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Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

tsangc
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p.2 #1 · p.2 #1 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

jjoejr wrote:
Tsangc I tried the Ste-2 also. Still misfired. Tried straight optical and no luck there also. I'm in the twilight zone of interference here. Only solution I can see at this particular spot where my birds congregate is using wired flash units. Lookin for simplest solution for wired.

I don't know if you can do multiple group ETTL using wired. I know you can wired trigger ETTL using a hotshoe extender, but I don't think it'll communicate to more than one flash unit over wired, or do the wireless ratios.

So you could buy one of these, but that only gets you a single flash:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/750439-REG/Vello_OCS_C1_5_TTL_Off_Camera_Flash_Cord.html

If you want them all, I suspect you need to manually set power on each, then use a PC-cords and some sort of splitter from your camera body.

At this point, if an E3 RF and an E2 IR aren't working, is it possible there's something wrong with the camera? Could you swap to another camera to remove that out of the possibities?

Sep 25, 2022 at 11:02 PM

jjoejr
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p.2 #2 · p.2 #2 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

I tried my R5, another R5 from a friend, a 1DX II, and 7D II. All eventually misfired. Tried different flash units also. Will rent different frequency PWizards next.

Sep 27, 2022 at 06:10 AM

jjoejr
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p.2 #3 · p.2 #3 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

Problem solved. Flash Zebra has all the pieces to simplify firing 4 flash units manually.

Sep 28, 2022 at 07:19 AM

EB-1
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p.2 #4 · p.2 #4 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

It's nice to see they are still around. I have a few of their cords from back in the day.

EBH

Sep 29, 2022 at 10:30 AM

jjoejr
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p.2 #5 · p.2 #5 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

Yes it is. What a shame canon won't acknowledge they have a problem.

Sep 29, 2022 at 01:07 PM

Jeff
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p.2 #6 · p.2 #6 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

By the way, in looking around for replacement options, I find it odd that 600EX-RT IIs are our of stock everywhere. Canon has IIs on refurb, but out of stock; oddly, Canon is selling new 600EX-RTs... still. I haven't been paying attention since everything has been working for years, but what gives, here? The EL-1 is stupid expensive, and I wouldn't net any gains from using it. Is the 600EX-RT II about to receive an update?

Oct 11, 2022 at 09:09 AM

EB-1
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p.2 #7 · p.2 #7 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

Maybe. The 270EX series was replaced by the EL-100.

The EL-1 is a great flash. Though rather bulky, using a single battery instead of piles of AAs and an external power supply makes it worthwhile. In the long run there is a risk of the battery no longer being available.

EBH

Oct 11, 2022 at 10:40 AM

AmbientMike
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p.2 #8 · p.2 #8 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

Even for macro with the changing distances and exposures, I haven't found manual flash exposure to be that hard. I can see the reason you might be upset but I believe most or all of the studio flashes umbrellas etc are manual. So you might give it a try if that helps. Been using old 540EZ recently, kind of enjoy the manual aspect of it actually. Although I do goof up the exposure occasionally. Not as much as you might think, though.

Older 500 series EX pretty inexpensive lately. Under $100 I believe

Oct 11, 2022 at 10:51 AM

Jeff
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p.2 #9 · p.2 #9 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

EB-1 wrote:
The EL-1 is a great flash. Though rather bulky, using a single battery instead of piles of AAs and an external power supply makes it worthwhile. In the long run there is a risk of the battery no longer being available.

EBH

I'm sure it is, and it better be for $900! Extra batteries are $119, is that correct?

Yes, AAs are bit of a pain, but that's a lot of Eneloops!

Oct 11, 2022 at 12:29 PM

rscheffler
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p.2 #10 · p.2 #10 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

What a bunch of Eneloops won't do for you in a 600 series flash is 1-1.5 second full power recycling speed. For that you need an external battery pack and that in turn means running a cable between it and the flash, which is just one more thing to get in the way. So, figure cost of the 600 flash plus ~200 for the external pack and cable. Now the price difference isn't as huge, yet the EL-1 has the convenience of being self-contained. Yes, you pay extra for that, but if you're doing a lot of event type work on a regular basis, it just makes life easier.

