malc-c

Welcome to the forum. As you can see there are lots of great suggestions and often the advice is overwhelming and confusing. This is because everyone will have had differing experiences when they started up, or ventured into the hobby. It's also so varied as whilst you may feel that visual observing is the starting point, you then get drawn into the dark art of imaging, and find that the equipment you purchased, whilst being fine for visual, doesn't quite come up to scratch when used for imaging. My best advice... spend a few weeks reading through the forum. The "I'm new to astronomy, what scope should I get for £xxxx" type post is one of the most common questions asked. Again, you'll see that someone who starts off with a £300 budget who really wants to end up imaging soon ends up spending four or five times their original budget, but ends up with the scope / mount / camera that will last that user a lifetime and make imaging less of a struggle than trying to do the same on cheaper equipment. The problem is that like everything in life its subjective. There are millions of ways to skin a cat (as the saying goes) and the same goes for astronomy. As previously mentioned, if you have a fairly decent sky you can simply go out into the garden and simply look up with your own eyes. That works, there is a lot to be seen naked eye, but by using even a standard pair of 8x40 binoculars you see a great deal more. Yes you can then get larger binoculars, but they need a tripod to keep them steady, and deep pockets as a pair of astro 20x80 binos will cost as much as a small scope. There was one thread recently regarding why most people are recommended the HEQ5 mount as the entry level mount for imaging.... For £800 second hand, or just over a grand new it's a really capable mount that works well for visual and for imaging. Yes you can still image on cheaper, and some would say less capable mounts, and there are threads on here showing what can be done with an EQ3 mount... but some would argue the effort to get the results with the EQ3 is more than when using the HEQ5. Again this is subjective and depends on the type of person you are. Again, as already mentioned, if you want to push a scope around, star hopping to find a target, then your money will go further. If you just want the scope to find the targets for you, then the computerised scopes will cost a fair bit more for the same aperture. It all depends on you as an individual. It's like going to a car dealer and saying I have £20K to spend on a car, and not giving the sales guy any clue as what's important to you, what your skill set are (automatic or manual) or if you prefer basic level equipment but more performance, or less performance but with every computerised option and leather seats. The same goes for any hobby or interest including astronomy. For me personally I couldn't be had with all the faffing around to learn the night sky (other than the basic constellations) and star hop, so opted for a goto mount. I then discovered that I got far better results imaging than visual form my location, but found the EQ5 mount I had purchased was on its limit for imaging. I ended up with an HEQ5 / 200 PDS combination now housed in its own observatory, so I can be up and imaging in around 20 minutes from putting the key in the door and opening it up. This works for me.... but naturally took a fair bit of investment, but it suits my current level of imaging, and interest.

If you are using EQMOD for mount control then you must already have a connection between the laptop and the mount. I presume this is a standard USB cable between the Laptop and the V5 handset, with the handset plugged into the handset port on the mount?? The alternative is to use an EQDIR cable, such as this one from FLO. This connects between the laptop (USB) and the mount (Handset port) and replaced the handset altogether. There should be no need to install any drivers as Windows has the FTDI driver already. Your guidecamera is then connected via USB directly to the laptop. PHD2 is the guiding software of choice and you will need to set up a new profile and chose the ASCOM driver for whatever camera you are using. Just for reference EQMOD only controls the mount. It's often referred to as a "driver" rather than an application. The ASCOM platform is what handles "everything" as it's the communications standard that the other software such as the planetarium software used to select targets, PHD2 for guiding, and whatever imaging software is used to capture the images via whatever camera is used as the main imaging camera all use to communicate between them. Hope that helps

I don't think they will come off without some damage around the edge when you try prizing them up. Have you considered the HEQ5 rail kit from DarkFrame link here ?

Following on from Steve's post, the mount is dumb, it has no idea what or where it is pointing. All the motorboad does is keep track of the number of pulses it has sent to each stepper motor based on the gearing and microstepping spec of the motors. It needs to know a starting point, which is typically the default home position. When first connected the software (well in the case of EQMOD, and would presume GSS does the same) interrogates the mount to obtain the mounts parameters so that it can calculate the number of pulses in each direction to move the mount form the start point to the target. The software does a bulk of the calculations based on the location / date and time you enter into EQMOD/GSS and the planetarium software. Once the software commands the mount to move to the target, the firmware in the motor board keeps track of the number of pulses whilst it drives the motor, returning the message that the slew is complete when it is finished. The software will have already instructed the firmware to track at sidereal so the firmware calculates, based on the gearing and motors how many pulses (microsteps) are required to make the RA motor move the mount 15 degrees. This is simple maths as the RA axis has 9216000 microsteps per revolution (24 hours), so 384,000 microsteps / hour is required. Naturally if the date / time / location information is incorrect this can screw up these calculations and the scope can end up pointing somewhere totally different to what was expected !

