[BigJ]

Hi,

I'm new to this group and considering my first real 'scope (my 30 year old 600mm Tasco with table-top- tripod doesn't count!).

I have been doing a lot of reading, and seem to have come to the conclusion that for general planetary, lunar and DSO work, an 8" Dob is ideal, especially considering the price. I'm considering a Celestron 8" Star Hopper. But some Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrains caught my eye

Now, here's what I don't quite understand: I have seen a lot of smaller Schmidt-Cassegrain's for sale, which are quite small (eg Celestron Nexstar 4 or 5), but inordinately expensive compared to the Dobs. Granted, some of the expense is because they tend to have fancy go-to mounts. Bus aside from that, if you were so into astronomy that you were prepared to spend $1,500 on a scope, why would you choose a 4" or 5" SCT over the light gathering power that an 8" Dob would give you?

Surely, optically speaking (and also since aperture wins), the view of distant nebulae, galaxies and star clusters would be inferior...?