NexStar 4 (XLT) SE Vs NexStar 127 SLT

[nicks90]

yep! I want / need / desire 5 scopes

big dob for dso visual, a small fast refractor on an 'unobtanium expensive' EQ mount for dso imaging,

big mak for planetary visual, smallish sct for grab and go portable planetary visual - both with webcams etc

Big traditional refractor on an alt/az pier for that stylish back garden observing.

He who dies with the most toys - WINS!

[mikehab]

I've had the 4SE for nearly a year now, and have done pretty much everything you say you're wanting to do - i.e. planets, moon and attaching a DSLR on the back for some DSO imaging. I've found it to be an excellent 'first' scope, with good GoTo functionality which makes using it a doddle, and it's also small enough to take on holiday (I took mine to the Dordogne last yeaer which was fun).... and it has the added benefit that you can use the scope with all the GoTo functions on it's own, without the tripod - just sit the scope on a table/bench/any flat surface... so it's quite versatile in that respect.

It's the only scope I've ever owned, so I can't compare to anything else ... but I've found the tripod to be of extremely good construction and very stable.

I know everyone raves about 'ED80s 'and 'EQ5' mounts etc - but money-wise I think the 4SE is excellent value for what it gives you as an entry-level scope. Sure - it's a slow scope at f/13, which certainly has some limitations in terms of DSO - but on the plus side the 4SE mount does have a built-in wedge which allows for rudimentory polar alignment & tracking - which is definitely better than standard Alt-Az tracking.

I have an EOS 60D DSLR which is really heavy, and the 4SE mount handles the weight of that hanging off the back of the scope with no problems - you just need to make sure you adhere to the slew limit wanings to make sure you don't bang the camera on the bottom of the mount if you slew too far ;-).

If I was going to upgrade then I would probably look at keeping the mount and maybe just upgrade to a faster OTA like an ED80 ... it's a standard vixen-style dovetail bar so the mount is fine for my purposes.

Cheers,

Mike

[mikehab]

with this type of scope/mount you can use a webcam and software to take pics of the planets and moon ... you will not be able to use your dslr for long exposure at all . the altaz mount suffers from a problem called rotation ,caused by the earth turning , the altaz mount does not compensate for this .....an eq mount does .

You've obviously never owned a SE4 then since if you had then you would know that the 4SE mount comes with a built-in wedge that allows for polar/EQ alignment - thus cancelling out the field rotation. In the basic Alt-Az setup-up - yes - problem... but when wedge-aligned in EQ Polar Alignment mode - not a problem.

Sure - it's never going to be as accurate as an EQ5 - but an EQ5 SynScan mount on its own costs a lot more than the 4SE complete.

Mike

[ShellShock]

I have the Nexstar 127 SLT and indeed the mount is noticeably shaky when shaky. The simplest and cheapest solution is to clamp the focusing knob in the jaws of a clothes peg, the bigger the better. This acts as a lever when rotating the knob, enabling much finer focusing with minimal vibration.

[M4lcs67]

Also in order to overcome the slight shortcomings in the 127 SLT's mount (wobbly) a tip I was told about was to put a bag of sand on the eyepiece tray, thus preventing it from shaking while the scope is slewing/focusing etc. Also in order to combat vibration/shaking you could invest in some anti-vibration pads which the tripod is placed on top of on the ground. Just don't go for the Celestron ones. They are totally overpriced. You can buy some cheaper ones off Ebay from a company called Astro Developments. Their anti-vibration pads are less than half of the Celestron ones.

[Turtleboy]

yep! I want / need / desire 5 scopes

big dob for dso visual, a small fast refractor on an 'unobtanium expensive' EQ mount for dso imaging,

big mak for planetary visual, smallish sct for grab and go portable planetary visual - both with webcams etc

Big traditional refractor on an alt/az pier for that stylish back garden observing.

He who dies with the most toys - WINS!

Glad to read this as I've just ordered one of these as my first scope.

[Turtleboy]

I've had the 4SE for nearly a year now, and have done pretty much everything you say you're wanting to do - i.e. planets, moon and attaching a DSLR on the back for some DSO imaging. I've found it to be an excellent 'first' scope, with good GoTo functionality which makes using it a doddle, and it's also small enough to take on holiday (I took mine to the Dordogne last yeaer which was fun).... and it has the added benefit that you can use the scope with all the GoTo functions on it's own, without the tripod - just sit the scope on a table/bench/any flat surface... so it's quite versatile in that respect.

It's the only scope I've ever owned, so I can't compare to anything else ... but I've found the tripod to be of extremely good construction and very stable.

I know everyone raves about 'ED80s 'and 'EQ5' mounts etc - but money-wise I think the 4SE is excellent value for what it gives you as an entry-level scope. Sure - it's a slow scope at f/13, which certainly has some limitations in terms of DSO - but on the plus side the 4SE mount does have a built-in wedge which allows for rudimentory polar alignment & tracking - which is definitely better than standard Alt-Az tracking.

I have an EOS 60D DSLR which is really heavy, and the 4SE mount handles the weight of that hanging off the back of the scope with no problems - you just need to make sure you adhere to the slew limit wanings to make sure you don't bang the camera on the bottom of the mount if you slew too far ;-).

If I was going to upgrade then I would probably look at keeping the mount and maybe just upgrade to a faster OTA like an ED80 ... it's a standard vixen-style dovetail bar so the mount is fine for my purposes.

Cheers,

Mike

Ignore the post above. I meant to click quote on this one.

Why can't you edit posts on this forum?