# Paul C Buff Gear



## 412 Burgh (Dec 12, 2012)

Hey quick question for those familiar with Paul C Buff and his lighting equipment. I have an Alienbee B800 with a vegabond mini II that I use. I told my parents for christmas gifts I would like a CyberSync Transmitter, and a CyberSync Receiver to use for my Alienbee. Let's say I get another B800 shortly and want to use the same set up. I have worked with two before and I know they trigger one another. So my question is if I pick up another one, do I need another receiver? Or is it going to fire off of the IR sensors? I believe it has?


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## Derrel (Dec 12, 2012)

How about just the optical slave that is built in? Just flip that to "ON", and the second flash will trip when it sees the flash burst from the receiver-connected primary unit.


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## Robin_Usagani (Dec 12, 2012)

unless you have the two strobes connected somehow via the pc cable, you need another receiver.  Seriously though, I am never a fan of the the CyberSync.  I hate the design of the transmitter.  You put it on your hotshoe.  That means you cant have a flash on your camera.  If you do, you have to connect the transmitter to your cam via cable and let the transmitter hang or stick it with velcro.  I use phottix strato II to trigger mine.


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## Derrel (Dec 12, 2012)

Robin_Usagani said:


> unless you have the two strobes connected somehow via the pc cable, you need another receiver.  Seriously though, I am never a fan of the the CyberSync.  I hate the design of the transmitter.  You put it on your hotshoe.  That means you cant have a flash on your camera.  If you do, you have to connect the transmitter to your cam via cable and let the transmitter hang or stick it with velcro.  I use phottix strato II to trigger mine.



What do you mean, "you need another receiver"???? Why?

As the Buff website mentions, "The B800 arrives with a *sync cord* allowing you to connect your camera to the unit to trigger the flash. The unit additionally has a *built-in slave tripper* to allow wireless firing."

Ergo...there is absolutely no need for a second receiver...


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## 412 Burgh (Dec 12, 2012)

Thanks Derrel and Robin! I figured I would only need 1. Robin I will have to look into your triggers. I just don't have a PC Cord on my D7000 unfortunately.


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## Robin_Usagani (Dec 12, 2012)

Derrel said:


> Robin_Usagani said:
> 
> 
> > unless you have the two strobes connected somehow via the pc cable, you need another receiver.  Seriously though, I am never a fan of the the CyberSync.  I hate the design of the transmitter.  You put it on your hotshoe.  That means you cant have a flash on your camera.  If you do, you have to connect the transmitter to your cam via cable and let the transmitter hang or stick it with velcro.  I use phottix strato II to trigger mine.
> ...



Derrel, I know it comes with a sync cord.  I didnt know he wants to shoot it with a cord.  I thought he wants to be wireless.


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## 412 Burgh (Dec 12, 2012)

Robin_Usagani said:


> Derrel said:
> 
> 
> > Robin_Usagani said:
> ...



No indeed I do want to be wireless, my D7000 doesn't have a jack for the PC Cord


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## Village Idiot (Dec 12, 2012)

Robin_Usagani said:


> Derrel said:
> 
> 
> > Robin_Usagani said:
> ...



He does. That's why he's asking about the *built in optical slave*


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## Robin_Usagani (Dec 12, 2012)

I need to RTFM i guess.  Just got AB1600 and was not aware of triggering other AB unit capability.  I will let you know when I get home.  That would be sweet if it can.


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## Designer (Dec 12, 2012)

412 Burgh said:


> my D7000 doesn't have a jack for the PC Cord



You could purchase an AS-15 sync terminal adapter.


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## 412 Burgh (Dec 12, 2012)

Designer said:


> 412 Burgh said:
> 
> 
> > my D7000 doesn't have a jack for the PC Cord
> ...





I have one and that's how I trigger my B800 right now. I just want to be wireless. But I was also wondering if the optical slave on the potential second unit will work.


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## Robin_Usagani (Dec 12, 2012)

from the FAQ.  Thanks for making me aware of this... gosh... I should have read the manual.

