Sp@ce_d

So I kicked off the trial in Pixinsight.. wow.. impressively quick results! It's worth it just to not have to listen to the cooling fan on the Mac screaming away for half an hour!!.. sold

If this one doesn't actually turn out to allow EQ/ALT-AZ config... the ZWO AM5 does.. which is almost half the price of the RST-135

Interesting.. but its not that much more than a single band 2" 3nm Chroma or Astrodon! At 4nm it sits in-between most options of 5nm or 3nm for a single filter. Bearing in mind a 2" 5nm chroma OIII sits at £900 or £1200 for 3nm, it starts to look cheap compared to a set of single filters!

Nice one.. One of my favourite targets. The first time I observed this visually in a lot of ways it had the same effect on me as the first time I saw Saturn.

Interesting, I didn’t know about this & I also have starXterminator. My usual goto’s now have been EZsuite NR at linear stage if needed & Topaz at the other end. Thanks for bringing this to my attention 👍

I haven't had time/weather/darkness to try this yet but was wondering about a dual rig with the 2600MM & MC with one of the multi band filters in each (I have tried an IDAS NBZ on the MC). Isn't that sort of (ok not quite the separate 3 channels) what Altair are claiming with thier Triband & Quadband filters? "You can also use the Quad band and Tri-Band filters as a "super luminance filter" for imaging nebulae with Mono cameras." Edit: 😲.. ok there's life in an old thread yet.. nearly 7 years old!..

Nice result 👍. I’ve never been able to get to this one from my obsy as it’s too low. I also get more out of the thrill of the chase than trying to “cook the meal” after. Processing frustrates me because I don’t seem to be that good at it & invariably overcook! I remember seeing Ollys Witch Head years ago & since then wanting to have a go. His comment about Ha intrigued me & I see that IDAS HEUIB-II has a notch in the graph to enhance Ha as well. Although I guess the exposure time needed to pull it out would blow the rest with a OSC. You can see where I’m going here trying to fathom out out what kind of mobile rig is needed if travelling to a dark site to get all the data in one session. Still needs a dual mono/OSC rig I guess or maybe a OSC with filter wheel & a dual band? I’ve never tried processing OSC broad & dual band together.

Assuming filter wheel & filters have been taken into consideration when comparing costs & the budget. The other thing when comparing is sensor size,FOV & imaging circle. I take it you’re happy that your intended targets will fit comfortably with the 8300 sensor. The other thing to mention is dithering, it makes all the difference cleaning up with the 8300.

Yes, if buying new I'd also point to CMOS & larger sensor but the OP was asking about KAF8300 CCD's & particularly Morovian support/software because of results with a particular scope combination on Astrobin. As is usual one question will inevitably open up others.. ok CCD has given way to CMOS but it doesn't mean its going to stop working or producing great results. It's more than likely the underlying operating system will stop the Apps from supporting them at some point before the camera dies. But then again how many are still running Windows 7 quite happily let alone Win 10 which they still work under. Then you start down the path of how long the hardware running that version of the O/S is available & so on.. plenty more Q's & plenty more threads to be had out of this if one desires.. that's why we're all on here after all

