Speedotron Brown Line D802 Power Pack

Description

The Brown Line was the budget line of high power studio flashes from Speedotron. This is a D802 800 Watt-second (WS) power pack in excellent condition. When used with M11 heads, it works great for lighting up ballrooms, gyms, or other large spaces.
It’s also perfect for any application where you need to light a large area brightly enough to use a small aperture. I used it for photographing large furniture setups, where soft but bright light was needed. It is also fairly portable, weighing in at just under 20 lbs.
Items Included are:
D802 800WS power unit, S/N 18204561, with 15ft AC power cord
As you know if you have other Speedotron equipment, some features seem primitive compared to more modern units. Power output is not continuously variable, but can be set to one of three levels – full, half or low. There is no TTL exposure control. The modeling lamp is not dimmable, although different wattage lamps are available. Flash tubes, modeling lamps and reflectors are all interchangeable. Reflectors attach/detach using a quarter-turn bayonet system. Light modifiers such as soft boxes attach in place of the reflector.
Each power unit can supply up to four heads. Power can be evenly distributed among the heads (symmetric), or some heads can be given more power (asymmetric). A diagram on each power unit shows how power is distributed for the two modes. Electrical connections to the flash heads are made using military type connectors for safety. It’s a 900 Volt system and you don’t want to mess around.
Ready Light and Recycling time:
The power unit has a combination ready light and test switch. The ready light lights at 85% of full charge, which is about ½ stop below full power. Wait another few seconds for full charge. Press the lighted button to trigger the flash. Recycling is pretty quick considering the power levels. It will take a minute or two for the power unit to be ready when power is first switched on, but it recycles according to the numbers below after that.
My measurements (approximate) are:
Full power (800WS): 7 seconds
Half power (400WS ): 4 seconds
Low power (200WS): 2 seconds
Synchronization:
Sync connections are made to the power pack. Sync voltage is 60-70V, which means
it will damage a modern camera if connected directly
. You will need to use wireless sync (radio of optical slave), which you were probably planning to use anyway. Be sure your wireless receiver can work with this voltage.
Age:
It’s not a new system. Some people might call it legacy or historic (= old), but it works well and has a lot of life left in it.
Condition:
I have tried to show the cosmetic defects in the photos. There is a half-inch long scratch and a few minor (almost invisible) scratches on the top panel, and a few light scratches on the back panel. Otherwise the finish is nice and clean.
Be Careful!
The system operates at 900 Volts. There are NO user-serviceable parts inside! If you open it and poke around, you had better know what you are doing - or you might win a Darwin award.
Service and Repair
is available from ProMark Brands in Bartlett IL.
Although I am not using it any more, it has plenty of life left. Improve your lighting by adding it to your system.