I just got 2 new Einsteins. The consistency of light in terms of color and power are great but I'm having an issue triggering them. I have already used them on 2 shoots thus far. The first shoot took place in my studio. The second shoot was done outdoors at sunrise. Here are some technical details about the gear I used for the 2 shoots.
5D Mark II w/ 70-200mm L f/2.8 IS
7D w/ 24-70mm L f/2.8
Pocketwizard Plus IIs attached to the hotshoe of each body
Pocketwizard Plus II attached to the Einstein via 3.5mm sync cord
In the studio, I noticed that the Einstein would not fire most of the time when triggered remotely. If I pressed the test button on the Pocketwizard Plus II that was attached the the Einstein, it would fire 100% of the time. When triggered by the Pocketwizard that was attached to the hotshoe of my camera, the Einstein had a very low success rate for firing. It did better as I got closer. I stopped the shoot and reseated the Pocketwizard attached to my hotshoe, reseated the sync cord and still had the same issue. I then replaced both Pocketwizards with another set and still same issue. Again, I had a higher success rate as I got closer so I compromised and just shot closer.
The next morning I brought my Vagabon II, one of the Einsteins, and an Alien Bees B800 as a backup to an outdoor sunrise shoot. I started shooting and had the same exact issue with the Einstein. Luckily I brought the B800 as a backup. I switched to the B800 with the exact same sync cord and same Pocketwizard and it fired 100% of the time.
So this makes me think that there might be an issue with RF interference. Has anyone else had similar issues with Pocketwizards and the Einsteins? How can this issue be resolved? Thanks in advanced for the help.
I also own and use 3 Alien Bees B800s, an Alien Bees ABR800, a White Lightning X1600, and a total of 8 Canon speedlites and never had any synch issues with Pocketwizards.
Sound like there's noise from the Einstein in the RF range of the PW that's interfering when the signal isn't really strong. You get closer and the signal to noise ratio is greater so it works.
We have tested Einstein to death with PW and never had a problem. Not sure if they are PW2. I've heard many stories about PWs having interference problems from certain speedlites - it all over the forums. Have you tried position the PW receiver further from the Einstein?
The uP circuitry is pretty well shielded in Einstein. I know Rob Galbraith has used them extensively with PW, as has Ellis Vener and have not reported this sort of problem.
Lots of interchangable elements is a chain. Sounds like its time for some controlled troubleshooting.
Good luck and remember basic troubleshooting techique is to change only one component in the chain at a time.
One approach to testing RF is to move the receiver that is attached to the suspected EMI source to various positions around the source and also distances to see if the symptoms change.
I have pocketwizard MultiMAX systems, haven't had a probleem using the trigger my Einstein, in fact I used the intervalometer feature to torture test the Einstein shortly after it arrived: 3 consecutive days of 4000 full power flashes sessions spaced at 5 second intervals.
The pocketwizard problem Paul Buff referred to involved some 580 EX II and Pw controlTT combinations. Not every Canon 580 EX II user has seen in their system either. I Know I haven't had the RF interference problem with mine with my ControlTT system and my 2 580 EX II s.
E-Vener wrote:
The pocketwizard problem Paul Buff referred to involved some 580 EX II and Pw controlTT combinations. Not every Canon 580 EX II user has seen in their system either. I Know I haven't had the RF interference problem with mine with my ControlTT system and my 2 580 EX II s.
FYI, I regularly have trouble with 580EXII and Pocketwizard Plus (the first one, not Plus II). Never a problem however with Nikon SB28 (or Metz 54's for that matter) and the same Pocketwizard Plus receivers used the exact same way!
Savas K wrote:
Title of thread is misleading.
Ummm..........
The OP is having trouble with his Einstein strobes, possibly due to interference from his PW's .........
Why do you think the thread title is "misleading" ?
Savas K wrote:
Title of thread is misleading.
How is it misleading?
If I can remotely trigger a White Lightning, 4 Alien Bees, with the same PW Plus II and same cord, and I can remotely trigger all my speedlites with the same PW Plus IIs without any issues, how can it not be an issue with the Einsteins? I will definitely do more tests and try moving the PW Plus II further away from the Einstein but I can only move it so far away. The sync cord I have is only around 12" long.
Paul, thanks for replying. I will try more testing and report what I find.
To the OP: Do you have other triggers besides PWs?
Based on what others have said, I think the label we place on PocketWizards as the "gold standard for wireless triggering" and thing like "it never fails or misfires" are really being put to the test. First, the Flex and Mini with the 580 EXII and now the PWII with an Einstein.
It seems there have always been "issues" with PW's and some Canon flashes.
Is it really all that hard to believe that there could be issues with other flashes (strobes / speedlights) and PW products ?
Since PW (and all similar) products rely on RF transmissions, and since all electrical products put out some RF interference to a greater or lesser degree, there is always the potential for communications to be disrupted.
I have 6 Pocketwizard Plus IIs. I have used them with my White Lightning X1600, 3 Alien Bees B800s, Alien Bees AB800, 4 580EXIIs, 3 430EXIIs. I have never had any issues with triggering any of them. I'm not saying that PWs are the "gold standard for wireless triggering" I can say that these are teh only triggers I've ever owned and never had any issues with until now.
I don't want this to become a PW or PCB bashing thread. I merely wanted to get others' input as far as known issues. Again, I will do more tests and report what I find some time this week.
True, but if the PWs work with every other light I own (strobes and speedlites) and not with the Einsteins, I'm hard pressed to point the finger at the PWs. Someone in another forum suggested that it might be a connection issue with the sync cord that connects the PW to the Einstein which I doubt is the case since I can press the test button on the PW and it fires the Einstein.
I can press the test button on the PW and it fires the Einstein.
So what changes between using the test button and firing from the sync? That points to where the problem lies. Nothing changes with the Einstein--it fires when the sync circuit is closed. It's the PW system that changes when you change the mode of triggering.
The question is what changes with the PW that causes the sync circuit to close when the test button is pressed but not otherwise.
I actually had a similar problem using the old Paul Buff Radio Remote One control system. In that case, pressing the test button sent a simple, brute-force "fire" command to the receiver. But in camera-sync mode, the transmitter sent a sophisticated coded data transmission to the receiver--and that transmission was subject to radio interference when the brute-force "fire" command from the test button was not.
RDKirk wrote:
So what changes between using the test button and firing from the sync? That points to where the problem lies. Nothing changes with the Einstein--it fires when the sync circuit is closed. It's the PW system that changes when you change the mode of triggering.
The question is what changes with the PW that causes the sync circuit to close when the test button is pressed but not otherwise.
I actually had a similar problem using the old Paul Buff Radio Remote One control system. In that case, pressing the test button sent a simple, brute-force "fire" command to the receiver. But in camera-sync mode, the transmitter sent a sophisticated coded data transmission to the receiver--and that transmission was subject to radio interference when the brute-force "fire" command from the test button was not....Show more →
This is similar to what I was thinking.
I don't know what to say about the PWIIs working for every other strobe except for the Einsteins but all I know is that the Einstein and the PWII don't like each other very much. If you had another set of remote triggers, then we can know for sure what the culprit is.
I just got off the phone with Joe, one of the tech guys from Paul C. Buff, Inc. He gave me some ideas to thoroughly test two which I will do when I get a chance.
One thing I will say about Paul C. Buff, Inc is that their customer service is the absolute best. I did just order their Cyber Commander and the new small receivers that plug into the top of the Einsteins to be able to remotely control the power.
