Sb800 or sb900

evilonion

evilonion

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Dave Peacock
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Is there a big difference between the two?
I know the 900 isslightly higher powered but is it worth an extra £60 over the 800?
 
Sb800 is no longer made now, the sb900 is much larger in size, i wanted an sb800 but i did not buy a second hand one. I bought the sb900 and i am happy with it.
 
The SB 900 also has suffered a bit of a bad reputation for overheating issues, that said we haven't had any issues with that problem.
 
Yeah I noticed when I borrowed an sb900 for a party after around 20 shots it overheated and I had to wait. I know the sb800 isn't made anymore just looking at 2nd hand.
 
evilonion said:
Is there a big difference between the two?
I know the 900 isslightly higher powered but is it worth an extra £60 over the 800?
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The guide number of the SB800 is 38 making it slightly MORE powerful than the SB900 which is 34GN.

I have stuck with my SB800's because I couldn't see what advantages the SB900 offered, and the much larger unit size was definitely a DISadvantage, in my opinion.
 
evilonion said:
Yeah I noticed when I borrowed an sb900 for a party after around 20 shots it overheated and I had to wait. I know the sb800 isn't made anymore just looking at 2nd hand.
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I'd you upgrade the firmware it can fix the problem a bit. But like I said I just disabled the thermal cut out in my SB900s, still get the warning and it seems fine, but if you let it cutout you can't disable until the flash cools down. The external power packs make a big difference, the Warning doesn't seem to kick in when I'm using the power pack as it doesn't get the batteries in the flash so hot.
 
chip said:
The guide number of the SB800 is 38 making it slightly MORE powerful than the SB900 which is 34GN.

I have stuck with my SB800's because I couldn't see what advantages the SB900 offered, and the much larger unit size was definitely a DISadvantage, in my opinion.
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Are you sure, I thought the 800 was defiantly more powerful?
 
Reading through lots of posts it seems for parties etc that I do I would be better off with the sb800. Lots of people are saying the sb900 is huge and overhears where the sb800 is smaller and doesn't get as hot.

As for flash power I've never read up about guides etc. It says the 800 is around 105mm and the 900 is 200mm?
 
evilonion said:
As for flash power I've never read up about guides etc. It says the 800 is around 105mm and the 900 is 200mm?
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What do those figures relate to?

I know the SB800 'zooms' to 105mm (lens), so maybe that is what that figure is..... perhaps the SB900 zooms to 200mm but if that is the case, that would relate to 'angle' of light, not power of flashgun.
 
chip said:
It IS (or did you mean to type 900) :D

Assuming Nikon spec their flashes the same: Same ISO/Zoom/Distance.... the SB800 is 38 and the SB900 is 34

http://www.europe-nikon.com/en_GB/product/speedlights/speedlight-sb-900

http://http://www.europe-nikon.com/en_GB/product/speedlights/speedlight-sb-800
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Yeah it was a typo :)

I think the guide number is a bit misleading because it depends on how wide the flash is zoomed. Either way power is pretty close. I do like the extra zoom of the 900, the full rotation of the head is nice too as I bounce my on camera flash all the time. And the controls are much better IMO especially when using it as a commander.

Don't sweat the overheating thing, any flash will overheat and melt down if you are driving it hard enough. It's not that the 900 overheat easier, its the protection cutout that was a bit too over protective. But you can disable it and its no problem.

The 900 is bigger, and the 800 is a very good flash, its just that the 900 is just the king of dedicated flashes that even Canon users envy ;)
 
chip said:
What do those figures relate to?

I know the SB800 'zooms' to 105mm (lens), so maybe that is what that figure is..... perhaps the SB900 zooms to 200mm but if that is the case, that would relate to 'angle' of light, not power of flashgun.
Click to expand...



Yes the flash beam is Zoomed, the 900 can zoom to 200mm, you can zoom it manually which can be useful when bouncing flash or punching light down a narrow area without over lighting objects close to you.
 
lensflair said:
I do like the extra zoom of the 900, the full rotation of the head is nice too as I bounce my on camera flash all the time.
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Actually, I'll eat my words :cool:, I can see these two features being clear advantages over the SB800, especially the full rotation.
 
Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Seems the heat setting was fixed with a firmware update.
Zooming the flash sounds like I could have some fun on my night shoots.
Rotating the head is a must as I bounce all the time.
 
evilonion said:
Rotating the head is a must as I bounce all the time.
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If I were buying now, I would choose the SB900 for this reason alone. The SB800 does rotate 180 degrees one way but only 90 the other and it can limit you at times.
 
Where would you get the firmware update for this flashgun, and how do you get it "into" the flash gun.please.
Edit sorted it out now.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
chip said:
If I were buying now, I would choose the SB900 for this reason alone. The SB800 does rotate 180 degrees one way but only 90 the other and it can limit you at times.
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Yep, that's probably the one and only shortfall of the SB800 compared to it's newer brother. I've learned to live with it but in a rush, it does catch me out still....

The control system on the SB800 is very simple - one crosshair with up/down to adjust power and left/right to change zoom (push to access menus). Some people prefer the SB800's control, others prefer the SB900's.... it's horses for courses I feel.

Price-wise the SB800 is good value; I picked my second one up for £175. Don't know what used prices for the SB900 is but new it's quite an expense, especially if you want a multiple flash system that ultimately, is the same if you use the SB800 instead.
 
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