Vixen LV 5mm [Archive]

cjmarsh81

31-01-2006, 09:10 AM

I recieved my Vixen LV Series 5mm eyepiece yesterday and it is great. :thumbsup: It appears to be clear edge to edge, which is much better than the eyepieces that came with the scope. I looked at Saturn with it last night and was able to clearly see the cassini division, and some detail on the planet itself. The long eye relief is also very good at blocking out my neighbours outside lights.

It does have only a narrow field of view (45 degrees) so I have to nudge the Dob pretty regularly. Sometime in 2007 I will save up and and get an EQ6 mount and put my Dob onto it as I would like to eventually get into astrophotography.

iceman

31-01-2006, 09:15 AM

Sounds great! Unfortunately I didn't win the 6mm LV at Lostock, but I had the chance to try Bird's 6mm LV, and I really like it.. Very comfortable. I compared it to a 6mm Ortho (not side by side, unfortunately), and for comfort value, the LV definitely wins.

It's most likely going to be my planetary eyepiece purchase, but I have to wait a while after just splashing out on a 22mm Panoptic :)

davidpretorius

31-01-2006, 09:27 AM

Top stuff CJ, I would thoroughly suggest looking at Jupiter with this eyepiece, I found it to be a jaw dropper!

I have tracking, so I get to appreciate the view for longer, but I reckon you have done the right thing. I would have to think very hard about the value of the LVW's for someone like yourself who is going to get tracking anyway!.

And Mike, don't tell me bird pulled out an eyepiece again. What is the world coming to????

matt

31-01-2006, 09:29 AM

Love the Vixen LV 6mm. A great investment at around $170.

janoskiss

31-01-2006, 09:36 AM

Glad to hear the EP is working well CJ! Getting a good new EP is like getting a new scope. Hopefully I can get a peek through an LV at SV. Would be good to do a side-by-side comparison between an LV and HD orthos and TV Plossls.

chunkylad

31-01-2006, 10:04 AM

I would find such a comparison intersting also.

I already have a UO planetary series 9mm HD Ortho, and I am thinking of expanding my collection.This ep displays great contrast and is sharp edge to edge. Simply awesome on Saturn - Cassini Division, as well as surface detail. It also has outstanding performance with my OU 2" 2x Barlow. The downside, of course, is the narrow fov. (No tracking on my dob:confuse3: )

The Vixen LV would have to be a big improvement for me to consider it over the UO HD Orthos for an extra $45 or so per ep.

Like Mike, I have also splashed out on a Panoptic, a 19mm. So $$$ are a little tight at the moment :sad: .

cjmarsh81

31-01-2006, 10:42 AM

David,

Viewing was really good last night when I went to bed so I decided to get up at 3am and check out Jupiter with the new EP. I set the alarm, and when I got up all I could see was cloud. Maybe next time.

davidpretorius

31-01-2006, 11:12 AM

don't you hate that!!!

yes, jupiter is not going anywhere fast.

I am yet to see the great red spot on jupiter, but that 5mm should eat it for breakfast!

chunkylad

31-01-2006, 01:06 PM

Today's my day off, and the weather has finally cleared; so I meant to get up at 4am to view Jupiter with the HD Ortho, and DSOs in Scorpio with the Panoptic. However, the best laid plans etc etc. Our little fellow is cutting molars, so not much sleep for us! Oh well, there's always next time............

They say that patience is a virtue.lol:o

davidpretorius

31-01-2006, 01:09 PM

yes, they are gods little creatures, but between toilet training , teeth & all the bugs they pick up, it is amazing they survive the parents lack of patience / sleep!

you can always click your heels and say " there's no place like home....."

the jetstream has been looking really good up your way, i spose it is like the NT, lotsa clouds!!

chunkylad

31-01-2006, 02:36 PM

Yep Davo, juggling work and family with our chosen hobby(ies) is an art. I've tried clicking my heels, and I can tell you now - it doesn't work.

Before the current spate of monsoonal weather, we had some nights of excellent seeing, albeit with average to poor transparency. That's why I'm so happy with the performance of the 9mm OU Ortho. At 333x with the barlow, the views are spectacular; whereas last Oct/Nov poorer seeing conditions meant that I was a little dissapointed with views of Mars using this same ep. The downside of this ep (at F5) is a slight colour abberation at the edge of fov. This dissapears at longer focal lengths, i.e. when its barlowed.

