Mettle 600W AD

PLLphotography wrote in post #15663220
I had a Mettle 600AD with a battery pack I bought from Amazon for roughly $350. it was a great light, and I was able to sync it at up to 1/8000th sec using cactus V5s at the time. the only reason I really sold it off was because of its size. Compared to an Alien Bee the Mettle strobe was a behemoth. if you can get past its size, it's a great value.

Any examples you care to post using high sync speeds?

these were at 1/8000
http://www.flickr.com/​photos/pw_photo/714355​8785/

http://www.flickr.com/​photos/pw_photo/714355​9319/

and these were at 1/6400
http://www.flickr.com/​photos/pw_photo/714356​0037/

http://www.flickr.com/​photos/pw_photo/714356​0847/

and I apologize. I thought I had used Cactus V5s when these were taken last year, but from my description they were triggered with Phottix Odins.

dave63 wrote in post #15663514
Funny thing, the size. One of the things that never quite sat well with me and the Alien Bees was...the size. They do a great job for their size, but there's a part of my brain that just can't get past them not having what it considers to be enough 'heft' for the job, or at least for a matter of appearances.
Maybe it's the name, too. Having a small box like the Bees, and having a name as cartoonish as 'Alien Bees' just doesn't..I dunno... present well in some part of my brain. I know, it's programming. I don't mind the size of the Mettle; it's also just 'old-school' -ish enough in appearances (that battery bag looks like it came from an army surplus store, for the most part) to bring a certain level of comfort to me, with it.

Like I said... I know it's all conditioned programming.

So how much does the Mettle 600 unit weigh?

Totally non-scientific... me on the scale with unit, then without... about 5.5 pounds.
Sure doesn't feel that heavy though.

dave63 wrote in post #15683304
Totally non-scientific... me on the scale with unit, then without... about 5.5 pounds.

Cracking Diet, Gromit

HA! I see what you did there.

I am looking at the Quantuum strobes now since someone said it is the same as the Mettle, but it is called Quantuum in Europe.

The price is just so good and I love the ability to shoot with all kinds of shutterspeed. But what are the cons of such strobe? Could you see a big difference with other strobes like the Elinchrom 600RX which is waaaaay more expensive. Maybe the expensive brands have a better built are smaller and have a faster reloadtime but is it possible to see a difference in light really?

The strobe I am looking at says Quantuum Dual power 600w
What do they mean by dual power?

Link to the product

Most likely dual power means ac or dc power options just like the Mettle brands can come with a battery pack.

The more expensive strobes may have digital controls that allow more precise control over power output. They may also cover a wider range of power output, such as the Einstein strobe that can go from full power at 640ws down to 2.5ws.

dave63 wrote in post #15683304
Totally non-scientific... me on the scale with unit, then without... about 5.5 pounds.
Sure doesn't feel that heavy though.

Wow. I got the impression it was very close to 10lbs or a little more from what I've read online from people about how heavy it was. Especially if you don't get the feeling that it is very heavy in holding it and use.

Seriously, I really don't. In fact, when I looked at the scale, I re-tested everything 'cause it didn't make sense. Came up the same, three times in a row.

Bonbridge wrote in post #15689173
The strobe I am looking at says Quantuum Dual power 600w
What do they mean by dual power?

Link to the product

Comes with a rechargeable battery pack so you can take it out in the field.
Switchable between AC or DC.

PLLphotography wrote in post #15689238
Most likely dual power means ac or dc power options just like the Mettle brands can come with a battery pack.

The more expensive strobes may have digital controls that allow more precise control over power output. They may also cover a wider range of power output, such as the Einstein strobe that can go from full power at 640ws down to 2.5ws.

I know that, but could you see a difference in light quality or something?


I just contacted the seller above and I can't do HSS with the Quantuum strobes..

A couple weeks ago I bought an Interfit 27" Beauty Dish that came with a sock and grid from a fellow forum member. Only paid $100 picked up so that there was quite a deal until I could get to try it out indoors and out. I will be posting some pics later this week, but so far I've been extremely happy with the results. Here are a few pics of the Mettle 600/27" Beauty Dish until then.

And a couple more.

And one very quick test shot.