They all have a good reputation. I haven't had a Moravian, I know some QSI users who wanted another additional QSI but couldn't justify the cost went down the Moravian route as it worked out cheaper with filter wheel & guider. I've got Atiks but not a KAF8300 based one & I've had a QSI683wsg8 for 7 years, it's a lovely made thing I still "caress" when I go into the obsy . You can also get away with 1.25" filters as they got the sensor so close with the integrated FW. It's been the main permanent camera on my automated obsy rigs & I'm only now thinking I should swap it out for a larger sensor cmos (ASI2600MM) for next season, just because I already have one & should make more use of it! They all have a good reputation & QSI are now owned by Atik anyway. I've also had experience of Atik servicing my QSI & Atik which I can't fault. I have found the KAF8300 a pretty forgiving & easy to use sensor.. it looks horrendous when you look at a dark but with dithering I don't really need to use darks anyway. The prices on the secondhand market have crashed with CCD since CMOS amp glow became less of an issue so you should be able to pick these up at a decent if not silly prices when you know how much they were new! The other "advantage" is that you can get away with a modest computer to capture & process compared to the file size & sheer number of subs that CMOS is now demanding. If you're happy with 5 minute LRGB or 15/20 plus min subs for NB I still think these cameras have plenty of life in them. I say that as an automated obsy owner. If you're up against the UK weather & setup every night then maybe the faster CMOS & faster optics combo is better. Amazingly for a sensor that is over 10 years old the Atik & QSI are still available new too!!.. https://www.firstlightoptics.com/atik-cameras/atik-383l-plus.html https://www.firstlightoptics.com/qsi-cameras/qsi-683-83mp-monochrome-ccd-camera-currently-on-sale.html

Ok I don't use Nina.. so I got sidetracked with googles.. there is a bit of noise on cloudy nights about driver support & here.. might be worth seeing if @tomato managed to get it sorted with Nina

Have you checked out the software/drivers for it?.. https://www.gxccd.com/cat?id=23&lang=409 Theres also other KAF8300 based cameras worth looking for.. Atik & QSI for instance.

Yeah I accrue an astronomy related injury every time my Wife clocks a box being delivered with a “May contain clouds” sticker.. 😏

Most of my images take me months if not over a year to collect enough data. The last one I posted a few weeks back (M101) I started in April last year & I only managed 10 & a half hours of usable data! You'd have to be very lucky with the weather alone (at least in the UK) to get enough on just one night. There are some targets I've been chipping away at that are only reachable for a short time before I loose astro darkness so if the weather & Moon don't play nice a whole year can be lost. I keep all my data.. seems crazy not to with the amount of effort gone into it. For pretty much 6 months of the year the obsy gets mothballed as I don't have enough usable astro darkness anyway... but during that time I do wear a hair shirt to make up for it 😆.

Great to see this back on. Coincidentally it’ll be 32 years this year since I last hiked the canyon, yet the memory of those amazing skies never left me. So many stars I struggled to pick out familiar constellations. This’ll be a fantastic star party.

Isn't it amazing.. capturing those points of light... with no trails!!.. & wondering what's out there Well, if I can even call myself experienced!.. I'll say... they look amazing.. because I have a big grin on my face knowing the journey you are on.. that is fulfilling, frustrating, challenging... rewarding... and soo addicting... oh and... expensive 🤣

At 2 metres it's a challenging scope.. I know I've said this before elsewhere.. I was so close to going for one but opted out for the 150 frac after 5 years with an 8"RC. Looking at this it's still soo tempting.. you are amazingly close to pulling it off! Couple of things.. why not an OAG & would a shroud not give you the chance to do flats?

+1 for the Telegizmos 365 covers

Nice one.. it's definitely worth grabbing the Ha.

Well, it's taken me a year to get this far. Started in April 2021 & finally got enough subs & time to have a first go at processing. HaLRGB filters for a total exposure time of 10hrs 25mins. Processed in Pixinsight with a run through topaz denoise after. Cropped, as I like it a bit more up close & personal. Shot with the trusty QSI683 through the Esprit 150. I've stared at it far too long tonight so I'll probably change my mind in the morning but if I don't post it now I probably never will

Wow that’s some result I’d never have considered even attempting this with the dslr! Top marks

As I said over on the other thread, I missed these posts. Wonderful results, really nicely processed just proving what can be achieved these days under our challenging skies. Well done 👍

Oh I missed this post.. great results, well done. I’ve always thought this was a “pasta” too far to get decent results under uk skies. You’ve definitely proved it’s viable now!

Very nicely done. I've now accepted it's highly unlikely I'll get all the data I want to finish a target in one imaging season!

Amazing… well done! Sad to think it’ll be de orbited in 9 years.