Which Ball Head?

Hi everybody
This is my first post here. I bought 190XproB and confused for select ball head.
I don't want to pay again later for new head so I need a useful head for most categories of photography .
In my local market this models of RC2 are available (I think RC2 is good for me):
484RC2, 486RC2, 494RC2,496RC2,498RC2 with a little difference in price, please help to select best one.

Welcome to POTN, Javid!

You might also look at the PhotoClam line of ballheads at www.reallybigcameras.c​om. There may be a website closer to you so you will not have to pay shipping from the U.S. But the line of ballheads may do more for you than the 496rc2 and others like it. PhotoClam seems to be a direct translation from Korean to English, so don't be confused by the name.

Kerry Thalmann at reallybigcameras is a very nice guy. You should email him and ask him to compare the 496 series from Bogen/Manfrotto with his Photoclam heads for features and value for the money.

I have a Markins Q3t on a travel tripod. The Markins M10 is one of the best ballheads on the market and would be fine for your tripod, but is not in the same price range ast the 496.

The Markins have excellent reviews here over the years. PhotoClam has been around for about three years and I have not read a negative review here, so that's good. With either one, I do not think it would be a problem to order over the internet, if you're interested in either one.

How much are you will to spend on a ball head? I ask as in many ways the purchase of a good ball head is more important than the tripod. There are some really good heads out there from the likes of RRS, Kirk, Acratech and Markins to name but a few that will give you a significant performance improvement over the Manfrotto ones but at a price. My advice would be to get the best you can afford. I personally have a Markins M10 which although expensive I know will do the job and is a one off purchase.

Neil

If you really don't want to spend more on a ballhead upgrade later on, then you might as well forget the RC2 system, chances are you'll want to upgrade it in a few years' time. Go straight for something Arca-Swiss compatible.

I have only good things to say about Cullmann, you can check out my mini-review of the MB 6.5 ballhead in the link in my signature.

I have the Manfrotto 190cxpro4 legs and I first bought the 498RC2 to go on it. It's a nice enough ball head but it frustrated me. I was constantly turning the wrong knob and I found that with my 70-200 and larger lenses it would drop just a tad after I tightened it. I could allow for the drop and function ok but I finally decided to try an entirely different type.

I got the Acratech Ultimate Ballhead with the Arca Swiss style quick release and I couldn't be happier. I wish I'd just done it sooner, it really does make my tripod shooting simpler and far less frustrating. I know there are 498RC2 lovers out there and I'm not saying it's a bad ballhead, it just wasn't the one for me. Take a look at the Acratech, it's a little different but very nice.

Like everyone else, I'd skip the Manfrotto ballheads if you want one to keep for years. I have the Markins Q3T and I'm in love with it. Take a look at ballheads by Markins and ReallyRightStuff. These are two excellent brands for tripod gear.

I just ordered the Gitzo GT2542L and an Acratech GV2.
The ball head is to be delivered tomorrow. I will let you know my feelings on it when it comes in.

Thank you all , I surprised for your help.
I can pay about 150$ and because I need for today or tomorrow I prefer to buy from shopping. here the most professional heads that I can found are Gitzo and manfrotto.
I think 498RC2 is good but I'm not sure because I did not have ball head before. my last tripod is unknown model with fixed head.

Are you set on Manfrotto's RC2 QR system. They are quite affordable and popular. There are the various Arca-Swiss systems. They are more expensive but many here will sing it's praises.

I have the 498RC2 ballhead. It works well for my needs. The panning is a nice feature.

If you only have the option to go with the RC2 system, get the best you can.

Sirrith wrote in post #12590579
If you only have the option to go with the RC2 system, get the best you can.

I agree, get the 498RC2, that's gotten good reviews here. It has a tension knob which is often a feature of ballheads costing twice as much.

Had the 488. On big improvement I made to it...replaced the RC2 clamp with an RRS QR clamp...and then put an RRS L bracket on the camera body. The L bracket lets you change orientation without getting the body/lens weight offcenter of the tripod...and also keeps them at the same height.

If you replace the 498 in the future, you can remove the QR clamp and put back the RC2 clamp when you sell it. The QR clamp can then be moved to your next ballhead.

If you do a search around here I'm sure you'll find where they switched the RC2 QR clamp with an Arca-Swiss compatible clamp.

You get an affordable Manfrotto ballhead and arca-swiss clamp.

Blurr Cube wrote in post #12618456
If you do a search around here I'm sure you'll find where they switched the RC2 QR clamp with an Arca-Swiss compatible clamp.

You get an affordable Manfrotto ballhead and arca-swiss clamp.

The problem I see with this is that part of the reason A-S setups are usually recommended because they support heavy loads very well. So if you're going to change the QR system with an A-S compatible one, it kind of defeats the purpose to do it on an affordable manfrotto head since they don't really support heavy loads that well.

Sirrith wrote in post #12619012
The problem I see with this is that part of the reason A-S setups are usually recommended because they support heavy loads very well. So if you're going to change the QR system with an A-S compatible one, it kind of defeats the purpose to do it on an affordable manfrotto head since they don't really support heavy loads that well.

OEM 498RC2 load capacity is 8 kg (~17.5 lbs). The tripod may have a lower load capacity and be the limiting factor.