Phottix EN-EL4a Conversion for D300/700 with MB-D10

Flash In The Pan

Flash In The Pan

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I decided to "invest" £30 in one of these so that I don't have to cart around a load of rechargeable AAs in order to get 8fps from my D300.

Here are a few pics of what my thirty quid bought me.....


On first inspection the build quality looks pretty good for the money

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The plastic end piece is a pretty good match for the finish of the MB-D10. The charger lead (included) plugs in under the rubber cap, but only comes with a "continental" fitment, so you need a travel adapter to plug it into the UK mains

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The conversion basically consists of one of Phottix's EN-EL4a batteries and a new end cap/charger fitment which is screwed/glued onto it. You may notice the gap between the lug and the battery in the pic below, well it wasn't like that when it arrived (more later)

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Once installed in the MB-D10 it becomes apparant that the fit isn't quite as good as it could be, however this may be down to it being designed primarily to fit Phottix's own aftermarket D300 grip.

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The poor fit of the end piece is a bit of an irritation (as is the fact that the latch sits ever so slightly proud when closed) but I'd imagine after a while you wouldn't notice either of these failings.

So what's it like in use, I hear you ask. Well, I still need to conduct more tests- it arrived a couple of days before the RAC Rally with a partial charge in it, so I had a wee play with it and everything seemed fine. The camera accepted the battery and the indicator displayed the correct type. It also gave an indicated 8fps, so far, so good.

I then charged the battery fully overnight in anticipation of a day's shooting at the rally. In the morning I put the battery (which was showing fully charged) into my camera and set off. Unfortunately as soon as I tried to take a shot the battery indicator started flashing and the camera went dead. Worse still it also wouldn't let me swap over to use the EN-EL3e that I had installed in the camera body, meaning I had to remove the new battery and use the grip with no end on it.

Just in case it was simply a poor connection (which can happen with the MB-D10) I tried inserting the battery with an extra little "push", which resulted in the glue giving between the battery and end piece :bang:, but still no power.

Since returning from the rally the battery has had a second charge and has been left sitting in my camera bag to see if it runs down again, but so far it has held a charge, although I've yet to give it a good workout to see how it performs under pressure.

So there you have it, at this moment in time I can't say hand-on-heart that this is good accessory to buy for your D300, but assuming the problems were just down to it needing a much longer initial charge and ignoring the minor fit problems, signs are that it may turn out to be well worth the money. Time will tell.
 
I actually had the same problem with the same brand batteries for my D40X grip. I don't recommend them. Initially I thought the grip was good, the batteries held charge but after about 5 charges, the batteries didn't hold charge for very long (less than a week). Never had this problem with genuine Nikon batteries so I will be sticking to Nikon batteries.

Btw, does the grip have a shutter release button and the cursor stick and AF-On button?
 
Is this is the "Kosmo" thingy?

It it works OK (jury appears to be out on that?) its much cheaper than the Nikon EN-EL4 + end for the battery (£30 for that alone!) + charger.
 
Keep us updated please Flashy........:thumbs:

Perhaps it would work better with the Phottix grip?.............:shrug:
 
SuperCNJ said:
I actually had the same problem with the same brand batteries for my D40X grip. I don't recommend them. Initially I thought the grip was good, the batteries held charge but after about 5 charges, the batteries didn't hold charge for very long (less than a week). Never had this problem with genuine Nikon batteries so I will be sticking to Nikon batteries.

Btw, does the grip have a shutter release button and the cursor stick and AF-On button?
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I bought Phottix batteries for my D80 and they are still going strong after more than 18 months of use and still showing a "new" charge, but of course those and the D40 batteries may be made by different companies.

In general I prefer to use OEM batteries, but at £30 I felt it was worth a try.

I don't know if the Phottix grip has the shutter button etc as I have the genuine Nikon one.

puddleduck said:
Is this is the "Kosmo" thingy?

