

  • May 7, 2013 at 11:41 am #3822
    fotografz

    Thanks everyone!

    Fortunately, the affected files were few, and not all that critical. I easily did a pixel row selection and used Content Aware Fill in PS6 to correct them.

    If I had a lot of files like this, I suppose I could write an action and batch it to all files.

    I have been in contact with Kelsey Fain, S2 Product Specialist, Leica USA … and have sent her a DNG file shot @ ISO 160, f.5.6, 1/30 shutter with the lens cap on. This will be sent to Germany to determine if a firmware fix is possible (I suspect so).

    Hopefully, I will not have to send in the camera to go to Germany.

    -Marc

  • May 7, 2013 at 10:00 pm #3824
    Mark Gowin

    Marc,

    I had this happen on my S2 and Leica Germany used one of my DNG files to create a custom firmware. Also, future firmware updates do not affect the custom firmware.

    Mark

  • May 8, 2013 at 10:34 am #3827
    fotografz

    Thanks Mark!

    Yeah, it seems Germany can fix this and asked for a second IDSO 160 DNG shot of a uniform grey unfocused surface which I sent yesterday.

    Kelsey confirmed that once you load this calibration to eliminate the dead pixel that’s causing the red line, it is permanent solution and you just reload the most current firmware or any subsequent firmware updates.

    Hope it all works out. We’ll see.

    -Marc

  • May 8, 2013 at 4:53 pm #3830
    fotografz

    Fixed.

    Thanks to Kelsey Fains of Leica USA, and the fast acting technical wizards in Germany.

    Let the jobs begin!

    -Marc

  • May 8, 2013 at 7:03 pm #3831
    Jack MacD

    Very good news.

    Jack
  • May 12, 2013 at 8:17 am #3859
    Doug

    Indeed this is great news, even astoundingly good news, and this should save everyone time trouble and expense in dealing with a possibly recurring problem. It also seems to confirm that previously this has been solved in software remapping rather than sensor replacement.

  • May 26, 2013 at 6:51 am #3905
    Rolophoto

    fotografz;4506 wrote: Fixed.

    Thanks to Kelsey Fains of Leica USA, and the fast acting technical wizards in Germany.

    Let the jobs begin!

    -Marc

    Excellent news. Thanks for the information. Never know when it might come in handy, but your sharing gives peace of mind to all of us.

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