In side by side camparisons between the Ortho and 4mm and 6mm GSO plossls, the Ortho yields much greater contrast, and is tack sharp at similar mags. I love it.:prey2:

As I said, imho the Vixen LV would want to be substantially better to warrent its higher price tag.

Dave

davidpretorius

31-01-2006, 02:39 PM

i am still undecided between UO and vixen LV, i must do a side by side, I love the eye relief of the vixen, but now that i have tracking, the 6.5m series plossl is much nicer to look through and the pain of the eyerelief is not as bad!

iceman

31-01-2006, 02:42 PM

I don't think the Vixen LV will be substantially better, given a $50 price difference. The real difference would be in the size of the eye lens and the amount of eye relief, therefore it's a comfort thing. And comfort is a personal preference.. do you wear glasses, etc.

The FOV is the same, and contrast and sharpness would be fairly similar, I'd wager.

chunkylad

31-01-2006, 02:43 PM

Let us know what you think if you get a chance of a side by side comparison Dave. I would like your opinion. Eye relief is not such an issue for me either - contrast and image sharpness are though!

janoskiss

31-01-2006, 02:52 PM

Davo, you'll have to check out my HD orthos and the 10.5mm TV plossl at the SV camp. After several nights out in varying conditions I am becoming confident that the 10.5mm TV is significantly superior to all my EPs in terms of contrast (and consequently perceived sharpness). It is an absolute gem. I would not trade the quality of the view for more eye relief. The HD orthos are pretty good too but the TV is supreme.

ving

31-01-2006, 03:00 PM

steve, the 10.5 is a great EP, i can vouch for that :)
great contrast and egde to egde performance :)

davidpretorius

31-01-2006, 03:06 PM

thanks steve, i will do some sweet talking and see if we can get a lv vixen there at the camp.

i would like to do the following side by sides with a few of us to comment
5mm: vixen lv, uo hd, tv radian, tv plossl.

10.5mm or 11mm: same again but with maybe a nagler.

I may have to leave the credit card as security at bintel on the friday and bring some up if we can organise it.

janoskiss

31-01-2006, 03:16 PM

Davo, 7mm HD is the shortest FL I've got. Maybe in a very good barlow. Mine's pretty good, but I think there is still a slight drop in contrast with the barlow.

ausastronomer

31-01-2006, 06:03 PM

IMO the Vixen is slightly inferior to the HD ortho in terms of light transmission and sharpness. Those optical differences are very minimal and only detectable by an experienced observer in a very good telescope under ideal seeing conditions.

Ergonomically the Vixen LV wins by a country mile and it is a very attractive proposition at about $170 as it is very very good optically and very comfortable to use. Previously these eyepieces sold from a couple of sources at about $300 making it a no brainer when compared to the HD orthos at about $130.

The new Burgess/TMB planetary eyepieces with 60 deg AFOV and 16mm of eye relief at about $150 also look a very attractive alternative. I am thinking of buying a 6mm and trying it.

CS-John B

cjmarsh81

02-02-2006, 10:48 AM

Hi Guys,

I got my first views of the moon with the Vixen LV 5mm last night just before I lost site of it behind my shed. Really good, I could clearly see the craters etc. Can't wait for the full moon on 7th Feb. I can also see Saturn very well around 11pm, I can clearly see the cassini division and a little detail on the planet itself. Very happy with this eyepiece!

This eyepiece is now going to be my planetary/moon eyepiece. Sometime down the track when I have saved up for it I want something like a Vixen LVW 15mm for general viewing. And a barlow, and I think this will give me a fairly decent range for a long while.

matt

02-02-2006, 10:51 AM

If you're big on Vixens and using them with Barlows... try and have a look at the 22mm LVW.

I'm also not sure how well these EPs barlow?

Care to comment John B?:)

cjmarsh81

02-02-2006, 11:06 AM

I would love a panoptics too. Budget doesn't quite extend that far. Maybe if I wait a little longer.

I haven't had any luck seeing DSO's yet. What size EP should I use and does anyone have a good star chart? I have the Jan/Feb Sky and Telescope and have been using that thus far.