Which Strobes??

Looking for opinions and experiences to help me decide which strobes to get for a Nexus D80 rig I plan to get next year. My current system is film based.

I currently shoot 16mm fisheye thru to twice lifesize macro and will do the same with the new system. My strobes are S&S YS120's & YS30's so I regularly take all four strobes with me when I travel as I prefer the small size of the YS30's with macro. As well as the above strobes I also have an unused YS90 auto.

I would like to replace these strobes with just two that I can use for both wideangle and macro (and also save on the baggage).

So I'm thinking of the new S&S YS110 or the Inon Z240(?) which appear both small but powerful and broad enough for f/e coverage.

Is there anything I'm missing here? Will they be adequate for wideangle yet small enough to get in close to the end of the port for macro?

Any opinions on these strobes would be much appreciated or if there are any other recommendations. My priorities are small size and preferably easily available in the UK (for servicing/repair etc).

Thanks in advance,

Andy

The Z240s should be fine for both WA and macro. They're powerful but light, recycle fast and incorporate a modelling light.

UK support for Inon is very good via Ocean Optics in London. My girlfriend has the D-2000 which is very similar to the Z-240, whereas I have two YS-110s. The Inons recycle faster which can be useful when using them flat out at distance. It's less of an issue up close, where you're not doing a full dump.

The YS-110s are more compact than the Inons and I vastly prefer the battery compartment design. We've had grief with some NiMH cells not fitting into the Inon compartment, and o-ring design is not the best for long term reliability, though in its favour you can visually check the outer bead of the seal through the transparent plastic.

The modelling light on the YS is sweet, a high brightness white LED that goes out while the strobe is recharging.

There's no sustitute for having a play with these strobes.

Martyn

...snip...

and o-ring design is not the best for long term reliability,

...snip...

just trying to understand what do you mean by that?

/paul

Fair enough Paul, I'll explain my logic. I don't want anyone to get bent out of shape by me thinking that one system is slightly better than another, but it may happen

I prefer o-ring systems where the clamping system to be separate from the sealing system. The Inon battery compartment lid closure involves multiple turns of the lid over the o-ring to close it, which can lead to o-ring wear. This doesn't mean I think the system is bad, I just don't think it is the best.

On a second note, I don't like the effort required to open and close the compartment. On the plus side, as I said before, you can do a quick visual check of the outer bead which is nice.

Does that makes sense? I'm sure plenty of people will disagree with my opinion. That is what it's for.

Martyn

ok Martyn thanks for that, i understand what you mean! (and there was no getting bent out of shape in my question, i was just trying to understand )

in fact here's a little issue that occured on my last trip with this setup:

i had changed the batteries in my z220 and was closing the lid, and for some reason i turned faster and probably stronger than usual (and in fact had not put a small amount of grease on the outside of the oring to help with the turning of the lid) and out popped the oring from its groove. this is where the transparent part comes in very handy !

first time this had ever happened to me! lesson learnt: don't screw too fast, and don't forget to grease (a little bit) the oring.

fwiw hope this helps other inon users

/paul