Out with an XD-11

[royall_berndt]

<p>I hadn't shot with this Minolta for a couple of years, so I had some surprises. The nicest: <em>how bright the viewfinder is</em>. Compared to the vf's in digital cameras, the XD-11 screen is brilliant. You can easily focus without the split-image. One quirk: the shutter has more lag than I'm used to and sounds slower than it is. At 125, it sounds like 15. That's unsettling until you get used to it. The camera is very lightweight and your fingers remember the controls almost immediately. I would compare its handling to the Nikon F3, which is high praise. <br>

The lens I'm using is the 85mm f2.0 MD, which you don't see that often. For an 85, it's light and small; it has a nice medium focus throw. The color rendition of the lens is one of the best in the Minolta system: Leica-rich, as I noticed the first time I used the glass. It's sharper than the 85mm 1.7. <br>

Anyone else use this lens?<br>

For some reason, my example needs a few minutes of warmup before shutter-priority is available. You have to shoot a few frames with aperture-priority before the meter wakes up to its potentials. My SRT-102 meter also needs a few minutes' warmup. It's not accurate without it. The electronics apparently need to work with light before waking up completely.<br>

Theories on this?<br>

The camera still has the power to jazz me up and make me want to go out shooting. I am happily reminded of why the XD line caused such excitement when it appeared in 1977. Indeed, it was a borrowed XD-11 that got me started in 35mm photography. <br>

My only complaint: I can't find a decent ERC. <br>

</p>

<p> </p>

[Gus Lazzari]

<blockquote>

<p>"You have to shoot a few frames with aperture-priority before the meter wakes up to its potentials. My SRT-102 meter also needs a few minutes' warmup. It's not accurate without it. The electronics apparently need to work with light before waking up completely."</p>

</blockquote>

<p><strong>None of that is normal.</strong><br>

Either mirror box lube is in failure, or something electronic is about to give up the "ghost"...</p>

[fmueller]

<p>The XD-11 - or rather its European equivalent the XD-7 - was my first SLR camera. I used it as my main camera from the 1980s until I went digital with a Rebel XT in 2006. I still have my XD-7 - plus an XD-11 and a raft of other manual focus Minolta bodies, but have not used them since the day my DSLR arrived.<br /><br />The viewfinder in the XD series is awesome. I have a plain matte focusing screen in my XD-11, ie without the split image thingy, and in my opinion that makes it even better. The shutter lag was a common complaint, and I believe it is due to the last moment meter check the XD performs after the lens has already stopped down. It ensures an accurate exposure of non-MD lenses in S-mode - something few people are aware of! Since I grew up using the XD-7, I never noticed the shutter lag. I guess for me that's normal ;-)<br /><br />I also find that the XD series is very intuitive to use - a camera where you hardly need a manual! I have never heard about a meter warm up period with manual focus Minoltas. Frankly, I find that almost a bit hard to believe, especially since you report it for two cameras that use metering systems which have virtually nothing in common.<br /><br />I used to own a wardrobe full of manual focus Minolta lenses from 16mm to 400mm, but oddly I have never owned a 85mm. The 85/2 has a fantastic reputation though. Antony Hands writes about it here: http://www.rokkorfiles.com/85mm%20Page%201.htm<br /><br />I still have the original ERC for my XD-7. I keep it for completeness, but it has seen very little use over the years. There is a good reason these ever-ready-cases were termed never-ready-cases by those in the know! I don't even like to store cameras in these things due to their reputation as breeding ground for fungus. <br /><br />The other day my wife found a box of long experienced film in the back of her sock drawer. Maybe it's time to load up my XD again!<br /><br /></p>

[User_1172872]

<blockquote>

<p> At 125, it sounds like 15</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Perhaps it's not 125? The XD-11 will overide your settings. If you set shutter priority at 1/125 but there's not enough light even at maximum aperture, it will select a slower shutter speed.</p>

