How can I control 4 flash units with wires?

[dphoto]

Hello all,

For $30, Alien Bees offers a wire package to control 3 flash units. After doing some research, that seems like a great deal. However, I'm thinking that I may wish to expand to 4 flash units. If I want to do this, is there an economic way to do so?

BTW, I know that I can control one flash unit with a wire and then have that one trigger the others with light. I'm considering the case when other people will be firing their flash cameras. It looks like what I would do in this case is limit myself to 3 flash units! :D

Thanks for any help,
-Deva

[SnJPhoto]

The kit they sell is a 3 way splitter for the PC cord. Go to a local shop and get a 3 way and a connecting PC cord. You will be happy with it for a short time, but will quickly learn that the cords are a pain. If you have the $....go Pocket Wizard.

Scott

[Mark Kemp]

If you want to stick with wires, just get another 3 way splitter and stack em. But remember to keep your mobile phone in your pocket so that you can call some one to cut you free when you get tangled in all that cable!

[dphoto]

LOL! :D <sigh> I don't anticipate using this setup often, but if I do, I'll be sure to have some sort of escape route planned. :D

Eek, I wish I could afford the Pocket Wizards, but there's just no way. I still have more lenses I want to buy! :D

So that PC cord... what would they call that at Radio Shack? (I don't think I've seen "PC cord" there before.) Can it be any wire with a 1/8" connector on the end?

Thanks a lot guys!
-Deva

[SnJPhoto]

What you end up with are 3 cords that have 1/8 mono plugs (AB's connection)on one end and pc plugs on the other. These plug into a splitter. From the splitter to the camera is another cord that makes the final connection. In the end, you have 4 cords and a splitter. I have this setup. I use the standard AB pc cords that came with the light, a 3way splitter I picked up locally for $4 and a short adapter cord which cost another $3. So $30 for the kit is high in my book.

Sorry...that info only does 3 lights....add an additional splitter and 2 cords to that list of things. One cord to connect the splitters and one more fo the 4th light.

Scott

And since no one has started the discussion yet, I'll tell you that there will eventually be a few folks who will get into the debate on synch voltages. I never had a problem, but some feel you should have a device inline to ensure the line voltage is not going to damage your camera. There have been way too many threads on this to repeat.

And FYI, 1/8 stereo plugs don't work in ABs from my experience.

[dphoto]

Hey Scott,

Thanks for the reply. I haven't ordered my Alien Bees yet, so I'm having a hard time visualizing some of this. I think I have it all down, except one detail. OK, so each flash unit ships with a cord that has a 1/8" mono plug on one end and a PC plug (male, I assume?) on the other. Since I have to plug the 1/8" mono end to the flash unit, that means that the splitter has to be able to connect to the PC plugs. Are there splitters like that out there? Is there a link out there with a picture perhaps? The splitter would then have to connect to the camera (hot shoe adapter in my case) with a cable that has a male PC plug on one end for the camera and... what kind of connector on the other end for the splitter? I think a picture of the splitter would clear everything up. Do you know where I could get such a thing? I can't even find it on the net. Grrr... Oh, and thanks for the tip on stereo wires. :D

As for sync voltages... I was worried about that myself, but the Alien Bees uses a sync voltage of 5V and the 300D can handle up to 6V from what I understand. If this is incorrect, someone please chime in, but as it stands, there should be no problems so I'm not going to purchase an inline device.

Thanks again for the help,
-Deva

[slejhamer]

What are the advantages to using a totally wired setup as described above, vs. just relying on the AB's built-in slave triggers? Seems that you'd only need one PC cord from camera to key, with the rest set off wirelessly. (Or as suggested, you could use a radio slave for a complete wireless setup.) Are there disadvantages to the wireless arrangement?

[dphoto]

Hey Mitch,

I will be relying on the AB's slave triggers 99.99% of the time. However, when (if) I'm in an environment with other cameras shooting off their flashes, I can't do that. I would love to use a radio slave, but they are expensive. I think the minimal Pocket Wizard setup starts at about $350. So for around $30 or less, wires are the cheap way out.

Hope that clears it up. Trust me, I don't want to use any more wires than I have to! :D
-Deva

[SnJPhoto]

Here's what they look like...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=30087&item=3817097 143&tc=photo

Scott

[dphoto]

Thank you so much! That explains everything! :D

-Deva

[slejhamer]

I will be relying on the AB's slave triggers 99.99% of the time. However, when (if) I'm in an environment with other cameras shooting off their flashes, I can't do that.

A-ha! I figured I was overlooking some obvious situation that would make the wired setup necessary, and there it is! Thanks for clarifying.
8)

[JoeTampa]

I was going to use cables too.

That lasted 3 weeks.


Two truths became self-evident:


1. The PC connector was designed by photography-hating wives.

2. $350 is a small price to pay for your sanity.



That friggin' PC connector is junk. I had a 30% failed strobe rate with the cable (and this was the same if I changed lights, cables, and bodies). Other photogs I spoke to had similar issues. Plus, when the thing DID work right, getting a slave to fire was another issue - ever set up a reflector JUST to fire a slave? Arrgh!

Pocket Wizards work great, and every time. I control 3 lights with them, have NO misfires, and can move about the studio at will.

[dphoto]

Thanks for the heads up about the wiring. As for getting the slaves to fire, I hope I don't encounter that kind of trouble. If so... those Pocket Wizards will probably be looking pretty good. :D

-Deva

[dphoto]

For anyone who was/is interested in a wired setup with Alien Bees, I just learned that their wired remote control (LG4X) has a pc sync connector input. Thus, you can use it to trigger your strobes from your camera without failure (unlike with the pc splitter). Moreover, you can control 4 strobes (not just 3), and you can use the remote control to vary the individual outputs of the lights. Not bad for $100. I know this won't be for everyone, but it seems to be a nice midway point between the pc splitter and pocket wizards. I know I'm thinking about it. :D

-Deva