Sunpak 383 vs. Vivitar 285 as slaves for a 580ex II

I assume I can have the vivitar wireless with my ebay trigger right? No need for this zebra business?

They're not actually slaves to your 580EX unless the 580 is controlling them.

And the "Zebra business" is for the cables. Do the 383's use a standard PC cable?

Village_Idiot wrote in post #5626101
Do the 383's use a standard PC cable?

The 383 sync port needs a variant of the SUBminiphone plug. The Sunpak version is slightly longer than a standard SUBminiphone plug.

You also must be careful with which cords you use with the 383, some Sunpack cords have a version with a groove (for Sunpak 511, 522, 544, etc) that gets embedded with in the 383's port.

Enjoy! Lon

I personally use a Cactus - > PC to hotshoe -> shoe of 383.

I love my sunpak. I have a Vivtar 283 too, so finger in pie of both camps

L

Elinchrom Skyport -> PC to hotshoe -> shoe of 383 for me. That way, I can use the same setup (have several) with my single 580EX as well.

I added a standard 3.5mm sync port to my 383s, it was pretty easy, just a little ugly.

tim wrote in post #5635195
I added a standard 3.5mm sync port to my 383s, it was pretty easy, just a little ugly.

Did you crack them open to do it, Tim? I'd love to see the result...

Rudi wrote in post #5635489
Did you crack them open to do it, Tim? I'd love to see the result...

Yep, took them apart, did the changes, lost some screws, and glue/taped them back together. I started a thread.

That's interesting! I was going out to Tandy's tomorrow to buy some mini jacks and stuff to wire the Sunpaks to my Skyports (I bodgied up a connection, it's time to solder the things up properly), and here is a "how-to". Thanks! I like the 6V input - good idea!

Curtis N wrote in post #5614565
Also, the Sunpak will swivel while the Vivitar 285HV will not.

I elected to get the Sunpak, too.

Does that really matter if it's off camera anyway?

The only use I have found for swiveling is that I can put the power controls either in front of or behind the flash head, depending on how high and at what angle the flash head is at. This can give easier access to controls and a clear view of the 'ready' light.

ALaS wrote in post #6192780
Does that really matter if it's off camera anyway?

It matters if you want to use an automatic flash such as the Sunpak 383 in auto mode off camera. That way you can keep the flash unit's sensor pointed at your subject while aiming the flash head wherever you want.

The last two posts show that yes, it still matters! I love my 383's!

I like mine too, but I may be selling them

I use them as background lights, but they just dont keep up with my 580EX IIs. When I look back through the images from a shoot I have several where the 383s didnt fire

It may be time to invest in some studio strobes

ive been using my 383s as main lights too
and only break out the 580 when i need the zoom fora bit of hair light

the 383s are pretty slow with recycling...but you can always pass time by viewing your image right after you take them...haha