Ade Turner

1 hour ago, BrendanC said:

It's an extraordinarily steep learning curve.

There is another way to connect your scope to your laptop: by using the handset as a relay, and using a different sort of cable. So, keep trying with your current setup because it's really the best ie the simplest, and very common, so that means a lot of people will have similar setups and can help. But there's a plan B if this doesn't work.

Thanks, I’d considered that, but must admit I decided to go for broke right away with this new mount and go the whole EQMOD route. The opportunities and flexibility it offers are really appealing. My goal is to have a system through which I can blind plate solve and pretty much do all I need direct from the laptop. It’s a bit of a step change from StarSense and StarPortal.

5 hours ago, Jm1973 said:

I just noticed that in your eqmod settings you have mount options set to auto detect. Try setting that to eq5/eq6 or whatever the setting is...

I did wonder about that, but the only other choice available was ‘Custom Mount’ - I didn’t see eq5/eq6 as an option. At the moment I’m in the process of reinstalling everything. Clean sweep 👍

12 hours ago, BrendanC said:

The other night, my EQMOD ini file corrupted, and I had to go through several steps to get it all working again. The Comms stats test was really useful - I just went through COM1, COM2, COM3 etc until one responded, and then I was back up and running. So, it really is worth trying before reinstalling everything. Good luck. I feel your pain. I've had a lot of problems connecting my current and previous mounts so I've been there!

I’m sure I’ll get everything sorted eventually, but these early days feel more like I’m on a learning cliff rather than a curve. And here’s me thinking retirement was going to be less complex than work! 😂

3 hours ago, BrendanC said:

Don't worry about the unexpected error message. I think the light vortex guide even mentions that.

You're doing the right thing by running the Comms statistics test. Have you been through all the other ports on that test to see if any respond? 

Thanks Brendan. TBH no, I haven’t tried the other ports. I haven’t had chance to play today, but I’ll work through them tomorrow 👍

16 hours ago, Jm1973 said:

Have you tried installing any software before that might have used an earlier version of EQMOD or ASCOM? If so this can cause problems.

I did muck about with an earlier version of ASCOM (but not EQMOD) on my Celestron Evolution mount controlling slewing and focussing through Astro Photography Tool. Had weird issues with that too. It always connected to the mount fine, but pressing the virtual arrow keys would start slews which never ended... Had the same slewing issue using ASCOM inside Firecapture too.

When I bought this new mount I updated ASCOM during which process it reportedly uninstalled the older version.

If I get time today I’ve decided to uninstall both ASCOM and EQMOD (and possibly Stellarium) and start over.

Thanks everyone for all the advice.

I stripped everything back to basics i.e. EQ6-R (powered) > Lynx EQDirect cable (hand controller socket) > USB 3.0 on laptop - I connected nothing else and then followed the Light Vortex tutorial. Unfortunately, I’m still having the ‘timed out’ problem; the mount just won’t connect.

The laptop is about 5 years old running Windows 7 if that’s relevant.

I have taken a few screenshots of my setup dialogues hoping someone might spot something relevant.

The COM port is still reported as 8.

Photo 1: Following the set up tutorial when I click ‘OK’ in EQMod’sToolbox I get an ‘unexpected error’ flag, but when I closed it underneath is a ‘Success’ message - so I blindly carried on...

Photo 2: my EQAscom driver setup values.

Photo 3: the ‘Connect Error Timed Out’ error flagged up on the control panel.

Photo 4: I clicked the ‘Comms Statistics’ button and started a test - this is the result.

My instinct is to uninstall and reinstall both Ascom and EQAscom and try again.

Open to suggestions. Thanks.

9 hours ago, Jm1973 said:

I was a complete beginner a few months ago, and that tutorial made it relatively straightforward to start controlling my mount with my laptop.

I think an evening was all it took to get the basics down.

Definitely going to go through it today, thanks. I get to the point where I think I understand something but then hit a brick wall; it gets so frustrating.

1 hour ago, Jm1973 said:

I followed this guide

https://www.lightvortexastronomy.com/tutorial-setting-up-an-equatorial-mount-on-ascom-with-eqmod-stellarium-and-cartes-du-ciel.html

I’ve just had a skim - looks very useful. I’ll check it out properly tomorrow, thanks. Up to now I’ve been following YouTube videos, but some are more comprehensive than others.

2 hours ago, Merlin66 said:

Ade,

Just to evaluate the set-up can you temporarily set the laptop closer to the mount, bypass the USB3 cable/hub and connect the EQMod cable.

I had some "issues" with a USB2 camera when connected to a USB3 port......may be this is similar????

(Was there sufficient power to the mount when you tried??)

 

Hi Merlin66

Thanks, I will try that tomorrow. I did wonder whether it’s related to the hub and long cable, but I’ve seen others during similar set ups without issue.

I’m powering the mount with a regulated 13.8V bench top supply, I’m confident it’s getting enough power.