[don_baccus]

<p>I used an XD-11 and XD-5 for years before switching to EOS and never saw your "warm-up" problem.</p>

<p>How old's the battery?</p>

 

[John Seaman]

<p>On my XD7 there is a slight delay after pressing the shutter, I think it's down to the lubricant in a part of the mechanism drying out. I don't think it affects the shutter speed itself it just sounds that way.</p>

[randyjay]

<p>The capacitor that controls the shutter may be getting weak.</p>

[vince-p]

<p>Minoltas of that era (XD-11, X-700, X-570 etc) have become notorious for capacitor problems, as the decades have gone by. If it is the capacitor or one of them (?) the the mirror will lock up one day and the camera won't shoot. This has not happened to my XD-11 so far, but the lag has grown noticeably longer; and I've lost 1 x-700 and several x-570s this way. It used to be far cheaper to find a new one than to repair it; not sure that's true now. <br>

MC/MD Rokkors to love (in my experience):<br>

21/2.8<br>

24/2.8 (wow)<br>

50/1.4<br>

85/2<br>

100/2 (wow)<br>

200/2 (super wow)<br>

There are others, of course, to which I intend no insult; I can only plead ignorance. I have never used the 135/2 but they are highly sought after and I see them go on the Bay now for $800 and up. The 58/1.2 is also legendary but I've never used one (they go for $400 +). The 28/2 (also in the $400 range) is very hard to get now; and the 35mm f/1.8 (not as pricey as above, I think) is also beloved but, again, I've not used one. </p>

 

[randyjay]

<p>I replaced the capacitor in this XD-11.</p>

<p><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v730/diecastdeluxe/cameras2/XD11e.jpg" alt="" /></p>

[vince-p]

<p>you sure know how to frighten a man. </p>

[randyjay]

<p>It's back together now.</p>

<p><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v730/diecastdeluxe/cameras2/XD11h.jpg" alt="" width="800" height="634" /><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v730/diecastdeluxe/cameras2/XD11g.jpg" alt="" width="800" height="603" /></p>

[mwmcbroom]

<p>And which cap would that be, Ray? Is it visible in the photo?</p>

<p>I've dabbled with Minoltas over the years, having owned several from back in my days as a camera dealer. But I never had the privilege of owning an XD-11. I've had friends who've extolled its virtues at length, though, enough so that if I were ever to buy a Minolta, that would be the one I'd get.</p>

<p>And in light of their capacitor problems, my question to Ray is actually not facetious. I may end up having to do just what he's done. I periodically have to do some of my own repairs to keep my cameras going.</p>

 

[rick_drawbridge]

<p>Not <em>too</em> tricky <strong>Michael</strong>; here's pic of underside of an X300, new capacitor in place. I think the XD-11 is much the same, though I stand to be corrected!</p><div></div>

[royall_berndt]

<p>Can you walk into an electronics store and get the needed capacitor, or must it be lifted from another XD-11?</p>

[andylynn]

The XD has the capacitor problem? I thought that was just X700 and newer...

[royall_berndt]

<p>No, apparently not, Andy. I bought a new XG-7 back in the day; it was a neat camera until--yep--the capacitor fizzled. </p>

[randyjay]

<p>If it has an electronic shutter, there is a capacitor lurking about. I've had to replace them on quite a few of the Minolta X-Series cameras. I buy my capacitors on Evilbay.</p>

[rick_drawbridge]

<p>According to my notes, the specifications for the capacitor for the X300 are: 4v 220uF @ 85 deg. C, and the dimensions (which are important as there's very little room in there) are 6.3mm x 5mm x 2.5 mm, though a small round one not exceeding about 7mm in girth) will fit. The original part number is P954-ND, and the common Panasonic replacement part number is ECE-A0GKS221. If that's any help...</p>

[royall_berndt]

