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Adreneline

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Everything posted by Adreneline

  1. Well there are now a few more stars @vlaivbut not sure they look any less spikey @ollypenrice. Adrian
  2. Thanks @vlaiv and @ollypenrice for your comments and advice. I used the method you showed me Olly to put the stars back but maybe I didn't apply the right curve shape or maybe the it's the way the starless version proved so difficult to control. I agree totally about the HOS version - it's not very 'pretty' and certainly not very pleasing in terms of revealing detail. I will have another go with the methodology you have described and see if I can improve those hard-edged looking stars; they do not look natural and as Vlad has pointed out some of them seem to have gone missing! Thanks again for your comments and advice - it's very much appreciated. Adrian
  3. This is a seriously difficult target to process and even after hours of processing I'm not that happy with the end result but I thought I would share it anyway. This is 30 x 180s Ha, 25 x 180s OIII and 12 x 180s of SII, pre-processed in APP, processed in PI and starless and star images blended in Affinity. HOS: SHO: My preference is with SHO as I think it reveals more structure. Thanks for looking. Adrian
  4. Both very good images David but I think I also prefer the first one. The second one seems to have a hint of green cast not apparent on the first one (as viewed on my MacBook Pro screen). Adrian
  5. Sorry to jump in here but the backfocus on my ASI1600MM is 6.5mm with the extender ring removed. It shouldn't be too much of a challenge getting to the 55mm nominal but some experimentation might be needed to find the optimum spacing taking into account the effect of filter thickness. HTH
  6. Excellent! Happy New Year Steve - hope the AAP comes soon for you. Adrian
  7. Hi Steve, I should perhaps mention the two things I would like to see in the ASIair OS that for me would make it perfect. In the Autorun screen you can set the various parameters for an imaging run, e.g. number of exposures, length of exposure, filter, object name, etc. It would be perfect - for me - if in addition you could set the focus position for the EAF for each filter. I know the ASIair can do autofocus but my experience with autofocus is very mixed and I prefer to manually input the focus position having carefully established it with the BM and the zoom feature on the iPad display. The other things I would like is to be able to input a custom filter name, e.g. L and L3 in my case. I've passed both of these suggestions to ZWO for what they are worth. I have used the ASIair PA feature and it seems to work just fine and is ideal on the odd occasion I've operated away from home. As I also have a PoleMaster I tend to use a PC laptop to complete PA before starting an imaging session. With my light-weight setup I can be up and imaging in about 20 minutes, including carrying the tripod and scope outside. Generally I connect to the mains power supply and use a 12.5V psu unit, but I also have a powertank for operation away from the house - everything is housed in a Makita tool box! The tool box is also big enough to accommodate my Intel NUC for the occasions I want to use my Canon camera and BYEoS. HTH Adrian
  8. Hi. I don't have the AAP but I do have the ASIair which I've used for the last 14 months. It rates as one of the best things I have bought in the AP world - I love it! Like most things it is not perfect but name me one piece of software that is - although I do think BYEoS (IMHO) gets pretty close. There are a couple of features I would like to see added to the software but they are not show stoppers. The air will work remotely and without the home network. I control my air with an iPad and it works seamlessly. I've not carried out a rigorous test to see just how far from the air I can go before I lose contact but it certainly seems good up to 5/6 metres (lounge to patio). I use an ASI1600MM-Pro for imaging along with a ZWO EAF and EFW. I have used an ASI120-mini to guide but as I use a CEM25-EC tracking is certainly good up to 180s exposures so I tend not to guide. I connect my EFW to the 1600; the 1600, the EAF and the mount are hard wired to the air. The ASIair is based on a standard Pi3B+. I have tried using Pi3 and Pi4 with Astroberry and been driven to the point of distraction. In my view there is no comparison regarding ease of use and setup between the two. I accept the ASIair can only be used with ZWO products (and a subset of Canon and Nikon cameras) but I for one don't have an issue with that - ZWO have developed an excellent imaging control environment so why shouldn't they restrict it ot their own products. Interestingly I don't see people bemoaning the fact that Atik software only works with Atik cameras. Is it expensive? I guess it is but it represents less than 10% of the cost of everything else that is sitting on the tripod (mount, imaging scope, guide scope, imaging and guide cameras, EAF, EFW, filters(!!!), dew heaters, etc.). ASIair works seamlessly with SkySafari running on the iPad- it is highly responsive (unike Ekos). My ASIair failed two days before Christmas - I was distraught! ZWO came to the rescue within 24 hours with a revalidation code so I could replace the Pi3B+ with one of my own - the code arrived Christmas morning. That and the fact that FLO also offered to replace the unit as it was less than two years old. Would I buy another - a Pro - without doubt. Hope this helps. Adrian
  9. Unfortunately not the case for Mac owners Olly. My not so old and totally legit PS CS6 Ext won't run on the new Mac operating systems, is no longer supported by Apple or Adobe and if you ask if you can transfer your multi-hundred pound licence to Windows you get a flat "No" from Adobe. You may even find that Mac removes PS for your machine during an OS upgrade as it is no longer supported so not allowed to reside within the OS. I have even tried installing an older OS on a Parallels VM on the Mac and installing PS; sure it installs but if you try to update Adobe no longer recognises your totally valid and paid for license and refuses to complete the Registration or the much needed updates. Now I feel that is a bit harsh and so I have dumped PS and moved to Affinity on my PC laptop and my MacBook. One thing Affinity cannot do that PS does so easily (manipulating/extracting/blending RGB channels/layers) I have learnt how to do in PI (PixelMath) thanks to Rogelio Andreo's new book in which he recognises the virtues of both approaches and dedicates a whole chapter to "Parallel workflow with PixInsight and GIMP/Photoshop"; he also accepts that "PI cannot offer the methodology of working with layers, simultaneously and with a constant visual feedback of results". Sad to say I would no longer recommend PS to anyone - old or new version - especially if you own a Mac. I'm getting to like Affinity and I'm even coming to terms with GIMP. Do I miss PS? - No, but I do miss one or two third party Actions but I've even found work-arounds for them. Rant over! Happy New Year Everyone - may we all stay safe and healthy and have lots of clear skies. Adrian P.S. I still blame that comet for all this stuff we're having to endure
