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AlienBees Frequently Asked Questions |
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| General AlienBees Procedure and Ordering Questions 1. Do you sell any used or refurbished equipment? 2. Do you have any dealers? 3. Where can I find information about shipping and returns/repairs? Flash Unit Operation Questions Vagabond Questions General AlienBees Procedures and Ordering Questions Q: Do you sell any used or refurbished equipment? A: No. We only sell new, unused equipment, so that we can ensure that we are offering you the highest quality product that will serve your craft for years to come. We keep any used equipment to offer as "loaner" equipment, to be used by our customers while they're having a unit repaired or upgraded. A: No. All AlienBees equipment is sold Factory Direct only. All orders must be placed by phone or online, directly through our company. We prefer Factory Direct sales, as this allows us to maintain a direct line of communication with our customers, and save them money by cutting out the middlemen. We directly sell and ship our products to customers in the United States (and U.S territories), to US Military Personnel and to customers in Canada. Q: Where can I find information about shipping and returns/repairs? A: You can find out more about ordering and shipping on our ordering page. Flash Unit Operation Questions A: 150 watts is the maximum power recommended for your modeling lamp. This allows the cooling fan to maintain low internal temperatures. It is possible to use a 250-watt quartz lamp if particular care is taken. As a 250-watt bulb produces more heat, you should not operate your flash unit for extended periods of time with this bulb in place. You will need to be cautious when using this bulb, ensuring that there is adequate airflow. Accessories that close around the faceplate (such as a softbox, an octabox, a honeycomb grid or a snoot) may restrict the airflow and trap heat. In these conditions, a 250-watt lamp should not be used. Failure to follow these precautions could cause damage that may not be covered by our warranty. A: Your multi-light setup may include units of different output powers. If you use the supplied modeling lamp in each unit (the 100-watt lamp), the preview will not be accurate. A higher-powered model (the B1600, for example) at full power produces more light than a lower-powered model (the B800, for example) at full power. If you use identical modeling lamps in these two units however, they will be of equal brightness despite the output difference. An accurate preview can be accomplished by simply using modeling lamps whose wattage ratings are relative to the flash power. For example: In a setup using B1600s, B800s and B400s, you could use a 150-watt bulb in the B1600s, a 75-watt bulb in the B800s and a 40-watt bulb in the B400s. This will allow you to maintain an accurate WYSIWYG preview, reflecting the appropriate output differences between the models. Q: What does it mean if the modeling lamp in my unit flickers randomly, even when I'm not firing the light? A: Several things can cause flickering of the modeling lamp. As the modeling lamp circuitry is sensitive to ac line noise, noise caused by large air conditioning units, nearby fluorescent lighting, and electronic dimmer circuits may produce flickering. The problem can also occur when circuits are overloaded (perhaps with a large number of lights connected to a single circuit). Additionally, flickering can occur when different cables and cords are run too closely together, or when excessive extension cords are used. A: Our built-in slave tripper is sensitive to both visible and infrared flashes of light. Any light flash that it “sees” can trigger it, including the flash from another unit in your setup or a conventional on-camera flash. An infrared remote transmitter will trip the slave cell as well. 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, or infrared remote controls can inadvertently trip your lights. A: An improperly wired power outlet (where the ac Line and Neutral wires are reversed) could be the culprit. This is particularly common in older buildings. To find out if the power outlet is the source of the problem, you can use a circuit tester. This is a small three-pronged device that plugs into the ac outlet and has lights that indicate if there are any wiring problems. You can pick one up at a home improvement store or electrical supply store for a few dollars. If you frequently shoot on location, it’s a good thing to have along in the equipment bag. A: The standard sync cord supplied with your AlienBees flash unit is a 15-foot cord, with a 1/8-inch mono miniplug on one end, and a PC connector on the other end. To ensure a proper connection, you must push both the PC connector and miniplug in fully, until they cannot be pushed in any further. Simply pushing the connector in one more “click” for a positive, tight connection solves many problems of this nature. However, given manufacturing tolerances, it is only natural to get an occasional "minus" sync cord mating up with a "plus" camera pc connector, and vice versa. A PC connector set requires a tight fit to prevent misfires, and there are slight size differences occasionally noted between a camera manufacturer’s PC outlet, and cord manufacturer’s PC cord. While this is rare, if you feel that your sync cord simply won’t match, please contact us and we will send you a new sync cord. Q: My flash unit does not fire when I press the test button. All I hear is a 'clicking' sound. The ready light comes on, and the model lamp works, but the unit will not flash. What does this mean? A: If the ready light comes on, and you hear a faint click when you push the test button but see no flash, your flashtube may be exhausted. A new flashtube will most often fix the problem. By the nature of their design, all flashtubes become exhausted after extended use. Our flashtubes offer a typical life expectancy around 250,000 flashes. You can purchase replacement tubes from us online or by phone, and replace the tube yourself simply and inexpensively. If you are uncertain as to which size and style of flashtube you need, you can visit our flashtubes section of this website, or call us on our Toll Free Customer Service Line (1-800-443-5542), and we will help you determine the correct replacement tube. A: First, you should check your sync cord by plugging it into your light and shorting the PC male connector center pin to the circular sleeve that surrounds it. You can use a paper clip, a ballpoint pen tip, or metal nail file to do this (and don't worry, no dangerous voltage is present on this connection). This should cause the light to fire. If the flash unit fires, but won't fire from the camera, read on. Some of the newer electronic cameras are sensitive to sync polarity. The sync cord that comes with the lights is one piece, center positive. If your camera has negative polarity, you may want to order our two-piece sync cord. One piece in this set is a short white cord that has the small PC connector that goes in the camera on one end and a two-pronged “household ac” type connector on the other end. This pronged end plugs into the socket on the long black part of the sync cord. If you look at the prongs and the socket they plug into, you'll notice that they are two different widths. Normally, they should be plugged together so that these widths match. When you connect them the other way, you are reversing the polarity. If your camera is not tripping the lights, try reversing this connection. Some cameras we know are sensitive to this are: Canon EOS series; Olympus; Bronica; Minolta Si 6000, 7000, 9000, and the Fuji 6x7. Q: Do you recommend any Radio Slaves, Photo Cells, or Infra-Red Triggers? A: We have tested and recommend the following products for safe use with AlienBees flash units: Q: Can I take my Vagabond I (retired) or Vagabond II Portable Power System when I travel by air? A: Yes. The batteries used in both systems (the B15A in the V150 / V300 |
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