<p>Rick, it's a lot of help. Thanks much. <br>

I was out shooting today, with the 135mm 3.5 MD, another lens with a good rep. Tomorrow I'll probably go with that fabulous 24mm 2.8 MD. Then next day the 70-210 MD f.4.0. I've had great results with these lenses before. It's fun to use them again. The 135mm is not an ideal street shooter: the focus throw is very long. By the time you find focus, the moment is gone. </p>

<p> </p>

[david_l3]

<p>Is that an electrolytic capacitor? It looks like it could be one. In my job we face reliability problems with them. When they are new they work great. </p>

<p>I had an XD-11 (all black finish no less) and it was a lovely machine. The 50mm f1.4 MD lens was a beauty in subjective image quality. The only Minolta I ever had. I sold it to prune my camera collection and have regretted it since. </p>

[jason_hopper]

<p>There were a few chokepoints in XD's that would affect the symptoms you describe: slow-sounding shutter and slow-to-respond mode switching. Keep in mind that the XD's were electromechanical as well as electronic.</p>

<p>The sequence that releases the XD shutter second curtain includes an electromagnetic switch at the bottom of the camera, hidden by the tripod mount plate and inside a rectangular plastic cover. Minolta recognized that the contact surface on its shoe could get oily or dusty. If this goes awry the second curtain lags. The other thing that goes wrong is the damper piston for mirror return, which is supposed to play in after the the shutter is finished but will affect how the shutter sequence sounds. Damper binds and the mirror is slow to return (which is that last sound you hear that is perceived to be part the shutter sequence).</p>

<p>The M-A-S mode switch is integrated into the main IC board on top of the camera. The wipers that sweep across the printed circuits sometimes will get grungy (since all this is right under the shutterspeed dial and relatively open to stuff getting into the camera). See if sweeping the M-A-S lever back and forth a few times will speed up response, if it does try having a CLA done for the circuitboard & wipers that are under the shutterspeed dial, the ASA circuitboard & wipers under the rewind, the damper piston and that bottom switch.</p>

<p>The XD's do have capacitors/condensers. But if these fail the symptoms are more like meter failure that involves the super large main IC board that wraps over the top of the pentaprism and down the mirror box side. The bottom IC board controls power/ timing / sequencing. If components fail down there the camera shouldn't sequence, period.</p>

<p>Minolta changed the bottom IC board 6-7 times and the top board (for IC-2) only twice during XD development to increase reliability. There were 5 generations of XD's (Randy Jay's is 2nd generation), and the IC boards evolved faster in the first 2-3 generations. So there might have been some concerns about reliability early on as Minolta developed the camera over its production runs.</p>

<p>Have had both 85/2 and MD 85/1.7: the 85/2 is sharper, but I kept the MD 85/1.7 because it's rarer and I couldn't sell it for the price I wanted. Also kept my 4th generation diopter-eyepiece black JDM XD for same reasons.</p>

<p>Minolta's cases in the mid/late 70's were made of a poor false leather. Had a rare XD-with-winder 'T' case that slowly came apart with use, what a shame. Found that an aftermarket XG/XD (without winder) case that Pacific Rim Camera sells works well. Some of these do not have the tripod screw mounting (which I like for not scratching up the bottom plate) and have straps that loop over the lugs (which I like for helping to keep the camera shoulders from getting polished). Worked on a 'Minolta' tag from a torn-up SRT case to the front and it looks spiffy.</p>

<p>Lastly, your Sr-T uses CdS metercells, which just respond slower (and probably do take more time to 'wake up') than the XD's silicon photo diode cell.</p>

[royall_berndt]

<p>Jason, thanks for your detailed answer. I covet that diopter-equipped XD, despite its bad covering. I've never even seen one of those. I especially do because it sounds as if the XDs were steadily improved over the production run and the diopter version was made last. </p>

[randyjay]

<p>The new black leatherette on mine came from cameraleather.com and it was only $14.00. It was really easy to replace the peeling sticky original.</p>