Opinions please

[AdrianF]

Looking at buying a Celestron NexStar 6SE in the next few weeks.
Anyone using one that would give me an opinion of this scope?
Are they ok for imaging?

Adrian

[casstony]

Typically optics are excellent and cool down is less of an issue than with the bigger SCT's. The setup is very portable but the tradeoff is that it is somewhat shaky when focusing due to the spindly tripod - replacement of the legs would help a lot. I haven't used one for imaging.
The altaz alignment is simple and the controller easy to use.

[Camelopardalis]

+1 the 6SE is a great portable little scope. I've had both a 6SE and an 8SE and the wobble/vibrations are noticeably worse with the 8 onboard. There are things you can do to minimise it though... keep the legs as short as you can tolerate, and the vibration suppression pads under the legs work quite well at damping the vibration. There's also the possibility of a motorised focuser - so you don't have to touch it :D more useful on the 8 IMO. You'd also want a power tank or mains supply as a set of batteries don't last long. With the 6" ota mounted it can easily be carried in one piece, whereas with the bulkier 8" tube on it always felt a little top heavy.

The Nexstar controller as Tony says is pretty easy to use, with a 2-star alignment you can be using it very quickly.

I dabbled with some planetary imaging on my 6, but back in the UK the weather was so pants most of the time I preferred to use the time visually. The later/newer models apparently have FASTAR removable secondary mirrors for use with the Hyperstar system for DSO imaging. IIRC, the focal length in this configuration is about 300mm and if I ever get into imaging I might go this way for kicks ;) but even without that you can stick a reducer (f/3.3 and f/6.3 seem most popular) and get some short exposures.

[AdrianF]

Ok thanks for the replies.
I was looking for a replacement scope for the North Group ED127 I sold awhile ago. Would like another but finances dictate a smaller less expensive scope 1400 + mount is not achievable at this time but 1500 for a scope and mount is.

Adrian

[Camelopardalis]

Just be aware that the SE mount is motorised only...there's no facility to operate it without power. Good luck!

[JohnH]

For imaging - moon/planetary with a video camera - fine. For DSO with a DSLR or CCD - no. You cannot do long exposures with an ALT AZ setup unless you have a camera rotator, (can you put this model on a wedge or set to EQ mode?). Even then the long focal length will amplify tracking or vibration issues. I think you could use it happily for piggy backing a DSLR with a camera lens fitted - maybe up to 300mm lens more than that will be extremely challenging.

[AdrianF]

Maybe this scope not for me.

Adrian

[Gurutronic]

Don't count this scope out so quickly. The 6se was my first scope, and it really is a great scope. The mount is very versatile of itself, and the OTA is fantastic for lots of different visual objects. Compared to your previous refractor, I think you will be surprised at just how fine an image the 6se will put up and in a much more compact package. One of my most memorable sights through the 6se was of Mars and the first time I spotted the polar caps and shading on the planet. ;)

Sure the mount is lightweight. But there aren't a lot of go to setups you can easily lift and carry all in one go like the 6se. Later on you can upgrade the focuser to something like a feather touch microfocuser. I did and found that doing so fixed some of the vibration issues focusing with the stock focuser caused. As someone else mentioned, keeping the legs short also helps. Which really is fine, grab a stool and you can spend hours sitting instead of standing!

One last word, regarding the mount. I recently did a little bit of outreach at my wife's school for their science day. I mounted a PST piggy backed on an SVR80-ed with a white light filter to do some solar viewing. The mount easily handled the load and kept dead on the sun for the hour or so I showed the students. I probably wouldn't have bothered doing that if all I had was a heavy eq mount, but the 6se mount was perfect for the job! :thumbsup: