Elinchrom Users Only (Mark III) [Abandon hope all ye who enter]

sigma pi wrote in post #13046445
How much are they there?

With diffuser / eli ring / opal glass I bet its £500+ ($750)

How come you sold the kacey and got the mola?

TwoShoes wrote in post #13046873
How come you sold the kacey and got the mola?

No reason - the Mola was just too good a price to pass up on

Hm, i've been eyeing that D600, i always boom my main light, and right now im just using a D200B with a metal pipe pretty much, its extremely inconvenient and its actually bend the D200B since the pipe is larger then the d200B shafts.

Finding something more... Solid would probably be a good long term investment for me.

Anything i should know about the D600?

they are a nice boom, they are cheaper stateside by $100 so you may want to factor shipping into your cost


http://www.vistek.ca …manfrotto-d600-cboom.aspx

http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …oom&N=0&Initial​Search=yes

Lichtwerk wrote in post #13046633
What's pulling you away from AB? Is there something in particular or do you just want to change things up a bit/upgrade for the heck of it?

Do you want battery power for location use?

Location use, definitely. I guess what's pulling me away is that I'm looking for a more durable (non-plastic) strobe, something that'll take years of abuse, er, I mean, years of use. I think the Einsteins are great, but I've already had one replaced by PCB because the modeling light wasn't working properly (flickering on and off). It really is a good strobe, but, for example, yesterday while I was standing on the beach during a shoot in knee high seawater the think that I felt was the weakest link was the strobe. And while that may or may not be true, I want the assurance from knowing I'm out there with something that'll hold up.

I'd like to overpower the sun with both, actually.

I think what is confusing me is that the ABs are pretty much straightforward in their explanation to new strobists. While looking for strobes last year, the PCB website (and the info on PotN) was very easy to find and discern (ab400, 800, 1600) while the rest of the light companies out there assume (or so it seemed to me at the time) that you have prior knowledge of everything and know what you're looking for Ranger? Quadra? Speed head, A-head, S-head.. . I didn't, so I went with AB and upgraded to Einstein earlier this year. Now I'm ready to move up again.

So, basically... I want something that I can use both on location and in studio, three to four lights - check out the last three shoots to get an idea of what I'm doing/looking for www.johnschellblog.com

Sorry for the long post.

John Schell wrote in post #13047035
Location use, definitely. I guess what's pulling me away is that I'm looking for a more durable (non-plastic) strobe, something that'll take years of abuse, er, I mean, years of use. I think the Einsteins are great, but I've already had one replaced by PCB because the modeling light wasn't working properly (flickering on and off). It really is a good strobe, but, for example, yesterday while I was standing on the beach during a shoot in knee high seawater the think that I felt was the weakest link was the strobe. And while that may or may not be true, I want the assurance from knowing I'm out there with something that'll hold up.

I'd like to overpower the sun with both, actually.

I think what is confusing me is that the ABs are pretty much straightforward in their explanation to new strobists. While looking for strobes last year, the PCB website (and the info on PotN) was very easy to find and discern (ab400, 800, 1600) while the rest of the light companies out there assume (or so it seemed to me at the time) that you have prior knowledge of everything and know what you're looking for Ranger? Quadra? Speed head, A-head, S-head.. . I didn't, so I went with AB and upgraded to Einstein earlier this year. Now I'm ready to move up again.

So, basically... I want something that I can use both on location and in studio, three to four lights - check out the last three shoots to get an idea of what I'm doing/looking for www.johnschellblog.com

Sorry for the long post.

If you're looking for a strobe that's not made of plastic, I'm afraid you're going to be very disappointed. All my Eli strobes and heads have plastic shell bodies. The only head that I have which is not made of plastic is the Broncolor ringflash whose body is made of solid metal.

PacAce wrote in post #13047080
If you're looking for a strobe that's not made of plastic, I'm afraid you're going to be very disappointed. All my Eli strobes and heads have plastic shell bodies. The only head that I have which is not made of plastic is the Broncolor ringflash whose body is made of solid metal.

The Profoto Compact's were pre-plastic and had a heavy metal housing. Also, the Hensel Integra line of strobes have an aluminum housing. Visatek (made by Bron) uses an aluminum chassis as well.

