Elinchrom BX400 to go

[jim_bolan]

I need a flash system to take abroad to light hotel interiors. A supplier has

recommended the Elinchrom BX400 'to go' set (see http://www.elinchrom.com/ and

look under Compacts>style BX>style BX 400 to go set. The price is about 1000 GBP

all in.

 

Anyone used this system or have any thought on it?

[chris_vincent2]

I bought this kit recently and love it. I paid around ?750 at studiokitdirect.

 

Only downside for me are the 60x60 softbox and the small brolly. I've already upgraded these. You also need an extra reflector to use 2 brollies.

 

If you are travelling go for the hard case upgrade.

[garry edwards]

As a Brand, Elinchrom are hard to beat in terms of the quality and consistency of the light.

 

This particular model has very limited power but it will probably be plenty if you're shooting with a small camera.

 

My only reservations are that repairs seem to me to be unreasonably expensive and that most kits come with inadequate accessories (as Chris found out). One accessory that's vitally important but often inadequate is the lighting stands - take my advice and sandbag them, to avoid accidents.

[leicaglow]

I usually use Broncolor for location shoots because I'm familiar with them now, but I've rented Elinchrom and was very impressed with their build and light quality.

[peter_tannenbaum]

I own this system and it's decent for what it is. The price is right. The stands won't hold

up in a strong breeze, but they are fine in a controlled environment. The lights feel

cheaply made in my opinion but so far have been more durable than i expected. The

modeling lights are fairly weak (which becomes an issue in bright light) and accessories

get expensive quickly. Definitely invest in some pocket wizards, the sync cables both

crapped out on me early on.

 

If I were you I would also consider, hensel monolights which should be widely available in

the UK. They have slightly more power, stronger modeling lights and a built in radio slave

if you want it. You might also want to consider a dynalite package. They are fairly portable

and very durable. They have some good box and cable packages, that will pack a lot more

power than the bx400's and wont be that much more expensive. If you are doing a lot of

location shooting, you might also want to check out the battery pack made by

innovatronix.com. It's $300 and can get about 300 full charge flashes from a 600w/s

elinchrom monolight.

 

Once you are invested in a system, it becomes hard, and expensive, to switch. Do your

research. I'm quite happy with my 400bx kit, but i do see limitations with it from time to

time mostly in terms of power. You can see samples of the 400bx's at work on my

website:

 

http://www.petertannenbaum.com/new.html

 

-Peter