sb600 comment

[Mav]

I've got lots of revelations on the sb600 lately. In my other thread, I discovered that the stofen omnibounce supposedly for sb600, does not fit at all.

Another discovery: when you press the + and - to zoom the head, I noticed that the LCD display directly above the buttons (which displays the focal length) will 'blacken', much like when you press your calculator display, the LCD will xxxx - err... can anyone give me an adjective for this? Any LCD engineers here?

I certainly hope that this little surprise is not part of the flash's 'budget' package.

Cheers!

 

[espn]

Perhaps you can send back to Nikon SG or go back to the shop to verify against other sets.

I don't think budget equates to lower QC or lousy service.

 

[Mav]

Yeah I would.

Anyway, it is indeed interesting - and sad - to know that more times than not, budget models, from cars to electronics suffer from quality problems due to many factors - the rush to meet demands, sourcing materials locally, lower-salaried workers at times cutting corners, ignoring and tucking in the ends... I'm in the business and I've seen loads of these 'corner-cutting' and handled equal amounts of claims from my customers to say that manufacturers still turn out such batches, even if the product carries a top brand. In this, the old adage holds water: Made in Japan is best!

My 2-cents worth... Cheers!

 

[bernards]

QC is a very costly process. Sometimes it's cheaper to let the customers weed out the faulty ones for you. Many companies with mass market products do that. In the long run, it's bad for the brand. But it does help keep the bottom line healthy.

 

[Jed]

I think a lot of it depends on the manufacturer's standards. Very often the build problems are more to do with materials used, which ultimately the manufacturer decides. For instance, plenty of Audis are now made in Hungary, and due respect to them, it's not exactly somewhere you'd equate easily with quality, but their cars still have a good reputation for durability. OTOH, the Toyota MRS, which is a well regarded car that also has a good reputation for build, has a very cheap interior with erm, plasticky plastics. If they did that with the rest of the car, I think it would have more problems with reliability.

So while location of assembly/manufacture plays some part, manufacturers still have a good deal of control.

 

[sujj]

I think a lot of it depends on the manufacturer's standards. Very often the build problems are more to do with materials used, which ultimately the manufacturer decides. For instance, plenty of Audis are now made in Hungary, and due respect to them, it's not exactly somewhere you'd equate easily with quality, but their cars still have a good reputation for durability. OTOH, the Toyota MRS, which is a well regarded car that also has a good reputation for build, has a very cheap interior with erm, plasticky plastics. If they did that with the rest of the car, I think it would have more problems with reliability.

So while location of assembly/manufacture plays some part, manufacturers still have a good deal of control.

my 2 pesos worth.... u get for what you pay for. SB600 is$200 cheaper that can be equated to 200 reasonsfor lesser build quality hehe :bheart:

 

[espn]

my 2 pesos worth.... u get for what you pay for. SB600 is$200 cheaper that can be equated to 200 reasonsfor lesser build quality hehe :bheart:

The D70 is 1K cheaper than the D100, you don't get lesser quality & features do you? Read my first reply again.

 

[SianZronG]

I've got lots of revelations on the sb600 lately. In my other thread, I discovered that the stofen omnibounce supposedly for sb600, does not fit at all.

Another discovery: when you press the + and - to zoom the head, I noticed that the LCD display directly above the buttons (which displays the focal length) will 'blacken', much like when you press your calculator display, the LCD will xxxx - err... can anyone give me an adjective for this? Any LCD engineers here?

I certainly hope that this little surprise is not part of the flash's 'budget' package.

Cheers!

if you press hard on any LCD or this kind it would darken too.... mine doesn't darken but the focal length would fade a bit effects from pressing, guess it's mounted on the same peice of PCB and when you press the buttons it would move the PCB downwards.

 

[deadpixel]

When and where did you get your SB-600? Is it grey market?

I got mine in mid June and it does not have the problems with the LCD you are describing. No matter how hard I press the zoom, +, - or mode buttons, the LCD stays sharp and clear, no darkening or lightening.

Are your batteries fresh? Weak batteries may cause LCDs to behave in an erratic manner.

If it is not grey market, you might want to send it to the Nikon service centre to have it looked at. Or if it's still fresh from the shop, take it back and exchange it.

BTW, pressing the + and - buttons does not zoom the head. It changes the manual flash output level.

I've got lots of revelations on the sb600 lately. In my other thread, I discovered that the stofen omnibounce supposedly for sb600, does not fit at all.

Another discovery: when you press the + and - to zoom the head, I noticed that the LCD display directly above the buttons (which displays the focal length) will 'blacken', much like when you press your calculator display, the LCD will xxxx - err... can anyone give me an adjective for this? Any LCD engineers here?

I certainly hope that this little surprise is not part of the flash's 'budget' package.

Cheers!

 

[JAG]

When and where did you get your SB-600? Is it grey market?

I got mine in mid June and it does not have the problems with the LCD you are describing. No matter how hard I press the zoom, +, - or mode buttons, the LCD stays sharp and clear, no darkening or lightening.

Are your batteries fresh? Weak batteries may cause LCDs to behave in an erratic manner.

If it is not grey market, you might want to send it to the Nikon service centre to have it looked at. Or if it's still fresh from the shop, take it back and exchange it.

BTW, pressing the + and - buttons does not zoom the head. It changes the manual flash output level.

Same here, mine is a new grey sb600 and no problems so far. I also press the +- and nothing happens. It all appears fine. Tried many times and no issue.
Think you should have yours checked. You have fresh batteries in it when you try, right,?

 

[Mav]

Yup bringing it down to Nikon soon to get it sorted out. Anyway, I guess this is just a case of 'sway-get-a-problematic-set' syndrome. Kinda like a friend of mine who got a problematic Toyota. It just irks you man.

Thanks for all the insight!