Rechargeable battery in your speed lights?

[table1349]

Quantum battery packs are not cheap, the PIXEL is a cheaper reliable option for general speedlite use. Really gage it on the amount you use and need your flash as to which is the most cost effective approach.

I would probably get a compatible Yongnuo pack since they are way cheaper. I'm sure not better than the quantum, but in my budget.

I think you are a bit confused. The Quantum Battery pack mentioned is not at all like the Yongnuo. The Quantum is expensive because it has it's own battery and voltage regulator. It is not a compartment that holds batteries like the Yongnuo. The Quantum will out perform the standard battery packs like the Yongnuo in number of flashes and recharge time. That is what you are paying for. The confidence that if you are shooting a 7 hour wedding and reception or some other long event, you will have the power to shoot from beginning to end with no worries.

 

[Derrel]

Quantum battery packs are not cheap, the PIXEL is a cheaper reliable option for general speedlite use. Really gage it on the amount you use and need your flash as to which is the most cost effective approach.

I would probably get a compatible Yongnuo pack since they are way cheaper. I'm sure not better than the quantum, but in my budget.

I think you are a bit confused. The Quantum Battery pack mentioned is not at all like the Yongnuo. The Quantum is expensive because it has it's own battery and voltage regulator. It is not a compartment that holds batteries like the Yongnuo. The Quantum will out perform the standard battery packs like the Yongnuo in number of flashes and recharge time. That is what you are paying for. The confidence that if you are shooting a 7 hour wedding and reception or some other long event, you will have the power to shoot from beginning to end with no worries.

JUST as an aside...this Quantum was bought brand new in 1985. Nineteen hundred and eighty-five! It was used regularly (every-other weekend, sometimes 2 events in one weekend) until 1990. It was then neglected until 2005 or so. I shot indoor H.S. basketball with it for the 2005-2006 seasons, powering two, 285 HV flashes from the balcony railings. Since then I have shot a few parties, and one wedding with it. It is on its ORIGINAL lead acid cell. This thing the last time I shot it heavily, fired 366 frames over a 2-hour party. This thing is TWENTY-NINE YEARS OLD!!!!! I bought this when I was a college kid. I am now a middle-aged man. The Quantum Turbo battery I bought one year later, in 1986, was DEAD-dead-dead when we moved into our first house in 1991. I am incredulous that this thing STILL holds a good charge and still recycles FAST.

 

[ecphoto]

Quantum battery packs are not cheap, the PIXEL is a cheaper reliable option for general speedlite use. Really gage it on the amount you use and need your flash as to which is the most cost effective approach.

I would probably get a compatible Yongnuo pack since they are way cheaper. I'm sure not better than the quantum, but in my budget.

I think you are a bit confused. The Quantum Battery pack mentioned is not at all like the Yongnuo. The Quantum is expensive because it has it's own battery and voltage regulator. It is not a compartment that holds batteries like the Yongnuo. The Quantum will out perform the standard battery packs like the Yongnuo in number of flashes and recharge time. That is what you are paying for. The confidence that if you are shooting a 7 hour wedding and reception or some other long event, you will have the power to shoot from beginning to end with no worries.

You've made an excellent point. I know that they are two vastly different pieces of technology, I'm not confused about their capabilities respectively. Rather I know the budget I'm working with, it won't allow for all the stuff I want. A cheap Chinese made battery pack is all I can afford right now.

 

[Derrel]

Those Chinese battery packs actually look pretty good, considering the price, size, and the ease of use as far as just popping in freshly-charged batteries. Sure, not as much "oomph" as a heavy lead-acid battery, but also a lot less money, cheap for the batteries, you know...really...a pretty good ancillary power source that beats just 4 x 1.2 volts in AA's...

 

[astroNikon]

When looking at rechargeables also look at their voltage
For instance the all silver energizers are 2300 mAh
The light green top energizers are 1400
Rayovacs are 1600
Etc

 

[Edsport]

I use 3800 mAh in my speedlights. Lots of storage power and very cheap...

Cfl rechargable aa | eBay

 

[Big Mike]

Plenty of good info here already, but here is my two cents.

There are a few different types of AA batteries that you might choose:

The most common is the standard Alkaline. The benefit is that they are easy to find and cheap to buy and most importantly, they will hold their charge for years. The bad news is that they are not rechargeable and unless you send them to a facility that can recycle them, they most likely end up in a landfill, which is terrible for the environment. Another issue with alkaline batteries is how they perform in a flash. Typically I've found that the recycle times for a flash will start to drop fairly soon, maybe at 50% capacity, and they continue to get longer as the battery looses more charge. Many times I've found that alkaline batteries become practically unusable for a flash, but I can still take them out and put them into something like a remote control, and get months of use out of the remaining power. In summary, alkaline batteries are bad for the environment and don't perform well in a flash.

