ALPA GON tripod head vs AS C1

[jodad]

Has anyone done a comparison/review of these two heads?

 

[Christopher]

I had both. Didn’t like the Alpa GON at all. Still use the cube all the time.

I had hoped robuste the GON with only one part so to use just portrait movements. However, that’s not possible as the Arca Swiss clamps on the Alpa GON are NOT centered at all and it’s not possible to replace them.

All in all I think the cube is the much better product.

 

[mikeleland]

The Alpa feels much nicer to me. I like the movements more. But there is a fatal flaw in that the release knobs to take the head apart feel almost identical to the knobs used to adjust the movements. So it's possible to inadvertently release the top goniometer stage when attempting to adjust the stage if you're not actually looking at the head. I very rarely am looking at what my hands are doing when adjusting the head.

That could easily be addressed with some rubber bands.

The C1 is more robust and has a 90º capability. It is the better head overall. The Alpa is just pretty and nice...

 

[Jacob Buchowski]

The Alpa feels much nicer to me. I like the movements more. But there is a fatal flaw in that the release knobs to take the head apart feel almost identical to the knobs used to adjust the movements. So it's possible to inadvertently release the top goniometer stage when attempting to adjust the stage if you're not actually looking at the head. I very rarely am looking at what my hands are doing when adjusting the head.

That could easily be addressed with some rubber bands.

The C1 is more robust and has a 90º capability. It is the better head overall. The Alpa is just pretty and nice...

This is precisely the reason why I bought the AS Cube over the Alpa GON.

 

[jodad]

.

The C1 is more robust and has a 90º capability. It is the better head overall. The Alpa is just pretty and nice...

It really is quite pretty, the black and gold is beaut on my swa, I like that colour scheme. Although, more robust at that price point is more important.

As to your point about accidentally disconnecting the goniometer, you could solve that using the extender tube things that go over the small dials. They probably make using the gears easier and more comfortable too.

 

[mikeleland]

It really is quite pretty, the black and gold is beaut on my swa, I like that colour scheme. Although, more robust at that price point is more important.

As to your point about accidentally disconnecting the goniometer, you could solve that using the extender tube things that go over the small dials. They probably make using the gears easier and more comfortable too.

Yeah, it's far and away my favorite head from a vanity standpoint. I like your idea about the extender tube things. I think that would solve a lot of problems.

And I still think it feels better than the cube in operation. Although, I've never used anything big on it.

I'm halfway motivated to roll my own Gon at this point...