From personal experience I found that anything over 5m needs to be an active cable. A 10m passive cable will result in voltage and packet data loss. Each time you start a session, GSServer will assume the mount is starting from the default home position (point north with the weighs down). If the mount is then slewed to a target vis a planetarium application and then a sync point added (ie you are telling the software it's on target) and then you disconnect the laptop it will have no idea where mount is pointing when reconnected, and if that results in an restart of GSServer then it will presume the mount is in that home position when actually it's pointing at a totally different position. People also often make the mistake of centring the target using the handset buttons once the initial slew has been undertaken via the software. The software (EQMOD / GSServer) will have no idea of the error by which it is off target if the mount is moved using an external method, which is why any adjustments need to be made from within EQMOD or GSServer using the NSEW directional "buttons" on screen. My advice would be to replace the 10m cable with a shorter active cable, and having done your PA, use just the software to direct the scope, returning to the default park position after a session.

It might help if you stated the make and model of the mount you are using, and the scope involved. Also if you can post you PHD2 guidelog that would be helpful for some of the PHD gurus to diagnose any possible causes

You didn't mention how you are connecting the mount to the PC. Given the mount is the R version I'm assuming this was via a A-B USB cable. In that case you need the Prolific driver and the com port that is assigned to the connection needs setting to 115200 baud as already stated. The 9600 speed is only required for older mounts that don't have a USB port, and need an EQDIR cable to make the connection via the same port the handset normally uses. To control the mount from a laptop (presumably running windows) you'll need to have ASCOM installed, and then either EQMOD or GSServer, both of which can be thought of as a telescope "driver". In EQMOD the pulse guiding settings need to be between x0.5 and x0.9. For polar alignment I found the plate solving tool in Sharpcap very easy to use and managed to get the accuracy to within a few arc seconds. You have to pay a yearly subscription for this, but its only around £12, so won't brake the bank. Hope this helps

Provided the bootload which normally resides in protected area of memory isn't overwritten then you can always re-flash the PICs with the SW firmware if you find the GS firmware makes the mount behave differently than expected. Either way if you are not sure then drop a post on the GS user group

If you have the ability, it may be worth while uploading your data to an online storage area (google drive / drop box) so others can try and replicate the issue, or provide you with an alternative solution to the workflow you use

I think it's happening to all hobbies. Model railways is just as expensive, if not more so than astronomy. These days the manufactures are concentrating on realism and detail, producing fine detailed, weathered locos with sound that has been recorded from a real full sized loco of that class. These often cost in the region of £300 - £400. By the time you've added a rake of coaches costing £50 a pop you can have upwards of a £1000 running round the track. And that is just one train..... Gone are the days where model trains was a hobby for a child.... As for flame angels.... £199 example - I remember getting the one for my tank from a local retailer for £30 around 6 years ago !!

Such an open ended question. - How long is a piece of string ? - There are so many variables, like the location you are viewing from. You'll see more from a dark site than from the centre of a large city. Also the constellation chosen will contain different things, some will have galaxies, others star clusters. Also the location will dictate if some constellations are visible or not, for example, from the UK a few constellations are visible all year round, but never visible from parts of the southern hemisphere, and vice versa. Some constellation are packed with galaxies, but you need binoculars or a telescope to see them. Others have galaxies or nebula that only a long exposure photograph will show. As others have said you can download software that will show you what's visible from any location in the world and for any time and date. This software is even free, ideal for education purposes. Maybe if you ask a more specific question such as "what can I see from (insert location) between 8pm and 10pm in April" and you will probably get a more concise answer

Ian, Chris Shillito originally wrote EQMOD for his own EQ6 around 12 years ago hence the HEQ5/EQ6 reference. Naturally people were interested in the ability to control a telescope from a PC so it was shared and it developed from there. The software reads the firmware in the synscan unit / motor board and obtains the mounts parameters it needs to control the mount, so it doesn't matter that other mounts are not listed. So long as the driver is set to SyntaEQ it will be fine.

It's very doubtful that the firmware in the motorboard is corrupted, however as you stated the synscan unit is one of the new units, and thus should have a USB socket you could try and upload the current firmware from the skywatcher web site (just google "skywatcher firmware"). The main reasons for gotos being slightly out are poor polar alignment (as mentioned, ensure the polar scope is aligned with the RA axis - no app or utility will be any use if the polarscope is out of alignment) or incorrect settings in the handset, which tend to be either the wrong date format or daylight savings are enabled when not required, or the wrong time zone is entered. I was going to say that the only other possibility is that you were supplied with the EQ3 upgrade kit rather than the EQ5, but then that cant be the case as I'm sure the motors and gearing are different so it wouldn't physically fit, and there are too many variables from manufacture to posting it to you for that to be the case. Does the scope sound OK when slewing, or does it sound as if gears are binding or jumping ? - Have you tried removing the motors and refitting them ( you still haven't answered Peter's question).