The other big plus for the EL-1 is active cooling. I can't count the number of times my 600s have overheated while in the middle of some fast-paced dance floor action at wedding receptions, causing me to momentarily miss shots while shutting it down to clear the overheat lockout.

Oct 11, 2022 at 08:37 PM

AmbientMike
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p.2 #11 · p.2 #11 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

I've usually run the 540ez at 1/16 using rechargeables. I can shoot even continuously for a bit. If I hear it recharging during firing several it's pretty easy to lay off a couple seconds. Granted I'm doing macro but also losing 2 stops going 1:1, etc. I think it recharges pretty quickly using up to 1/4 power, plus you can turn up ISO.

Oct 11, 2022 at 09:15 PM

TeamSpeed
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p.2 #12 · p.2 #12 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

jjoejr wrote:
Yes it is. What a shame canon won't acknowledge they have a problem.

Canon can't acknowledge a problem if vast number of people don't have the issue, unfortunately. This seems to be more a geographical or environmental issue, and not a technical unit by unit issue to me.

Oct 12, 2022 at 04:52 AM

rscheffler
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p.2 #13 · p.2 #13 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

jjoejr wrote:
Have been photographing hummingbirds the past 7 years with high speed flash. This year and for last 10 days have been a disaster. Have 4 flash units and transmitter. Within 2 to 15 minutes started losing link to flash units. I have tried every possible scenario to get them to work. Changing channeIs, ID's, and switching out cameras, and even using yongnuo brand transceivers.And they even misfired.Talked to tech support multiple times to no avail. Canon says enviromental factors. Meaning interference of some kind. My house is approx. 200ft from other homes in area. I cut the power to entire...Show more →

I just did an event and think I ran into this same problem. I had strobes set up (Elinchrom), that I link to the Canon RT remote system with the now discontinued Phottix Laso receivers that are Canon RT compatible. I also had a slaved 600EX-RT in the mix. All of it was directly controlled by an ST-E3-RT. I used a specific ID for this out of habit from when I work with another photographer to avoid triggering his Speedlites when we shoot events together. I had everything on channel 15, where I've used them for ages. After about 15-30 minutes the Speedlite would consistently lose connection with the ST-E3-RT and I'd have to cycle it, or both, off and on to reconnect. But, the funny thing is the Laso receivers, running on the same RT network, were rock solid and never lost the connection. During breaks in sessions I scanned radio signal quality of the event space (using the scan function of another 600EX-RT) and found that with every scan, the best/strongest channels would be different. The event was in a tech incubator type of facility with a lot of start ups, etc., all with their own wifi systems and who knows what else. I suspect it was a very congested radio environment - some of the channels reported no bar at all. Sometimes channel 15 would be at zero and other times it would be full strength. I ended up switching to channel 10 because it seemed to be the most consistent, but the problem persisted. Sadly I can't report that I found a solution to the 600EX-RT dropping out. After a while I rejigged the set-up and just used the Elinchrom strobes on the Phottix Laso receivers. FWIW, in my Elinchrom kit I also travel with their own Skyport triggers for when I'm not mixing in Canon Speedlites and I also keep a set of old PocketWizard radio slaves as another fallback option, just in case. This way I at least have some remote triggering options.

Nov 10, 2022 at 05:00 PM

runamuck
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p.2 #14 · p.2 #14 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

I recently set up a tablet for w fi. It found over 20 networks in a 12 unit apartment building. Some were more than 200 feet from me judging by the address numbers. I mean, "Home **49" is another apt building 200 feet away. I know. I often use it as a target for testing lenses. As routers and home systems become more powerful something has to give. You just found the weak point. Maybe you could use metal window screens as a Faraday cage to block errant signals?

