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Archive 2014 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80

  
 
Ho1972
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


Anyone have experience with these? Flash Zebra is now selling the Pixel brand, and there's also Yongnuo and Cowboy Studio... but I've heard not-so-good things about those. I've also read that CLS mode tends to bypass the extra batteries for some reason, don't know if that issue was ever fixed or not.

Thanks for any tips.



Aug 18, 2014 at 04:19 PM
Paul_K
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


I went the cheapo way and got a couple of imitation SD-8a batterypacks

Cost a fraction of the original Nikon ones, work on 6 AA batteries (I have Eneloops in mine) and work seamlessly with my SB-800's.

With the SB800's it's important that you not only attach the cable to the hole under the plug in the front of the flash, but als the second cable to the connector (under the x-synchport) on the side of the flash

No issues when using CLS, extends the number of flashes extensively and shortens the recycle time considerably

There are also similar imitation packs for the SB900/910 on the market, no experience with those even though I have a SB910 too

With regards to to SB 80 flash units, Nikon USA does not list them as CLS system flashes
https://nikoneurope-en.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/9327/~/nikon-creative-lighting-system-%28cls%29




Aug 18, 2014 at 04:35 PM
gwaww
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


I have used the Pixel brand with Canon flashes for quite awhile without a problem. They will work with only 4 batteries I a pinch.


Aug 18, 2014 at 04:38 PM
Ho1972
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


Paul_K wrote:
I went the cheapo way and got a couple of imitation SD-8a batterypacks

Cost a fraction of the original Nikon ones, work on 6 AA batteries (I have Eneloops in mine) and work seamlessly with my SB-800's.


Can you give me the brand and place of purchase? And I realize that the 80s don't do CLS but I have 4 other flashes that do so it may come into play.

Thanks.



Aug 18, 2014 at 04:48 PM
Ho1972
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


gwaww wrote:
I have used the Pixel brand with Canon flashes for quite awhile without a problem. They will work with only 4 batteries I a pinch.


Thanks. I just read some reviews and one of them talked about a freeze-up glitch on Nikon, but it apparently is confined to using the flash on-camera so this shouldn't be an issue for me.




Aug 18, 2014 at 04:50 PM
Paul_K
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


Ho1972 wrote:
Can you give me the brand and place of purchase? And I realize that the 80s don't do CLS but I have 4 other flashes that do so it may come into play.

Thanks.


I got them on eBay

As they are Chinese copies they don't have a specific brand name, but at around US 45 (and since it basically is a just plastic box with some connection plates, a small LED and some wires and plugs IMO I was not willing to pay more) are a steal compared to the original Nikon units

With respect to the latter, there's a (judging by the picture) original Nikon one on sale for (at the moment) US9.99 , for that low a price well worth a try I'd say

HTH




Aug 19, 2014 at 03:16 AM
Alan Louie
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


Not sure about the SB-80, but I have been using Al Jacob's Black Boxes for my SB-800s and 900s and have nothing but good things to say about them. They won't fire flashes faster than accelerated battery packs, but those big ol batteries keep the flashes going... and going... and going... and going. That said, Black Boxes are pretty big, keep that in mind before purchasing.

Note: the smaller Tuxedo box is only worth about the same number of flashes as AA batteries, but it'll keep the voltage up longer so the recharge time doesn't fall off till much later

I have turned boxes back to Al for upgrades and servicing and service has been excellent.

http://www.aljacobs.com/our-products/



Aug 19, 2014 at 05:29 AM
kaplah
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


Ho1972 wrote:
Anyone have experience with these? Flash Zebra is now selling the Pixel brand,


I have extensively used the SB-900 version of the Pixel pack. It works perfectly. Some - or many - of the off-off brand (no-name eBay) recharge slowly, but Pixel is, according to reviews, the fastest of the bunch, and as-fast as Nikon's own packs. Mine is certainly quick.






Aug 19, 2014 at 08:03 AM
Ho1972
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


I had forgotten about Al's black boxes, but due to time constraints I've opted to go with the Pixel units from Flash Zebra.

Thanks to all for the replies.



Aug 19, 2014 at 05:27 PM
morris
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


I use this one with an SB910 and am very happy:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/765910-REG/Bolt_CBP_N2_CBP_N2_Compact_Battery_Pack.html

Should fit the SB800 as I've used the Nikon battery pack for the SB800 on my SB910



Aug 22, 2014 at 09:47 PM
Ho1972
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


Interesting, looks just like the Pixel brand down to the release latch and battery tray. My understanding is the model for the 900 is not compatible with the 800 because it lacks the pc connector.


Aug 23, 2014 at 07:26 AM
Ho1972
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


The Pixel packs were the ticket. The event venue was DARK, so much so that I sometimes could not clearly see the expression on my subject's faces. The best lighting solution was to bounce off the ceiling, which thankfully was some shade of white but 30 feet tall. With the flashes firing at near full power all night, the extra oomph provided by the packs was very much needed.

BTW, I ended up using the flashes on-camera after all and never experienced the lock-ups that the one reviewer complained about. Maybe his samples were faulty or maybe the issue has been fixed. I haven't tried CLS mode yet. If it works, fine. If not, that's fine too.



Aug 26, 2014 at 09:00 AM
Ho1972
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


I'm back with a question. For those of you who use external packs, does it matter whether the charge level between the flash and the packs is "sync'd" or not? In other words, can the flash have batteries that are, say, half-exhausted while the pack has batteries that are relatively new?

I loaded everything with fresh batteries initially, but I'll be using the flashes sans packs until I have need of the packs again so the flash vs pack battery condition is likely to vary. The supplied Chinese to English instructions were less than clear on this point...



Sep 03, 2014 at 04:59 PM
Paul_K
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


Ho1972 wrote:
I'm back with a question. For those of you who use external packs, does it matter whether the charge level between the flash and the packs is "sync'd" or not? In other words, can the flash have batteries that are, say, half-exhausted while the pack has batteries that are relatively new?

I loaded everything with fresh batteries initially, but I'll be using the flashes sans packs until I have need of the packs again so the flash vs pack battery condition is likely to vary. The supplied Chinese to English instructions were less than clear on this point...


In my experience it does not matter

I regularly use my SB800's with 2700MA rechargeables, with not recently recharged 2000 MA Eneloopes in a imitation SD8A batterypack.

No problem, as the speedlight basically uses the batteries in the speedlight to operate the functions, but drwas the energy in the batterypack for the actual flashes.




Sep 04, 2014 at 03:35 AM
Ho1972
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


^ Thanks, this is what I was hoping to hear.


Sep 04, 2014 at 07:47 AM
Mr. Clean
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · 3rd pty. battery pack for Nikon sb-800, sb-80


I know it's all decided but I've bought from Lon (I think that's his name) from Flash Zebra many times over many years and would honestly trust anything he puts on his site!


Sep 04, 2014 at 11:39 AM





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