New Equipment Arrival

[darrellx]

Hi All

About 12 months ago I decided it was time to upgrade some (most) of my astro gear. I have posted a few questions here about some of the equipment, and other issues like international postage. I have also been in touch with a few individuals regarding some specific issues. It has been so hard to make some of these decisions.

Well, I have now started to order my gear, and the first of the items arrived today - my new Esprit 150. Just looking at it in the box, and then next to my now relegated WO Megrez90, I am very happy. Boy is it heavy.

So thanks everyone who have been so patient answering my questions. Good times ahead.

Darrell

[Atmos]

The WO looks like a finder scope now :lol:

[Camelopardalis]

Congrats Darrell!

The 150 is a beast. Your Megrez would make an excellent guide scope..

[Slawomir]

A beautiful 6inch apo - congratulations Darrell :thumbsup:

[ab1963]

Fantastic scope and hopefully you can post a first light review

[RickS]

What a monster!

[leon]

Nice indeed, now it will rain for weeks on end, LOL, hope
you get heaps of pleasure out of your new stuff.

Leon

[darrellx]

Beast! Sure is.

The carry/travel case is 1040mm long and 420mm wide – AND IT HAS WHEELS. I have never owned any astro gear that needed WHEELS. Other than my car and a tractor, I don’t think I have anything else with wheels.

Inside the case; impressive. Left to right;
9x50 erect-image finder scope with tube rings
2inch diagonal
Field Flattener
Field Flattener extender tube
2inch Eye Piece: 28mm
Field Flattener Adapter

And, THE CASE HAS WHEELS.


Darrell

[LewisM]

NICE!

Hope you have a beefy mount - you'll need it!

[bigjoe]

Looks great Darrell..let us know how your going with it..

Theres been a spate of buying recently by a lot of our members ..and we've had nothing but bad weather..it needs to stop! ...the buying, and the bad weather that goes with it!
I know ..I know...I'm guilty too.:)

bigjoe.

[xelasnave]

I congratulate you on a fine purchase.
I was thinking about s 100 mm but hey if the case has wheels I want one.
Lucky I purchased two block and tackles endless chains when Aldi had them on special.
Alex

[FlashDrive]

150mm Payload for a ' BIG ' Mount....should be Awesome

Col ...:)

[darrellx]

Guys

Well, I have my eye set on an AP Mach1. But I have been reading about "moment arm" and what is reasonable etc. So I am now wondering if I should just bite the bullet and go for an 1100, or would the Mach1 be okay? I am looking at this for photography mainly, and it will be on a Pier.

The Mach1 has a rated capacity of 30kgs. The Esprit weighs 15kgs. By the time I add the guide scope, cameras etc, I am looking at 20 or 22 kgs.

The weight should be fine, but this moment arm thing is confusing.

[Slawomir]

Hi Darrell,

I know I suggested that Mach1 will be sufficient, and it will be, but IF you can afford the 1100, I say go for it. The beefier the mount the better, for a permanent set up that is. Buy once cry once ;)

EDIT: With the 1100 you could mount both scopes simultaneously and collect Luminance with the Esprit, and RGB with the WO... ;)


Never under mount the power of the dark side...

[darrellx]

Yeh, Thanks Suavi

Whats another $3.5k. Thats my dilema. That dark side is ... strong.

[Atmos]

You can never over mount but you can under ;)

[Camelopardalis]

Doesn’t need a big mount for this beast. While bigger is better, these work well on an AZ-EQ6...

[darrellx]

Hi All

Thanks for all the kind words of suport. However, none of it has helped with the weather. We have just had our wettest, most drizzly week for 5 years (according to my records) with more to come.

Ah well. I keep telling myself we needed the rain, after the driest 7 months we have had for 15 years (once again, according to my records).

One day I will get to use this little guy.

Darrell

[yoda776]

Darrell you would not mind passing some of that rain over here in SA ;) ... we have had next to nothing (mind you cloud and wind seem to be abundance, apart from a full moon usually and then it is clear and close to still!).