I’ve just bought a Skywatcher EQ6-R Pro. I’m trying to drive it from Stellarium using EQMOD but I’m running into a problem I haven’t the experience to solve.

This is my set up:

Windows 7 Laptop > 10m active USB 3.0 cable > 4 port powered Atolla USB 3.0 hub > Lynx Astro EQMOD cable > Mount (plugged directly into hand control socket)

When I first connected the mount to the laptop (a 2015 Dell Inspiron) Windows 7 searched for a serial/USB driver and installed it on COM 8 (according to Device Manager).

In Stellarium I created a profile for the mount but it wouldn’t autodetect the COM port. So I manually set it to 8.

When I try to connect to the mount it sits for a while and then tells me the connection has timed out.

Anyone have any suggestions as to where I should start to try and get the connection sorted please? Thanks.

15 hours ago, Yawning Angel said:

I’d certainly make sure the handset is correct. You might also check the official teamcelestron forum (free to join) for beta firmware 

I’ll certainly be checking it out before I use it again, along with updating the firmware. Thanks.

2 hours ago, globular said:

Are you on the latest firmware?
There was some mention of "SSA Camera causing short run away slews" that was fixed in the latest (Sept 2020) release.

Must admit, I last updated the firmware towards the end of last year. I’ll get onto that as I should’ve been on top of it anyway. Thanks.

2 hours ago, Shimrod said:

Has Skyportal updated recently? There was a bug in CPWI recently that cased a Starsense alignment to do the exact same thing. I wonder if Celestron have managed to replicate the same bug in Skyportal as well.

Ah, maybe, although I can’t recall when the SkyPortal app last updated. Sounds plausible.

49 minutes ago, Yawning Angel said:

Eeek, a scary moment! Have you updated the handset for the change from BST to GMT?

Just a bit! 😬 Using SkyPortal on my iPad the date, time and location are always current, so maybe not that unless they can clash somehow?

I’ve been using my 8’ Edge HD on an Evolution mount for a couple of years now and I added a wedge to it a few months back. Using SkyPortal with StarSense I’ve never really had any major issues getting it aligned. 
 

Last night I was setting up to photograph Mars and went through my normal procedure. StarSense took its images but, after confirming success with the third plate, instead of just winding up a bit and parking it proceeded to pitch the ota towards the north well below the horizon.
 

Fortunately nothing snagged. I skipped the ASPA and instructed it to goto Mars and was surprised to find it was spot on (better than usual actually).

Anyone any ideas why it took that nose dive? Thanks.

14 hours ago, Waldemar said:

And you will need adjustable rings and a clamp(s) of course. Plenty pictures available on the web of such a setup.

Thanks Very much Waldemar - that makes it clear now 👍

18 hours ago, RayD said:

ADM and others do various dovetail kits for the top of the C8 in mini, vixen and losmandy profiles.  I have the losamndy on the top of mine, but for the 72ED I suspect a vixen would be more than sufficient.

All you would need to be careful of is the height if you are using a filter wheel as it could clash with the OTA.

 

Thanks for the advice Ray, I’ll check those out 👍  
Looking at the ota I see there are several screw heads. Is there a way to identify which are safe to use for attachments? Wouldn’t want to undo anything critical by mistake 😬

Hi All

Depending on the piggy bank I’m thinking of getting a Skywatcher Evostar 72ED primarily for photography.

However, it strikes me that I might also be able to press it into use as a guide scope on my 8” Celestron Edge HD.

I’d be grateful for any advice on how exactly I could  attach it to the ota please?

I already have a StarSense camera and a finder-scope attached.

Thanks 🙂

21 hours ago, MarkAR said:

Normal procedure is to hook everything to a powered USB Hub then hub to computer. That takes care of connectivity.

For power, you'll need something like a rig runner/powerpole 12v to send power to the necessary equipment.

A more expensive option is a Pegasus Astro Powerbox, it's a combined USB/12v output hub. Just one power cable and one USB cable dangling, everything else goes to Pegasus strapped to scope/mount. 

Ah! That’s very useful, thanks 😁

Presumably the hub doesn’t have to be anything fancy? Would something like this be OK?  
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Atolla-Powered-Splitter-Switches-Charging/dp/B071QZ5D7L/ref=sr_1_8?crid=3DW1JWM53XAOL&dchild=1&keywords=powered+usb+3+hub&qid=1588940942&refinements=p_76%3A419158031&rnid=419157031&rps=1&sprefix=Powered%2Caps%2C149&sr=8-8&swrs=43AD7910B3A36CDE55B4A8036DE4009A
 

At the moment I’m running my laptop, DSLR and mount from their internal batteries, and my dew straps from a power tank. However, I might look into one of those solutions a bit further down the line, thanks 👍 

21 hours ago, knobby said:

Not sure of the mount but you could use Celestrons software here https://www.celestron.com/pages/celestron-pwi-telescope-control-software to control the mount ... so one cable from PC to mount - plus one cable to camera and one cable to guidecam.

