Impact PowerSync10 DC Digital Radio Slave System Test

[job sy]

So my sisters bought me the Impact PowerSync10 (transmitter and receiver) for my birthday. It claims to have a 200' range so I decided to test the system out first hand and document my results.

Conditions:
* Time - 9:25pm
* Temp - 58* F
* Wind - South at 12mph

Setup:
* Transmitter mounted on hot shoe of D300. Transmitter set to channel 5.
* SB800 (speedlight - set at 1/64th power) mounted on hot shoe of receiver. Receiver set to channel 5.

Results:
* 20' - Flawless
* 40' - Flawless
* 60' - Flawless
* 80' - Flawless
* 100' - Flawless
* 120' - Flawless
* 140' - Spotty (2 out of 3)
* 160' - Ran out of room from my backyard to my neighbors front yard. Didn't want to get shot, so I stopped here.
* 180' - TBD
* 200' - TBD

I'll probably do another test during the day to see if the results are similar. I'll take 5 shots at each interval next time. I'll keep you guys posted.

[Seanzky]

Very brave of you to venture out into untested territories. I don't know anyone who has tried those remotes before. Usually, the cheaper-than-PocketWizards (which BTW are priced very ridiculously) alternatives are the YongNuo ones or the CyberSyncs. How big are they and how much were they?

[job sy]

The set (1 transmitter and 1 receiver) comes in at roughly $140. $60 for the transmitter and around $80 for each receiver. The build quality is decent, although it does feel a little "plasticy". I didn't think I needed the radio slaves, but after testing it, I enjoyed the sense of "freedom" that I got. The CLS is a great system but it does have its drawbacks. Having said that, I feel that having the option to use either the CLS or Radio Slave gives me the most satisfaction.

I also bought myself a cotton carrier for my birthday. I'll try to post up my opinion on that as well.

[Seanzky]

Cotton Carrier is an awesome carrier system. I've seen the video and debated on getting one forever.

As for the Impact Tx/Rx you have, that's a bit overpriced, I think. All RF triggers function more or less the same way. The cheapest (YongNuo RF-602) might take 2 weeks plus to get shipped from China or Hong Kong but it's about 1/4 of the price you paid. Each additional receiver is only like $8?! I'm not trying to make you feel bad owning the Impact one or anything but since it's only B&H's house brand which they have manufactured from China anyway for much, much cheaper than what they're selling them for, you might want to consider switching just in case one receiver goes bad for any reason.

If you want to keep TTL (iTTL/eTTL depending on your camera), you'd have to drop a chunk of change on PocketWizard Flex/Mini or Radio Poppers. They're the only ones capable of doing that right now, but PiXeL (a Chinese company) is slowly catching up. But if you want to shoot manual, RF-602 is the one to get.

-- Fri May 14, 2010 9:30 pm --

Whoa! Time out. I thought you bought them yourself. I missed the part where you said your sisters gave them to you for a present. Never mind. Ignore me.

Well at any case, good review. Like I said, I haven't seen anyone use them before so it's new to me. As long as it works great, just have fun with it.

[job sy]

Yup, a gift from my lovely sisters. I do agree with your comment though, regarding the RF functionality and price. I actually enjoy playing around with the manual feature of the camera. The shoot with my sister, May, was done manually. The radio popper and pocketwizard are definitely out of the question, unless my sisters got that for me next year. haha!

As for the Cotton Carrier, I've done some research and found that to be the best option for my particular needs/preferences. I actually like this a whole lot better than the Black Rapid (RS-DR1) double strap. It feels alot more secure as opposed to having the cameras dangling by your hip. The reason I bought this was to prepare for a wedding that Kevin and I are going to shoot in July. It's gonna be a small scale wedding and we're doing it for the experience...no money.