Nov 11, 2022 at 02:50 AM

rcohn
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p.2 #15 · p.2 #15 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

I just purchased an ST-E3-RT and a 430EXIII-RT and have been going crazy trying to keep them linked. I made multiple changes based on suggestions I read (scan for best channel, turn off sleep, etc.). I found this thread and jjoejr's comment "Put transmitter and flash in microwave. Never lost link. As door has RF shield in front of it. Take it out and it loses link again." Caught my eye. I put mine in a microwave and they stayed connected until I took them out after 30 minutes. Put them next to the microwave and lost link in less than 10 minutes. I think this verifies that the problem is not with the units, or the settings, or the battery state, although I'm still hoping for some setting I can change or an update I can apply. The best solution seems to be to shoot inside a large microwave ;-}. I purchased these for macrophotography on an upcoming trip to Costa Rica. Perhaps there will be less interference there? I can't believe Canon won't comment on this problem.

Nov 22, 2022 at 06:02 PM

rscheffler
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p.2 #16 · p.2 #16 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

Looks like you're in the NYC area. I wouldn't be surprised if there are a lot of radio frequencies in your area causing interference.

I stumbled across this site about EMF and it has some background info, etc. Seems like the only way to block interference is to be in a Faraday cage... Maybe line the walls of your living/working space with aluminum foil?

Even better would be EMF paint!

It's got me curious and I'm tempted to buy an EMF meter just to see how bad things are around me and for those rare times when my radio slaves malfunction.

Nov 22, 2022 at 08:20 PM

ChrisHA
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p.2 #17 · p.2 #17 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

Does anyone know if the EL-1 (or EL-5) has the same communications issues? And, has anyone looked into the Stella Pro reflect S (LED, 20fps). There doesn’t seem to be many simple TTL/HSS options for the R5/R3s that are reliable and priced within reason

Nov 23, 2022 at 05:49 PM

EB-1
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p.2 #18 · p.2 #18 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

I think all of the RT flashes are similar. They use the open 2.4GHz band, like Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11).

EBH



Compliance standards 	IEEE 802.15.4, ARIB STD-T66

Communication method 	Primary modulation: OQPAK Secondary modulation: DS-SS

Transmission frequency 	2405-2475 MHz

Channel 	Channel 1-15 Setting:

Auto / Manual

Wireless radio ID 	0000 to 9999

Setting: Manual

Transmission range*¹*² 	Approx. 98.4 ft. / 30 m

Groups 	Up to 5 groups (A-E)

* Sender units are set to Group A

Number of possible units for communication 	Up to 16 units of senders and receivers in total

Max. sender units 	Up to 15

* Secondary and additional units serve as sub-senders

Max. receiver units 	Up to 15

* 1: Without any obstructions between senders and receivers, and without radio interference from other devices.

* 2: Transmission range may be shorter depending on factors such as how units are arranged, the surrounding environment, and weather conditions.

Nov 23, 2022 at 06:49 PM

johnctharp
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p.2 #19 · p.2 #19 · Crash and Burn-Canon Ste-3 and 600ex rt Flash Units

Canon will probably have to get smarter - an example I have on hand is the niche of wireless computer peripherals that do not use Bluetooth. This is the only way to do wireless headsets that do not lose fidelity or wireless input devices that do not constantly drop out or exhibit input latency. Mostly for gaming, not that these can't be used for other things, but all primarily due to the limitations inherent in the Bluetooth standards (those being primarily aimed at battery life and spectrum sharing).

The thing is, these things work well because they flood the 2.4GHz spectrum to find open frequency ranges and do so constantly. Such a solution is probably what Canon (and any others) will have to implement in order to avoid the kinds of issues seen in this thread. Will probably need to have a more involved pairing process, at least initially, similar to WiFi and Bluetooth, but might also result in less hassle for photographers working events with wireless flash systems in close proximity in addition to cutting through all the 2.4GHz RFI.

Nov 23, 2022 at 09:00 PM

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