Paul, why are you powering the handset and the synscan box ? All you need is a 12 - 14v (so the bench supply is more than enough) with a cable terminated in a 2.1 x 5.5mm plug. The ring of the connector is negative, with positive being the inner ring.

How are you polar aligning? - If you are using the polar scope have you confirmed it is set correctly in the mount? - some suggest doing this in the daylight by using a target such as a distant tree, or aerial. I personally used Polaris - centering it in the main scope and then centering it in the polarscope. Other things is that whilst you have entered the data correctly, is it in the format the handset is expecting. Location details are in hrs : min : sec and not the digital format, and the dates I believe (I haven't used a handset in over a decade) should be in US format of mm-dd-yyyy.

Slightly out... the central line isn't quite in the middle between the two that form the cross, needs to come "up" slightly

That's nice, but you don't need 30A to drive an HEQ5. A PSU capable of supplying 5A @12v (ie 60watts) still gives you stacks of head room. 13.8v PSU rated at 5A would be perfectly adequate

Well that would rule out a hardware issue as far as the mount / motorboard is concerned. I've no experience with a pi or Stellarmate, but as mentioned, you could always try the direct connection of the Lynx cable to the laptop and use an alternative planetarium program to see if that works better, or use a network cross over cable and try a hardwired alternative to wifi to try and narrow the issue down further.

Unless you are experiencing issues with the handset or how it controls the mount then there is no real point in updating the handset with newer firmware.

This is a difficult one to diagnose as there are so many variables, I'm guessing the laptop is running windows and you are remoting into the Pi via some application over a wireless link / network. Then the pi is running linux and you are using INDI as the interconnecting platform for GS Server / Kstars / PHD2 etc to communicate over? From my limited research, the motorboard firmware has no real idea where the scope is pointing. It simply receives its starting position when first connected to EQMOD/GSServer and the software sends the command to move whatever axis to a position and the firmware converts that to the number of steps the motor needs to run for, and then returns a code back to the software when it reaches that count to signify the slew is complete. If the planetarium software is sending positional commands that the scope driver (EQMOD / GSserver ) detects are below the limits set for horizon or to avoid impacting the tripod then it will override that instruction. Personally, if this were my problem I would first check that there is no physical problem with the mount. I would connect the handset and having placed it in the default home position, set it to speed 9 and use the directional buttons to slew the scope through 360 on both axis (having ensured the scope is in a position to clear the tripod in RA). This would confirm if the mount is actually slipping or if the drive train is meshed correctly (gears or belts). I would then purchase a Lynx EQDIR cable and connect that straight to the laptop and install either EQMOD or GSServer under windows, along with ASCOM and then repeat the same operation using the directional buttons on the software. If that works then take this a step further and install a free planetarium application such as Cartes du Ciel, set that up with the same location information and then run a live session on the next opportunity to select the same target (with no limits set) and see if that replicates the same problem. If it doesn't then it would seem that the issue is either related to wireless interference, corrupted limit data, or corruption of data over INDI between applications. The alternative if driving the mount via the handset works OK is to basically re-install linux on the Pi and start from scratch, but following the same steps, ie use a direct connection to the mount with an EQDIR cable, install GSServer and INDI and make sure the scope can be rotated fully from GSS and then set up the limits etc... and test again.

Well the 12/24v to 9v buck converter in the link provided is rated at 4 amps so should cater for your needs.

Taking this off topic slightly here are the results of a stacked image

Hopefully we'll have some feedback from DocE to confirm if the mount is still working

As part of a deal to repair a blown goto motor board I was gifted a SVBony SV205 planetary camera. - Well due to ill health, weather and Moon phase I haven't been able to drop it in to the 200P and give it a whirl.... until yesterday Here is the result. Equipment used is listed in my signature, but here are the settings as logged by Sharpcap Resolution=1280x720 FPS=30.00 Colour Space=MJPG Output Format=AVI files (*.avi) Frame Rate Limit=Maximum Roll=0 Exposure=7.8ms Timestamp Frames=Off Brightness=1 Contrast=49 Hue=0 Saturation=50 Sharpness=85 Gamma=358 White Balance=4650 Backlight Compensation=0 Gain=83 Granted the image won't win any prizes, but it's my first Luna image in 10 years and I'm quite pleased with the results

Can you plug your handset into the mount and confirm that the handset can talk to the mount and that you don't get any "No response" message.... Just want to confirm that the mount is still functional. Otherwise you're wasting your time thinking its an EQMOD issue when in reality it's down to using the wrong cable