  10. Thank you I am really pleased so far with the RedCat; the build quality is really good and optically it seems to be performing. I think the move away from 135mm to 250mm is going to require me to sort out guiding on my CEM25-EC making my light-weight rig not quite so light weight! Adrian
  11. Thank you - I'm glad you like the processing. I sometimes think I should push it a bit further but then I think again and the urge goes away. I also try to apply the same stretch to all the channels to the best I can judge using PixInsight; if there's not a lot of OIII then that's how it is - no point in trying to make something out of nothing by binning and over-stretching. Thanks again. Adrian
  12. Thank you Lee. I much prefer the moody, pastel look - I can't believe space is garish but having said that I still like to see full colour images. I did something with the data - it's not great but it is a start. Thanks again. Adrian
  13. My second image from Christmas Eve before the clouds rolled in. This is 10 x 180s of Ha, OIII and SII with the RedCat 51 + ASI1600MM-Pro. Calibrated, registered and integrated in APP. Processed in PI with Starnet. Blended with the stars in Affinity. As always more data is good but this shows what can be achieved with relatively little. As always C&C welcome. Thanks for looking. Adrian
  14. Thank you for the generous comment Steve. I've done everything I can to make my "set up every time" gear easy to setup because I don't have an obsy and I'm not likley to have one either. It was more of a faff this time because I had to use a NUC PC at the mount to run the necessary software so it probably took me best part of an hour to be up and imaging rather than the 15-20 minutes I've become accustomed to with the ASIair. What's frustrating is it cleared up later in the night (once Santa had been) and I could have left the rig imaging and I may have got the Jellyfish as well! Adrian
  15. I got my second chance to use the new RedCat on Christmas Eve and I've got to say I am very pleased with my acquisition. I am by no means an expert but it gives every impression of being a very nice piece of kit with some serious imaging capability when used by someone who knows what they are doing. I set up to grab three targets, namely IC 1848 (the Soul), IC1396 (the Elephant's Trunk) and IC 443 (the Jellyfish) but despite CO saying it would be clear all night the clouds rolled in just after midnight (no doubt to give Santa extra cover) and so I only managed the first two. This is my attempt at IC1396. I managed 24 x 180s of Ha, OIII and SII; I also took some Luminance using an L-3 filter but chose not to use it. Because my ASIair had given up the ghost (now fixed by excellent Christmas Day customer service at ZWO) I used SGPro to control the rig, including plate solving with ANSVR local on the PC. ASI1600MM-Pro at -20 degrees, gain 139, offset 50. Calibrated, registered and integrated in APP. Processed in PI using Starnet and then stars recombined in Affinity. As ever C&C always welcome. Thank you for looking and hope you all had a great Christmas! Adrian
  16. And to you Dave - and let’s hope we all have a better 2021. 🤞
  17. I have tried a new re-flashed card without success. However!!! ZWO have come to the rescue. I sent them and email outlining my plight and they responded almost by return and offered a new validation code in receipt of the SN for the old Pi and the SN for the new Pi - they even supplied detailed instructions on where to get the required info. I sent an email and within 5 minutes on Christmas Day I got a new license and revalidation code and bingo!! - I was back up and running in minutes. Well done ZWO - brilliant customer service. All I need now is some clear nights. Adrian
  18. I found this invaluable when I started with PixInsight - my first attempt was also M31. HTH
  19. ... and so you should be! - definitely a good start. Stars look good all the way to the corners too. Adrian
  20. I've got all the bits - I'm ZWO through and through! I didn't go for the PE when it was available because I'd only just bought the ASIair - it's only 14 months old so I'm a bit sad it's failed - especially as I've just got my new scope Thanks again. Adrian
  21. Hi. Thanks for the link - it appears to cover just the RPi4 and not the Pi3B+. The only led activity is the power led - there is no activity from the green led at all. I've put my own Pi3B+ in the ASIair case but of course it requires reauthorization by ZWO and each time I do that it fails - no surprise there! I've tried using the QR code to download the app again but the response is 'Unsupported Product' so I've emailed ZWO and am awaiting a response. I am assuming the authorisation is maybe linked to the MAC address in the Broadcom unit on the Pi. All a tad frustrating really. Thanks for your help. Adrian
  22. Hi @Davey-T - thanks for the details - mine is the ASIair (not the Pro) and there are no reset buttons anywhere - it's based on a Pi3B+. Adrian
  23. Hi Dave. Do you mean on the ASIair or do you mean my router? Not sure I know how to reset the ASIair. My concern is that nothing happens at all. I connected a monitor and there’s no video output at all. I connected a network cable and the LAN socket shows no network activity at all. It doesn’t look good to me 🙁 Adrian
  24. Thank you Lee. It's not looking too bad - unguided again so a little bit of elongation but not too much. Adrian
  25. Hi ASIair owners. My ASIair has thrown a wobbler. The wifi signal seems to have died. I've tried replacing the SD with a previous backup with no joy - there is nothing. Does anyone have experience of this and have any thoughts on how to fix the problem. Is it just a standard RPi3B+ or is it in someway customised by ZWO - looks pretty standard to me. Any help or advice would be appreciated. Thanks in anticipation. Adrian
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