Question about Minolta Flash

[donlfaulkner]

I have a Minolta 280px flash that I would like to use on my Canon Rebel XS. The flash voltage on the flash, measured between the center post and the side (ground) terminal of the flash, is 1.76vdc.

I have read on a couple of sites that the Canon will accept 6vdc flash voltage which should work. [Sarcasm] We all know that one can accept any information from the internet as gospel. Right? [End of sarcasm.]

I realize that I will have to learn to use the flash on manual with none of the bells and whistles that the proper flash setup will have. Is this doable with the proper adapters or am I endangering my camera?

Any help will be appreciated as a new or used flash is just not in my budget at the moment.

[Lexie]

I've got an old Minolta flash that I use with PW's. I have 2 canon flashes so, I've never attempted to use the Minolta on either of my cameras. I didn't think that was possible. I'm sure others will be able to help with more info.

[donlfaulkner]

Originally Posted by Lexie

I'm sure others will be able to help with more info.

I sure hope so.

[tc95]

This should help you out...I ran across this site about a year ago...very good information about old flashes from every make...

Flash Voltage Info

Hope this answers your question about safe....wether it will fire or not...as long as the center pin makes contact with the camera you can use it...it will only fire in manual mode though....

Good Luck

[donlfaulkner]

Tony, thanks for the site. I checked it out and it seems to cover the Powershot pretty well but very little, to no, mention of the Rebel. They measured about the same voltage from the Minolta 280px that I measured.

I should be safe using the Minolta flash on my camera assuming the specs are the same for the Rebel and the Powershot.

However, since they only specify the Powershot with no mention of the Rebel I'm still researching.

[donlfaulkner]

I think I have found my answer here. There is a wealth of info on this site.

Quote:
Can I use a non-Canon, non-dedicated flash with my EOS camera?
[From Chuck Westfall]

USE OF NON-DEDICATED FLASH UNITS WITH EOS CAMERAS

Before using any unfamiliar studio strobe or other non-dedicated flash unit with an EOS camera, we STRONGLY recommend that you determine its trigger circuit voltage. Excessive trigger circuit voltage can damage the shutter units and X-contacts of most modern 35mm SLR cameras. Please be aware of the following information:

Trigger Circuit Voltage: The "trigger circuit" is the part of any electronic flash that detects the X-sync signal from the camera and then fires the flash. In order to do this, it supplies a certain amount of voltage through the sync cord or hot shoe to the camera's X-sync contact. The camera's X-sync contact, whether in the form of a PC socket or a dedicated hot shoe, is connected to the camera's shutter by a very thin connecting wire. When the first shutter curtain reaches the end of its travel, a small part of the shutter mechanism contacts the connecting wire, thus completing the circuit. At that moment, a change in resistance is detected by the flash's trigger circuit, causing the flash to fire.

Canon dedicated Speedlites pass no more than 6 volts DC through their trigger circuits. This is the level for which all EOS cameras, including the EOS-1 as well as the A2/A2E, 10s, 630, RT, Elan, Rebel etc. are designed.

GENERALLY SPEAKING, WE CANNOT RECOMMEND THE USE OF ANY STROBE WHO'S TRIGGER CIRCUIT VOLTAGE LEVEL EXCEEDS 6 VOLTS.

Most independently-made strobes that are "dedicated for Canon," whether they are shoe-mount or handle-mount, have safe trigger circuit voltage levels, but there are no guarantees. Trigger circuit voltages up to around 20 or 30 volts DC are not immediately dangerous, but they may damage the camera's X-sync contact, connecting wire or shutter unit over a period of time and usage.

However, many non-dedicated flash units, especially older studio strobe designs, use trigger circuits that may exceed 50 to 60 volts DC. This level is excessive for almost every currently made SLR, not just Canon. Certain independent flash equipment manufacturers (Lumedyne & Wein), in recognition of the problem, now sell a "sync filter" (connected between the power pack and the sync cord) that lowers the trigger circuit voltage to a safer level.

High voltage conducted through the camera's connecting wire can also generate electro-magnetic interference or "noise" which can have various unwanted effects on camera operation. These can include metering errors, shutter speed errors, aperture size errors, shutter release failure, etc. The effect varies according to the camera model, because the interference can affect different parts of IC chips according to the circuit layout.

It's easy to test any electronic flash for trigger circuit voltage level using a standard voltmeter. Digital voltmeters are relatively inexpensive and easy to find at stores like Radio Shack. The plus (+) lead is attached to the positive contact in the PC sync cord, while the minus (-) lead is attached to the ground contact of the PC contact on the sync cord. With hot shoe flash units, the plus lead should be placed on the + contact in the middle of the hot shoe, while the minus lead should be grounded on the hot shoe's ground terminal, usually located on the side above the lock nut. Usually the voltmeter or multimeter has several different settings for DC voltage depending on the range you're trying to measure. With an unknown strobe, it's best to start in the high range just in case.

Here is a list of known trigger circuit voltage levels for independently manufactured flash units and studio strobes. (Most of this data provided courtesy of Charles Tucek, Midwest Region Pro Market Representative):


Date Brand Name Model Number Trigger Circuit
Voltage
9/4/92 Calumet (Bowens) PS Series 30.0
9/4/92 Calumet (Bowens) Traveller Series 15.0
9/4/92 Comet CX244 11.0
11/6/92 Dynalite All Current Models 10.0
9/4/92 Metz 60CT4 5.0
9/4/92 Speedotron D604 Brown Line 64.8
9/4/92 Speedotron 2403CX Black Line 66.3
9/4/92 Vivitar 283* 5.0

*This is accurate only for 283s manufactured during or after 1987.