The typical rechargeable battery type is NiMH (nickel–metal hydride). Nickel–cadmium was standard 20+ years ago, but I don't think they are used today. NiMH batteries are more expensive to purchase (plus you need a charger) but they can recharged many, many times which makes them much less expensive than disposable batteries. NiMH batteries perform much better in a flash. I've found that they give you a more consistent recycle time over the life of the charge, and when they start to slow down, they are almost drained. The problem with 'standard' NiMH batteries is that they don't have a great shelf life. They will loose their charge just sitting around.

There is a somewhat newer version of NiMH that been able to mostly overcome the self-discharge issue. The most popular ones are the Sanyo Eneloops. They hold their charge longer, thus acting more like alkaline but they still perform very well in a flash. These are the ones that most people would recommend if you are going to buy new batteries.

Another type of battery to mention is Lithium. They are not rechargeable and are rather expensive so I don't recommend them. Their only advantage is that they are very light weight compared to the other types. Note that these are not Lithium-ion, which is the type of batter that your camera & cell phone likely use. They don't make Lithium-ion batteries in AA form (as far as I know).

Another thing to consider when buying rechargeable batteries is a good charger. I typically like to avoid the cheap (one hour) type chargers as they can really make the batteries hot and that isn't great for the life & health of the battery. I prefer a charger that allows me to choose the charging rate. Slower is better, as long as you have the time. Some chargers will also have options to discharge and cycle the batteries and a select few will have a 'break in' mode which conditions the batteries to hold a full charge...it can even be used to give new life to old (worn out) rechargeable batteries.

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

Edsport you have bought fake ni-mh batterys they take a low 1000-1500mah AA battery and stick a label with 3800mah on it, so far there is no AA ni-mh battery over 2900mah that i have seen.

A quick and dirty way to check the capacity is to compare the weight of the new battery with a branded version of an AA battery, if the 3800mah battery is lighter than a branded 2100mah battery it has to be fake.

I have been a member of the website below for years and they test all battery types for capacity, and the fake capacity battery`s on ebay are notorious.

Flashlight Electronics - Batteries Included

John.

EDIT : I am busy testing the capacity of some cheap third-party battery`s for my Fuji X-E1 3x battery`s for £11.80 when an original goes for £40+

I use 3800 mAh in my speedlights. Lots of storage power and very cheap...

Cfl rechargable aa | eBay

 

[WayneF]

The Quantum Battery pack mentioned is not at all like the Yongnuo. The Quantum is expensive because it has it's own battery and voltage regulator. It is not a compartment that holds batteries like the Yongnuo. The Quantum will out perform the standard battery packs like the Yongnuo in number of flashes and recharge time. That is what you are paying for.

This not correct information about the Yongnuo external battery pack. It is NOT merely a AA battery compartment, far from it.

Speedlights do use AA batteries, typically four to output 6 volts. These AA batteries go into a AA battery compartment. The speedlight necessarily also builds in a power converter and voltage regulator to convert 6V to around 325 volts to directly charge the flash capacitor that powers the flash tube. This power converter current is the whine we sometimes hear at recycle.

Some speedlight models have another high voltage connector where an external battery pack can be plugged in. The battery pack also includes a similar power converter and voltage regulator which outputs around 325 volts, and this high voltage connector goes directly to the flash capacitor. Now there are two voltage sources, internal and external, two 325 volt sources, charging the flash capacitor, for faster recycle and larger longer battery capacity. The original 6 volt AA cells also powers the rest of the electronics, so the AA batteries have to be there too.

The Yongnuo SF-18 battery pack plugs into the Nikon speedlights using the SAME high voltage connector that the Nikon SD-8 and SD-9 battery packs plug into. Canon is the same deal. That external connector is a 325 volt connector. The external package is NOT merely a battery compartment. If it were merely a battery compartment, it would have to plug into the speedlight battery compartment, which it does not.


I know little about Quantum, but the specs make it obvious that some Quantum batteries are 6V lead acid, but others use a NiMH battery pack. I don't know how the Quantum NiMH batteries connect, but the 6V lead acid has to be connected into the flash AA battery compartment, replacing the original AA batteries, and simply furnishes 6V with a much longer capacity duration (a bigger 6V battery). Lead acid batteries also have a much lower internal impedance, and so recycle (from the flashes own power converter) can be much faster recycle using 6V lead acid instead of 6V of AA alkalines. Rechargeble NiMH batteries are about twice as fast as alkalines, but not as fast as lead acid.

