M8 flash sync voltage?

[RonM]

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I cannot find the maximum voltage that the hot shoe/camera can switch without damaging the camera. Anyone know for sure?

[giordano]

I've never seen a hint that that information has been made public. However:

1. The M8 manual doesn't contain any warnings about using old (and therefore possibly high-trigger-voltage) flashguns. It just says "we recommend" using modern thyristor-controlled (and therefore, I believe, low-trigger-voltage) ones.
   
2. Several threads over the years - probably starting with the famous http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/21331-anatomy-leica-m8.html - suggest that the M8 has a heavy duty power transistor in the synch circuit that should be able to handle quite high voltages.
   
3. There don't seem to have been any reports of M8s being fried by old flashguns.
   
4. The R8 manual does specify "ISO 10330" and "a maximum ignition voltage of 24V", which suggests that Leica are alert to this issue and would have put a warning in the M8 manual if it was important.
   
5. The recent R8 flash thread tells the story of an R8 that had an old Mecablitz putting out more than 200V connected to it. The camera couldn't fire the flash but appears to have suffered no damage and certainly still works with a modern low-voltage unit.
   

Putting all these together, it seems (a) pretty likely that an M8 will work safely with 200-250V in the synch circuit, and ( very unlikely that it will be damaged even if it can't fire the flash.

 

But I'm not going to be the first to find out:D.

[fotoism]

According to Leica NJ "The maximum trigger voltage allowed is 230v."

[RonM]

Thanks to both of you. 230V is much higher than my old strobe puts out, so it should be fine!

[wparsonsgisnet]

According to Leica NJ "The maximum trigger voltage allowed is 230v."

 

Phil, where do you get this info?

 

tnx,

[fotoism]

I e-mailed Leica NJ back in August 2009 asking them the same question and Mark Brady replied in his return e-mail with one single sentence: "The maximum trigger voltage allowed is 230v."

 

With that reply I decided not to use my Metz 34BCT1 ( 240 volt ) on my M8, not to buy a Wein safe-sync to resurrect my old Metz, but instead bought a Nikon SB28.

[andcolor]

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Does a Canon 430 ex come under the voltage wire? I made a few test shots w. the 480 ex last week and liked what I got but then heard about the voltage issues. How do we find out how much voltage a flash spits out?

[RonM]

Linda,

 

This site Photo Strobe Trigger Voltages

lists some flash voltages, and all the listed Canons appear to be in the 4-5 volt range, which would be fine. Unfortunately, the 430 is not listed. (I would think that it is certainly under the Leica's 230V limit though.)

If you can get hold of a DC multimeter ("VOM" or "D-VOM") you can measure the voltage between the two leads on the PC cable to get the trigger voltage. If you happen to short the two leads on the PC cable while making the measurement, the flash will fire, but you will not damage anything; just a surprise to fire the flash which you might not be expecting.

 

Ron

[giordano]

Does a Canon 430 ex come under the voltage wire? I made a few test shots w. the 480 ex last week and liked what I got but then heard about the voltage issues. How do we find out how much voltage a flash spits out?

 

Trigger voltage is only an issue with flashguns and studio flash units that were designed before the age of electronic cameras.

 

Any flashgun that does TTL on film cameras or that was made for digital cameras will have a trigger voltage well below the M8's limit.

[brill64]

pretty high, i think and according to all sources. you can search here on the forum since it's been covered with the m8 before

[andcolor]

Thank you so much for the info.

 

Cheers, happy new decade and thanks for getting me over the idea that I need a new Leica flash ;-)

 

L