By the way, the scope looks awesome. Like to hear how she goes when the weather finally gives you a break.

[Waxing_Gibbous]

I will ask sky gods to send your rain down here.
Then you can observe in happiness and I can have a shower.

[darrellx]

Hi All

Well, my wait is nearing an end, I think.

I have just received the second last piece of my equipment upgrade - a Light Box. So, I can report that Exfso has his opposable thumbs working again and is back to making Light Boxes. Excellent job!

The attached pic shows my first light box, the smaller one on the left now 8 years old (and still going strong) with my new and larger light box.

Now the wait for the last piece of equipment - my new mount. I have been told it will be heading my way within the next 2 weeks.

Darrell

[darrellx]

Hi All

Well it looks like my long wait is nearly over. I have just received notification that my new mount is on the way. Now I am getting really excited.

There are a few issues I will need to resolve before it arrives. I have logged onto the AP User Group and posted a question, but I have a few questions that I would prefer to throw open here on IIS.

So........ for any one who currently owns an AP mount, I am wondering how many bothered to purchase the Astro Physics Control Centre (APCC) software. If you have got the software, I am wondering if you think is was a worthwhile purchase. I do have an observatory, but I expect that the mount will spend equal time at the observatory and at home. It will probably stay setup for a month or two before being moved. I would therefore consider it to be a semi-permanent setup.

Til now, with my EQ6, I have been happy and comfortable with CdC, SGP, PHD2. I also have SN7 but have only ever used it as a planetarium tool. I am wondering if it is worth the expense to purchase APCC.

The other option is MaximDL. From what I have read, this is pretty good software and ticks a lot of boxes for mount control and photography. If I go down this path, do I get the Pro version or go for Pro Suite and get MaxPoint.

Comments would be appreciated.

Thanks
darrell

[Slawomir]

I have Mach1 and found APCC Pro very useful, although I set up/down for each session, so don't take advantage of building a pointing model for each night. I also use SGP /PHD2 / PemPro combo and it works very well, although one day perhaps I will get MaximDL as I heard it is even better than SGP/PHD2 for controlling imaging equipment.

I got APCC with the mount so don't have any experience with running the mount without APCC.

[Marke]

I use APCC with the Mach1 have used it with and without and its not necessary at all unless you want to use some of its more advanced features. I find the limits and horizon mapping handy . I have stopped using PHD for guiding as I find Maxim does a much better job the the Mach1 for some reason.

[gregbradley]

I have an Ap1600 and don't use APCC. As I recall and I am not an expert on it, its main attraction was enabling a home position with the addition of a sensor.

Home position is very good selling point for Software Bisque mounts. It makes calibrating the mount very easy.

The other thing that would be handy is being able to set slew limits more easily and limits to tracking so the mount doesn't send the scope into the tripod/mount.

I use the AP timer and a free software that does this. So I start up my AP1600 and then activate this free AP timer to limit the tracking and also another piece of free software that limits the angle the mount will go to before it stops tracking. Both are safeguards.

I believe you also need APCC should you intend to add encoders to your mount if they are available.

What is the current price? When it was first released they had a special for those who wanted to upgrade. I think it was US$1000 or so then.

Greg.

[darrellx]

Suavi/Mark

What protocol do you prefer to use to control the mount - USB, Ethernet, Wireless? This is my other issue and I have bounced between all three. I am currently thinking wireless, although I could easily use any of them.

I think this is where I get myself confused. I read in the AP documentation that you need APCC to use Ethernet or Wireless. AP also seem to stress that one day other vendors will catch up. Does this mean that there is, or maybe, an issue with Maxim connecting via Ethernet or Wireless? I seem to only be able to find references to Maxim connecting via USB or RS232.

[Marke]

I have the V3 box so I use RS232>USB and have for the last 6yrs I will get around to updating it for either USB or ethernet. Maxim uses ascom drivers for AP

[Slawomir]

I use Ethernet cable because my laptop was too slow for a reliable wifi connection.

I got APCC Pro because it was on special at the time and I was honestly just curious about pointing models which are very easy to make with APCC.

