RedSeaDiver2
Contributor
I'm looking for some big power wide angle strobes, I don't need TTL or any of that fancy stuff. Any suggestions?
Best Big Bang Strobes?
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bvanant
Contributor
YS 250s (used only), Supe, Secam, Hartenberger 650 (probably the most powerful now available)
Bill
Bill
OP
RedSeaDiver2
Contributor
bvanant
Contributor
I am not sure which retra you are looking at but in the Backscatter tests, the Z330 has more power than the Retra, not less.
BVA
BVA
OP
RedSeaDiver2
Contributor
The top model of Retra strobes has an output of 140 Ws, the only comparison that I have been able to find is the graphs towards the end of this article - the testing was done by Alex Mustard - Underwater Strobe Light Comparison Are you able to post a link to the Backscatter tests as the more information I have before committing the better. I've had a quick look through Backscatter's site but couldn't find anything specific.
bvanant
Contributor
I don't know of any retra 140 Ws strobes, the ones that I know are either 100 or 150. In any case, the original Retra had 100 Ws and a GN of 30. A 140 Ws strobe would definitely have more power but the beam angle from the original to the new one has widened so brightness will be a bit less. The GN for the Z330 is 33 (hence the name) so is a bit brighter than the original Retra and maybe (depending on beam spread) a bit more power than the Z330 but not very likely to be a full stop.
Bill
Bill
bvanant
Contributor
I see the just released Retra has 140 WS power (less than the previous strobes). For WA, I suspect that all of the bigger strobes will be more or less the same, but the quality of the Retra light is reportedly "better"
BVA
BVA
OP
RedSeaDiver2
Contributor
bvanant
Contributor
They are built extremely well and a metal housing really helps remove heat. It is surprising now days that they are still using AA batteries though.
Not to be pedantic but how do you know what 140 Ws looks like. We all have strobes that have are labeled in GN, 20 to 35 for a variety of strobes. Ws are not typically used in UW strobes as a metric, and the brightness of a strobe flash of a given Ws value can vary by quite a lot (at least for studio strobes, 2 strobes with identical Ws rating might have GN of 50 and 40 respectively since the amount of light is intimately related to the design of the reflector and the design and efficiency of the diffuser. That being said, everyone that has Retras love them.
Bill
Not to be pedantic but how do you know what 140 Ws looks like. We all have strobes that have are labeled in GN, 20 to 35 for a variety of strobes. Ws are not typically used in UW strobes as a metric, and the brightness of a strobe flash of a given Ws value can vary by quite a lot (at least for studio strobes, 2 strobes with identical Ws rating might have GN of 50 and 40 respectively since the amount of light is intimately related to the design of the reflector and the design and efficiency of the diffuser. That being said, everyone that has Retras love them.
Bill
OP
RedSeaDiver2
Contributor
Aluminium especially will help remove heat as it is very heat conductive - its one of the reasons we are looking at getting an aluminium boat built in the Red Sea.
From what I have seen, Ws seems to be mainly used by European strobe manufacturers.
The graphs in the link I provided earlier in this thread are mainly what I am using to base my decisions off - it is a straight comparison at different points across the width of the strobe beam.
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