flash - The combination of transmitters to fire AND control Canon 430EX III-RT and Yongnuo YN-560 IV

I'm having a hard time figuring out how to expand my flash system which is currently very modest - it only consists of Canon 430EX III-RT flash.

I'm planning to buy 2 Yongnuo YN-560 IV flashes and some receivers/transmitters. The question is: which receivers/transmitters do I need to control the power and fire all 3 flashes off-camera at the same time?

I spend some time investigating the differences between devices and I think I should consider some of these:

Most of the answers on the internet seem to be outdated (before these two flashes were released) or don't address this particular setup.

I've also read that a flash cannot be a slave and master at the same time.

What is currently relevant for me:

• to be able to fire and control Canon 430EX III-RT power


• to be able to fire and control Yongnuo YN-560 IV power

What is currently irrelevant for me:

• E-TTL support


• HSS support


• 2nd curtain


• remote shutter

What is currently undesired for me:

• optical triggering



• having a flash unit mounted on hot shoe

The setup I found which is the closest to desired is:

• RF-603 mounted with 430EX III-RT


• YN560-TX mounted on camera's hot shoe to trigger RF-603 and both YN-560 IV

But it does not allow me to control Canon 430EX III-RT power.

Answer

I'm planning to buy 2 Yongnuo YN-560 IV flashes and some receivers/transmitters.

You need to decide which triggering system you want to use and then commit to dealing with its limitations. Here are your choices:

• 
  

  Use optical triggering with the 430EX II-RT and the YN560-IV, in which case you only need an optical master unit to trigger everything.

  
  


• 
  

  Use Yongnuo's radio triggers, and accept the limitations that has for controlling your 430EX II-RT.

  
  



• 
  

  Use Canon's radio triggering system, and either choose a receiver for the YN560-IV that works with the RT system, or choose a different flash that works with the RT system.

  
  

What you can't do is mix Yongnuo's simple radio triggers with Canon's much more complete radio system. The reason the YN-E3-RT can't fire the YN-560 IV is that the former is a transmitter compatible with Canon's RT system, and the latter has a receiver that's part of Yongnuo's system.

If it were me, I'd pick Canon's RT system, even if I were choosing Yongnuo products. For example, you could buy two YN600EX-RT II and a YN-E3-RT, and then you'd have a system that doesn't need any separate triggers and which gives you full control over power settings for each unit. Or, if you really want to go with the YN560EX-IV, you could trigger that with a YN-E3-RX. But since the cost of those two together is nearly as much as that of a much more capable YN600EX-RT II, that doesn't seem like a great option.

If you choose Yongnuo's radio system, then you need to accept the fact that the RF-603 can't control power on the 430EX II-RT. Consider replacing the 430EX II-RT with a third YN560EX-IV, and throw in a YN560-TX, and you've got a three-flash system with radio triggering and control over power for each one.