alissa_volbeda Posted June 22, 2017 Share Posted June 22, 2017 Hi all, I am looking to have a second offsite studio. I am shooting mostly product photography and I've been using Norman 4-5 lh2400b heads and two Norman p2000d packs. The norman stuff is crazy durable, but I never move it so that isn't really an issue. I want to stick with heads and packs for the new studio. What I am looking for is a system that I could use use for multiple years. Since I'm used to the power of the current setup, I'd like somthing compareable. I'd also like to start with 3-4 heads. I'm now trying to figure out what brand I should go with since I've had some age issues with my norman kit and would like something a bit newer. Also, I don't want to go crazy on the cost because I have to completely outfit a whole new studio. Also any suggestions for wall mount over head booms and large soft boxes. Any opinions are welcome! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Naka Posted June 22, 2017 Share Posted June 22, 2017 I like Speedotron, especially their Black line. I went from a Brownline setup to a Blackline. I like the continuous multi-stop power control on the Blackline vs. the 1/2 power switch on the Brownline. But then, I have only used Speedotron, so I cannot compare to the other brands. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilmarco Imaging Posted June 23, 2017 Share Posted June 23, 2017 Another vote for Speedotron Blackline. I have a Blackline setup from Brooklyn with 2 packs, 3 heads and lots of grip for a good price. These systems are fairly readily available near the DC-Phila-NYC corridor and the SoCal area. Other places too, but the coasts have lots of it available. Look on craigslist. The adjustable packs are what you want. 2403 or 4803. More expensive but worth it. 1 Wilmarco Imaging Wilmarco Imaging, on Flickr wilmarcoimaging on Instagram Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jan_steinman Posted December 17, 2017 Share Posted December 17, 2017 (edited) Another vote for Speedotron! They seem indestructible, which means there isn't much risk in picking up cheap, beat-up units on evilBay. The biggest problem they have seems to be with fans in the 102 heads. I've bought several for a bargain, only to find that the fan was slow, stopped, or made crazy noise. If you're handy, this is easily fixed. I've never seen a fan that was outright BAD; a good cleaning and lubrication and possibly some careful fan blade bending generally puts them good again. I have 10,400 joules of Speedotron packs. I use two 4800 Blackline units in the studio, but have a nice 800 joule Brownline that I dedicate to copy stand use. My Blackline packs look like a truck ran over them, but they just keep working! One thing to look out for on older Speedotron packs with the metal toggle switches is sync voltage. Be sure to use a Wein "safe sync" on them. I run all mine though cheap radio triggers, so there's no danger to the camera. But I still don't like to unnecessarily burn out radio triggers. It's also easy to adapt other heads to Speedotron. I've re-powered Profoto ring light, Fresnels, and other things. Just remember, the Speedotron trigger wire is always hot, so the trigger capacitor goes IN the head, unlike the first Profoto that I burned out the trigger coil on. :) This was done with a paper cove, two 102 heads in 3'x4' softboxes, and an 8" fresnel for specular highlights, all on a Speedotron 4800 pack. Edited December 17, 2017 by jan_steinman 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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