Pocket Wizard E Release Firmware - Anyone?

Anyone upgraded their pocket wizards to the E release firmware. Does it deliver on the claims? Worth it in your opinion?

I had it on a bunch of Plus III units. It did reduce the misfires up close and with a lot of metal stands between the set and power packs. However, I reverted all back to non-E firmware as my Sekonic meters can't do the E-release frequencies.

Thanks. Good to hear about the reduced misfires. I am a sports guy using remote cameras in rafters, stadiums, hockey rinks, etc. Wondering if the improved range and reliability is actually there.

rdalrt wrote in post #19174986
Thanks. Good to hear about the reduced misfires. I am a sports guy using remote cameras in rafters, stadiums, hockey rinks, etc. Wondering if the improved range and reliability is actually there.

In your case, it'd probably be worth it to upgrade. I think the "LR channels" would help you quite a bit. You could always revert to Legacy if it's worse. The E pretty much gives the Plus III/IV the range of the MultiMax but with the bonus of even more range in the "LR" mode. The Multimax is still the one to get if shooting leaf shutters in studio (the sync can go one stop higher). I never get a misfire from the Multimax, but my Plus IIIs would misfire in studio at 4-6 feet sometimes if I was turned just right, the camera was on it's side, and/or combined with 1/400-1/500 shutter speeds (Hasselblads with leaf shutters).

I haven't tried any of the Plus IVs yet, as there's no features I really need on it. But, I'm about to get one for the camera side as I hate how the III sticks up on the shoe and gets smacked around. I've replaced the foot on the IIIs a bunch as I keep breaking them while shooting and the IV is much more streamlined. I wish they'd make a "standard" transmitter the size of the MiniTT1 that was reliable and had decent battery life. That would be the ultimate studio transmitter.

I did do a quick test when I upgraded and setup up a stand in an open field with a strobe while walking away with a Plus III. There were definitely less misfires when at weird angles and the at longer distances. Of course, there were no obstructions or "signal absorbers" (bodies, rafters, etc) in this test, but at about 800ft, I was still firing consistently whereas the legacy firmware would start to misfire if I turned a certain way.