PixelHK TD-381 or Yongnuo SF-18 battery packs for 550/580EX

My CP-E3 and CP-E4 are making much louder ticking noises than they used to, I don't want to use them professionally any more. I would rather not buy more Canons as both units do it, the CP-E4's worse than the older CP-E3.

I have two PixelHK packs for my Nikon flashes, they work great and have for a couple of years at least, and the dual circuits mean they charge quickly. They're about US$70 each I think.

The Yongnuo SF-18 costs about half as much. I have one of their video lights, it seems to work fine, though there are some things I don't like about it - it's obviously cheap.

Which battery pack do people recommend these days? I need them within four weeks, which means buying from ebay I need a reliable seller. The price isn't the main factor, performance and reliability is.

Tim:
Pixel TD-381:

1. DUAL circuitry - if one set of (4) batteries fails, the unit still works albeit marginally slower.
   
2. More expensive than Yongnuo SF-18 (but still miles cheaper than Canon).
   
3. Independent channel verification - you can see that each/1st/2nd channel is working, depending on battery loading.
   
4. Some TD-381 versions make a slight tick (apparently it's restricted to Canon-compatibles so wouldn't apply to your TD-382/3 variants) which has been described as 'annoying' (one of mine does, but it's only very slight - I have to take the bag off and listen hard)
   

1. Cheaper still than Pixel alternative - virtually a disposable power pack at the current prices. Certainly not worth postage to/from China to get fixed if they should happen to go wrong.
   
2. Better bag than Pixel (useful little cinch strap).
   
3. SINGLE circuit - it either works or not, no fall-back position if even one NiMH cell goes down (as they do).
   

Their WB, PixelHK makes sense. What model do you recommend fire a 550/580 v1?

Sorry, my only Canon flash is on long term loan so I really have no idea (it's a 580 EXII anyway). Conjecture: IF the 550/580 v1 has the external port then I see no reason that the TD-381 wouldn't work just fine. No experience of it though.

I have 2 Pixel packs and 2 550s. The combination has worked well for me with no problems.
Jim

Very happy with Pixel for more than two years.

Whortleberry wrote in post #15093400
Sorry, my only Canon flash is on long term loan so I really have no idea (it's a 580 EXII anyway). Conjecture: IF the 550/580 v1 has the external port then I see no reason that the TD-381 wouldn't work just fine. No experience of it though.

Since I've been using battery packs already there's a pretty good chance they have a high voltage port eh?

The PixelHK units seem to be getting all the votes, and that's what I was tending toward anyway, so I'll go with them. Thanks for the thoughts everyone.

Sorry, which bit of "No experience of it though" triggered the snippiness? I have never seen a 550 to my knowledge. I have never handled a 580 v1. Hence I have no experience of them. I may surmise, I may draw conclusions, but I do not know. Any fool can guess but that does nothing more than bulk up the thread without actually adding anything of value.

I would have recommended a seller of whom I have recent and current personal experience. Someone who sells to New Zealand as well as the UK, provides an excellent service, a highly competitive price and rapid dispatch to fall within the 4 week requirement. But the experience or suggestion is clearly unwelcome.

Whortleberry - don't worry; it's just Tim's style.

Not in the least worried, Clive. Manners maketh man. Or not, in certain cases.

The smiley I used indicates kidding/joking. It wasn't meant to be rude, and to me it doesn't read that way at all. Without the smiley I guess it could be taken that way. I apologise for any offence cause.