birdog1960

Thanks again you all.  Next clear night  with it in the sky, I'm gonna see the smudge of the spiral galaxy (hopefully).   Andromeda with the dob actually looks pretty good when i can find it. Best eyepiece for that 12mm or add a barlow?

4 hours ago, GrumpiusMaximus said:

I have a 5SE and it's not a difficult mount to align.  It takes practice but the real key is to make sure that everything is absolutely level before you start aligning.  I have spent much longer trying to get the tripod level than I ever had trying to get the alignment to work and it's far more difficult!  As others have said, make sure you're using a low-power eyepiece for the alignment. Also make sure that you use the two-star auto align and pick two objects that are relatively far apart in the sky or else the accuracy is much poorer.

You always have the option to plug it into a computer with the right adapter (RJ12 to serial, then serial to USB) and use something like Stellarium to manage the GOTO if you don't like the handset but I've always found this to be a bit more hassle than it's worth in a temporary setup.

when I turn on Sky portal on my phone, it displays lat/longitude.  Would this not be relayed to the scope via the dongle or the cable from a pc?

Thank you all for the  advice.  I'll try again with the current software using the tips.  I live on the side of a mountain so the leveling is probably the issue (but I've used a level in the past.  Sounds like there is no magic bullet.  btw, the orion dob had a clunky goto feature that I never got to work either.  I removed it.  The Uranus comment reminded of me of this humorous  but legitimate site, don't open unless you enjoy crude humor (my British wife says my humor belongs in a high school locker room but I often don't get her humour either:  https://www.uranusgeneralstore.com.

1 hour ago, Cosmic Geoff said:

My advice is to read the manual for the 5SE (you can download it if you have lost it) and master the art of doing the "2 star auto align".  It is quite easy to do, once you have practiced it a few times, and provided you know which bright star is which up there.

If you want it even simpler, if you want to observe Mars, select "Solar System Align", aim the thing at Mars, and job almost done...

If you think the Nexstar system is hard to master, it's a piece of cake compared with the Sky-watcher Synscan for an equatorial mount. We have a constant stream of newbies baffled by those mounts. 🙂

The wifi dongle probably won't help you, as I expect you will have to do the same alignment stuff, only using your phone instead of  a cabled handset.

I assume the $500 is for the Celestron Starsense camera and handset.  I actually have one, which is used on a C8 SE, big brother of your outfit. Once one has sorted out the setup (quite a task in itself), it works well and I can carry out the C8 SE system, put it down, power it  up, enter the time and date, and let it align itself while I fetch out a box of eyepieces, stool etc, instead of having to crouch behind the scope pressing buttons for a 2-star alignment.  If this convenience is worth $500 to you, fine. If not, stick to the basic system.

Thanks.    Would the dongle not add GPS and thus automatically tell the scope lat/longitude?  Looking at the number of upgrades by celestron to firmware/software, I assume they have improved the system significantly over the last 5-7 years.  Is this true?  Many reviewers on amazon mention difficulty loading the handset firmware update and thus buy the dongle with some success..  Pretty sure I got the correct combination of cables (good lord, should have been in the original box!) to do it but before using them I'd like to know if the dongle is an easier way to "load" my scope. my understanding is that in the dongle configuration, the apps program does the work without the scope needing the algorithms therein?  It amazes me that this is so difficult.  I tinker with complicated audio equipment with fine and amazing adjustments (eg room correction software) without nearly the difficulty.  Seems companies like Celestron are less consumer friendly than companies like Denon or even Yamaha in this regard.  Perhaps the best option is carefully unboxing the dongle and using it with the free sky portal app (which i have and looks good).  My understanding is that this is a stripped down version of another app from another developer.  In your opinion, is that upgrade worth it?    Also, does the dongle not id objects for the user during alignment? Thanks in advance.

4 hours ago, birdog1960 said:

Hi.  New to the forum and hoping to get back into astronomy.  Started with a 6 inch orion dobsonian and enjoyed it.  "moved up" to the 5se about 5 years ago and got frustrated very quickly with goto alignment (which was the primary reason I bought it) so it has sat unused for years.  Saw a software update for it, uploaded it and bought the cabling.  Then saw the $100 wifi dongle which looks easier and perhaps better and it's ordered.  Recently saw a $500 "automatic" celestron alignment tool.  What is the best choice?  All are returnable at this point.  I'm just looking to make it enjoyable again without the frustration (and would rather not spend $500 -$100 is reasonable if it brings back the joy).  Also it's been sitting inside with the dust cover on.  Optics look good.  Any special care needed there?  Thanks in advance.

Bump

Hi.  New to the forum and hoping to get back into astronomy.  Started with a 6 inch orion dobsonian and enjoyed it.  "moved up" to the 5se about 5 years ago and got frustrated very quickly with goto alignment (which was the primary reason I bought it) so it has sat unused for years.  Saw a software update for it, uploaded it and bought the cabling.  Then saw the $100 wifi dongle which looks easier and perhaps better and it's ordered.  Recently saw a $500 "automatic" celestron alignment tool.  What is the best choice?  All are returnable at this point.  I'm just looking to make it enjoyable again without the frustration (and would rather not spend $500 -$100 is reasonable if it brings back the joy).  Also it's been sitting inside with the dust cover on.  Optics look good.  Any special care needed there?  Thanks in advance.