I think we're getting a bit side tracked here, each to their own as they say. It's not about throwing cash, for me atleast I had used it with my RC8 when I borrowed one earlier and it worked fine. I also had another QHY5-II on loan (Yes not the 'L' version but I was assured by the supplier that there wouldn't be too much a difference). I suffered massive driver problems and couldn’t get it to work for more than 5 minutes at a time. Plus I've had alot of issues with other QHY products in the past. Considering the price difference between the two was $250 or less, I thought it was well worth spending the extra. One of those 'for life' purchases.
Maybe a friend in the future will buy a QHY5L-II and we can do a direct comparison and see how it goes. I'm happy to be convinced either way. Its also important to remember that for a large portion, the relative response of a lodestar stays within 0.9 of it's max QE; the QHY5L-II tapers off very sharply. Not to mention the lovely large pixels of the lodestar goes well with my RC8, 4 times the area of the QHY5L-II. These small differences can end up becoming very important when you're at 1.6m, have a 50% secondary and also at f/8. But as I said, each to their own!
Now I'm sidetracked!! Anyways the point is, SX had great customer support and I was very pleased about it. It's something I will definitely consider next time I buy anything.
Clear skies
