Are these power packs good?

I am planning on getting a YN-560 manual flash and just stumbled upon this power pack (YN SF-17) by Yongnuo as well.
Are these any good?
Are they a lot better than Eneloops?

They were $30 shipped so comparable to an 8 pack of AA's.

What are your thoughts? TIA

They hold batteries, and many will recommend eneloops for them

seriously? Am I that dumb that I havent realized that?

I thought they were rechargeable sort of like the camera battery.

so the reason for faster recycle time is because you load more than 4 batteries in there. jeez.

Thanks, Homer

I use the Pixel TD-381 (purchased from Ed @ CheetahStand) w/ excellent results.

The Pixel TD-381 gives better performance than the Yongnuo and it's important to mention that in a pinch, the Pixel will run on 4 batteries.

The pack you linked to is an older version with 6 cells.
Newer version has 8 cells.
YN makes one, the SF-18.
Another well regarded option is the TD-381.

I have both and find the TD-381 a good solution.

smyke wrote in post #13270706
seriously? Am I that dumb that I havent realized that?

I thought they were rechargeable sort of like the camera battery.

so the reason for faster recycle time is because you load more than 4 batteries in there. jeez.

Thanks, Homer

Incorrect ! The reason they recycle faster is because they have a high voltage circuit that puts out approx 300 volts directly the the flash charging circuit. Both the 6 battery and 8 battery versions put out the same 300 volts. The Pixel TD-381 is an 8 battery version that is supposed to be marginally faster, but all are much faster than just using Eneloops or any other type of battery in the flash.

I use the oder 6 cell Yongnuo SF-17, and it is very fast in my 580EX II.

also worth noting that you have an option of using the pack alone, or the pack + the internal batteries to handle the recycling.
in either case, you need 4 batteries in the flash as they also handle the other electronic needs of the flash.
when using the 580EX with a pack, I keep them separate

Thank you Gentlemen.

I am getting a clearer picture now.

I guess for my current purposes I will start with just AA's and go from there.

Hi Mike,

The best thing to do is probably to start with a fresh set of AA batteries. Shoot as you normally would and see things go. You may find that they cover you and do a fine job.

If you find that the batteries are depleted rather quickly or that you aren't able to fire another shot right after the next (not rapid fire, just a second shot) then you may want to step things up to internal rechargeable's in the flash and/or an external battery pack.

Unless you're using an external pack you can expect to have to change internal batteries over the course of a day or event. There's no way around that unless you move to a pack with rechargeable's or a more substantial SLA pack like a Quantum Turbo.

smyke wrote in post #13272892
Thank you Gentlemen.

I am getting a clearer picture now.

I guess for my current purposes I will start with just AA's and go from there.

Don't use regular AA batteries like Duracell or Eveready "Alkaline". Aside from the cost factor of throwing them away, they have higher internal resistance and cause slower recycle times.

NiMH batteries have lower internal resistance, and will always recycle faster. Most people prefer the "hybrid" types like Eneloops that have longer life between uses because they don't self discharge.

Absolutely, Mike and TMR.
I do have eneloops now with my YN468 so i am aware of how much better they are than regular alkaline.
I should have specified that when I said AA's I meant Eneloop.

smyke wrote in post #13273033
Absolutely, Mike and TMR.

Rob, my apologies, I just saw in another thread that right in your sig it says: Please call me Robert or Rob, not TMR

Hey Guys,
When i was researching packs for my 580 I ended up with the pixel and couldn't be happier.

Now for receptions, I am using two YN560's that also have the port and wanted to but battery packs on them (and just forget about them). i'm shooting very low power with em so i'm not worried abbout cooking them, but I just want to be safe and make sure they are always ready so I don't miss a shot.

I've seen A LOT of new brands out there on ebay for about $20 or so ( for example : the shoot battery pack : http://www.ebay.com …35b5e62dc2#ht_2​313wt_1310 ) so I was curious if anyone had any experience in using any of these 3rd party ones or if I should just fork it out for the pixel (which i really like).

thoughts?

in all honesty they do the same thing. the pixel just has a feature where you can use 4 instead of 8 batteries. if it's worth the $50 premium is a choice you have to make.