For example, another source of such replacement 6V lead acid battery pack is the Al Jacobs Black Box: PRODUCTS and SERVICES | www.ALJACOBS.COM which necessarily plugs into the flash AA battery compartment (typically using Quantum cables and connectors, because they are available). Longer life, faster recycle than AA batteries, but is still NOT a high voltage power pack like the Yongnuo SF-18. In this sense, the lead acid batteries are merely another battery compartment.

The Yongnuo SF-18 battery pack uses AA NiMH, but it definitely outputs 325 volts to charge the speedlight flash capacitor directly.
It will work with alkaline AA batteries too, but alkalines will recycle much slower than NiMH or lead acid (alkaline is high internal impedance).

 

[EIngerson]

I run the Eneloops in everything. Flash, triggers, you name it. I have zero complaints about them.

 

[ecphoto]

The Quantum Battery pack mentioned is not at all like the Yongnuo. The Quantum is expensive because it has it's own battery and voltage regulator. It is not a compartment that holds batteries like the Yongnuo. The Quantum will out perform the standard battery packs like the Yongnuo in number of flashes and recharge time. That is what you are paying for.

This not correct information about the Yongnuo external battery pack. It is NOT merely a AA battery compartment, far from it.

Speedlights do use AA batteries, typically four to output 6 volts. These AA batteries go into a AA battery compartment. The speedlight necessarily also builds in a power converter and voltage regulator to convert 6V to around 325 volts to directly charge the flash capacitor that powers the flash tube. This power converter current is the whine we sometimes hear at recycle.

Some speedlight models have another high voltage connector where an external battery pack can be plugged in. The battery pack also includes a similar power converter and voltage regulator which outputs around 325 volts, and this high voltage connector goes directly to the flash capacitor. Now there are two voltage sources, internal and external, two 325 volt sources, charging the flash capacitor, for faster recycle and larger longer battery capacity. The original 6 volt AA cells also powers the rest of the electronics, so the AA batteries have to be there too.

The Yongnuo SF-18 battery pack plugs into the Nikon speedlights using the SAME high voltage connector that the Nikon SD-8 and SD-9 battery packs plug into. Canon is the same deal. That external connector is a 325 volt connector. The external package is NOT merely a battery compartment. If it were merely a battery compartment, it would have to plug into the speedlight battery compartment, which it does not.


I know little about Quantum, but the specs make it obvious that some Quantum batteries are 6V lead acid, but others use a NiMH battery pack. I don't know how the Quantum NiMH batteries connect, but the 6V lead acid has to be connected into the flash AA battery compartment, replacing the original AA batteries, and simply furnishes 6V with a much longer capacity duration (a bigger 6V battery). Lead acid batteries also have a much lower internal impedance, and so recycle (from the flashes own power converter) can be much faster recycle using 6V lead acid instead of 6V of AA alkalines. Rechargeble NiMH batteries are about twice as fast as alkalines, but not as fast as lead acid.

For example, another source of such replacement 6V lead acid battery pack is the Al Jacobs Black Box: PRODUCTS and SERVICES | www.ALJACOBS.COM which necessarily plugs into the flash AA battery compartment (typically using Quantum cables and connectors, because they are available). Longer life, faster recycle than AA batteries, but is still NOT a high voltage power pack like the Yongnuo SF-18. In this sense, the lead acid batteries are merely another battery compartment.

The Yongnuo SF-18 battery pack uses AA NiMH, but it definitely outputs 325 volts to charge the speedlight flash capacitor directly.
It will work with alkaline AA batteries too, but alkalines will recycle much slower than NiMH or lead acid (alkaline is high internal impedance).

Good to know!

 

[WayneF]

Edsport you have bought fake ni-mh batterys they take a low 1000-1500mah AA battery and stick a label with 3800mah on it, so far there is no AA ni-mh battery over 2900mah that i have seen.

Some reports are even lower, closer to only 500mah.

You will surely want to trash those fake 3800mah AA batteries. Some chargers have options to test batteries by discharging them, to determine how much mah they can actually provide. At least find a friend with that, and check them.

This 3800mah myth is everywhere if you search around on the internet. Even Amazon is victim:
Amazon.com : Rechargeable 1.2V "3800"mAh AA NI-MH Batteries Battery (Pair) : Camera Flash Battery Packs : Camera & Photo

See this about fake Sonys: CountrySelector - Sony

 

[Tinderbox (UK)]

Ok, my test is complete the third-party battey that cost me £3.93 has a capacity of 1079mah it was supposed to be 1300mah.

