Well, the specs and the price tag make it a real big-time, don't you agree? If I had to buy or renew compact units end of the year the Einstein were my choice. So, the message goes out to all equally concerned.
rickboden wrote:
I would like to know if these have the same telephone jack compatibility with the older units. From the back view it doesn't look like it.
Rick
Unfortunately it looks like the new Einstein units don't have the telephone jack. So far, the only way to get remote access to this strobe is to use the new CyberCommander with a compatible receiver.
It is taking on a much different view than the original Einsteins. Interested the power was cut to 640 w/s. I wonder if there'll be a more powerful unit avail or if this is it?
GeekChicPhoto wrote:
Unfortunately it looks like the new Einstein units don't have the telephone jack. So far, the only way to get remote access to this strobe is to use the new CyberCommander with a compatible receiver.
The analog remote phone jack is 20 year old technology and doesn't allow access to Einstein's advanced power range, features, accuracy or controllability or parameter display. To have included it would have raised the cost and diminished Einstein's capabilities.
Einsteins and vintage Buff lights can be mixed and all seamlessly controlled with Cyber Commander. The all digital transceiver for Einstein is $29.95 while the CSR+/CSRB+ interface for classic Buff lights is $89.95
The Einstein/Commander technology is the future of Buff products and we have worked diligently to bring it all together while offering a 20 year look-back/look-forward compatibility.
Beni wrote:
This time I will take the bet with PB that it won't be ready in December. Still CGI drawings 2 months from release, believe it when I see it.
Here is what I wrote to Rob Galbraith today. Note the anticipation of vaporware comments.
Rob,
I love your presentation of IGBT advantages and the obviously very time consuming detailed explanations and graphics. The rollover of SB900 is a piece of art. Your captured waveforms are essentially identical to the waveforms we see from Einstein.
We will get a lot of "Sure - more vaporware, renderings and wild claims from Buff" on the forums but I can handle that.
I am also impressed with your utter accuracy of all the information we discussed on the phone - never seen a journalist that didn't skew and warp the info they get.
I for one am looking forward to these units. I almost ordered an AB800 recently as my first PCB unit, but the news of the Einstein has me waiting until December. I'll just get 3 LP120's or some other hotshoe flashes in the meantime.
Also, I like that the receiver unit for the Einstein is only 30$, great way to keep the cost down!
Paul:
If I decided to get an AB800 before the release of the Einstein to hold me over, will I get any sort of trade in value for it?
See, in December I have the opportunity to buy a new light, to be honest, I'm not holding out any hopes for the einstein, just going to buy another (my 4th) AB800 methinks.
Paul Buff wrote:
The analog remote phone jack is 20 year old technology and doesn't allow access to Einstein's advanced power range, features, accuracy or controllability or parameter display. To have included it would have raised the cost and diminished Einstein's capabilities.
I understand and appreciate the reasons. For my own selfish needs I was looking to put together a versatile industrial location lighting package that would incorporate my Canon flashes for small setups plus the ability to add your flashes for additional power to going full out with the PCB units and I would use those RadioPoppers for controlling the smaller setups. Could the CyberCommander compatible receivers ever be made to control the Canons?
Put Px's on your canons (on top of the flash) and cyber commanders velcro'd to the side of your flash firing from the PC sync. I'm using Px's and other triggers at the same time. When I'm only doing one or the other I only need one set but I run both at the same time no problem.
I don't see any info anymore regarding the AB Max lights on the PCB website, and these Einsteins look exactly the AB Max renderings that were released awhile ago.
I don't see any info anymore regarding the AB Max lights on the PCB website, and these Einsteins look exactly the AB Max renderings that were released awhile ago.
But from my reading it sounded like they had issues with the power supply design in the ABMax and ended up re-doing it and are releasing it as Einstein instead of ABMax.
From the website
The original Einstein designs required a high level of technical expertise in the area of high efficiency switch mode power supplies of complex nature and demanding performance requirements. Thus, a respected group of consultants was selected to do the engineering of the power supply elements of Einstein. They offered time and cost and performance estimates that projected a timely and cost effective completion of a design that would suit the Einstein requirements. The projected design time frame was 90 days.
After one year of work, the consultants were unable to deliver a design that was acceptable. Since coming product announcements had been released prior to this, Paul decided to use a scaled down version of what had been developed in an alternative product named AB Max. Five months later, AB Max was indeed designed and functional and all parts needed to begin production had been purchased. But upon thorough evaluation and testing, Paul concluded the power supply design work was too marginalized, not cost effective and possibly prone to reliability problems . . . not suitable for prime time.
At this point Paul announced that he would not release the AB Max product for the reasons stated, feeling such a release could possibly bring more damage to the company’s reputation than would the failure to deliver a promised product on time.
At this point it was decided that all previous power supply work would be scrapped and that the product would be designed in-house, using technologies that both Paul and Doctor Morgan were well experienced in. In the redesign process it was decided to restore most of the features of the original Einstein concept, so the product will have capabilities quite beyond those announced for AB Max.
This work began on July 15. Since that time we have completely designed and prototyped the entire product in house and are now ready to begin the process of drafting production circuit boards and programming the microprocessor and LCD display firmware.
The redesigned housing molds are due to be finished in about 15 days and most parts needed to build the product are in stock. At this point the best estimate we can give for production of this product is early to mid December 2009. ...Show more →
I don't see any info anymore regarding the AB Max lights on the PCB website, and these Einsteins look exactly the AB Max renderings that were released awhile ago.
Need to look closer. Similar, but entirely new molds.
rickboden wrote:
I understand and appreciate the reasons. For my own selfish needs I was looking to put together a versatile industrial location lighting package that would incorporate my Canon flashes for small setups plus the ability to add your flashes for additional power to going full out with the PCB units and I would use those RadioPoppers for controlling the smaller setups. Could the CyberCommander compatible receivers ever be made to control the Canons?
