Product Realability

I an considering this TTL controller and have been told :

1. by a major U/W photo equipment dealer that it has a high failure rate due to users getting a drop of water on it and it shorting out - 'buy a spare board'!

2. and by a major U/W repair service " highly un-realiable ..." however, I don't know the basis for the failures here

3. and lastly " it is dead on in the macro mode"

What have W P's users who have this or have friends using this board experienced???

Thanks in advance....

In digital workshops, I often mention the obvious fact that electronics and salt water don't mix well. If you're careful with the TTL converter circuit board, it should flawlessly.

Mine works pretty well in macro, but is rather dark for WA. I typically use strobe compensation to brighten it up. I am planning to get a second board as a backup. I am also going to apply some conformal coating to help protect it from accidental droplets. Conformal coating is cheap and greatly improves the lifetime and reliabilty of electroncs. I really wonder why anyone builds productions boards without it.

I really wonder why anyone builds productions boards without it.

Cost - an obvious reply.

But also conformal coating makes testing and repair of electronic assemblies much more difficult.

Paul C

The cost, for a board the size of the Heinriechs TTL adapter would be at most a dollar or two. Some of the urethane coatings are painful to work with but the silicone based conformal coating we use at work is a dream. You can push probes through it for debugging and it barely affects desoldering. For something that is intended to be used in a marine environment, it seems like a no brainer. Moreover, for something as simple as the TTL adapter, it is certainly cheaper to replace than repair.

I doubt my camera electronics are coated, but I would have paid a few extra dollars if they were! Digital cameras are notorious for having problems in humid environments.