Goto???

[Biggazza88]

Iv been thinking upgrades and im heading towards a 120mm refractor, and I'm trying to work out if it really is worth spending more on a goto mount and not having to starhop and constantly struggle to find what your looking for.(given that the clouds always seem to roll in after you find what you've been looking for for the last hour!!!)

Is it really that accurate?

apparently there overly noisy?

a pain to get aligned?

HELP!!!!!

[dephelis]

Iv been thinking upgrades and im heading towards a 120mm refractor, and I'm trying to work out if it really is worth spending more on a goto mount and not having to starhop and constantly struggle to find what your looking for.(given that the clouds always seem to roll in after you find what you've been looking for for the last hour!!!)

I agree, although there is nothing stopping you from starhopping with the GOTO mount either if you want to practice.

Is it really that accurate?

If you level the mount, enter accurate location and time data then yes it is.

apparently there overly noisy?

My SLT mount is only slightly noisy when slewing at full speed. Even then I'd only call it overly noisy if I had the hearing of superman.

a pain to get aligned?

HELP!!!!!

Not at all, if you level the mount, enter accurate location and time data.

[rowan46]

I like them. the only reason i don't use one now is that I have gone portable and they are too heavy to carry any distance. Once you are used to the system they are easy enough to use

[Biggazza88]

Uh oh, looks like you guys might have helped me spend more money when it's upgrade time thanks for the info guys, much appreciated.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

OK, I'll take the bait . I do not feel I need it (but then they were horrendously expensive when I bought my scope 17.5 years ago, that is probably the real reason ), I invested in a seriously big finder scope instead (16x70). I am generally bagging new stuff while the goto brigade are still faffing around with their alignment.

Seriously: some people like goto, some do not (I do not really mind either way). Maybe you should try a system, e.g. at a star party and see how you like it. The alternative to goto is getting a sturdier mount (never a bad idea) and good finder system. Most non-goto EQ mounts can be upgraded with a goto system.

[dephelis]

OK, I'll take the bait . I do not feel I need it (but then they were horrendously expensive when I bought my scope 17.5 years ago, that is probably the real reason ), I invested in a seriously big finder scope instead (16x70). I am generally bagging new stuff while the goto brigade are still faffing around with their alignment.

Seriously: some people like goto, some do not (I do not really mind either way). Maybe you should try a system, e.g. at a star party and see how you like it. The alternative to goto is getting a sturdier mount (never a bad idea) and good finder system. Most non-goto EQ mounts can be upgraded with a goto system.

Thankfully they're not so expensive these days

Goto aligning really shouldn't take any more time than polar aligning, although you can slew faster manually than the GOTO but then you don't have to starhop to out of the way targets. Having to have a power supply can be considered a downside.

[Ludd]

Goto has saved me a lot of time, and helps me to find stuff through the dreadful ight pollution here in London. I found the Synscan upgrade kit was noisy - enough to make me sell it at a loss within a few months of buying it - but that was partly because the only way of limiting the slew speed was by switching over to EqMod, which simply adds to the clobber and faff of observing. Mind you, I observe in a back garden of a terraced house, so the neighbours are very close and would easily be able to hear the mount if their windows were open.

I now have a Skysensor kit which is quieter (even at full speed, but you can customise the motor speeds) and amazingly accurate - it even compensates for atmosperic refraction on objects near the horizon. Easy to set up if you read the manual!

[Biggazza88]

thanks for the advice guys its nice to know what everyone thinks even if the opinions vary so much! now for the hard part... saving :rolleyes2:

[laser_jock99]

My prime interest is imaging and for a couple of years I struggled with a non GOTO EQ6. Then I fitted the upgrade and the ease, speed and accuracy of finding targets was a revelation. Now I have two GOTO mounts!

[Astro_Baby]

Its horses for courses. ....i just got fed up trying to find stuff. I have limited tome, have to be portable and with average of one night a month I just got fed up lugging the kit around to spend several hours seeing not much at all. In the end I bought a GoTo upgrade for the HEQ5. The HEQ5 isnt that noisy to be honest.

To counter the view above regarding the fact that someone can dind targets while GoTo owners faff with alignment I have had times someone has told me " ohhh what a waste of time, all that mucking about, i can just put my dob on the ground and be going " and then an hour later they have come over sheepish and asked if ai dould dict them to a target because they cant find it.

If you get over the hump of GoTo and get some time in with it, dont ecpect it to be an instant fix etc its a complete boon. I can be up and running in under 15 minutes with a good polar alignemnt and star alignment. I can then instantly go to any target I choose.

Oft times people carry on about the set up time as if it were a race. The scope has to cool down anyway so those 15 minutes arent exactly a disaster, your not going to miss much.

Bear in mind GoTo brings its own challenges, polar alignment for a start on an EQ mount and learning how to get the mount to work well. Once mastered you have the advantage of never needing to go out and risk seeing lots of nothing much.