QHY8L failure

[jaygpoo]

so here I am with a clear sky and my new toy a ccd qhy8L camera. After 3 hrs of trying I have not managed to get anything to appear on the preview or live screen. I have tried to see bright stars and jupiter even the moon but no. With the object clearly in the EP I have changed it for the ccd and moved the dec etc about but nothing. I thought at one point I had forgotten to remove the lens cover. How am I to focus the camera if I can not find even a bright object to do it with. I knew it would not be a run in the park but its 4am and I am freezing with nothing to show for the time taken and the money spent ( dont tell my wife). So is there something I have not done to start with prior to aiming the camera at M31. Lastly before I jump can you tell my why the temp of the unit did what I asked by going from 1c to -15c but when I tried to raise the temp before packing it away the temp just stayed at -15c even tho the setting was for 0c . I am very disappointed as I have read of so many guys that say its a plug and play camera???????? Jay

[Zakalwe]

Have a read of the tutorial that I wrote up over at Astronomyshed.

You will have to change the focus point considerably when swapping from an EP to a CCD, especially if you were using a diagonal.

Secondly, what exposure length were you using?

[Earl]

the focus point for an eyepiece will be very different for a camera

[jaygpoo]

Yes Brown Dwarf I have read you good tutorial . Yes I know that the focus point is very different from the EP but I was just making sure that the object was in view. I removed the diagonal and fitted the cmaera direct. If I can find focus with this QHY8l then I can mark the focus tube and a guide for next time. I was using a field flattener screwed onto the qhy8l which I am told will also give me the right spacing required but was that info incorrect? I have in my box of bits a 2in spacer taht I could use if required. Also when using the EZCap software last night the preview and live buttons did not work straight away and the time it took to activat was a joke. I was only running EQmod/CDC/ EZcap so my laptop was not under pressure. I am running windows 7.

[Earl]

Which flattener are you using and what spacing are you using on it between the camera?

[steppenwolf]

You may or may not have the correct spacing for the flattener but that is absolutely no guarantee that the camera will be in focus. Try some 10 second exposures aimed at the night sky and rack the focuser slowly between exposures from all the way IN to all the way OUT. Do you see any blurry disks at any time? If racking the focuser outwards improves but doesn't resolve the issue then you need an extension tube in between the focus draw tube and the reducer. If racking the focuser inwards improves but doesn't resolve the issue then you may have a more fundamental issue.

What telescope are you using to test the camera? Using your ED 80 for this test would be the most straightforward instrument to choose.

[jaygpoo]

Hi all. I am using a skywatcher field flattener. I have screwed it straight onto the qhy5 as the thread is the same. If I use a 2in extention that I have which the qhy will lock onto I then have no way of attaching the flattener !!!  So I could test out what I have been told and if I need to lengthen then I could add the 2in extention to the flattener. Oh an I was using my 80mm APO in this instant.

[Earl]

If you just using the standard field flattener it needs a spacing of 55mm +-1mm you will need extensions based upon the backfocus of the camera.

are you using a sky watcher 80ED Pro if so that is not the correct flattener / reducer for it.

[Mav359]

The temperature issue you mentioned i have encountered with mine.

I have the camera plugged into a powered USB Hub on the tripod, thinking i was being clever i used a 12cm USB extension cable from the hub as a breaking point so that should a cable snag it wouldn't break the hub the cable would just separate.   Doing so caused the temp to take years to get down to -15 and it would fluctuate wildly, once i removed the extension all my issues evaporated, the camera reaches -20 in no time and stays there. If you still having temp issues look at the USB.

Also i have found that the camera is very picky about start up order, i have to plug my USB in, then power up before i start my imaging software.

I'm running windows 7 so I'd be surprised if there was an issue there.

The Camera is also connected to my C9.25, i never needed to add anything extra to achieve focus, can you connect the camera to your 9.25 at the very least you could rule out the camera being faulty & proceed from there.

Hope any of that helps

[Zakalwe]

Hi all. I am using a skywatcher field flattener. I have screwed it straight onto the qhy5 as the thread is the same. If I use a 2in extention that I have which the qhy will lock onto I then have no way of attaching the flattener !!!  So I could test out what I have been told and if I need to lengthen then I could add the 2in extention to the flattener. Oh an I was using my 80mm APO in this instant.

Normally the FR will need 55mm from the sensor surface to the shoulder of the FR. The sensor is 20mm inside the body, so you need 35mm or extension tubes. 2 x 17mm worked perfectly for me.

[jaygpoo]

Alan , your comments are a great help and so are the others about spacing etc. I am using extended usb cables with no drop out as I operate my scope sitting in my conservatory ( chicken I know) but I will check this out. If it proves correct then I have a problem as I do not want to be sitting next to the scope..   So it now appears that the field flattener I brought was £66 wasted so if you know someone looking for one put them on to me !!!!!    So I need to know what spacers to buy for use with my 80mm ED APO pro. I have a 50mm extention tube. I see that bader do an adjustable extension tube from 29-49mm . 

