Atik 490EX

[Keno]

Hello,

I dont see much information regarding the Atik 490 on the web. The few things I´ve seen is comparisons between 460 and 490. Which of these would be the best allround camera? With the resolution of the 490 it probably would make a good wide field camera with a short focal length instrument. In binned mode it also looks suitable for a longer focal length with enough pixels left to make a good image. I just want some help to know how I should reason ( with myself  ) when selecting a cooled ccd. Or is it like everything else in this hobby, a need for different equipment for different purposes?

BR,

Kenneth

[polaris_jerry]

Keno

You're going through exactly the same thing I did for the last few months...what to buy?!  Opinions vary, FLO's review indicates that unless you are particularly keen on using the camera with a short focal length scope then the 460 is probably a better buy due to improved sensitivity and dynamic range.

Personally, after many months of agonizing I came to the conclusion that the flexibility provided by the ICX814 chip (used in the Atik 490) would give me more value for money.  I actually went for the QHY23, which uses the same chip...should arrive in a few days!  Anyway, the main reason for me was I can use my Canon camera lenses for wide angle work and maintain a relatively decent sampling rate, my William Optics ZS80 with a 0.8x reducer, or my MN190 and all achieve decent sampling.

Although I haven't had the chance to try this yet, my calculations suggest that I can use my MN190 with a 2x barlow coupled with 2x2 binning on the camera and get an image scale of 0.76' and a fairly decent image size of 1694x1356 pixels.  We'll see...