Is it usual for HEQ5 pro to hiss when idle?

[blusky]

Is it the circuit or the motors that hiss (could it be the static charge that has to be applied to the stepper motors)?

Also, how much play one would expect from the head? Thanks.

[Cornelius Varley]

The mount does make a small noise when RA tracking. There should be no play in either the DEC or RA axis if correctly adjusted, there is a guide on how to adjust the worm gears here

Peter

[RikM]

My NEQ6 plays tunes I get a (quiet) high pitched whistle which changes pitch in response to guide commands.

[JamesM]

My NEQ6 makes a nice ticking noise when its tracking and only a momentary grind up when it starts to slew to the next object but not as noisy as a Meade mount. The only hissing I get is from my fellow dobsonian observers who are cussing me for not star hopping!:D:D Joking aside, if you hearing hissing then something doesn't sound quite right there and Astro Baby's guide is certainly worth a look.

James

[malc-c]

Mine makes a slight sound when parked, similar to that high pitched sound you used to get from old CRT TV's

[RikM]

Mine makes a slight sound when parked, similar to that high pitched sound you used to get from old CRT TV's

That's the sound I meant when I said mine whistles.

[badboybubby]

Mine makes a hum when tracking and when it starts to slew 'grinds' momentarily....

Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk 2

[StuW]

It's normal, I've had 3 and the only one that didn't make the "hiss" was the one with a dead control board.

[blusky]

Just curious: why own 3, presumably not at the same time

[StuW]

First one the worm.gear on RA came loose so wouldn't work, 3rd one is my current.one and 2nd one had a dead board so didn't make the noise.

Sent from my Dell Streak using Tapatalk 2

[FarAndBeyond]

Sorry to comment in a thread that is 6 years old, but I thought I don't need to start a new thread for this same question.  I have been unsettled by a buzzing or whining sound that comes from my HEQ5 Pro as soon as its turned on and before it starts to track, this sound stays on as long as the power is ON on the mount and the mount is not slewing etc.

I don't know if its the same sound that some people in this thread are mentioning they have on their mounts, since some people were talking about their mounts making a noise when its tracking or slewing, thats not the noise I´m meaning. So thats why I wanted to ask this question to get it clarified.

To me it sounds like a noise from the "electronics", dont know if this kind of sound is generally considered normal in different kinds of electronics, to me it sounds as something that maybe shouldn't be there? 

So is this the same sound you have on your mounts (a buzzing/whining/hissing sound that starts almost directly at power on and is hearable when the mount is at idle)? If thats normal then does anybody know exactly which part inside the mount makes that sound? Im curious to know what makes that sound?

[malc-c]

The high frequency sound you refer to is perfectly normal for an HEQ5.  Once the mount is powered and connected to either the handset or an EQDIR unit to a PC the chip set on the motor control board generates the PWM pulses to lock the motors, and its this PWM signals ( 2 chips per stepper motor) that you hear through the windings in the two stepper motors.

 

Hope that helps.

[FarAndBeyond]

On 20/12/2018 at 22:35, malc-c said:

The high frequency sound you refer to is perfectly normal for an HEQ5.  Once the mount is powered and connected to either the handset or an EQDIR unit to a PC the chip set on the motor control board generates the PWM pulses to lock the motors, and its this PWM signals ( 2 chips per stepper motor) that you hear through the windings in the two stepper motors.

 

Hope that helps.

Thanks, yes that really helped. Nice to get it explained exactly what is making that sound, and to hear its perfectly normal. Thanks for that.

While am at it....i´m right now using a 12V power adaptor powered from mains (220V) to power my HEQ5 Pro, should I have some safeguarding against transients / voltage spikes? I read in another thread here on SGL that voltage spikes can occur when turning the mount off, and maybe it was also possible when turning it on? And that this could fry the boards inside the mount.

Actually as far as I have understood the stepper motors themselves causes voltage spikes, is the HEQ5 Pro protected against that, if yes how?

I obviously don´t want that to happen so if there is any chance for that happening I would like to protect the mount from that. Is there any devices to buy that protects against transients of all kinds so it doesn´t happen on the mount? 

[malc-c]

Most decent power supplies will have a reasonable output stage that prevents spikes, although there may be an inrush current when power is first applied.  You can get surge / spike protection built into four / six / eight way mains extension blocks which would give you an additional level of protection if you wish.

The power regulation on the driver board is fairly good, although components can fail.  Normally when a mount fails the communications board still functions, but the mount fails to move.  The main cause of this is a blown capacitor (the two electrolytics top left in this image) which can easily be replaced (found this out by personal experience !)

[FarAndBeyond]

On 24/12/2018 at 11:24, malc-c said:

Most decent power supplies will have a reasonable output stage that prevents spikes, although there may be an inrush current when power is first applied.  You can get surge / spike protection built into four / six / eight way mains extension blocks which would give you an additional level of protection if you wish.

