Finally we had some better conditions in SYD and I got out onto the terrace last night to capture a few snaps of M20. Equipment as per signature except I did not employ the Starsense. Just used the HC that came with the mount.
50s exposure ISO6400. Very little edit in Lightroom.
Polar alignment was almost spot on when I got to the step in the alignment procedure. Had taken me a while to work out true South in my place. Metal everywhere so iPhone was useless. Got my binos and waited until Atria was exactly on the Meridian and took reference points on my neighbours house for future use to point the tripod.
I am happy with the mount so far. It's unguided and no PEC.
I also got the PWI 1.2.1 software going on my antique ACER i7 lappy.
What is a good, value for money CCD to help with the PWI alignment (not running to and fro staring through the EP) and also get some nice footage of deep sky objects?
None, that is a single frame. Used Live View (zoomed in to max) to focus on the main stars in the target, then one exposure to verify and correct the position of the object in the middle of the screen, cause I cannot see a nebula in the Live View.
I might have to collimate my OTA because I can see the stars on the right are a bit elongated.
Use the Pointing Model feature in the PWI software. As long as you can set up in exactly the same place each time, the Pointing Model will give you increible precision.
I have the same mount and wanted to use the PWI software - it seems like you cannot polar align the mount after creating a pointing model with PWI - the handset still repoting that the mount isnt aligned. I had to align the mount using the handset then polar align.
Did you do it the same way?
No, I used the HC for the session. I tested PWI last night indoors for connectivity and pointing. PWI includes a polar alignment step in the process of building a pointing model. All buttons should be turning green for an accurate model. Have a look at the help file.
The hand controller is not to be used when your using the PWI software. The laptop plugs directly into the mount. If you have the HC plugged it it can result in error messages and confusion.. I suggest you read through the PWI thread on the CN forum for clarity on operations.
Be aware that the PWI software does not suppose full ASCOM command set and thus cannot be used in association with imaging control apps like SGP which have internal mount control capability. However, the PWI Pointing Model is extremely accurate and once built provides very quick alignment.
If your unprepared to do the research then stick with the hand controller.
