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New Profoto Battery Pack 'BatPac"

robmac

Well-known member
FYI New multi-head D1/Compact/Acute2, etc battery pack... Have Acute B and Compact 600s, but this makes the Compacts, any future D1s and Acute2 that more attractive. Multiple D1 500 AiR heads w/full remote power control + long battery life (varying of course) out of a small knapsack unit.

http://www.profoto.com/batpac/

Curious as to why is Lead Acid vs new LiFe batteries (maybe next iteration), but still looks sweet. Also given their rep with battery units, little risk of an undesired & unexpected weenie-roast as with some other 3rd party units.
 

fotografz

Well-known member
11.2 Kg with Lead acid.....still looks wonderful and works with D1s.

Bob
Man, that's 24 lbs?

Isn't this just an DC inverter? Couldn't you just plug in any mono head? What's so special that it'll work with D1s? Wouldn't any battery driven power generator work for the D1s?

Wonder what the price tag will be?

-Marc
 

robmac

Well-known member
Price tag rumored at roughly $1500-1800. Looks like 600W pure sine wave (as in won't nuke your lights or computer) inverter plus control/heat, etc circuitry.

Some folks have tried AB Vagabond and Innvatronix (sic) units with D1s with no/limited success - IIRC VB, during recycle, as example can't supply the minimum voltage required by the D1s before they will shut-down. Some packs also have issues with some digital monolights (or vice versa) that are dual-voltage.

One thing that attracts me to it is the Profoto name and rep re: battery packs. There have been a number of reports of late on POTN, Flickr of some cheaper units smoking, throwing sparking or flames during recharge (very worrisome) and use and statements by the manufacturer of how they should not be left unattended while recharging. The stuff of wet dreams for lawyer's and insurance adjusters.
Also, seeing as how SLA batteries need almost contact trickle charging when not in use for any time, this could prove a bit inconvenient.

I figure high-current battery devices (that don't play well with shorts/poor solder joints/loose connections) is one area where it might a case where you get what you pay for.

The BatPac, like most pure-sine wave units will power any monolight, computer, etc. They're just linking it to the D1s for marketing purposes.

One unit that looks really cool, but costly ($3K) is the Little Genny: http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/content_page.asp?cid=7-10043-10273
 
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ghoonk

New member
Sorry to revive this thread, but I've been reading this with much interest, having recently acquired an Acute/D4 2400 kit, and wondering how to make this setup portable. The Batpac seems like a viable option to power the Acute generator (or is it limited to the Acute 2?).

Does anyone have any recent feedback about portable power options for the Acute/D4 2400 combo?
 

fotografz

Well-known member
Sorry to revive this thread, but I've been reading this with much interest, having recently acquired an Acute/D4 2400 kit, and wondering how to make this setup portable. The Batpac seems like a viable option to power the Acute generator (or is it limited to the Acute 2?).

Does anyone have any recent feedback about portable power options for the Acute/D4 2400 combo?
No mention of the D4 2400 as being supported on the Profoto site. So, I doubt it ... but, I'd call them to double check.

-Marc
 

Kirk Candlish

New member
The Batpac seems like a viable option to power the Acute generator (or is it limited to the Acute 2?).

Does anyone have any recent feedback about portable power options for the Acute/D4 2400 combo?
The BatPac, or any other battery/inverter system, doesn't know what you've plugged into it, just how much current it's demanding. Likewise your D4 just wants to recharge in it's normal timeframe based on whether you've set it to normal or fast charge. A D4 doesn't have a slow recharge option.

So the question really becomes what kind of current draw the D4 has on normal recycle with whatever power settings you're shooting with. Assuming you just want portability and not fast recycling.

I've used my D1 Airs, Pro 7 and Acute packs on generators and battery/inverter systems. Expect to carry something large and heavy if you're really looking for power and any number of shots, irregardless of what technology and brand you choose to power your D4 with.

I wouldn't risk a D4 on anything that isn't producing a true sign wave. Cheap generators and inverters produce a stepped wave that you DO NOT want to use.
 
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