New Alien Bee Zeus set to ship 6/15

Here is what I learned from today's phone call:

The ZEUS system should be shipping as of June 15th (they said it could be a week later).

The system will consist of the 1250 and 2500 battery packs, flash heads, and the ringmaster head. They still have not set the price for the flash heads (not shown on the web site).

According to the company the 1250 and 2500 battery packs are not compatible with any of their existing lighting equipment- only the new heads to be released. I was told that the two lines will share common lighting modifiers though.

Hi Rich,

Is that they system you've decided to get?

I would suggest against being an early adopter of this gear (or almost any gear).

There were significant problems with the recent release of the AB800 ringlight.

The issues on the ringlight were quickly corrected, and early adopters were provided with very reasobale remedies or refunds.

But, those that just waited a couple of months after product introduction did not have to deal with the problems of the early production(returns, updates, retrofitting, etc)

I think there is a ringlight slated for this system. It should slightly more appealing that the AB800 Ringlight, as it should weigh a lot less due to most of the electrical components being moved to the power pack.

Enjoy! Lon

Does anyone know what the Voltage to the flash tube that the Zeus power pack provides?

For Novatron and Speedotron Brownline it is about 800 Volts DC.

Speedotron Blackline gear is about 900 Volts DC.

Enjoy! Lon

TMR Design wrote in post #3221958
Hi Rich,

Is that they system you've decided to get?

I haven't made any decisions yet but it is something I'd consider. Now that sailing season is here I've got split interests and waiting for the Zeus to ship before making a decision doesn't present any problem. I have also toyed with the idea of having them ship it to you and wait for your review

Q. With either system what do you think of the idea of three regular heads and one Ring Flash rather than four regular heads?

Hi Rich,

If they make the ringflash like the Alien Bees where is is essentially the same as one of the normal strobes and has the option for accessories then I would say to get the ringflash in place of one of the other strobes.

Okay, I'm in no huge rush and am looking at the ABR800 ringflash with the vagabond 150. I'm looking at an extended trip in November and would also be bringing 2 AB b800s. Now I have been reading about the Zeus but seems to be should pull the trigger on the ABR800. I will be shooting portraits in the Philippines and also looks like the vagabond will be ok, but not sure about the Zeus. Any comments appreciated.