The OEM battery that costs £45.00 to buy on Amazon UK, had a capacity of 1163mah and it was supposed to 1260mah.

That is only an 7.8% difference in capacity between the third-party battery and the oem battery, but the oem battery costs 11.45 times more

john.

Edsport you have bought fake ni-mh batterys they take a low 1000-1500mah AA battery and stick a label with 3800mah on it, so far there is no AA ni-mh battery over 2900mah that i have seen.

A quick and dirty way to check the capacity is to compare the weight of the new battery with a branded version of an AA battery, if the 3800mah battery is lighter than a branded 2100mah battery it has to be fake.

I have been a member of the website below for years and they test all battery types for capacity, and the fake capacity battery`s on ebay are notorious.

Flashlight Electronics - Batteries Included

John.

EDIT : I am busy testing the capacity of some cheap third-party battery`s for my Fuji X-E1 3x battery`s for £11.80 when an original goes for £40+

I use 3800 mAh in my speedlights. Lots of storage power and very cheap...

Cfl rechargable aa | eBay

 

[table1349]

The Quantum Battery pack mentioned is not at all like the Yongnuo. The Quantum is expensive because it has it's own battery and voltage regulator. It is not a compartment that holds batteries like the Yongnuo. The Quantum will out perform the standard battery packs like the Yongnuo in number of flashes and recharge time. That is what you are paying for.

This not correct information about the Yongnuo external battery pack. It is NOT merely a AA battery compartment, far from it.

Speedlights do use AA batteries, typically four to output 6 volts. These AA batteries go into a AA battery compartment. The speedlight necessarily also builds in a power converter and voltage regulator to convert 6V to around 325 volts to directly charge the flash capacitor that powers the flash tube. This power converter current is the whine we sometimes hear at recycle.

Some speedlight models have another high voltage connector where an external battery pack can be plugged in. The battery pack also includes a similar power converter and voltage regulator which outputs around 325 volts, and this high voltage connector goes directly to the flash capacitor. Now there are two voltage sources, internal and external, two 325 volt sources, charging the flash capacitor, for faster recycle and larger longer battery capacity. The original 6 volt AA cells also powers the rest of the electronics, so the AA batteries have to be there too.

The Yongnuo SF-18 battery pack plugs into the Nikon speedlights using the SAME high voltage connector that the Nikon SD-8 and SD-9 battery packs plug into. Canon is the same deal. That external connector is a 325 volt connector. The external package is NOT merely a battery compartment. If it were merely a battery compartment, it would have to plug into the speedlight battery compartment, which it does not.


I know little about Quantum, but the specs make it obvious that some Quantum batteries are 6V lead acid, but others use a NiMH battery pack. I don't know how the Quantum NiMH batteries connect, but the 6V lead acid has to be connected into the flash AA battery compartment, replacing the original AA batteries, and simply furnishes 6V with a much longer capacity duration (a bigger 6V battery). Lead acid batteries also have a much lower internal impedance, and so recycle (from the flashes own power converter) can be much faster recycle using 6V lead acid instead of 6V of AA alkalines. Rechargeble NiMH batteries are about twice as fast as alkalines, but not as fast as lead acid.

For example, another source of such replacement 6V lead acid battery pack is the Al Jacobs Black Box: PRODUCTS and SERVICES | www.ALJACOBS.COM which necessarily plugs into the flash AA battery compartment (typically using Quantum cables and connectors, because they are available). Longer life, faster recycle than AA batteries, but is still NOT a high voltage power pack like the Yongnuo SF-18. In this sense, the lead acid batteries are merely another battery compartment.

The Yongnuo SF-18 battery pack uses AA NiMH, but it definitely outputs 325 volts to charge the speedlight flash capacitor directly.
It will work with alkaline AA batteries too, but alkalines will recycle much slower than NiMH or lead acid (alkaline is high internal impedance).

I understand that however to me an average of 200 flashes from a Yongnuo with NiMH batteries and an average of 1050 flashes with a Quantum T3 is a significant difference as is being able to supply power to a camera body at the same time and still supply an average of 600 flashes from the T3 or two flashes at the same time. To me, that is a significant difference.

 

[ecphoto]

I went into a local hardware store and found their house brand selling for $1.50 per battery and the charger for $5.00, I figure for $11 I've got nothing to lose.
They are 2000mah NiMH and according to the package they are good for 800 recharge cycles.

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