The cable to the mount may need a RS232 to usb adaptor but not to sure, I noticed that the evolution is wifi so you may not need a cable - Try the above software to see if you can connect wirelessly.

*** if you're guiding then I assume you have a EQ wedge ***

Thanks for tip - looks like the CPWI software is definitely compatible with my Evolution mount. I’ll probably download it and have a play 🙂

Tbh, even though my mount has built in WiFi I really wouldn’t trust it to connect to anything for extended periods. It drops out regularly when I’m using SkyPortal on an iPad Pro stood right next to the mount. It’s really frustrating, and I’ve had to redo alignments over and over because it’s dropped connection.

I’m assuming the cable to the mount would need to go from a USB port to the mini-USB on the handset (which is still serial I think)?

Yes, I have it on a wedge. It’s definitely made a difference to how long I can expose. Not having experience of EQ mounted scope I do find it very fiddly, but the biggest downside is I can’t image some targets - the mount will point fine, but with no room for the imaging train as the base is in the way.

Hi folks

I’m hoping someone can offer me some clear beginner advice on PC/camera/mount connections and cables for imaging/guiding please. 

I realise the following will be second nature to most of you, but at the moment I keep reading and re-reading articles and all I succeed in doing is giving myself a big brain freeze...

For guiding my naive assumption was that for early days simplicity I could just connect the camera to my mount via ST4 and to the PC by USB3 cable... then I discovered the Celestron Evolution mount doesn’t have an ST4 port. Doh! 🤦‍♂️

So, I think I need to use ASCOM and have installed it. However, apart from a vague notion that it’s the spider in the middle of a web of hardware connections, that’s all I really know about it.

I need a clear path please to a) what bits I physically need to connect to what and b) what specific cables/hubs I need to link all together. Ideally I’d like to use as few cables as possible and (bonus) be able to route all to my cosy kitchen (5m from mount).

Once I get everything correctly connected hopefully I might then be able to figure out the software side of things, but any pointers to speed up the process would also be very much appreciated as I feel like I’m facing a learning cliff here.

Thanks in advance 🙂

My hardware:

• Celestron 8” Edge HD with 0.7 reducer and wedge on an Evolution mount.
• ZWO oag and ASI 224MC as a guide camera (has USB camera cable and an ST4  cable).
• Celestron focuser.
• Canon 700D (unmodified) with USB camera cable.
• Dell Inspiron N5110, 8Gb RAM with Windows 7 (about 6 years old). It has 2 x USB3  ports, 1 x USB2 and a USB 2 with E-SATA and Power Share.
• One 5m active USB3 cable (currently used for connecting my Canon to my laptop).

My installed Windows software:

• ASCOM platform along with general drivers for Celestron mounts and  focuser.
• ZWO ASI 224MC Windows drivers.
• Canon 700D Windows drivers.
• PHD2.
• Astro Photography Tool (demo).

On 02/05/2020 at 12:25, theastrodragon said:

I try and get down under 120", preferably closer to 60", but then I'm imaging unguided.

This may be of interest

 

 

I try and get the azimuth as close to zero as possible, but as you can see the ideal elevation depends a lot on what you want to minimise. I usually try and make that err on the minus side, usually around -60". But your mileage may vary.

Thanks for that, I didn’t realise the axis settings could be varied to accommodate particular corrections.

On 01/05/2020 at 11:09, Shibby said:

When drift aligning my mount, I aim for below 4' (that's about 0.07 degrees) however I have a permanent pier and wouldn't want to do that every night!

Sounds complicated  I’m really just starting out and although I’ve heard of drift alignment I’m not completely sure what it involves in practice.

I’m just hauling my tripod in and out atm, but a pier sounds handy - I have a spot in mind, but not sure whether I could get away with building one 😆

On 01/05/2020 at 10:40, newbie alert said:

I found the ASPA good enough for planetary/ visual but not good enough for imaging deep sky

Are you running the starsense first and then the ASPA? Surely polar aligning afterwards knocks your star alignment out?

Also because the handset shows you're out by x amount, don't mean that you are

Yes, StarSense first then ASPA, but then I repeat the StarSense alignment - a sequence I found suggested in a separate thread which also suggested rinsing and repeating until there’s no further improvement. I’m working through SkyPortal on my iPad Pro atm rather than the handset. 

On 01/05/2020 at 00:06, michael8554 said:

If you're guiding, the PHD2 Developers say 5 arcmins is good enough, pretty much what theastrodragon said.

But if you're not guiding, as good as you can get, but there comes a point where it's too difficult to get consistently better.

Michael

That’s encouraging, thanks Michael. I haven’t been guiding, but I’ve just ordered an oag (something else to learn and get to grips with... ) Hopefully I’ll be able to tweak down to 5 arcmins with a bit of care.