Elinchrom rx-one life expectancy

[Kristofgss]

Does anybody know how long studio flashes like the rx-one from elinchrom are supposed to last? I had mine about a year and it blew up with considerable noise. on opening it up, the condensor had burned itself and part of the circuit off the main board. I'd estimate the amount of times it has been triggered at about a thousand. Is this considered to be a normal life cycle for the entry level series and can it only be resolved by getting the more expensive ones or would this be a fluke and are these things normally built to last for years? This is already the second head to have issues, but the first to really die (the other one had plastic which impacted the fan, so that was easy to fix)

 

[LDS]

AFAIK, the cheaper model are made in India and their construction quality is not on par with the more expensive ones. While the Rx-One may not be designed for heavy use, this looks like a defective unit - is your unit still under warranty? Anyway, I'd contact Elinchrom, a condenser burning that way is not a nice issue.

 

[Kristofgss]

Technically, it would still be within warranty, but the site where I bought it changed their interface, so I have no receipt to prove it (lesson learned for next time, print to pdf and keep a copy)

I have contacted them to request if a repair on it would still be economically viable.

 

[pwp]

Your RX-1 should have lasted longer than that. PCB Einsteins are a cheap option with a handy built in feature that tells you how many pops the flash has done. I have six Einsteins and their mileage ranges from 45,000 to 80,000 with no problems at all.

FWIW I used to have Elincrom and Profoto and the cost of ownership was high, too many and too frequent trips to the repair shop. Einsteins have been rock solid.

-pw