The power regulation on the driver board is fairly good, although components can fail.  Normally when a mount fails the communications board still functions, but the mount fails to move.  The main cause of this is a blown capacitor (the two electrolytics top left in this image) which can easily be replaced (found this out by personal experience !)

 

Okay interesting, how about the possibility that the mount itself caused the voltage spikes etc. and the problem not coming from outside the mount, for example the motors causing spikes (if thats possible) or something else, would the power regulator on the board protect against that types of things?

By the way I see that the picture on the board you attached says "Rev. B", so is there several revisions up until now, if so has there been any changes in performance or other changes between the different revisions, and is the B revision the latest, when did they switch to Rev.B? Anybody knows this?

[carastro]

I have to say that my HEQ5 does not make a noise at all when parked, and very little when slewing.  I have to put my ear right up to the mount to hear the motor and reassure myself it is tracking.  Then it is a very VERY quiet hiss.  

Carole 

[FarAndBeyond]

13 minutes ago, carastro said:

I have to say that my HEQ5 does not make a noise at all when parked, and very little when slewing.  I have to put my ear right up to the mount to hear the motor and reassure myself it is tracking.  Then it is a very VERY quiet hiss.  

Carole 

Actually the noise i´m referring to is present when not tracking, directly after it shows the version information on the Synscan HC. 

[carastro]

No noise from mine at that point. 

Carole 

[malc-c]

51 minutes ago, FarAndBeyond said:

 

Okay interesting, how about the possibility that the mount itself caused the voltage spikes etc. and the problem not coming from outside the mount, for example the motors causing spikes (if thats possible) or something else, would the power regulator on the board protect against that types of things?

By the way I see that the picture on the board you attached says "Rev. B", so is there several revisions up until now, if so has there been any changes in performance or other changes between the different revisions, and is the B revision the latest, when did they switch to Rev.B? Anybody knows this?

I'm not an expert in reverse engineering the board, but it does contain its own power regulation components (U4 being the main regulator) which include the two capacitors previously mentioned, so its unlikely that the board generated an spikes or interference.   As far as the revisions go I'm guessing, but Rev B probably came about when the HEQ5 changed from the older black models that lacked the finer resolution and micro-stepping of the current mounts.

[FarAndBeyond]

43 minutes ago, malc-c said:

I'm not an expert in reverse engineering the board, but it does contain its own power regulation components (U4 being the main regulator) which include the two capacitors previously mentioned, so its unlikely that the board generated an spikes or interference.   As far as the revisions go I'm guessing, but Rev B probably came about when the HEQ5 changed from the older black models that lacked the finer resolution and micro-stepping of the current mounts.

 

Oh so there has been a black Skywatcher HEQ5 version, I thought the black HEQ5´s were the Orion brand? Somebody wrote on his website in a HEQ5 versions timeline info page that he thinks the mounts made after 2008 is better than those pre 2008, maybe this was the change he was referring to?

[malc-c]

45 minutes ago, FarAndBeyond said:

 

Oh so there has been a black Skywatcher HEQ5 version, I thought the black HEQ5´s were the Orion brand? Somebody wrote on his website in a HEQ5 versions timeline info page that he thinks the mounts made after 2008 is better than those pre 2008, maybe this was the change he was referring to?

 

The original (black bodied) mounts were fitted with this motor board (located on the RVO website)

The Revision B started to appear in the synscan mounts around 2009 as far as I can ascertain.

Astrobaby has an excellent site on these mounts, including servicing and a full history http://www.astro-baby.com/EQ6 rebuild guide/EQ6 Development and Software Releases.htm

 

[FarAndBeyond]

Yes that was the page I was talking about in my previous post, there Astrobaby says the following: "mounts manufactured after 2008 are based on my own experience better in many respects, the overall quality control (QC) seems better. Older mounts were often loaded with a dreadful lubricant".

So I dont know if this is the case that mounts manufactured after 2008 really are better than those pre 2008, or if thats only her own experience like she says?

The motor controller board version on my mount according to the Synscan hand controller is 02.04.01, I don´t know how new that version is? But it seems I have not the latest HEQ5 Pro mount since as far as I have understood the absolutely latest versions has the green coloured setting circles and a green dovetail mounting plate, while my setting circles are silver coloured and the dovetail is black.

[malc-c]

The only way to confirm what version of mount you have would be to remove the covers and check the motor control board to see what version this is.  Initially older generations of the mount were black, and then the V2 boards appeared in white finished mounts, but this is not 100% way to identify what version the mount is, as the goto option was (and is) sold as an upgrade so it can be just as probable that an old black mount has been upgraded and has the V2 board.  I also notice you are in "Northern Europe" so it may well be that the importation models for other countries were / are different 

[malc-c]

The green trim and dovetail bar are cosmetic...