Try Cactus triggers or waste of money?

Sorry if this has been asked before, but I just want to order 1 set of Cactus trigger/reciever for my 580EXII and 40D. I am new to off camera lighting and have just purchased a light stand and umbrella with swivel adapter. I still need a trigger, so....

Which Cactus V2 components do I need?
Do I need any adapters, or cords for this to work?

How hard is it to make the mods like adding an antenna or AA battery pack if I have no experience with electrical circuitry?

Should I just save the money and put it towards some skyports or pw's?

Thanks for your input.

I dont know about using them with the 580 but I used some with my old 540ez's before I got rid of them. Worked good. I added battery packs to them and it was no problem. If you understand positive and negative on batteries and can solder adding the packs is easy. I just attached the battery pack wires to the battery holders in the unit so if I wanted I could use either or.

I love my Cactus triggers. They do the job, and are perfect for starting out. If you dont like them, they will sell fast here.

I have the V2s and for what they are they work well. I get a few misfires here and there but I haven't done the antenna mod yet. I wont do the battery pack mod b/c (1) I don't want the added bulk and (2) the CR2s are really cheap (dealextreme). If you're a pro doing high-dollar shoots it would probably be a good idea to use PWs. If you're an amateur looking to have fun and gain some flash knowledge, give the V2s a shot, they're not too expensive.

well worth the price. you'll need a transmitter which can mount on the hot-shoe, or be fired via a supplied pc cable. you'll need one receiver for each flash unit. I'd reccomend getting at least 2 receivers to start, as many suppliers offer a discount when purchased this way, and odds are you'll be adding a second if not 3rd, 4th, and 5th flash once you see the possibilities start to open up.

if u order the combo pkg, the v2s with the transmitter and the reviever u get those 2, bat, and a pc sync cable. thats all you really need.

as for the mods, i would be very interested in doing some, let me know if u get them and start working on it. id love to work on it with u.

right now i have 3 flahes hooked up to my cactus' and i love em.

any issues with the canon 430EX with the cactus system? What other flashes are everyone using with their cactus system?

Hi

I have the cactus v2s with the 430ex on my xti. I had to play around with the channels (there are 4) to get the one with reliable triggering. In addition, a problem that I still have is random triggering of the flash (when I do not press the shutter release on my camera). This random triggering does not seem to be eliminated by changing the channel. I stopped trying different things since at least, it is rather reliable now.

Hope it helps.

Keith

I have couple set of 16 channel triggers. Their receivers use AAA battries is one of the reason I choose over the V2. In the default channel that came from factory, they randomly fired the 430EX like nuts, but once set into the right channel, they they work well with the EXs, Sunpak 383, AB strobes I have.

In general, the eBay trigger's built quality is cheap, so they do sometimes require some after care from the users to solve the wiring and connection problems. But also because they are very cheap in price, I wouldnt cry if mine got run over by a truck

I was all set to get some PWs, but decided to try the eBay triggers first because they are lot smaller. Well, almost two years later, I still see no need to upgrade to PW yet, but I don't shoot anything from 1500 ft away anyway.

I think you hit the nail on the head.

Thanks everyone for your great responses. I think I will order the combo package as suggested and at this price its no big deal.

Actually, the whole kit - light stand, umbrella, swivel and triggers will come together at about $150 AUS.

As long as everything works, I'll be really happy.

"any issues with the canon 430EX with the cactus system? What other flashes are everyone using with their cactus system?"

Yes. I would say they are OK with 580s and some older flashes I've tried them on. But the 430 is a problem. Lotsa misfirings. I would not recommend them with that particular flash but would for the 580s.

I ordered a transmitter/receiver set and 2 more receivers from Midwest Photo Exchange (same price as gadgetinfiniti.com but quicker shipping) a few days ago- I didn't get them yet, but I plan on using them with my Canon 550ex and 2 Sunpak 383s I picked up from B&H today.

I really just want to experiment, so I am actually getting the V2s sets, as well as some pc cables (and a 3 way splitter) and possibly some optical slaves so I can play with each setup and learn some things...

I need some stands and umbrellas too, but that may be for next week once I get everything firing...

Ok- follow up:
I received my Cactus V2s gear today (1 transmitter and receiver kit + 2 additional receviers). I put the batteries in each unit, put the transmitter on the camera, hit the test button and confirmed all units responded with the correct reb flashing lights...

I then put the receivers on the flashes and was pleased to see that the 2 sunpak 383s and my Canon 550EX fired perfectly. I aimed all three at myself and fired some shots to make sure they were all working, but after blinding myself shortly thereafter, I stopped doing that. These things triggered the flashes over and over and over. No misfires in the 45 minutes of playng around.

I have a three way PC cord spitter and some PC extension cables on their way because I figured a wired configuration would be the best way to go when I didn't need portability, but the way these things perform, who knows if I will use the wires...

If you were debating getting a set of these, give them a try - I am very pleased with their performance.

Bryan K, thanks for the followup. I made my order 2 days ago so I am patiently waiting. I'm glad to hear they are working for you, have fun and maybe post some of your pics for us!

lol bryan. I did the blinding tests few times myself