GTom

Right, I thought Mediafire doesn't need a registration for uploading, but apparently it does.

Nice test Adam, very interesting: clearly more intensity when all pixels are used but less details. Latter goes in the opposite direction as Maxmax's marketing, claiming that monochrome should yield more details. Can you share the raw files? I don't really see loss of intensity on the subpixel level (#2 vs #3), maybe 1/3stop, whereas the gain on the additional pixels is substantially more, my guess is around 1EV.

Very nice pics Ole, however 12" f/3.8 would probably yield yaw-dropping results with Bayer-on too - as a matter of fact I'd also check in with a roll of iso400 Provia :D. I see you have both "color" and mono 6D, do you have a comparable pair, where only the camera is the changing factor? For a 4-5min exposure each I guess the same scope would do, with camera swap. Do you experience more vignetting on the mono version with photo lenses (f/2 for instance)?

Not being in the canon camp I didn't know, just picked a cheaper Canon for the sake of a comparison. Let it be any recent camera... Question remains, how a decent DSLR/ILC stands up against the cheapest 4/3 factor astro-camera?

True, the venerable kaf8300 rather belongs to a museum than to a modern astrophotographer's setup. An ASI1600mm vs monochrome 5DmkII would be interesting though. The ASI has a smaller CMOS sensor but I guess with microlenses on place and the cooling is quite powerful. A mono-modded 5D would miss the microlens array and there is no practical way to cool it as efficiently.

We fully appreciate your efforts! Yes, it is difficult to compare... WB and metering are the first candidates to go mad because of the different conditions: you need to select a fixed CT and shoot full manual. I'd also be curious if a B&W converted, cooled APSc camera can come close to astronomical CCD/CMOS cams, because an ASI 1600MM-Cool can be had for ~1600EUR (+few KAF8300 candidates join in if one considers 2nd hand). If I take the B&W conversion road, I most likely grab a commercial conversion service like JTW. However this case price is a question: the camera value + conversion costs (+hassle...) should be definitely below the dedicated solution...

Nice shot, especially from a 100mm APO! Added "Resolution" you call it, is actually additional information of the same quality presented now by 4 pixels instead of one. If I understand correctly, a 4:1 median filtering on the monochrome material, you get the same resolution as with the Bayer but significantly less noise. Or the same noise level but higher detail.

In more recent sensors the "eye" doesn't sit too deep AFAIK, even if they are not BSI. I recall Panasonic claiming that they moved the sensing part upwards in their m4/3 sensor few years ago (canon 3xx was history even that time).

Correct, I probably have to forget my nice & shiny 1.4/20 Sigma ART lens with the debayered body

Wow, this is a very weird behavior... I was expecting a lot of gain on the red channel - since it got only a single pixel out of 4 in the Bayer matrix... One thing, did you force the WB on a set value (e.g. 6000K)? CLS through Bayer means that each subpixel looses ~60% or 1+EV, not much surprised an advancement even in green. Here is an estimate, that microlenses bring 40% to the equation.

One more vote for clear sky, its on extremely short supply on the northern hemisphere now:(((. At first I didn't want to "fix" my a6000, but when I saw that 70$ buys me a sensor on ebay I gave a thought. I'll definitely wait until your results, if you have the chance, do o-iii or h-beta as well. So far I've seen many people scraping off their Bayer's, but very little comparison. Your post showed the first quantitative results... Just an addition: the a6000 must be possible, Maxmax sells monochrome a6000's for 2k$, and it wouldn't be the first "NEX" to be converted. The not-so-extreme pricing indicates that the process shouldn't be extremely difficult... This blog seems to be sleeping, but the downloadable price list shows a whole lot of cameras, from all brands. A little French reading, finally the quantitative astro comparison I was seeking...

BTW, other than ebay, is there any source for a replacement a6000 sensor?

Interesting finding Adam! Are those areas relatively close together? Lens vignetting might also cause hiccups... Total values are convincing though, it appears that you get almost a full EV - in other words, you can get the same illumination at a given wavelength in 40% less time. I found spare sensors on ebay for my sony A6000, I just wonder is it possible to check if a debayered sensor is fine without putting it into a camera? That would save the hassle to disassemble-reassemble every time...