SAFE WAYS TO FIRE STUDIO STROBES WITH EOS CAMERAS:


There are several ways of firing a studio flash without using a sync cord at all. One way that works well is to use a 420EZ or 430EZ on 1/32 power manual flash, while the optical slave trigger of the flash is activated. By using the bounce feature of the 420 or 430, it's possible to direct the light away from the subject and into the optical slave trigger.
If that's not convenient, various companies including Quantum Instruments and Lindahl sell radio slave triggers consisting of a transmitter that connects to the camera's PC contact (or PC socket adapter), and a receiver that attaches to the studio strobe's power pack. In addition to radio slaves, there are also some IR slave devices that work basically the same way, but require a direct line of sight between transmitter and receiver. (Don't forget to test the slave transmitter for trigger circuit voltage as described above.) Be aware that the use of radio or IR slaves usually causes a small delay in flash firing that can cause problems when attempting 1/250 sync. Studio photographers generally don't care about this, but sports photographers usually do. In this case we recommend conducting a series of test exposures at various shutter speeds to find the usable maximum sync speed for any given equipment combination.

TROUBLESHOOTING TIPS

There are three things to look for if an EOS camera is not firing a studio strobe:

Some of the independently manufactured PC socket adapters have metal shoes. This may cause a short circuit with the dedicated contacts in the camera's hot shoe, and can sometimes prevent the flash from firing. The remedy for this is to use the Canon PC Socket Adapter, which has a plastic shoe. Alternatively, covering the 4 small contacts in the camera's hot shoe with electrical tape should solve the problem.
Due to the polarity of the X-sync contact used with the EOS A2E, A2, 10s, Elan and Rebel series cameras, electronic flash units with reverse polarity compared to the camera's X-sync contact will not fire. This can be a problem with some studio strobes. The polarity is caused by a diode attached to the camera's X-contact to protect the camera's built-in flash. When a strobe with reverse polarity is attached to the terminal, the strobe constantly sees a short circuit which prevents it from firing.
(This is generally not a problem with the EOS-1, 620, 630, 650 or RT cameras because their X-sync contacts have no such diode. They don't need the diode because they don't have a built-in flash.)

If you're sure that the PC socket adapter isn't the problem, and if you are using an EOS A2E, A2, 10s, Elan or Rebel series camera body, try reversing the polarity of the sync cord. On some studio strobes, the end of the sync cord that plugs into the power pack is a regular 2-bladed household-style plug. For this type, it's a simple matter of turning the plug around 180 degrees. Other sync cords may have headphone-jack type plugs; this type has to be rewired in order to work. Some photographers make a reverse-wired extension cord that plugs into their existing sync cord, while others just rewire a whole cord and make that one their "EOS" sync cord.

Last but not least, if the first two solutions don't work, excessive trigger circuit voltage as discussed earlier in this bulletin may prevent the EOS camera from firing the studio strobe. In this case, it's best to use the solutions recommended in "Safe Ways to Fire Studio Strobes with EOS Cameras."

[sldi]

make sure your mount is the same from flash to camera, newer minolta flashes use a different foot and it physically wont fit on non-minolta cameras, other than Sony.

There are some adapters but I believe they are for putting non-minolta flashes on Minolta cameras and not the other way around.

[MT Stringer]

Originally Posted by sldi

make sure your mount is the same from flash to camera, newer minolta flashes use a different foot and it physically wont fit on non-minolta cameras, other than Sony.

There are some adapters but I believe they are for putting non-minolta flashes on Minolta cameras and not the other way around.

That was my thinking. I had read somewhere that Minolta flashes have a proprietary mounting foot and won't work on the Canon hot shoe. I could be wrong, though.

[donlfaulkner]

I'm looking at adapters with a PC outlet. I have one with a PC cord but the camera has no PC outlet on it. These adapters have only the center pin which means no control from the camera other than to trigger the flash. This will work assuming the flash voltage is within limits. Bob at the Camera Shop here in Longview has an adapter, "sync filter", with a protection ckt but it's more than I wanted to spend. That may be the wiser choice. And cheaper in the long run.

[MT Stringer]

Don, is this what you are looking for.
FlashZebra.com: Sony Proprietary Hotshoe to Pocket Wizard, CyberSync or Elinchrom Skyport (Item #0141)

Looks like the adapters I have got from him to mount my speedlights on. It has a 1/4 x 20 hole so you can mount the adapter on just about anything, plug it into your wireless receiver and get after it!

If need be, shoot an email and Lon will be glad to answer any questions you might have.

Edit: Let me clarify. This will allow you to use the flash off camera. Here is my 580 in such a setup.
http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...MTH_3726r1.jpg

Mike

[donlfaulkner]

Mike, This is what I'm looking to get to go with this to fire this with my Canon Rebel XS.

[donlfaulkner]

Reading back through this thread I noticed I neglected to mention that I'm looking to go off camera with a bracket with this flash.

[Dobick]

just an fyi about flash sync voltage allowable for remotes -- I just looked at both cybersync from PCBuff and pocket wizards. The pocket wizards can handle 200 volts of flash sync and the cybersyncs can handle 300 volts. So if you have any concerns or maybe plan on moving past tethered shooting in the future, you might be better off looking at getting the cords so that you can shoot remote/sans wires.

[donlfaulkner]

Thanks, Kent. I'll definately look into that.