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Archive 2014 · NiMH?

planalpha
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · NiMH?

Experts, I was going to switch to NiMH for my Speedlites and was curious about which ones to get or avoid.
Any suggestions on brands and chargers?

Thanks!

Jan 21, 2014 at 03:02 PM

howardm4
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · NiMH?

Sanyo Eneloop and a good charger from Maha or Powerex

Jan 21, 2014 at 03:07 PM

planalpha
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · NiMH?

Thanks, Howard.
My wife just went to the grocery store so I asked her to pick some up. Looking at the data from speedlights.net it just pays to get NiMH for flashes.

Jan 21, 2014 at 04:41 PM

hondageek
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · NiMH?

A good charger is critical. The grocery store won't have one! I've been using Maha Powerex batteries for years and they seem to shoot forever. The Sanyo Eneloops have a lower self-discharge rate, but they don't have the power that the Powerex batteries have. I highly recommend this charger:

http://www.thomasdistributing.com/MAHA-MH-C801D-AA--AAA-Battery-ChargerbrDELUXE-8-Cell-Professional-Battery-Charger-w-Full-LCD-Display_p_2559.html

Jan 21, 2014 at 06:30 PM

onesickpuppy
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · NiMH?

Ditto on what hondageek gave you....

Jan 21, 2014 at 06:41 PM

Roland W
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · NiMH?

Besides the Eneloop low discharge cells, there is another great low discharge cell made by Maha called the Imedion. The capacity is almost the same as the new series of Eneloop, but the cost is a lot less. I have had great luck with the Maha Imedion cells over the past 4 years, and highly recomend them.

A great source for any type of NMH cells, including the Maha Imedion, is Thomas Distributing, which was mentioned above for the Maha charger. I have been dealing with them for over 10 years, and they combine great prices with excelent service.

Jan 21, 2014 at 08:06 PM

Gregg Heckler
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · NiMH?

Ditto, Ditto. I've been using Maha products for many years in my Speedlights and now have about 30 of their new Imedion batteries. The Powerex are a little more powerful but the Imedion hold their charge much longer. The Maha chargers rock also. Thomas Distributing is an excellent source for Maha.

Jan 21, 2014 at 08:07 PM

planalpha
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · NiMH?

Thanks for the info guys. One last question, since the charger is such an important element in this context, should the batteries be of much concern as long as they're 1900 or better? For example, the Sony's are 2500 mAh.

Jan 21, 2014 at 08:14 PM

kezeka
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · NiMH?

planalpha wrote:
Thanks for the info guys. One last question, since the charger is such an important element in this context, should the batteries be of much concern as long as they're 1900 or better? For example, the Sony's are 2500 mAh.

Best way to find out is to look for a site that runs actual tests on the batteries. What I have found is that the stated capacity does not remotely relate to the actual capacity in mAh. For instance: some of the 2500 mAh are 1000 mAh actual and some of the 1500 mAh are 1400 mAh actual. There is always going to be a real world vs theoretical maximum loss but some of these companies are obviously just making s*** up.

Jan 21, 2014 at 08:26 PM

howardm4
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · NiMH?

historically, much more than 2000mA in an AA sized cell was difficult to keep alive in high drain situations (ie. most/full power flash). It was hard to get the cell to give a lot of 'life' unless well cared for. I've never had a problem w/ the 2000mA Eneloop but wouldn't generally go near 2500-2700's cells.

If you're getting 1000mA from a 2500mA cell, then the cell is garbage. With a decent charger, you really should be getting 95-98% stated capacity or even a 105%. Once the cell is down to 80% on a full cycle at realistic charge/discharge rates, it's pretty mcuh end-of-life.

Jan 22, 2014 at 07:02 AM

planalpha
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · NiMH?

Wow, lot's to know about these things. Thanks for the education. I'm glad I asked.

Jan 22, 2014 at 10:35 AM

Roadtrip
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · NiMH?

I still have the Maha PowerEx charger (MH-C204W), but the batteries were terrible - wouldn't hold a charge at all. I contacted Maha and their customer service was great. They sent a new set of AA batteries at no charge. However, those batteries were no better than the original set at holding a charge. I DID try the recondition cycle on both sets but that was no help. I got almost no use out of the Maha batteries. However, I have had very good luck with the Energizer NiMH AA batteries. I may be because they are 2300mAh instead of the 2500mAh (1st set) and 2700 mAh (2nd set) from Maha. I just wanted to share my experience with Maha PowerEx batteries, and I am glad others here have been very happy with them.

Jan 22, 2014 at 11:08 AM

cbbr
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · NiMH?

I have been using the Powerex batteries in my speedlights and a set of La Crosse LC-BC700 chargers for a couple of years and they have both been fantastic. I also have a bunch of Eneloops in things that are not used as often (SD-8A's mostly) and they are also fantastic.

Jan 22, 2014 at 11:28 AM

Two23
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · NiMH?

I've been using a MaHa 8-slot charger for about five years now, and it does a great job. I run eight Nikon SB-25 flash and have learned a bit about batteries etc. If you use the flash pretty regularly (at least weekly,) you could go for the standard NiMH with high capacity. If you use them occassionally (couple of times a month) I"d go for the low discharge type. I buy the Ray-o-Vac hybrids (low discharge) since they hold the charge longer (up to a year.) I've used them in temperatures as cold as 32 below zero--worked great.

Kent in SD

Jan 22, 2014 at 10:15 PM

photogreen
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · NiMH?

Eneloop and Powerex. Definately.

Feb 10, 2014 at 09:24 PM


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