Soligor - new inexpensive P-TTL compatible flash?!

[Roland Mabo]

Hello friends

According to the swedish online store Cyberphoto, the Soligor DG-420Z works with all Pentax bodies supporting P-TTL, including the K10D and K100D. They have tested it with the K10D themselves and rates it as "best buy". It is less expensive than Sigma EF500DG Super and Pentax own AF360FGZ, but it doesn't do high speed sync. It does both tilt and swivel.

According to Soligors homepage, the flash only does TTL. But it seems to be that Soligor has updated the flash recently to P-TTL without updating the information on their homepage.
http://www.cyberphoto.se/?http://www.cyberphoto.se/info.php?article=58427
Images on the page is taken with a K10D + the Soligor flash.
--
Take care
R

 

[Brett St Pierre]

Indeed Roland, if this has reliable P-TTL capability then it'll be a welcome after market option for some people not wanting to spend up. The GN at 42 (iso100) is OK and I guess it doesn't support wireless (but then for now the Sigma EF500 DG Super doesn't either :-() but it's good to have options.... thanks for the heads up...

--
Brett
http://www.pbase.com/shreder



The Journey is the Thing

 

[JensR]

Hi Roland!

That would be excellent news!

Indeed the Soligor homepage is sort of a mess, the flash that's now lebelled as TTL only had been labelled P-TTL before, but after someone here found that this is incorrect, they changed it. If they now really got out a P-TTL flash, this would be really good.

No high-speed sync or remote wireless P-TTL with that unit, but still, a good alternative.

It has 5 manual power levels, which is nice, but does the test say anything about whether it does Auto flash, too?

Soligor's homepage does say nothing about it:
https://secure.soligor.com/index.php?id=5&backPID=75&L=1&tt_products=6704&L=1

Cheers
Jens

--

'Well, 'Zooming with your feet' is usually a stupid thing as zoom rings are designed for hands.' (Me, 2006)
http://www.jensroesner.de/
--=! Condemning proprietary batteries since 1976 !=--

 

[Andaar]

I used to have it and as Jens poited out, I also bought it (almost a yr ago) witht he impression it was P-TTL compatible.

Anyway, it worked quite nice, I liked that it had the widest zoom position of 24mm which went nicely together with 16-45 lens, bounce and swivel head was also something that other flashes of the same price level did not have; plus it was quite small. However, I really missed the option of flash compensation (used it with *istD) because with TTL the exposure was not perfect.

It may be good for people, who are tight on budget but IMHO Sigma 500 ST is also a option to consider.

--
Take care!

Ondrej 'Andaar'

Life is a game, so lets play!

 

[Roland Mabo]

Cyberphoto took images with it and the K10D, so this combination works.
But the technical information available leaves out many things.
Best way is to ask them directly I guess.
--
Take care
R

 

[Roland Mabo]

Cyberphoto tested the Soligor with the K10D in late January 2007, so the flash seems to have been updated since you had it.
--
Take care
R

 

[JensR]

Best way is to ask them directly I guess.

I've done so before and got no reply

--

'Well, 'Zooming with your feet' is usually a stupid thing as zoom rings are designed for hands.' (Me, 2006)
http://www.jensroesner.de/
--=! Condemning proprietary batteries since 1976 !=--

 

[JensR]

Andaar,

does the flash do Auto Flash, too?

price level did not have; plus it was quite small. However, I
really missed the option of flash compensation (used it with *istD)
because with TTL the exposure was not perfect.

Do you know of this "trick"?
http://www.jr-worldwi.de/photo/ist_DS_internalflash.html
-> flash exposure compensation

Cheers
Jens

--

'Well, 'Zooming with your feet' is usually a stupid thing as zoom rings are designed for hands.' (Me, 2006)
http://www.jensroesner.de/
--=! Condemning proprietary batteries since 1976 !=--

 

[Roland Mabo]

I asked the store Cyberphoto about the flash, and they said...

1. the flash does not have thyristor cell, so it won't function in "programmed auto flash" mode.

2. the flash works in P-TTL, because if it didn't - the exposures would have been overexposed. Cyberphoto has tested the flash with a K10D and this combination works very well.
3. the flash is more updated than Soligors homepage is.
--
Take care
R

 

[Roland Mabo]

Sorry to hear that, I got an answer the same day I asked. (see other post about the answer).
--
Take care
R

 

[JensR]

Hi Roland!

I asked the store Cyberphoto about the flash, and they said...

Ah, that was my error, I was so stupid to ask Soligor
(The other error was maybe that I asked a few weeks ago...)

Anyway, that's really great news and eases my worries about losing TTL function for my macro shots.

3. the flash is more updated than Soligors homepage is.

I hope they fix it, it's quite a good product.

My worry is now that apparently both flashes (TTL and P-TTL) have the same name - this will make it difficult to recognize the new, updated version, right?

Jens

--

'Well, 'Zooming with your feet' is usually a stupid thing as zoom rings are designed for hands.' (Me, 2006)
http://www.jensroesner.de/
--=! Condemning proprietary batteries since 1976 !=--

 

[lela_jr]

I have Sigma EF500 DG Super, and wireless flash works with my both cameras, *istD and K10DK (with firmware 1.10)

 

[Roland Mabo]

Ah, yes - it could be difficult to tell the old from the new. That is a problem, indeed.

