HELP NEEDED: Pocket Wizard problem -> 2 x TT5 are not 'synching'

Hi all.....

Ok, I am now back in London, and for some reason my 2 x Pocket Wizard TT5s are nolonger synchronising. I do travel with all my Manuals and I have done the following:

I have tried to Teach/Learn the TT5's according to the Instruction Manual

Transmitting TT5 = LEFT // Receiving TT5 = RIGHT
1.> Keeping the TT5's apart by at least 2 ft - I do this at a min of 4ft
2.> LEFT Test/Learn button is depressed until the 'amber' LEDs flash
3.> I release LEFT - and with RIGHT in my Hand I quickly depress Test/Learn until it goes through the LED flashing sequence, however the GREEN LEDs do not flash or blink - which means the Channel has NOT been learned.

I have done this on numerous occasions, I have also Reset both TT5 to default-factory settings and proceeded with the TEST/LEARN sequence.
I have also tried these sequences on Channels 1 & 2 on both TT5s.

One thing I have noticed is that once I complete a Test/Learn sequence, when I depress the Test/Learn button to check whether the units have synchronised - the receiving TT5 LED flashes RED. So, I guess they are communicating OK, but they are not synchronising.
According to Page 9 of the Manual this is normal. However, the attached 580exII will not fire, either via Test triggering or via a TT5 mounted on the Hotshoe.

Any advice/assistance/guid​ance/help/suggestions will be greatly welcomed as I have exhausted my knowledge-base.

Thanks in advance.......

Ok, so your in London trying to use FCC/US PocketWizards (340.00 to 354.00 MHz)? The EU limits the frequency to the 433.62 - 434.22 MHz range. Assuming you aren't mixing CE and FCC versions, there is also a possibility of frequency interference.

Do you have a laptop/netbook available that has the PocketWizard utility? You could plug both of them up and set them to the same channels.

jacuff wrote in post #10281858
Ok, so your in London trying to use FCC/US PocketWizards (340.00 to 354.00 MHz)? The EU limits the frequency to the 433.62 - 434.22 MHz range. Assuming you aren't mixing CE and FCC versions, there is also a possibility of frequency interference.

Do you have a laptop/netbook available that has the PocketWizard utility? You could plug both of them up and set them to the same channels.

I don't know about the other details, but I have US versions of the PW Plus2's and use them all the time over here without any problems. You can probably strike that from your list of possible issues.

jacuff wrote in post #10281858
Ok, so your in London trying to use FCC/US PocketWizards (340.00 to 354.00 MHz)? The EU limits the frequency to the 433.62 - 434.22 MHz range. Assuming you aren't mixing CE and FCC versions, there is also a possibility of frequency interference.

Do you have a laptop/netbook available that has the PocketWizard utility? You could plug both of them up and set them to the same channels.

I should have said, these 2 x TT5's are both UK/CE spec bought from Calumet in London, Euston early this year in March/April 2010.

Cham_001 wrote in post #10281902
I should have said, these 2 x TT5's are both UK/CE spec bought from Calumet in London, Euston early this year in March/April 2010.

You can definitely strike that from your list of possible issues then

I have generally found that putting fresh batteries in my PW Flex/Mini solves 90% of all problems.

tenoverthenose wrote in post #10281945
I have generally found that putting fresh batteries in my PW Flex/Mini solves 90% of all problems.

Hi Patrick,

Yep, I tried that too - despite the LEDs blinking GREEN with the original batteries (GREEN indicates good battery life).....

jacuff wrote in post #10281858
Do you have a laptop/netbook available that has the PocketWizard utility? You could plug both of them up and set them to the same channels.

Try this. Also see if they both have the current firmware. A lot of problems with the TT5's can easily be avoided by making sure both run exactly the same firmware version (and preferrably the latest of course).

Lichtwerk wrote in post #10286040
Try this. Also see if they both have the current firmware. A lot of problems with the TT5's can easily be avoided by making sure both run exactly the same firmware version (and preferrably the latest of course).

Yep, both are running identical versions of the version 5.000 software.
(Prior to Posting - I also set them to the Same channel too!)

It is very strange - they were working perfectly well about 4 days previously, and now this!
I had not dropped them
I had not reset anything
I had not changed anything
I simply set up all the required kit yesterday at mid-day and have met with a wall of frustration.

Most bizarre!

How far apart are the PWs? I got sort of upset one day when mine would not fire, but I was just testing them at my desk. I found that when they are really close together, they do not provide good results.

CxThree wrote in post #10287586
How far apart are the PWs? I got sort of upset one day when mine would not fire, but I was just testing them at my desk. I found that when they are really close together, they do not provide good results.

Well initially, I had been 'synching' these at arms-lenth apart, in the one room.
So, say 2ft+1ft+2ft (one in each hand, across my body) = 5ft

Then I asked a family volunteer to wander off at a distance of say, 12-15ft and tried 'synching' them across 2 rooms - again unsuccessfully!

(When I first bought and 'synched' them - it happened very quickly and very easily). I have since tried again today a couple of times and still no success.

Know anybody with a 550EX flash or do you have some strobes you can use as the light source? In the US, the 580EXII is known to cause interference resulting in lower range, but that's not usually an issue at 15 feet away. Doing the factory reset on all units and setting them to C1 should make them fire in sync. Your flash isn't in slave or master mode is it? Short of checking those settings, you may have a faulty unit that needs to be serviced.

jacuff wrote in post #10288019
Know anybody with a 550EX flash or do you have some strobes you can use as the light source? In the US, the 580EXII is known to cause interference resulting in lower range, but that's not usually an issue at 15 feet away. Doing the factory reset on all units and setting them to C1 should make them fire in sync. Your flash isn't in slave or master mode is it? Short of checking those settings, you may have a faulty unit that needs to be serviced.

The 580ex is in neither master/slave mode, also the flash-head is set to fire! I previously reset both TT5's and tried again, I also used my laptop to 'synch' to C1. The 580ex has also been reset so that the default settings have been restored. The Custom Functions menu on the flashgun has also been restored.

At the moment nobody over here as all of my friends in he UK shoot with Nikon systems. I do have an MT24 that has been borrowed, it should be returned later this week - certainly before Sunday. I may just have to wait until then.

In the meantime I can always go through all the setings and reset to factory-default. As this has already been done - I have time to repeat this!

I will be very disappointed if this 580exII needs 'burying' as it has not even reached 1,000 activations. I recently 'dumped' my EF 28-135mm - hopefully the cause is not contagious!

If the 580exII is broken then "....C'est la vie...."

Cham_001 wrote in post #10289938
If the 580exII is broken then "....C'est la vie...."

Does the 580EXII fire when it is mounted in the hotshoe of a camera?

jacuff wrote in post #10290008
Does the 580EXII fire when it is mounted in the hotshoe of a camera?

Hi Jacuff,

Yes, I tried this and it works fine when mounted directly.

It just does not fire when used with the TT5's.
I also tried attaching a single TT5 to the camera hotshoe, then I attached yje 580exII to the TT5. This also worked.

I am just looking at all this gear and thinking - WHY?
(other thoughts have also crossed my mind like WTF?)
I feel that the onset of baldness would not be inappropriate at this stage - I am really totally baffled!