Help! Dead flash tube or something else?

juggler

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I've got a Godox QT1200II flash & I'm struggling to get sensible and timely replies from the various uk repairers & suppliers.

Yesterday it made a faint burning smell in use - as if burning off dust after a couple of weeks sat idle. Then it made a sparking sound. It no longer works.

It powers on ok with no error code but the Test led doesn't light up. The flash tube has a slight brown tinge - but I can't remember whether it's always had that. Is this likely to be the flash tube or a different issue?

And if it is the flash tube, where can I buy one?
 
It could be a few things. Have you checked the fuse?
Discolouration of the flash tube doesn't really signify much if anything. The tube may have blown but typically (not invariably) they start to cause problems and work only intermittently when used on very low power settings, if it isn't working at all then tube failure is unlikely.
From your description, I would guess that a capacitor has blown.
Is it still under warranty?

AFAIK the people with both the spares and the Godox-trained technicians are Lencarta. There may me others, I don't know, but what I do know is that some other firms that claim to be authorised Godox dealers pass their repairs on to Lencarta.
 
Sounds like it is toast.
 
Flas tubes do sometimes blow. But capacitors do so regularly.
So that is the most likely problem. But the only time I had one go it was with a fairly dramatic bang.
It could easily be something on the main circuit board that fried.
 
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Terrywoodenpic said:
Flas tubes do sometimes blow. But capacitors do so regularly.
So that is the most likely problem. But the only time I had one go it was with a fairly dramatic bang.
It could easily be something on the main circuit board that fried.
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Most capacitors never fail, but when they do they sometimes die in a gentlemanly manner, with barely a whimper, and some are drama queens and make a big fuss.
I remember that one blew while I was running a training day (I think it was for TP members). A very big flash and a bang, burning wax spewing out and acrid black smoke.
I pulled the plug, gave it a blast with a carbon dioxide fire extinguisher and said "Oh, I forgot to mention earlier, the fire exit is over there and pro studios should always have a least a couple of spare flash heads. Did anyone get a photo of that?" :)
 
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I had a brand new Metz 45 go like that, smell of burning, bang, puff on smoke and goodnight vienna. First time I turned it on too, the worst part was I'd gone to Bristol to buy it, 120 mile round trip from where I lived then. Not a happy chappie.
 
Update, for interest's sake: I've been in touch with all the UK based Godox suppliers and Godox EU (who are also just a reseller). The flash tube is no longer available.

Lucky, then, that's it's almost certainly capacitors and thus covered under warranty.

It does make me worry about buying another expensive head from Godox if something can go obsolete and unsupported after less than 2 years.
 
juggler said:
Update, for interest's sake: I've been in touch with all the UK based Godox suppliers and Godox EU (who are also just a reseller). The flash tube is no longer available.

Lucky, then, that's it's almost certainly capacitors and thus covered under warranty.

It does make me worry about buying another expensive head from Godox if something can go obsolete and unsupported after less than 2 years.
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I can't give a definitive reply, I've been out of it for too long. But, in my experience, Godox (for all their faults) do support their products for many years. I suspect that the reason they are no longer available may be because this product sold badly and the demand simply isn't there, so none are held in stock, and are an expensive item to have sitting on a shelf for years. But I suspect that if one was needed (not in your case) it could be ordered.
 
Because flash tubes get broken and occasionally do die, I always make it a habit of buying a spare whenever I buy a new model that doesn't use any of what I have as spares. No, they don't die often, but they do break, so having a spare one around is a good idea when you use your equipment a lot. I have never had one die, but I have broken several over the years that I've been doing this. Rough transportation, like airline baggage handling has been the usual source of damage and broken strobe tubes for me.

Charley
 
CharleyL said:
Because flash tubes get broken and occasionally do die, I always make it a habit of buying a spare whenever I buy a new model that doesn't use any of what I have as spares. No, they don't die often, but they do break, so having a spare one around is a good idea when you use your equipment a lot. I have never had one die, but I have broken several over the years that I've been doing this. Rough transportation, like airline baggage handling has been the usual source of damage and broken strobe tubes for me.

Charley
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I've very rarely had a flash tube die and never had one break. I have had strobes die in all sorts of other ways.

The QT1200 tubes are £120 - which is a lot to spend on something I'll probably never use.
 
juggler said:
Update, for interest's sake: I've been in touch with all the UK based Godox suppliers and Godox EU (who are also just a reseller). The flash tube is no longer available.

Lucky, then, that's it's almost certainly capacitors and thus covered under warranty.

It does make me worry about buying another expensive head from Godox if something can go obsolete and unsupported after less than 2 years.
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Unless my memory is failing me I'm pretty sure I've been told Mosfets are a more common point of failure than Capacitors but regardless of what exactly went wrong it certainly sounds like an electronics component(s) has failed, maybe worth checking if the flash tube terminals haven't arced out (arc'd? whatever the right term is for when the electrical discharge destroys the metal).

Here's the thing though, who are you going to use instead? It's a struggle getting parts for Profoto and Broncolor in the UK, I've had a few Profoto B1's refused repair at Fixation because they're unable to get parts which is insane when you consider how many B1's are still in use and newer Profoto kit goes obsolete just as fast as anything Chinese. Broncolor is better but their supply chain seems to have never fully recovered from Covid lockdowns, Bowens is a dead end, Elinchrom might be better in some regards but it feels like they're Profoto pricing these days and they went through some ELB/ELC models pretty damn quickly.

