Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum

This might not work at all, but I have to ask.

If I had two Einstein flash tubes soldered together in parallel, would I get reduced flash duration at higher output levels? Or, would I just get two useless flash tubes? My thought was, that a bi tube head is essentially doing the same thing. Not that it's any kind of deal breaker if it doesn't work but, if for an additional $70 plus labor, I can have lower flash duration at even higher output I'm a fan.

Doing this would stress all the Einstien components, particularly the IGBTs and you would end up with a dead Einstein.

Would you consider a bi tube design when you eventually roll out the higher capacity units? For my use, having the option of a key light that's more powerful at the same duration, would be helpful.

Thanks for the speedy response on my initial question. I've done a little research at my local rental house, and I was surprised by how close you are to Broncolor power levels at a given duration. I thought I'd have to give up a few stops, but for a single head your product is more or less even. That is, compared to a Grafit A4. I don't know if the 1600w/s packs offer a significant duration advantage.

A bi tube on higher powered Einstein would still present the same problem of ultra high stress on the internal components and would require quartz tube and much more expensive internal components. You stated how close Einstein 640 is to Grafit.

It's a tad humorous that you want a product that vastly out performs a $10,000 system at 1/10 the cost 8-)

Might I suggest two or more Einsteins?

If you don't ask, you'll never know. I typically rent one or more bi tube heads when I put the Broncolors to work. It would be nice to have that option. I don't always have the budget to rent the Broncolor units. Because of that, I was actually looking at some old Vivitar 285HV's as a stop gap for things like water drops and the like.

I'm no stranger to rigging things to get them working. But, if there is a better way for a price I can afford I'll take that.

Let me just say that I'm impressed with the numbers you're claiming. I anticipate adding some of your products to my current equipment. I'll be curious to see how they hold up. My last Broncolor job had 10 packs going at 5 frames per second for most of a day. We had a pack explode on the prelight day. Other than amazing flash duration, I'm not impressed by Broncolor's cost/benefit ratio. Until now, there just hasn't been another option.