I know there are a number of members on here that use the Tronix Exlorer power pack made by Innovatronix. I've been thinking about getting one of these myself for some time but as yet remain undecided. If you have one of these devices or have used one in the past, I would appreciate your honest opnion of it, sort of like a mini-review. Have you used it much? If not, why not? Would you recommend it?

The other option I'm considering is selling my mains powered Elinchrom Kit (comprising 2 Elinchrom Style 600 heads plus associated accessories) and putting the proceeds towards the cost of purchasing an Elinchrom Ranger RX Kit. However, at about €2,000, this is not a decision to be taken lightly! It is a very versatile piece of kit, but that alone is not a good enough reason to buy it.

Very happy with it. I've done a number of shoots with (not a huge amount, due to the whole failure rate of models on location shoots-noone here girls and boys!) it using between 2-4 lights, with no issues and far more juice than I imagined!

Now the older version(ie the one I have) doesn't handle digital lights so well, so I can't use it with the new Dlite4 kit I just got. The new version may, I heard a rumour over at Frank Doorhof's but haven't checked yet. 

Hi Thorsten,

I bought one last year, but I have only used it once as for the weather, but intend to use it over the next few weeks, from the shoot I did, it worked very well, and the recycle time was fast enough, I also was using it with the modelling lamp switched on on my Bowens 500's, the only difference I found was that when recharging the modelling light came on slowly as the pack recharged,
   the unit itself isn't pretty lol, but seems well made, its bigger that the bowens pax, but the bowens pack doesnt power the modelling lamps, thouigh I have no idea the size of the Ranger series. I bought it with the optional carry bag which I would recommend, it makes it easier to carry and it adds protection from mud, water etc. 

mine came ready to go, with the right connectors, just make sure when you are ordering that you pick the right version, after I ordered it, it arrived in 3 or 4 days, and after paying the duty at the door, think it was around 35 quid, as far as I know the unit with everything included, postage and duty cost about 230 pounds.
As for my buying experience with Tronix, It was so simple, you order, then you get tracking emailed to you, get emails from their staff to keep you informed, one to ask has it arrived and then a few months later they email you to thank you for buying and wishing you well, thats the icing on a very nice cake.

so It depends on how much you want to pay, how much you are going to use it, and what condition your old lights are in.
Hope this helps. Tim

Thanks for the feedback and "reality reviews" folks. It's good to hear that the Tronix Explorer has some real benefits and isn't just another gadget that get's forgotten about in a corner after the novelty value has worn off.

@ Ross: Yes, indeed, the course has re-awakened my interest in this, although we used it less this time around than the first time. It's been something I've been considering for some time anyway, and would be particularly useful for thos occassional bright sunny summer days we get, not to mention a raft of other uses.

Looks like Innovatronix are in a backorder situation at the moment, so I won't be ordering just yet - that's a good excuse to research my options a bit more

I know nothing about these Tronix units, but am wondering if a car battery and inverter might be a cheaper way to do the same thing (ie, convert 12v DC to 240v AC in order to run electrical gear such as studio flash)? I'd guess something like a tractor battery would give you plenty of juice to run for a long time.

Also, I remember seeing a professional shoot taking place in Belfast a few months ago, I think for a wedding magazine, where they were using something like the Ranger flashs you mentioned, complete with studio brollies. Although there was only a light wind the whole units kept blowing over and crashing down on the pavement! Just something else to think about....

It has to be a pure sine wave inverter, but the answer is Yes, and there are plans for such on the net.