[DJT]

Hi Darrell

I have an AP900 permanently setup and I have an APMACH1 I use at dark sights, breaking down and setting up over a weekend

I have though about getting APCC but not really got a valid use case.
For the portable APMach1, I use the daylight polar alignment routine which gets you really close then pempro just to be sure.

I have the CP3 box so serial to USB and I use Maxim DL for acquisition. Doesn't miss a beat. Plate solves really well.

I share the handset between the AP900 and Mach1

For the obsy, APCC might be worthwhile but as I dont have a lot invested in automation, I havnt bitten the bullet. I am actually more interested in tools to plan imaging sessions to make the most of the cruddy skies right now

Enjoy the new toy when it arrives. You are going to just love it:D

[darrellx]

WOW! I gotta say that I am impressed with UPS. A parcel from the US West Coast to Aust. Picked up from shop on Friday evening (Sat morning in Aus). Sat morning I get an email saying the parcel has been picked up and I am provided with a Tracking Number (actually three numbers because there are three boxes).

Sunday afternoon. I get a call from UPS saying the package is in Sydney waiting to be released from Customs as soon as I pay the taxes and charges. Payment made. Monday, package is released from Customs.

I have been advised by UPS delivery will be Thursday. 5 day delivery time.

Darrell

[darrellx]

Just back to the issue above, now that the initial euphoria has passed. APCC and Ethernet. The more I look into this, the more I suspect that I will need APCC if I want to use Ethernet as my control option. APCC with the discount if I buy within 40 days of purchasing the mount is $235 (30% discount).

I would like to put that towards MaximDL, but I am not convinced that it can drive the Ethernet port on the GTOCP4.

My best option will be to get both trial versions once I get the mount setup and try each one.

Darrell

[Marke]

You can run it via USB to start with and get Maxim and swap to ethernet later if needed.
Just throw AP a msg or ask on there group forum regarding ethernet and APCC

[DiscoDuck]

Hi Darrell,
Did you got for the AP Mach1 or 1100 in the end?

I'm curious because I'm waiting on a Mach1 from the current batch!

Regards,
Paul

[darrellx]

Paul

Yep, the Mach1. Its been a long wait. I think I made my payment in Feb.

Darrell

[DiscoDuck]

Same :)

I must say though, I'm a bit concerned re the discussion on Cloudy Nights here: https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/622947-mach1-dec-oscillations-our-experience/

I guess we'll both know soon what our mounts are like!

Paul

[Marke]

Dont be concerned I think the issue is with PHD . I had much better guiding than they show using PHD but I think its in PHD itself and pulse guide. I use Maxim to guide now and my rms for RA has gone from 0.3 to 0.1 in other words bugger all and DEC ? lol thats now 0.08 RMS

[darrellx]

Yes, I have been following the discussions on Cloudy Nights quite closely, as well as the discussions on the AP forum. That does seem to be the the consensus coming out - a PHD issue. That's part of the reason why I thought of going Maxim.

[Atmos]

Way back when when I was guiding I did find that I would get better results from Maxim than I did from PHD. PHD generally worked really well but I found Maxim was easier to fine tune.

[LewisM]

Thing is, MaxIM just works. And it LOCKS on the star like vice grips. I still have not tried multi-star guiding with it.

But, for $500 US you'd expect it to be THE best guide solution. Plus it also does focus, dome control, sequences, dithering, image processing, etc etc etc.

PHD2 is fine when everything else is spot on.

[DiscoDuck]

Unfortunately I want to continue to use SGP, and so have to persevere with PHD2 - or one of the other options, but not Maxim sadly.

Still, it's worked well in taming my EQ6's eccentricities. I hope it can continue to do so with the presumably easier task of driving a Mach1!

Darrell - I look forward to hearing about your first light experiences soon!! :)

Paul

[darrellx]

Hi All

My new mount has arrived - a day early. YAHOOOOO! I was surprised at 2pm when the delivery truck pulled up.

See pics.

I have already noticed a few issues. So I will start a new thread for anyone who is interested and might be able to offer suggestions.

Darrell