I think we're pretty much stuck with whatever companies like Godox decide is worth their time.
 
simonbarker said:
I think we're pretty much stuck with whatever companies like Godox decide is worth their time.
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Which companies like Godox? Basically, there is now (or will be very soon) a choice between Godox and Godox, they have been in a monopoly situation for years.
Yes, there's still Bron, but horrifically expensive with just a tiny niche market. Profoto? Again seriously overpriced, relying basically on a fan base.

Whose fault is that? Ours. Their aggressive marketing, selling through eBay and Amazon sellers which had no interest in customer service and which made tiny profits that meant that they couldn't provide service even if they wanted to, wiped out all of the Chinese and most of the non-Chinese competitors. Godox is hugely successful, with 3 major product launches each year and with prices increasing with every new launch, means that we can only buy what they choose to make and have to pay what they choose to charge.

It's a self-inflicted injury.
 
A word of caution. You probably already know about the risks, but visitors to TP or newbies might not be aware, flash guns/studio flash can carry high voltage and can give a serious shock. Never work on a unit thats been on recently or may be charged. A shock off a decent capacitor will at best make you swear, at worst it could kill if you have some health conditions or are unlucky.
 
swanseamale47 said:
A word of caution. You probably already know about the risks, but visitors to TP or newbies might not be aware, flash guns/studio flash can carry high voltage and can give a serious shock. Never work on a unit thats been on recently or may be charged. A shock off a decent capacitor will at best make you swear, at worst it could kill if you have some health conditions or are unlucky.
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Always worth repeating this one.
 
Companies like Godox and Yungnuo have ZERO post-warranty support here in the US...Adorama private labels Godox flash units, and their post-warranty support is an extra cost insurance policy (in effect) that REPLACES any failed units (no repair services, no parts for sale). It is how they can be so cheap to sell...no support organization or carrying costs for inventory of parts. To most folks, they do not care..."It is so cheap, I will simply buy a replacement!"
 
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wiltw said:
Companies like Godox and Yungnuo have ZERO post-warranty support here in the US...Adorama private labels Godox flash units, and their post-warranty support is an extra cost insurance policy (in effect) that REPLACES any failed units (no repair services, no parts for sale). It is how they can be so cheap to sell...no support organization or carrying costs for inventory of parts. To most folks, they do not care..."It is so cheap, I will simply buy a replacement!"
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I’m sure from my time at POTN that there used to be a Godox reseller in the US that did repairs (in the same way Lencarta do here).
Struggling to remember his name, he also did some quite interesting modifiers, was ahead of the curve for the trend in ‘parabolic’ brollies.
 
Phil V said:
I’m sure from my time at POTN that there used to be a Godox reseller in the US that did repairs (in the same way Lencarta do here).
Struggling to remember his name, he also did some quite interesting modifiers, was ahead of the curve for the trend in ‘parabolic’ brollies.
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I hope you can remember the name. I just did a Google search on 'Godox repairs' and there are no direct hits for services. Reading US-based threads from 2020, 2021, and 2023, there are no suggestions for repair of Godox, apart from the fact that retailer Adorama OEMs Godox stuff in the Flashpoint brand name, and now does seletive models of Godox repairs
 
wiltw said:
I hope you can remember the name. I just did a Google search on 'Godox repairs' and there are no direct hits for services. Reading US-based threads from 2020, 2021, and 2023, there are no suggestions for repair of Godox, apart from the fact that retailer Adorama OEMs Godox stuff in the Flashpoint brand name, and now does seletive models of Godox repairs
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Well I was last active on POTN well before Covid, and there was discussion at the time that he might step down from the business.

But he had all the hallmarks of a one man band, and he was definitely active selling Godox lights (first gen AD series) and some interesting modifiers.

On POTN there was a discussion re ‘how parabolic are parabolic’ and I’m fairly sure one of the products he resold was featured.

Sorry I can’t be more help.
 
Phil V said:
Well I was last active on POTN well before Covid, and there was discussion at the time that he might step down from the business.

But he had all the hallmarks of a one man band, and he was definitely active selling Godox lights (first gen AD series) and some interesting modifiers.

On POTN there was a discussion re ‘how parabolic are parabolic’ and I’m fairly sure one of the products he resold was featured.

Sorry I can’t be more help.
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Well, that one hint was sufficient for me to locate this https://cheetahstand.com/collections/repair-services
Cheetah Stand is owned and shipped out of Dallas, Texas by co-owners Charles Nguyen and David Loi, and both state they are working photographers so they do not invite drop-in visits.

"Cheetah Stand - Godox Flash Repair Center

We service & repair Godox, Cheetah Stand and Adorma's Flashpoint, eVOLV, XPLOR flash systems including the following models:

Godox AD200 / Flashpoint eVOLV 200 / Cheetah CL-200X
Godox AD200 Pro / Flashpoint eVOLV 200 Pro
Godox AD300 Pro / Flashpoint XPLOR 300 Pro
Godox AD400 Pro / Flashpoint XPLOR 400 Pro
Godox AD600B / Godox AD600BM / Flashpoint XPLOR 600 (TTL and non-TTL)
Godox AD600 Pro / Flashpoint XPLOR 600 Pro"
 
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