Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum

im wanting to finally replace my eBay transmitters that i use for my hot shoe flashes and use them with my cyber commander. do i need to get the plus receivers since i am usinf the commander? or since they are just going on hot shoe flashes and i wont be able to control the power anyway can i get the cheaper ones?

also, the light meter on the commander, i have not used to much outside of the studio. how good is this light meter compared to other dedicated light meters?

and lastly, on my commander the little swivel joint that's lets you lay it flat seems to have lost all grip after the first couple weeks of use and can no longer hold a position, it just flaps around ever which way. is there an easy way of fixing this?

You *can* use the non+ model recievers with Cyber Commander, however, by using the + model recivers, you will still retain individual metering, grouping, and of course, triggering functions.

We verify the readings of each Cyber Commander against an accurate "control". You should find Cyber Commander to be accurate and consistent. If not, let us know.

If there is no resistance on the way down, we will need to correct that, however, there will be more resistance on the way up than down.

ok that makes sense! ill be sticking with the plus then! and what are some good ways to test the light meter? not that i dont trust it, but i like to know how things work and understand them.

and i have no resistance in either direction.

The best way would be photographic. Take one light and meter it at different power settings. Set you camera correspondingly and take a photo. Each shot should be virtually identical in exposure and properly exposed. Or, you can trigger a light while using bothe meters simultaneously. They should match.

However, the Cyber Commander reads in 1/10 stop increments, where as a Sekonic may be set to 1/3 stop settings. So if the Commander reads f/5.6' 9, many users unfamiliar to 1/10 stop increments will think that is much closer to f/5.6 than f/8. However, that is 1/10 of a stop below f/8 and 9/10 above f/5.6. Or, the Cyber Commander may read f/5.6' 3, and a Sekonic may say f/6.3. This is the same reading. Also, with the Cyber Commander having 1/10 stop resolution, it is more accurate than a 1/3 stop meter. A 1/3 stop meter may round up or down to the nearest 1/3. While this will not make a lot of difference in a photo, there could be a reading discrepency.

The numbers after the apostrophe are very important.