terry_rory Posted July 6, 2005 Share Posted July 6, 2005 Hello. The Minolta Scan Dual IV would seem an ideal choice of scanner for me but reading about them here and on other websites it seems the recurrent theme is installation problems. Even if people follow the instructions to the letter it seems they end up having to do system restores to recover. Is there a good value, reliable scanner that works 'out of the box' with straight forward no hassle installation? (Load up driver/plug in the box/scan) Does anyone have good experiences of the Minolta Scan Dual IV? (Especially interested in the installation part) I use a standard Dell Dimension, 2.8ghz Pentium 4, XP/SP2 (Home), USB2, 1gb RAM set up. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry_rory Posted July 6, 2005 Author Share Posted July 6, 2005 I forgot to mention the Scanner will only do occasional duty and will not be plugged into the PC permanently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_h.1 Posted July 6, 2005 Share Posted July 6, 2005 I had no problems with it including installation. Its working fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doug andrews Posted July 6, 2005 Share Posted July 6, 2005 My Scan Dual IV installed with no problems whatsoever. About a month later it would display an error during either manual or autofocusing. Found out that Minolta's scanner software doesn't like to share a USB hub with other devices. Once I plugged it into a non-shared USB port, no problems. My computer is an older Dell Dimension 1.8 ghz Pentium 4, XP/SP2 (Professional), USB 1, 512 mb RAM. Slow, but still works great. Of course, YMMV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tholte Posted July 6, 2005 Share Posted July 6, 2005 I have had mine for six months and still can't get it to work. Could be me though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wildwoodgallery Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 It installs very easy. Plug the USB in and load software and that's it. Had is since last Christmas, no problems. I've installed it on an Windows xp and me, np. I'm running an Athlon 64 3000 with 512mb and it scans very fast. Rick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madhu1 Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Have been using mine for nearly 2 years. Had it working variously with Windows XP, Mac OS 9 and OS X; no installation or operational problems with any of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry_rory Posted July 7, 2005 Author Share Posted July 7, 2005 Status in this thread so far:- Cannot install.. 1 Installs OK..... 3 Maybe I should not risk being one of the one in four who gets a Dual Scan IV which will not install. I wonder why Minolta have not addressed this. If I look at reviews for it anywhere, the story is always the same. A lot of people who think it is a good scanner and a lot of people who either never got it to work or had a lot of troubles trying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry_rory Posted July 7, 2005 Author Share Posted July 7, 2005 OK make that 4 good, 1 cannot install. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry_rory Posted July 7, 2005 Author Share Posted July 7, 2005 Maybe if this count gets to about 6:1 ratio of 'good:cannot install' I will get one and just be very careful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jose f. Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Still using the SDIII here, but it installed easily close to three years back and continues to work well, even on a fairly old, slow Win98 machine. I even like their software. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael_l__uk_ Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Trevor. <br> </br>I've got one of these. Had no problems at all - the installation instructions are very clear and no hassle, but you must follow the precise order on installation of plugging it in, loading drivers etc to avoid problems. Mine worked straight out of the box and I was scanning in about 20-30mins. <br> </br>Once installed, it is easy to use, although scanning is a process which has its own learning curve. It is a trifle slow for max rez scans on my antique pc (compaq 500hz, win98se, usb 1) and I am using it via a usb hub! <br> </br>Don't forget this scanner doesn't have ICE - that's ony an issue if you will be using colour, as ICE doesn't work with B&W films anyway. So you will be doing a bit of spotting in Photoshop. One thing that I have noticed is that it scans slides far, far better than negatives. Negs do come out slightly grainy and flatter than transparency. <br> </br>Sorry, if you know some of the above already. Good luck on whatever scanner you choose to buy, I look foward to seeing more great pictures. <br> </br>Regards, Michael. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
constance_cook Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Trevor: I have the 5400 Scan Elite. It will not install and function if another scanner is installed and/or connected. I had to delet my flatbed to get the 5400 to function. Do you have another scanner or all-in-one on your computer? If you do, that's probably your problem. Conni Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_h.1 Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 My Dual Scan IV installed and works fine with additional scanners. That's the product being asked about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
constance_cook Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Families of products often share characteristics. Especially when they are released in rapid succesion as the 5400 and Trevor's scanner were ( about 6 months). Installations that fail are often due to variables in the computer, apps running in the background, peripheral software (some work with some manufacturer's items but clash with others), etc. Smart troubleshooting comes from following solutions to the failures -- not from those that were successful. The problem is the individual failure and how to fix it. Conni Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjmurray Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 I've had a Scan Dual III for several years with no problems, although I use Hamrick's Vuescan software and never installed any of the Minolta software. I also run an Epson flatbed, which Vuescan manages quite well too. If you use Vuescan, just plug in the scanner and away you go! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott_mcloughlin Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 That's an excellent point. Is this just a software install issue? Would using Vuescan "solve" all of these problems. I have a Coolscan V, but use Vuescan for almost all my B&W scanning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtk Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 Nikon. Vuescan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fpa Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 I have the predecessor, and ran it under Windows XP (Minolta or Vuescan), and Mac (OS 10.3/10.4), and the only difficulty during installation was finding room on my desk. I did send my unit back to KM for repair, due to a temperature-sensitive chromatic streak, but otherwise it's been fine. If you're worried about the driver issue, then use Vuescan, which I don't believe required me to load the KM software before it would talk to the scanner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattb1 Posted July 7, 2005 Share Posted July 7, 2005 The issues could be mainly related to USB issues. Some USB devices do not play by the rules very well. I had an issue with my Nikon and after removing a low cost hub the issues went a way. Can not say if this is the main issue or not, no experience with the scan dual. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry_rory Posted July 7, 2005 Author Share Posted July 7, 2005 Thank you all for the advice and your experiences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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