The Arca Swiss C1 geared head is well known by many photographers, perhaps more for its astronomical price tag than its ease of use and rock steady precision. Many photographers have looked on, wondering if it is worth the money but haven’t dared drop the chunk of cash required to get their hands on one. Even counterfeits are wildly expensive. The good news is, Arca decided to make a version with almost all of the functionality and at half the price the Core 75, and the smaller core 60. I have both the 75 and the cube and a good bit of experience with using each model. If you like the precision of a geared head these are amazing, I have tried the Manfrottos and used them for years but these are more solid, don’t get stuck and are compact in relation to the Manfrotto offerings. The fit and finish of these two Arca units are almost identical. It seems like the parts, like knobs and gears are all the same. They are both reassuringly solid.I love them both but there are a few shortcomings when the two are put up against one another. The first and most obvious difference is price the C1 Cube is double the price of the Core 70. So what do you give up for a massive savings like that?
I bought the Cube like many others, to do architectural photography. The precision is perfectly suited to the task. I found that I loved the cube so much that I would bring it to the studio and put it on my studio stand when shooting product photography where precision is equally treasured. Shooting still life is a dream with the C1 Cube. After every shoot I would happily unscrew the head from my studio stand or tripod to bring it to whatever job I was shooting the next day. The problems arose when I would forget the head or when I would put it on too tightly and had a hard time removing it from the tripod. I started to worry about the strain I was putting on the little knob that locks the rotation, every time I tightened it I could imagine snapping it. I was worried enough that I considered getting another, but the price was just too much. That is why I was thrilled when the Core 75 came along.
The smaller Core 75
I ended up buying a Core 75 to bring on my architectural shoots and leaving the cube on my studio stand. I figured any weight I can cut from my location kit is a good thing. And for the most part it has been a good move. The Cube is capable of everything I need it to do in the studio, I do a bunch of flat lays that wouldn’t work on the Core 75. The reason for this is that the cube has a hinge that allows you to shoot at a 90 degree angle. The hinge is a little clumsy but you open it, lock it in place and then go back to using the beautiful geared action. The Core 75 doesn’t have such a hinge and has a smaller range of movement in the gears as well. With the Cube the gears can move 28 degrees so in architectural shooting if the ground is unsteady you have at least 28 degrees of correction you can use in the head to level the camera. At least because you have the hinge that offers an additional 68 degrees for one of the axis. The Core on the other hand is limited to 15 degrees on both axes.
There are a couple of slight differences between the two models that favor the C1 cube. The bubble levels on the C1 are always more easily visible than on the Core. The Core’s levels might be more safe but when I am shooting from a low angle it becomes a pain to get down low and try and find the levels. On the C1 the levels are top facing which makes things much easier from down low all the way up to eye level. The other flaw as I see it is the lack of parallel knobs. On the C1 you are able to do the twisting with both hands, which is helpful because the gearing can require a firm pressure to work, each axes has two knobs, one across from the other to make quick work of leveling the tripod head. I find that the Core 75 is a little tight and I miss the option to grab the other knob and give it a whirl.
the C1 Cube has 90 degrees of movement , thanks to the hinge shown here.
In practice while shooting architecture where the most common function of the head is to level the camera I have found the 15 degrees adequate. I almost never need more. Along with an L bracket on the camera I can get 99% of the shots I want the only exceptions are when I want to shoot straight up or down or at an angle like up a staircase at a steep angle. Most of the time I am shooting with tilt shift lenses and I would rather shift up or down than to shoot at an angle. In this exact scenario, the core works really well. Shooting architecture with tilt shift lenses the Core 75 manages pretty much everything. If you need a ceiling shot straight up you are in trouble, you are going to need a backup head. Luckily I don’t do a bunch of these kinds of things so it is still on my tripod and I am very happy with it.
The Achilles heel, limited range of motion may limit this head to architectural photography use.
Outside of shooting architecture the Core 75 becomes a bit useless because of the limits to the movement. I recently shot food on location in a restaurant and brought along the Core 75 and as soon as I start shooting down at an angle the 15 degrees of motion become far too restrictive, even when combined with a tilt-shift lens. I was able to adjust the tripod legs to get a few more degrees of tilt but this is hardly convenient. When photographing food, I also like shooting flat-lays, here the Core performs well because I usually employ an arm and the lack of movement is not an issue. But on the whole, as much as I like the control and precision you are better off with the Cube in most scenarios.
There is a product called the Hybrid which pairs the Core 60 along with the Arca Monoball PO head. It seems like a good option. It eliminates the limitation of the range of motion of using the Core 75 alone. While It adds to the size bringing it closer to the Cube in terms of bulk it has 100% of the functionality without the awkwardness of the Cube’s hinge so it is an appealing option. The only downside as I see it with this combo would be the increase in size and bulk over just simply using the core 75. While not as bulky as the cube the hybrid is not as tiny as the Cores 60 and 75. And since I haunt used it I can’t testify if it affects the rock solid nature of the head. One of the reasons I moved on from Manfrottos geared heads was the amount of wiggle that would occur when touching the camera. The Cube and Core 70 are basically like a brick, there is no play or wiggle when touching the camera.
I am happy with my Core 70, if used for architectural work it is brilliant, leveling the camera is the same experience as with the C1 Cube. The knobs are firm the movements precise. It is a pleasure to use day in and day out. Where it falls short is when it is asked to perform outside of its usual duties, where it is not not terribly versatile. I still prefer my cube for general shooting like my product photography but don’t really miss it when shooting architecture. I love the Core’s small profile and affordability and it really works perfectly for what I need it to do.
If you are on the fence about which way to go I hope I have been able to help a little. I would love to hear your stories, have you tried the p0 hybrid or maybe the D4? How have they worked for you?