*Q: What will trip the built-in slave tripper?*
*A:* The built-in slave tripper in each flash unit is designed to sense flashes of light and fire the unit simultaneously. The tripper is sensitive to both visible and infrared flashes of light. Any light flash that it &#8220;sees&#8221; can trigger it, including the flash from another unit in your setup, a conventional on-camera flash (and its pre-flash), and/or an infrared remote transmitter. Although this gives you more options for triggering the lights in your setup, the presence of extraneous triggers must be considered when you are not the only photographer in the area. Other photographers' flash units, on-camera flashes (whether on professional or even disposable cameras), and infrared remote controls can inadvertently trip your flash units.

When you are the only photographer in a specific shooting environment, the built-in slave tripper on each unit eliminates excess wiring in your setup. You can use multiple flash units and hardwire just one unit to your camera. Your camera&#8217;s sync circuit will fire the hardwired flash, and the built-in slave cell on each of your other units will fire the remaining units simultaneously.

If you are shooting in an environment where other photographers are using flash units, you will need to disengage the built-in slave tripper in your flash units. On generation one Paul C. Buff&#8482; flash units (AlienBees&#8482; flash units, White Lightning&#8482; flash units and Zeus&#8482; systems), the slave tripper is disengaged whenever a sync cord or dummy plug is inserted into the sync jack. On Einstein&#8482; flash units, the slave eye is engaged or disabled using the Adjust arrows when the Slave Eye Status Screen is highlighted. Disengaging the built-in slave tripper will prevent your flash units from being tripped by other flashes. To fire multiple units without using the slave trippers, you can use our CyberSync&#8482; remote system, our SS1 Sync Hardwire Kit, or our LG4X Wired Remote Control.


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## Robin_Usagani (Dec 12, 2012)

Anyway.. maybe canon speedlites prior to the 600RTs are POS or what.  I never have much luck with optical slave.  Sometimes I am too far or too hard to trigger it when I bounce the main light.  Maybe the Alien Bees are better.  I really want to know how good it is if you do an outdoor shoot in the open.  Will one AB really trigger the other AB?  Especially if the AB connected to the radio trigger isnt really pointed toward the other AB?


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## 412 Burgh (Dec 12, 2012)

Robin_Usagani said:


> Anyway.. maybe canon speedlites prior to the 600RTs are POS or what.  I never have much luck with optical slave.  Sometimes I am too far or too hard to trigger it when I bounce the main light.  Maybe the Alien Bees are better.  I really want to know how good it is if you do an outdoor shoot in the open.  Will one AB really trigger the other AB?  Especially if the AB connected to the radio trigger isnt really pointed toward the other AB?



Hopefully I will be able to tell you within the next 3 months.. Gotta get past the holidays and buy my books for next semester! Then I'll save for another B800 and modifier


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## Village Idiot (Dec 13, 2012)

Robin_Usagani said:


> Anyway.. maybe canon speedlites prior to the 600RTs are POS or what.  I never have much luck with optical slave.  Sometimes I am too far or too hard to trigger it when I bounce the main light.  Maybe the Alien Bees are better.  I really want to know how good it is if you do an outdoor shoot in the open.  Will one AB really trigger the other AB?  Especially if the AB connected to the radio trigger isnt really pointed toward the other AB?



You have to have all TTL enabled strobes for the Canon ones to work, they don't have a manual optical slave like the older Nikon SBs. Plus, depending on where you're working LOS issues and possible issues of the ambient over powering the flash and "confusing" the eye will stop a light from triggering. That should mainly only be an issue where you're working in huge rooms with lights very far apart or outside in noon day sun.

Additionally, an optical slave is a pretty standard feature on most larger strobes. I've never owned or used a monolight or pack and head system that didnt' have an optical slave...actually, scratch that, the old Speeodtron Blackline packs I used to own _may_ not have had a slave built in to the pack. They were probably from the stone age though.


