[Hook & Loop] Profoto has the reputation of being expensive, but giving great light. This softbox is no exception. I love the quality of light I get from it.

Other reviews have called it poorly designed, being hard to put together and take down. I don't think the criticisms are fair. It's just a question of technique and practice.

I suspect some people are trying to assemble the rods in the wrong order. It's necessary to assemble rods opposite to each other (3 o'clock position then 9 o'clock, etc.). If someone is trying to insert rods next to each other around the periphery, they will likely fail.

On disassembly, the rods will be under tension. If you pull up on the rods as you take them out, it will reduce the tension and be much easier to accomplish. The quality of light from this softbox is worth the effort.

[Hook & Loop] Same fit to replace severely bent rods in the Octa.

[1.5-Stop ] Somehow lost one of the rods of my octa, and it turns out a septa is a really lousy replacement -- ordered this rod replacement kit, and the octa is as good as new! It was a special order so it took a while, which is a shame since I couldn't find this kit offered anywhere else in the US and I can't be the only one who's ever been in this predicament. Very pleased when it finally arrived though!

[1.5-Stop ] I have used this softbox for years at my school and studio that I frequent and am thinking about buying my own. This works as a great addition to any light setup and works amazingly for beauty and portraits and as the main light for fashion work. There are other reviews saying they are having difficulty removing the rods from the speed ring, but that is the case for most speed rings (it's the same with Broncolor, Elinchrom, and Chimera speed rings) This modifier works best on a single pack and head fully mounted on a standalone c stand with weighted arm and wheels. This allows for portability in the studio but not on location. This light is difficult to assemble and disassemble but I've only seen this size octabox in studio settings, never in an on location setting.

[0.485 lb] Great diffusor. Fits like a glove on the beauty dish and softens the light great.

[0.485 lb] Its the quality of build and light shaping that I expect from Profoto, and I bought it to shoot a few fashion lookbooks and campaigns. Since the few fashion shoots, it has sat unused, and I recently sold it. I definitely made my money from the shoot and it had its use, but make sure youre going to use it a lot. I own the 5 also, so thats probably why it never came out of the bag since. But, I havent really touched my 5 either.

The only cons that I can think of are that the rods take some time to break in, its heavy, and be ready to muscle putting the thing together.

If youre using this, make sure you have a properly weighted and sized c-stand or boom with a counterweight. Its not that heavy to hold, but its positioning on the light makes the stand endure an off-center weight which can really be dangerous if not properly set up.

[Hook & Loop] Includes the inner and outer diffusion panel.