It it works OK (jury appears to be out on that?) its much cheaper than the Nikon EN-EL4 + end for the battery (£30 for that alone!) + charger.
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Well, that was my feeling, as you say, the end cap for the EN-EL4a to fit into the MB-B10 costs as much, so if it works as well as the other Phottix batteries then I'll be happy...

fracster said:
Perhaps it would work better with the Phottix grip?.............:shrug:[/QUOTE

Maybes aye, maybes naw :shrug:

I wonder if anyone on here owns one?
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The Phottix stuff is really hit and miss - I've got one of those Cleon N8 thingy, and while it works well as a wireless remote,the wired remote button has a bit of a QC problem, not very tactile, and doesn't de-press properly, but I'll have to pay postage back to HKSupplies so its not worth it.

The batteries are usually OK.But QC is very iffy!
 
Yeah, I have two of their wireless remotes, one for the D80/D70s and one for the D200/300 fitment. The D80 was only used a handful of times but now the receiver part doesn't seem to work at all and I can't find out why :shrug:
 
Flash In The Pan said:
Well, no further dramas at this end, so far so good :thumbs:
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I got an unexpected windfall and ordered both the grip and the Kosmo, will let you know how they perform?

Your selection of avatar is creating some concern about your mental state, you ok Flashy?..............:lol:
 
Hmm - I may have to treat myself - how many shots do you think you are getting out of it Flash?
 
Does look pretty nifty.. if it does perform like an EN-EL4e shotwise?
 
Barlines said:
Hmm - I may have to treat myself - how many shots do you think you are getting out of it Flash?
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Not sure yet, I haven't done a lot of shooting with it. After it appeared to go flat overnight I'm just watching it to see how long it lasts on standby.
 
It works fine and fits fine on the Phottix grip Flashy, the in car charger is handy too......:thumbs:

Grip,charger and battery for less than the Nikon grip.
 
Sorry to raise an old thread, but I know where the search function is :D

If I could bend an ear or 2 for a few minutes, then thanks. I went for a Phottix BP-D300 (Grip, rechargable slider and EN-EL3 slider) and the Kosmo EN-EL4a replica and they do not line up in any way at all. I guess the Kosmo design is meant for the MB-D10 only and not the Phottix grip. I did get a BL-3 to fit a genuine EN-EL4 battery, but after the price of the battery and charger, I'll live with having to carry about some re-chargables.

The Kosmo will fit into the Phottix chamber and the D300 registers that its fitted but won't let me go any higher than 7fps in the D4 bank. I also fitted the 8 batteries into the battery slot and it comes with the same result, no 8fps selection available, but it lines up a lot neater than the Kosmo item as shown below,

Kosmo fitted,

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Rechargables fitted,

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Gareth,I will post some of mine later.
 
i wanted a grip for the D300/700, not for permanent attachment but just for times when it will be useful such as when I'm shooting mainly portrait or want the increased fps. I don't think the Nikon one is worth the money and if it was the only option I would just leave it. The one I will probably get will be one mentioned on here recently:

http://www.linkdelight.com/index.ph...EL3E-+-BL-3-Cover/Detailed-product-flyer.html

This seems great value and according to reports is a pretty good fit.
 
puddleduck said:
Lord no, I hate grips and I fart in their general direction.
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Well I have your old one ;) so it means you considered it, once :)

My D300 should be arriving tomorrow...... I just want the grip for portrait shooting honestly :D
 
God! I'm so glad I don't have to worry about all that...last camera I had with a seperate grip were my old F3 and FM2 film bodies...
 
Perhaps if you spent your money on camera bodies,rather than ours,you may feel differently.
 
fracster said:
Perhaps if you spent your money on camera bodies,rather than ours,you may feel differently.
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What make's you think he doesn't spend his own money ? :thinking:
 
Interesting. I bought the Link delight grip and a separate EL4 battery and charger. The grip works perfectly with AA's and the El3, but the EL4 although seemingly fully charged just locks the camera up as the OP describes, indicating low battery and not allowing the camera to switch to the on board battery.

I have tried a longer charge (overnight) with no improvement and a quick voltage check showed the battery giving 12 volt which should be OK.

The supplier is going to send a replacement battery, but I really am not convinced it is the battery, we shall see.......

Will report back later once I get a replacement battery, but at least its fine on the AA's (although it makes the D300s even heavier!)
This was the battery and charger:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....150909&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#ht_3054wt_905
 
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