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## j-digg (Dec 19, 2012)

Robin_Usagani said:


> I never have much luck with optical slave.  Sometimes I am too far or too hard to trigger it when I bounce the main light.  Maybe the Alien Bees are better.  I really want to know how good it is if you do an outdoor shoot in the open.  Will one AB really trigger the other AB?  Especially if the AB connected to the radio trigger isnt really pointed toward the other AB?



I think I have experience with the situation you are inquiring about. Except I used my 580 EXII triggered wirelessly with Cowboystudios instead of an AB fired wirelessly... The flash seen in the background of this photo is the speedlight and the main light was an AB800.:




This was my first time out with the strobe and at first the AB wasn't firing off the speedlight ( pretty discouraging ), then I realized that it was just because the optical trigger is on the back of the unit and wasn't seeing the light from the 580ex. I thought it was a wasted attempt and was ready to go home since it was getting dark.. until I remembered I had my 22" reflector in the car. I had a random skater at the park hold it up behind the AB, bouncing the flash into the eye and much to my delight, it worked 

So triggering them outdoors optically can be a pretty big PITA.


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## curtyoungblood (Dec 19, 2012)

Robin_Usagani said:


> Anyway.. maybe canon speedlites prior to the 600RTs are POS or what.  I never have much luck with optical slave.  Sometimes I am too far or too hard to trigger it when I bounce the main light.  Maybe the Alien Bees are better.  I really want to know how good it is if you do an outdoor shoot in the open.  Will one AB really trigger the other AB?  Especially if the AB connected to the radio trigger isnt really pointed toward the other AB?



Canon's flashes don't use an optical trigger to set each other off. They use an infrared signal.



Village Idiot said:


> You have to have all TTL enabled strobes for the Canon ones to work, they don't have a manual optical slave like the older Nikon SBs. Plus, depending on where you're working LOS issues and possible issues of the ambient over powering the flash and "confusing" the eye will stop a light from triggering. That should mainly only be an issue where you're working in huge rooms with lights very far apart or outside in noon day sun.



I may be misreading what you're saying, but you don't have to use Canon's flashes in TTL to get them to set each other off.  The infrared trigger works with them in manual. Also, its the infrared light, not the light of the flash, that you have to worry about being over-powered or not in the line of sight.


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## Big Mike (Dec 19, 2012)

> Canon's flashes don't use an optical trigger to set each other off. They use an infrared signal.


Actually, AFAIK, the *flashes* do use optical signals to communicate and trigger each other.  The only one that actually uses IR, is the ST-E2 master unit, because it doesn't have a flash to use.  

As for the OP's original question...I think it's been answered.  All the PCB lights (like just about every other studio strobe) has a built-in optical sensor.  So as long as the sensor gets enough light from the triggered strobe, it will fire.  FYI, there is no switch (on the Bees at least).  The on/off is determined by whether or not something is plugged into the sync socket.  

In in most in-door situations, the other lights will trigger no problem.  But outdoors, you may need a bounce surface or direct line of sight.  But a simple solution is to use something like this...FlashZebra.com: Optical Slave - Miniphone Plug (3.5mm) - 18 inch cord - Canon EX Compatible - Sonia Brand (Item #0274)
It plugs into the sync socket and gives you a cord so that you can position the new optical sensor in a better spot to 'see' the flash from the master light.


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## Village Idiot (Dec 20, 2012)

curtyoungblood said:


> Robin_Usagani said:
> 
> 
> > Anyway.. maybe canon speedlites prior to the 600RTs are POS or what.  I never have much luck with optical slave.  Sometimes I am too far or too hard to trigger it when I bounce the main light.  Maybe the Alien Bees are better.  I really want to know how good it is if you do an outdoor shoot in the open.  Will one AB really trigger the other AB?  Especially if the AB connected to the radio trigger isnt really pointed toward the other AB?
> ...



What I'm saying is that you can't use a cheap Vivitar 285HV to set off a 580EX II. I know Nikon flashes, at least some of the older ones, have an optical slave mode where any flash will set them off.


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