John Schell wrote in post #13047035
Location use, definitely. I guess what's pulling me away is that I'm looking for a more durable (non-plastic) strobe, something that'll take years of abuse, er, I mean, years of use. I think the Einsteins are great, but I've already had one replaced by PCB because the modeling light wasn't working properly (flickering on and off). It really is a good strobe, but, for example, yesterday while I was standing on the beach during a shoot in knee high seawater the think that I felt was the weakest link was the strobe. And while that may or may not be true, I want the assurance from knowing I'm out there with something that'll hold up.

I'd like to overpower the sun with both, actually.

I think what is confusing me is that the ABs are pretty much straightforward in their explanation to new strobists. While looking for strobes last year, the PCB website (and the info on PotN) was very easy to find and discern (ab400, 800, 1600) while the rest of the light companies out there assume (or so it seemed to me at the time) that you have prior knowledge of everything and know what you're looking for Ranger? Quadra? Speed head, A-head, S-head.. . I didn't, so I went with AB and upgraded to Einstein earlier this year. Now I'm ready to move up again.

So, basically... I want something that I can use both on location and in studio, three to four lights - check out the last three shoots to get an idea of what I'm doing/looking for www.johnschellblog.com

While most of the info you want is buried in this thread (and the two prior versions) along with the Ranger vs Quadra thread, it is admittedly a *long* read to find it out.

Here's a quick synopsis of the range that you would be considering...

Battery Packs
Ranger - Heavier (20lbs ish), 1100 watt seconds, sturdy, requires Skyport receiver + adapter for remote triggering/power control. Comes in a couple flavors: (plain) Ranger, Ranger RX, RX Speed, & RX Speed AS. Speed = bigger battery, slightly heavier, faster recycling. RX = remote control with skyports. AS= Asymmetrical output of 2:1 between the two ports (vs. a fixed 1:1 ratio otherwise). 6 stop range top to bottom, AS pack has 7.5 stop range.

Quadra - Lighter, less sturdy, 400 watt seconds, requires adapter for use with regular Elinchrom boxes. Portable, but not super rugged, especially the head and adapter for softboxes. Has a built in Skyport receiver, no extra required.

Studio Strobes
RX series. Best build quality. Widest power range of 6 stops (can be turned down further than other series). Requires external Skyport receiver. Compatible with PCB Lithium Mini-vagabond. RX300 or RX600 would be the two most useful.

BXRi - Good build quality, not quite as as good as RX. Built in Skyport. 5 stop power range vs 6 stop range of RX series. Not compatible with PCB Mini-vag, but works with Innovatronix gear.


Honestly, I'd recommend the Ranger RX Speed AS as your portable "one light" solution, lots of power and rugged. The Quadra only comes into play if you really need a quick, take anywhere, lightweight strobe and don't like the weight of the Ranger. Then you could add a couple RX strobes (perhaps a RX300 + RX600) as your studio kit, with perhaps a minivagabond battery for those occasional situations where you needed multiple battery powered lights.

Sheldon,

The Quadra is only 400 Watt seconds.

PacAce wrote in post #13047080
If you're looking for a strobe that's not made of plastic, I'm afraid you're going to be very disappointed. All my Eli strobes and heads have plastic shell bodies. The only head that I have which is not made of plastic is the Broncolor ringflash whose body is made of solid metal.

Perhaps 'plastic' was a bad choice. Solid would maybe have been better word.

I love my Elinchrom monolights but have never been thrilled with build quality in terms of the plastic housing and the area around the fan's vent.

I've handled a lot of different strobes or varying quality and price and plastics and cheap build is something that is everywhere. Even the newer Profoto D1's, nice as they are, have that similar cheap plastic feel to me.

TMR Design wrote in post #13047088
The Profoto Compact's were pre-plastic and had a heavy metal housing. Also, the Hensel Integra line of strobes have an aluminum housing. Visatek (made by Bron) uses an aluminum chassis as well.

A pair of Profoto Compact 600s was delivered to me just today. They're heavy as an engine block but definitely have a much more solid feel to them than my Elinchrom 600RXes.

Dave F.

I saw you chasing them on getdpi :P. Thoughts?

TMR Design wrote in post #13047126
Sheldon,

The Quadra is only 400 Watt seconds.

Dangit! Wishful thinking, I suppose.

Fixed...