NOTE: BASIC INFORMATION - TYPES OF CABLES
There are as many cables in photography as stars in the sky. Most driven by proprietary interests which means making more money with accessories and gave us an assortment of styles lengths and materials, first made into synch cords. Then came power for flash, power for camera, power for static lights, transceivers, and this is basically why wireless became so popular. Wireless too has faults and when it fails, you wish you had cables. I keep both for redundancy.
The first cables were mainly made for synch connections, not power supplies. The oldest, the household style, the PC style and the locking PC are still around added to the modern designs on transceivers like the 1/4 and 1/8 inch audio jacks (monaural), and the useless barrel connector.
Two of the last companies predominant in this market are PC-CORDS and QUANTUM. I will be dealing with PC CORDS later in the year, we are just talking at this point.
WRONG TYPE FOR MY BLACK BOX
There are two kinds of cords. For my unit this is the wrong one. The sample shown is called a Nikon, CKE, fits the acceleration port and does not work with my pack. Similar ones I see are for the METZ 45's. The letters are printed on the cord flash end and it has this type of connector with five pins.
This is one that plugs into the hot port or AC port, AKA test terminal and has either one pinout in a barrel connector or a three pin that looks like (000) this. Another type is a two pin that fits the Vivitar 283-5 (0--0) and that one too is no good. I do not make accelerated packs because they tend to ruin what they get plugged into. Overheated , shutdowns, burn-outs are the end result of promising great speed do it at a sacrifice to your other gear. that was Ok for the pony express, not for their horses.
ACCELERATED UNITS
Some packs offer accelerated performance. Those cables bypass the safety and control function and permit high voltage direct to the capacitor. They are faster, can be problematic (nice word for frying stuff) and you still need four batteries in the hopper. I thought packs were supposed to get rid of AA batteries.
Think, it makes no sense to risk money on an expensive strobe. When you only paid 80 dollars for a strobe like a Vivitar that was one thing. On these 400.00 - 500.00 strobes thats another story because minimum repair costs on these things are 180.00. I have seen some that were returned as unrepairable for cost, meaning "nothing salvageable".
THE GOOD GUYS and the RIGHT STUFF
The GOOD ONES, the other type of strobe cable is the kind that looks like four batteries on one end and an RCA male on the other. This is the kind we use. The MBA MB5, MB2 and the MKZ3 are the most popular styles and models. This list is ever changing.
If you do not see your brand on our chart, we have access to over one hundred other models and some may be modified. Email me for the correct fit. The MKZ3 shown on the left is the most popular and we call it an inline. Four fake batteries in line like a single file formation.
• The module may come in two other styles. Thats the total amount of styles which four batteries may be arranged in. Most common layouts are either inline, square, trapezoidal or "drunk rectangle".
• The inline fits quite a large percentage of Nikon and METZ flashes.
• These next two are very common on the Canons. The four-square is the MB2 used on the 580EX II, 430 EX and 430 EX II and the trapezoidal is used on the older first born 580 EX older series.
• Cables may look the same but the Vivitar uses a cable called the MA2. It looks like an MB2 but they are not the same. The difference is the location of the hot (+) and cold (-) contacts. They are not interchangeable, but may be taken apart and reassembled correctly. The reason is contact placement.
The contacts are in different locations. In other words there are three battery arrangements and 8 possible combinations of locations multiplied by 2 since plus's and minus's may be substituted. Trust me... I do this all day long.
THE END RUN
Not finished yet. At the other end of the coiled Quantum cables you will see an RCA jack to contend with and that involves making it better by replacing the RCA jack with a heavier jack called a DIN plug.
WE DO IT FREE!
We do not like RCA Jacks because they have problems. We upgrade them FREE, you are allowed two per Black Box purchase. I am a realist, I understand new areas of the photo game are enough to confuse anyone.
I will gladly call you and discuss it with you if it is not clear. They tell me I'm the only one in the industry to do this. Real phone call, talk to the boss, in Brooklyn English. Don't understand Brooklyn? OK, then you wouldn't know a Nathan's Hotdog, from a pork filled Ball-Park special. I write a food column, I like the Nathan's. Trust me, I know Hotdogs and here comes a letter from someone in Chicago with all that salad on top.
Good cables, specifically the Quantum cables that start with an "M" and on occasion, the K Bantam Series are easily available from the very reliable ABC's of mail order. Adorama, B & H, Calumet. Also look for them on eBay. You may call me to see if it is a good deal. Be in front of the computer with the page up you are looking at.
BETTER PORT
My packs come standard with two identical usable ports on top, both called DIN ports or plugs. As you can see from the photo on the left this is a very robust piece of metal.
They were selected for their highest reliability. The cables we use unfortunately come with RCA ends that are obsolete. As an engineer, I detest them. Almost 90% of the repairs I have worked on the past forty years are attributed to these RCA or correctly named "AUDIO JACKS".
They were not originally made for power. They were made for signal. They go back to the days of the record business, before the 8-Track. You see them on legacy TV's so tape players and split RGB signals can still be used. Please look at the picture below.
WHY TWO BRUTE
The second port on the black box allows two flashes to be used at the same time if they are of equal value in output and performance. It is called a matching DIN. The DIN is internal, stronger, more reliable, and more secure. It's wires (both positive and negative) are internal and the only thing the outside does is to connect stronger through a threaded collar that does not stress the cable itself or the relief strain.
For the best performance and bang for your buck, we use male and female DIN plugs from Taiwan, or Japan. Not the pot-metal cheapies from the China mainland.
DIN is an abbreviation for Deutsches Institut für Normung, or German Institute for Standardization, which is a German manufacturing industry standards group. DIN connectors are round, with pins arranged in a circular pattern. This type of connector is a much larger heavier type with an external collared lock. Do not confuse these with mini-DIN's.
Ours, assures good contact, low failure rate and longevity. We have never had one fail, burn up or replace. If you already have a QUANTUM "M" series cable, with the collet that tightens, send me your cable and I will convert it (remove the end and upgrade it to the heavier DIN plug) for FREE with an order for the Black Box or Tuxedo. In fact with the 2011, we do two free. The first time you get a two free-be. After that they are fifteen dollars for additional cables and that includes fast shipping, the cost of the part and the labor.
TECHNICAL: Why We Upgrade:
If you look at the collet-type plug that comes on the M cable. unscrewing (1) the outside collet all the way exposes the hidden screw and the black or negative solder point (3). If this is screwed in too far it can cause a short and burn the cable. Notice the screw (4) is over the red or positive wire to the
tip ( 2) we have received burnt cables if the wire is stretched beyond certain limits, the screw penetrated the red making a short to the outside.
In other words, the screw has a flat shaped tip and can puncture the red wire on a pull. This completes the circuitry. The blades (5) will lose their spring after a while so it is well to not keep the collet screwed on too tight. They snap off if bent.
So some individuals had a tendency to lock the collet even tighter and then after a while went to remove the cable and it's locked up. So they get the pliers, spin out the RCA jack, and damaged the unit. That is why I removed all the RCA jacks for 2009-2010 at no additional increase in price.
Now you know why we do this, we want the unit to last five to six years in weekly use.