Eyepieces for SW Explorer 200P

[JM1311]

Hi,

I know this may generate many different replies, but what eyepieces would best suit the SW 200p F5? Does anyone have any good/bad experiences with eyepieces in this scope?

I have had a good read in the 'stickies' section, and would like peoples opinions on the following:

Baader Hyperion Zoom Lens (8-24mm) £169

Baader Hyperion Eyepieces (8mm/17mm/24mm) £92 each

Celestron X-cel LX (9mm/18mm/25mm) £69 each

I like the idea of the Hyperion Zoom as it combines a 8/12/16/20/24 eyepieces, is the downsides to a zoom lens to great? Would I notice significant improvements in having separate non-zoom lenses?

By the way, I observe both DSO and planetary/lunar.

Thanks!!

JM

[Damo636]

I have used the Hyperion range with my 200p and found them very good. I think i would give the Celestron XCEL-LX a go instead though, cheaper and by all accounts excellent. See this thread...http://stargazerslounge.com/discussions-eyepieces/163180-celestron-x-cel-lx-v-bst-explorer-eyepiece.html

[damnut]

HI JM1311,

All the ep's you have mentioned would be great to own. It is also worth looking at the BST's as mentioned at£40 they are excellent value. You can also try before you buy from : 1.25" Eyepieces

I have a whole mix of ep's Including Hyperions & BST's. Your journey will find what suits you!!.

Good Luck

[Charon]

I have the Hperion zoom and three EP's they are good quality EP's. But you should try as many different EP's as you can manage before deciding what to buy, is there a Astro Group that you can join or visit nearby?

[JM1311]

The last two astro club meetings I have attended have been cancelled on the night due to the persistent cloud!!

Santa is after a list at the mo-which is why I was asking other people's opinions.

To me, I do change my lenses quite frequently so having the ability to quickly switch to the next magnification sounds great, I just do not want to compromise on the quality too much for the sake of convenience.

JM

[Space Beagle]

Hi JM,

I've been through a number of ep's with my 200P, my current line up is below in my signature.

I have used a couple of BST Explorers (the 5mm and the 18mm, soon to be for sale btw!) and they are very good value for money. They've only been made redundant 'cos of me spending daft money on replacements, he he!

I'm tempted by the Hyperion III Zoom too, as a lot of users on this here forum seem to rate them very highly!

I've also had a 24mm Hyperion in the past, which was good too. A lot of people rate the whole range of Hypereions as very good, so they are worth a look too!

Also, a little more expensive again, the SkyWatcher Nirvanas work very well with the 200P!

Hope these mutterings help you in some way (probably confuse, sorry). As the other replies also say it all comes down to what works for you - which is why trying the different combinations out beforhand is such a good idea!

Doc

[nicnac]

Xcel LX performs very well in my f5 TAL

[rwilkey]

Hi JM1311, I have spent a little bit of a long journey going through ep's, but the one that works best for me is the 32mm PanaView, which was my first ever purchase of an new ep, happily the good lads of FLO let me try it at Salisbury Star Party first so I was lucky in that respect, however, the other ep's mentioned in this thread are all very good, most of which I have tried except the Mark III Baader Zoom. They will all work well in your excellent scope.

[Space Beagle]

That's a great shout from Rwikey!

I had a 32mm PanaView for a while and it was a bit of a stunner in the 200P!

I'd deffo' try and have a look through one of those!

Doc

[John]

On the ones you list, I've compared the views with a Hyperion Zoom with the fixed focal length Hyperions and, while the zoom was pretty good, I felt the fixed focal length eyepieces provided just a bit better sharpness, contrast and control of light scatter. I preferred the 68 degree field of view too. The difference in optical performance is subtle but sometimes subtle is important as were are often trying to observe things at the edge of visibility.

From reports I've read on here I reckon the Celestron X-Cel LX's are a step up again from the Hyperion, at a lower price too. One of our members compared their performance favourably with that of the Baader Genuine Ortho's which are really top drawer.

[russ.will]

I love my 32mm Panaview. With the twist up solid eyecup, it's easy to set a comfortable viewing distance and it's just so damn easy to look through. Sharpness is good over 80% of the FOV and not distractingly blurred beyond. Nice and contrasty too.

It is a far nicer EP to use than my Revelation Astro 2" 26mm, which takes too much effort to achieve the precise eye relief and positioning for my liking. This is especially important considering the positions you can end up contorted in using a large reflector on a equatorial mount.

Russell

[DOBBY]

32mm panaview works very well with a 200p

the 18mm & 7mm x-cel lx are x-cel-ent ( sorry folks) & being 1.25" can be easily barlowed.

in less than 'good' seeing conditions, the click-stop zoom can get a bit grainy at higher mags in a 200

[JM1311]

Thanks for all your opinions, I have lost count how many times I have changed my decision today!

Having spent all day pondering over the huge amount of eyepieces, I have decided to go with the Baader Hyperion zoom. It will be a huge increase in quality from the stock SW eyepieces I currently have, offer me several magnifications without the need to keep changing eyepieces and re-focussing. I'm sure over time I'll be adding to my eyepiece collection-this can be a very expensive hobby!

Cheers

JM

[pritc]

Another vote for the 2" SW 32mm Panaview from me.

I also have the 25,18,12,8,5mm BST Explorer's.All from Alan at Sky's the Limit.

Wayne

[SplintUK]

Anyone tried the moonfish 2" with a 200p?