[jaygpoo]

Sorry my last post about spacers . I forgot to say that the spacers I need are for use without the field flattener I have as I am now told its the wrong one.  Brown Dwarf suggests 2 x 17mm will be fine but does that include the length of teh flattener included?

[Mav359]

Alan , your comments are a great help and so are the others about spacing etc. I am using extended usb cables with no drop out as I operate my scope sitting in my conservatory ( chicken I know) but I will check this out. If it proves correct then I have a problem as I do not want to be sitting next to the scope..   So it now appears that the field flattener I brought was £66 wasted so if you know someone looking for one put them on to me !!!!!    So I need to know what spacers to buy for use with my 80mm ED APO pro. I have a 50mm extention tube. I see that bader do an adjustable extension tube from 29-49mm . 

I use a 10m Active reapeater USB from the PC to a powered USB Hub, at 6PH in October i daisychained two of them together and it still worked. If you need anything more the 20m then i envy your garden.

One of these

http://www.amazon.co.uk/World-Data%C2%AE-Active-Repeater-Extension/dp/B002V9HOFM/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1387583727&sr=8-3&keywords=usb+active+repeater+cable

[jaygpoo]

Thats what I am using. I have 2 10mtr cables wrapped in a plastic coil to keep them together and stop me tripping on them . The powered usb hub I do not have but can you get 12v ones as I have yet to find one.

[rob0971]

Sorry my last post about spacers . I forgot to say that the spacers I need are for use without the field flattener I have as I am now told its the wrong one.  Brown Dwarf suggests 2 x 17mm will be fine but does that include the length of teh flattener included?

You only need the 55mm spacing when using a field flattener. This is the optimum distance from the sensor for the optics to give a flat field. If using the camera on its own, you can just attach it straight into the focuser using a T2-2" nosepiece adaptor, but you will probably need a 2" diameter extension if not using the diagonal. I am guessing but I reckon about 2" long should do it. Try it without first to see if your focuser has enough adjustment to compensate. If you can't achieve focus, you will need an extension.

[steppenwolf]

Brown Dwarf suggests 2 x 17mm will be fine but does that include the length of teh flattener included?

The 55mm is from the rear mounting face of the field flattener to the sensor face or put another way, it is the distance of the sensor from the flat mounting face of the camera.

[rob0971]

The 55mm is from the rear mounting face of the field flattener to the sensor face or put another way, it is the distance of the sensor from the flat mounting face of the camera.

The sensor to flat mounting face of the camera is 20mm, so you need an extra 35mm of spacers to achieve the correct 55mm spacing for the SW flattener. Other reducer/flatteners will probably require different spacing.

[jaygpoo]

Lots of comments an thanks to you all. I have a 2" extension so will try that on the next clear night which we hope will be SOON. Will report my success or otherwise own this page. Once again thanks to for your time given. One day I hope to have the knowledge to help others in a equipment mess. Jay

[jaygpoo]

Lots of comments an thanks to you all. I have a 2" extension so will try that on the next clear night which we hope will be SOON. Will report my success or otherwise own this page. Once again thanks to for your time given. One day I hope to have the knowledge to help others in a equipment mess. Jay

if in doubt ask

[jaygpoo]

Thanks guys and girls. I have just had a quick setup and fitted a 2" extension to the QYH8L. Following your comments and settings I finally got to see a star on the screen.The focus tube was full out and only a little back in to get focus so do I need a longer tube? I hit live and adjusted the focus and found out how to get the star in the area and focus. I then star aligned using the screen and finally headed to Orion. I hit the live preview and there it was !!!!!!!!. Adjusted the settings to get a fair image and set the capture for 90sec. Hit the button. The resulting image put a smile on my face that even in the dark you could see. I then took a 180sec and headed for Jupiter just to see what would happen. The 90 sec image was sweet. So it all works and I am grateful for the help to get over this hurdle. I took a few more but then thought ( wait a minute where are the images going to) answer they are not. The EZCAP top menu under file just ask what format you want and I guess after each shot you select the format an it files it . So all the images I took were not stored. In the image setup panel it gives you a file name to write in which I did for each image to say what it was but I cannot find them on my computor. lastly please tell me the file storage setup in ezcap as its not obvious to me or am I thick (don't answer that) Still a great result and I am on my way

[ollypenrice]

I came here a bit late but one thing to do if you get a blank screen during an exposure is shine a light down the tube and try again. If the camera's working the screen will show the light. At least you then know the issue is focus.

Olly

[dmahon]

And you can always try on a distant object in the daytime.

[Zakalwe]

Thanks guys and girls. I have just had a quick setup and fitted a 2" extension to the QYH8L.

A 2" tube is too long. you need 35mm, as previously indicated. Like this:

Assembled:

Unassembled:

[rob0971]

A 2" tube is too long. you need 35mm, as previously indicated. Like this:

Assembled:

Unassembled:

He has indicated that he is now not using the flattener. If this is the case, then the 55mm sensor to flattener distance is not applicable. He just needs an extension tube to achieve focus if the focuser is all the way out. If focus can be achieved, then you don't need the extension.