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Uptown Express
 Film scanner prices have been dropping while their capabilities have been soaring. So why spend $2,000 (street) for Nikon’s new Super Coolscan 9000 ED? You can, after all, get a very impressive film scanner for less than half that (see our test of the Minolta DiMAGE Scan Elite 5400 in the June 2004 issue).
One reason is that, unlike the Minolta, the Nikon handles medium-format film up to 6x9cm in addition to 35mm. And it scans with speed, shadow detail, and color accuracy that even its older sibling, the Super Coolscan 8000 ED, can’t touch. The 8000 ED, once a $3,000 favorite among pros and medium-format-shooting amateurs, scans a 16X-multisampled, 48-bit color scan of a 120-format negative in 26 min 10 sec. The new 9000 ED does the same scan in 22 min 30 sec.
Despite its formidable size, the 9000 ED is rather easy to set up and operate. The scanner connects to your Mac or PC through a FireWire (IEEE1394) cable (but no Hi-Speed USB 2.0). Don’t have FireWire input on your computer? Nikon includes a PCI FireWire interface card.
The Nikon Scan and View software bundled with the scanner runs on Windows 98SE or higher and Mac OS 9.1 or later, and relies on the printed quick-start guide and manual to take beginners through the process. Nikon Scan places all available options on the desktop.
Using the tools palette, you can multisample an image up to 16 times to boost shadow detail and reduce noise, or increase color accuracy by choosing 48-bit color instead of the default 24-bit (16 and 8 bits per color, respectively). With 10 preset color spaces, including sRGB, Apple RGB, and Adobe RGB 1998, the scanner can be used as part of a color-managed workflow. Color correction, also controlled in the tools palette, includes curve adjustments, as well as global brightness and contrast controls.
In our lab tests, the 9000 ED churned out a full-res (4000 ppi), 48-bit, 108MB file scan from a color 35mm slide in just 2 min 23 sec (1 min 48 sec faster than the 8000 ED, and more than 30 sec quicker than the Scan Elite 5400). With automatic flaw-fixing Digital ICE turned to its highest setting and multisampling off, the 9000 ED removed most minor blemishes and dust, and took just 5 min 6 sec.
As for color accuracy, the 9000 ED scored an excellent rating (Avg. Delta E: 5.33). The 8000 ED: 7.86. And the $830 Minolta: 7.54.
Nikon claims a density range of 4.8 for the 9000 ED. We saw plenty of detail in even the darkest portions of the images we scanned.
On our resolution test, it also gets an excellent rating: 67.2 line pairs per mm on both Fujicolor Sensia color negative and Kodak T-Max black-and-white 35mm film. (The 8000 ED scored 60 lp/mm; the new Minolta beat them both at 71.3 lp/mm for color and 83.9 lp/mm for black-and-white.)
We wish Nikon included a variations palette to speed up exposure adjustments. Also, unlike some less expensive Nikon film scanners, there’s no optional automatic slide feeder—you can scan only up to five at a time. But, wow, are they good scans.
What's Hot
Excellent color accuracy. Up to 6x9cm film. Fast scanning times.
What's Not
No variations palette. No optional automatic slide feeder. No USB 2.0.
Download our Nikon Super Coolscan 9000 ED Certified Test Results
-requires Adobe Acrobat Reader
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