Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum

Can you expound on that? I am not quite sure what you are describing.



With Einstein, the power setting (i.e. the graph) will immediately show the new setting (or, where you want the power to be). However, it will take more than one test flash to dump the excess power when changed from full to minimum. Auto dump will take 11-15 seconds (I don't recall the exact figure at the moment), if no test fires are performed. This is normal, and should have been exhibited with all firmware versions.



If you updated from v.29 firmware, the fan will not come on immediately. This is an update in the v.30 firmware.

Does the flash fire from the test button on the Einstein itself? If so, but not from the remote, check your frequency settings as they can be reset during an update.

Do you have another camera to try? Also, check the menu system to make sure the hotshoe is activated. We see this all the time with the Canon system, and I am not sure why it is so frequent. I have a feeling there is a way to turn it off inadvertently.

Can you try the PC cord from camera to CC?

I removed the batteries from the CC and pulled the plug from the E640 and put everything down for a few hours this afternoon. When I got it all powered back up to test some of your suggestions it all just worked without having changed anything. So maybe it just needed time with the batteries removed to resolve the issue. Regardless, it's fixed and I'm relieved.

I'll do a test shot to get a meter reading and then it will tell me to adjust my aperture to something crazy like f/46. Then the minimum power it lets me set is closer to what the maximum used to be on the Einstein used to be, and the maximum power far exceeds what it used to say was the max power on the Einstein. This is hard to describe but I'll try to get a picture when I get home. I thought perhaps my meter settings are messed up....is there a way to completely reset the Cybercommander?

Thanks for that info. Since I am seeing issues with my meter on the Cybercommander I am probably noticing other behavior that I did not notice before. Good to know that's a non-issue.

Thanks again, I did indeed update from v.29 and didn't realize the fan control was changed in v.30.

I touched Easy Setup and tried the test button on the Einstein itself and the flash won't fire. I'll try to experiment again in a couple hours, if you have any other suggestions of what I can try I'll give that a shot too.

There is not a complete reset option of the CC. However, there are two things you can do which will likely get the meter back. The first is to check the light meter calibration.

Right joystick to the right to the SET UP screen
Right joystick up/down to LIGHTMETER
Right joystick in
In the upper right corner, you should see the letters CAL
Just under that, ensure -0.0f is listed. A variation in meter reading can be attributed to a calibration dialed in
Right joystick up/down to restore the CAL to 0.0 (Each click is .1f)

If a large change was made, return to the main flash screen and test the meter again. If this did not fix the problem, or no change was needed, proceed to the next set of instructions.


If the problem was not fixed in LIGHTMETER, you can reset the meter, which I imagine will correct this problem.

Right joystick to the right to the SET UP screen
Right joystick down to ADVANCED CONFIGURATION
Right joystick in (four new options should appear)
Right joystick down to FACTORY CALIBRATION
Right joystick in (this should take you to the FACTORY CAL screen)
Left joystick left or right to activate the REVERT command
"original factory calibration has been restored" should appear.






Easy set will restore everything to a specific state. Namely CH1 and FREQ1. Make sure the Cyber Commander is also set to FREQ1.

Right joystick to the right to the SET UP screen
Right joystick up/down to FREQUENCY
Right joystick in
In the middle of the screen, you should see FREQUENCY 01 (or whatever frequency is selected).
Right joystick up/down to reset the frequency to 01 if necessary.

Ok thanks for the steps. For the Cybercommander there was no adjustment on the meter but I did do the FACTORY CALIBRATION step. Unfortunately my Einstein still will not fire, so I'm unable to test it.

For my Einstein, I've tried hitting the Easy Setup button and then pushing the Test button. The modeling light will dim as expected, but the flash will not fire. Same with the Cybercommander, I can trigger the Einstein because the modeling light dims, but it doesn't flash. I tried re-seating the flash tube but it has made no difference.

So, possibly the flash tube is burned out? Is there any physical evidence to look for that would make that evident?

If the flash acts as though it triggers but does not actually fire, then it could be a flash tube issue, or it could be an internal fault.

First, unplug the light and let it sit for a few minutes. Then, using a glove or tissue, remove the frosted dome. Inspect the flash tube for any breaks in the glass, metal legs, or wire wrap. You will likely see what appears to be burn marks in the tube near the legs. This is OK, and not indicative of a problem.

If all appears OK, using the same tissue or glove, gently, but firmly, press on the flash tube to ensure it is fully seated. Then plug the light and test fire the light (it is not necessary to re-install the dome at this time).

If you have another known working tube, you can try to swap them, but be careful when doing so.

If none of these are the issue, then the light will need to come in for service.

All, I just bought a pair of 640's with Firmware version 22 installed. I was unable to upgrade to version 50. My other Einsteins upgraded perfectly from Ver. 29. Does ver. 22 need to be updated to 29 in order to take ver. 50? The Flash Heads sit, the screen remains black and the unit makes a wave type sound but, nothing happens. Upon shutting down the units they fire up and work normally. I'm using PW MC2's and I need these ver. 22 updated. Any body out there know a solution to this frustrating problem?

After a few tries, I figured it out but, it took multiple tries attempting the same update. I formatted the Micro SD Card and reloaded the Firmware update. I then turned on the Einstein and inserted the SD Card and went to the Diagnostics, selected Bootload and low and behold it worked. Attempting the same procedure on the other Einstein lead to failure until I re-copied the Firmware update to the SD Card. I then tried 3 times to update the unit, the 4th time worked. Hopefully the upgrade will make future upgrades easier. All six Einsteins on Ver 50 Firmware and working perfectly.

Same for me. Card is in, and the fan seems to be going on and off. Tried bootload and doesn't work. I've tried 2 cards, one a 2GB and the other 256k, same. Reformatted to fat 16. Same. Same thing on all 4 Einsteins. The PCbuff folder is copied on the root of the card. I updated the cyber commander, no issues. Tips?