Probably one can do it by serial number, but I have no information on where the new starts and the old ends.

--
Take care
R

 

[Roland Mabo]

I have Sigma EF500 DG Super, and wireless flash works with my both
cameras, *istD and K10DK (with firmware 1.10)

That is more than even Sigma know.
--
Take care
R

 

[SpotBeam]

Hello Jens,

when I click on your link

Do you know of this "trick"?
http://www.jr-worldwi.de/photo/ist_DS_internalflash.html
-> flash exposure compensation

I get your whole flash page (which is nicely done btw) and I didn't read the whole again now. But if you mean that in AV the normal exposure compensation dialed in via the control wheel will become FEC: This won't work on the *istD with normal TTL flashes. I tried it with a Metz 40 MZ2 and various Soligor TTL flashes. The compensation has no effect, even when -3 is dialed in.

It does work with the Pentax 540 in P-TTL and with the built-in flash (P-TTL obviously) though.

Greetings,
SpotBeam

 

[Eilert Ofstead]

either that, or does it go under a different model number??

Eilert

 

[Grant Hutchins]

The limited flash options for the K10 is really frustrating. The sigma offering seamed promising but I read posts saying that there were problems with it with the latest update version. Other then that, I've looked at just about every obscure "cheap" flash I can find and I'm having a hard time getting a definitive answer about P-TTL and the k-10.

Here's the best answer so far:

is compatible with the Pentax K10D. And you will want to install the version
1.10 firmware update for the K10D for more accurate flash exposure using
this flash on the K10D. This flash sells for about $229.99.> >

I'm waiting for a follow-up to define just how compatible it is as far as auto, high synch and such. Mainly, I just want to take pics indoors with my 17-70 without the shadows from the pop-up. I'm a complete novice to DSLR so I really need a flash that is idiot-proof and maybe have room to grow with, but mostly I just need an inexpensive flash that I can use without a lot of thought or calculation.

I really think Pentax should ease up on the price of their flash units or come up with a more useable low-end offer. Aside from the fact that $300 bucks is not exactly cheap to me, it seems to me that the flash is pretty useless for a lot of shots without being able to swivel for portraiture unless there is a work-around for using the 360 FG Z when holding the camera vertically that I don't know about.

 

[Kitanis]

From the Soligar website for the 420Z flash for Pentax

Specifications:
• for digital & analog Pentax AF cameras
• guide no. 24 to 42 at ISO 100
• TTL flash control (not P-TTL)
• power zoom for focal lengths 24, 28, 35, 50, 70 and 85mm
• bounce angle vertical 0° 45° 60° 75° 90°
• swivel head max. 270°
• flash recycling time 0.5–8s
• slave-Adaptor
• flash duration: app. 1/1,000s–1/20,000s

• number of flashes: app. 150 to 1,500 flashes with 1 set of fresh alkaline batteries
• color temperature: 5600K (in accordance with daylight)
• autofocus illumination 1–8m
• thyristor circuitry
• 5 power ratios: full, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/16
• auto power off
• glash ready indicator
• exposure control display

• power supply: four 1.5V AA batteries Mignon type or NiCad rechargeable batteries of the same size
• 172x72x57mm
• weight approx. 278g (w/o batteries)

So.. who is right on this? According to the specs.. there is a Thyristor Circuit and its NON PTTL.
Kitanis, returning to photography

 

[Roland Mabo]

So.. who is right on this? According to the specs.. there is a
Thyristor Circuit and its NON PTTL.

Ok, then we take it again.

Cyberphoto is a swedish online retailer, voted "best photography dealer" so many years in a row that I have lost the count, and they test much of the equipment they sell.

They tested the Soligor unit with a K10D, and I asked them therefore for details about this.
I got an e-mail from Mr Thomas Lövgren, and he confirms that...

• the Soligor unit * does not have * a thyristor cell. (well, they couldn't find any).
• the Soligor unit * works in P-TTL * (if not, it would have been overexposing during their tests).
• the Soligor homepage has old information, the flash has been updated but the Soligor homepage hasn't been updated to the new version of this flash.

At their test page you can find three shots taken with the K10D and the Soligor unit.
http://www.cyberphoto.se/?http://www.cyberphoto.se/info.php?article=58427

I have bought most of my equipment from Cyberphoto, and they have always been very friendly and helpful with excellent customer service. (that is why they are No 1 in Sweden).
Why would they lie?

--
Take care
R

 

[JensR]

So.. who is right on this?

Roland said that the testing team confirmed the specs and I must say, I trust them.

According to the specs.. there is a Thyristor Circuit

"Thyristor" is not synonymous with "Auto Flash".

A Thyristor Circuit just means that when discharging, only that amount of energy is taken from the capacitor that is needed for the flash. With older non-thyristor circuits, the whole energy would be discharged always. The non-needed energy would be dissipated into heat. Very inefficient.

and its NON PTTL.

And until a few months ago Soligor stated P-TTL although the flash only did TTL....

Jens

--

'Well, 'Zooming with your feet' is usually a stupid thing as zoom rings are designed for hands.' (Me, 2006)
http://www.jensroesner.de/
--=! Condemning proprietary batteries since 1976 !=--