Binoviewers

[prova]

Anyone use them or know how well they work?

[g__day (Matthew)]

Yes,

A prism splits the light path into two separate eye pieces. I have once tried them with Vixen LVW 22mm eye pieces on a C9.25 - great views of Saturn and Jupiter.

The key advice is 1) its a lot of weight - make sure your gear can handle it - particularly the collars - so they don't slip out! and 2) ensure your OTA has enough focal range to bring everything into focus - which is no problem on a SCT or MAK.

Matt

[paninaro]

I use a william optics binoviewer with 20mm eyepieces in a WO ZS II ED and a WO Megrez 110 ED.

They are great to use, your eyes don't feel strained as much and the view can be outstanding as you definitely get a 3D feel. In stereo your eyes seem to perceive more detail and its far more natural to have both eyes open.

A couple of point though:

1. You need a really rock solid mount as you have to squeeze down on the eye cups to hit the focus sweet spot with your eyes.

2. Some people's eyes just don't pull the two images together properly, I don't suffer from this.

3. Some people complain that the image is darker, this is correct theoretically as the light path is being split, but your mind working in stereo vision seems to work better, the upshot is to me the image is actually brighter.

4. They can take an initial set up to get them just right, that is you have to adjust and test the distance between each eyepiece and then focus each eyepiece individually to each eye - well woth it from my perspective.

5. Dont think you can just drop a 5mm eyepiece into these, they are suited to 15mm up because of various factors - unless of course you want to invest in a set of denks (US$2000!)

Yours in stereo...

Cheers, Alex.

[PCH (Paul)]

Ditto for all that Paninaro says.

I have a pair of Stellarvue binovs, and I must say that after a bit of messing about getting used to them, the views this pair give are spectacular. As others have said in other threads, they provide something of a 3-D type of effect, moreso when you view the moon or planets through them. Recent views of Saturn were absolutely incredible.

But they are quite heavy, and for me using them on my 12" Lightbridge dob, I found I had to finally tackle the issue of counter balancing the scope.

All in all, well worth the $300 or so that they cost.

Cheers

[westsiderailway]

I was thinking about to buy one of these, and was also thinking that you would need double EP's to use it.

Will have to wait and see for a while to see if i really need this item.

[wavelandscott (Scott)]

Binoviewers can be a nice tool and enhance your viewing enjoyment.

I have a pair of the Denk Big Easy binoviewers and I like them a lot. I have used them in my ED80 and in my two Dobs (the 8 inch more often than the 12.5). Although I do not own an SCT, I have looked through an SCT with a Binoviewer and found they works well there too.

I think it is important to understand how you would like to use them before offering a lot of comment on the good or the bad of them.

For me, I have found them to be glorious on bright objects, moon, planets some of the "big name" DSOs...I have found them to be disappointing if I am trying to find "faint fuzzies and galaxies...a function of light loss.

I could sit for hours (and sometimes do) and gaze at the moon (or the bright planets) with the binoviewers...to me it is an awsome sight.

There is a difference in quality and therefore performance between the different brands but check out some of the other past threads about that...you will find a variety of opinions.

Cost can be an issue in the Binos themselves but also in the need to double the number of eyepieces in your case. This is something that you need to consider beforehand.

I would strongly encourage you to get try before you buy if you can as your equipment and the way you like to look at the night sky will influence your love/hate for them.

Good Luck!

[PCH (Paul)]

Originally Posted by westsiderailway

I was thinking about to buy one of these, and was also thinking that you would need double EP's to use it.

Will have to wait and see for a while to see if i really need this item.

They do usually come with one reasonable pair of EPs though, so no immediate extra expense

I just tried mine on the ETX125 last night and it did seem as if they were a bit too heavy for it as the tracking was way out.

Fabulous on the dob though.

Cheers,

[westsiderailway]

Can anyone tell me how heavy they are?

[chris lewis]

The Stellarvues are 22 Oz. I have had mine for about 4 weeks which I use on my Equinox ED120. For me it has been a revelation - having used 'one eye' for 30 odd years. Really, just to reinforce some of the above positive comments. I find bino viewing just so much more relaxing and I actually 'see more' even though each eye is seeing 1/2 the light. [Complex process of light summation and how your brain works]. I can observe for hours with out eyestrain. I use them mainly for planets and lunar observations. For DSO's 'Cyclops' viewing is the best. The Stellarvues use a 2x OCA. [Barlow like nose piece that screws into the B.V.]. I also use my Televue 2x barlow with the bino viewer. With the 2x OCA removed and the extended focal length the TV barlow provides it actually acts as 4x barlow therefore doubling you eyepiece collection.
I do recommend bino viewers with the before above mention issues: not everyone can merge the views, it takes some experimentation with some scopes to reach focus, the added weight, the cost [but using your existing Barlow will help], and the BV’s give a ‘narrow’ FOV [but not necessarily bad with planets].
However for me the benefits easily tip the balance.