OK. I got a new mount. Pity about the $A. Anyway. It's here.
Software Bisque Paramount PMEII...first impressions
It's heavy.
I'm not exactly a small bloke, but just getting this thing out of the box was at the limit of my lifting capacity. The Bisque brothers clearly gave this behemoth some thought to its sheer mass, as locking bolts were installed on the RA axis to ensure you didn't damage the worm gears during the unpacking process.
It's beautiful.
Precision machining and anodizing make it look like a Swiss-watch that works out.
A lot. And uses growth hormones. And steroids.
Did I mention it's heavy?!!
Lifting 50kg odd of metal onto a 1.6 metre pier was...well...Jessusswepped! Thankfully nothing fell, no digits severed. The PME was far more elegant in this regard.
Set-up did require reading of the manual (Seriously. always RTFM!
). There was a new MKS5000 driver, and I have to admit there was direct southern hemisphere set-up which was easier than the last generation PME/MKS4000 system. Otherwise very similar.
Differences to the PME? While you do lose a few built-in saddle/legacy connectors (e.g. RS232) you do get improved through-mount cable space....Swings/roundabouts.
The variable rate hand-paddle is a nice addition....but why-oh-why such a putsy joystick?! ..it's really just a knob, and clumsy. The PME joystick was way better.
Tracking accuracy is effectively the same as the PME (i.e. about +/- 5 arc sec peak to peak before PEC correction). PEC correction will get you seeing limited tracking...about 1-2 arc seconds.
And if you don't use the locking bolts when putting a heavy scope onto the saddle, you'll probably deform the worm gears and and degrade the tracking to the same as an EQ8
Operation via TheSkyX is identical to the PME...and still simply wonderful. Watching a CCD-plate solved, T-point auto-map, with dome synchronisation is simply "white-man-magic" (if you are offended by that expression...well..sorry....but I don't give a rat's...go away. And get yourself a sense of humour..and I'm not really sorry..so there
)
If you have no idea what the above sentence is technically about, let me put it this way: this mount will move a 80Kg telescope to a pointing accuracy of around 10 arc seconds across the entire sky (i.e. less than the angular diameter of Jupiter as seen from planet earth). You click, it slews, it's in the middle. Not just in the middle. Seriously nailed.
Computer says "YES!"
The PMEII simply works... with serious grunt....note the 170lb of counterweights.
By the way....anyone have the phone number of a good chiropractor?
) a while ago. 
