Noisy Scroller Unit

[jackbenjamin]

Hey all - at my venue we have a Chroma Q scroller unit that is significantly louder than our other five when it is actually scrolling (not the fan). Any ideas what could be causing this/how to fix?

 

[theatricalmatt]

Check that the gel string is properly seated and tensioned, and that the roller bearings move smoothly. After that, check the motor and the drive belt. I find that oftentimes the drive belt or the rollers get ever-so-slightly off, or a bit of schmutz finds its way into them, and that extra friction creates the noise you're hearing.

 

[coldnorth57]

How long has the gel string been in the scroller ...i switched out an old gel string with a new one and wow alot less noise

 

[Kelite]

Remember, that's a spring tensioned system and will get a bit louder as the gel string ages.

 

[seanandkate]

As the string ages and warps from heat (especially the saturated colours) it starts to sound like that irritating woman in the 3rd row slowly unwrapping her cough candy. A new string will quiet things down. I recommend putting a cut of heat shield in the first gel slot to extend your gel life. In the short term, you can slow down your scroll speed on the unit. Or make the music louder for your scene changes. ;-)

 

[Kelite]

Sean's right, heat shield will help knock the heat down once you replace the noisy string. Gel Shield does an even better job as it is a dichroic coated thick barrier.

http://www.apollodesign.net/Products/View/2888.aspx

We install these on all Apollo color scrollers we build. Our tests have shown gel strings last an average 7x longer when Gel Shield is used. And it's a cheap investment for strings which are currently in good shape.