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SynScan PRO GOTO Upgrade for Astrophotography?


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Hello, i was wondering wether the SynScan PRO GOTO Version 3 Upgrade for the Eq5 mount would be worth buying?

Me and my brother want to do astrophotography but as we have a standard eq5 mount, we cant do long exposures. Would the upgrade make good enough tracking for 30 second exposures?

Also we do have a budget so that is the most we would like to spend, If there is anything better than the SynScan PRO Upgrade kit for around £300 then please send me a link :D

SynScan PRO GOTO Version 3 Upgrade kit for eq5:  http://www.firstlightoptics.com/skywatcher-mounts/synscan-pro-goto-version-3-upgrade-kit-for-eq5.html

Thank's - Harvey.

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The goto upgrade on its own won't improve anything, but you will then be able to add guiding and that will help.  Some people think that the extra weight of a guidescope setup might be a bit much for the EQ5 though, so it may be better to replace the mount with something beefier.  It depends on what scope you are using.

However, I use a standard EQ5 (non-goto) for imaging and am having good results.  With my 200P I can get a minute without trailing if I am careful with the polar alignment, with my 130PDS I can get 90 seconds, maybe 2 minutes on a good night.  So the basic EQ5 is a good starting point for imaging, but you will probably want something better later on.  I am currently saving my pennies for a HEQ5 and guidescope setup.

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You could buy the dual axis motors for £100 or suitable stepper motors and belt drives for around the same price,then buy Tom Carpenter's AstroEQ for £90 saving you £110.You'll need a laptop to run the AstroEQ and associated software though.

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With my 200P I can get a minute without trailing if I am careful with the polar alignment, with my 130PDS I can get 90 seconds, maybe 2 minutes on a good night.  So the basic EQ5 is a good starting point for imaging, but you will probably want something better later on.  I am currently saving my pennies for a HEQ5 and guidescope setup.

We are new to astrophotography so sorry if this is a silly question, but how can you get a minute exposure without star trails and without tracking? We can only get away with about 2 seconds :(

If i polar align my scope will i be able to get longer exposures?, i usally dont bother with polar alignment because i have never felt the need to.

(My scope is a 200p)

Thanks for the advice :)

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We are new to astrophotography so sorry if this is a silly question, but how can you get a minute exposure without star trails and without tracking? We can only get away with about 2 seconds :(

If i polar align my scope will i be able to get longer exposures?, i usally dont bother with polar alignment because i have never felt the need to.

(My scope is a 200p)

Thanks for the advice :)

Polar alignment is essential to photography I'm afraid - without it you get trails. (Of course I'm assuming here you are using the standard non goto motors?)

I know of a few who have managed up to 5 minutes on an EQ5 (standard motors, not GOTO) before PE in the worm spoilt the image

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Another option to consider is to sell the EQ5 and put the money from that with the money you "would" have spent on the upgrade ... to fund a second hand HEQ5 GOTO  :)

That sounds like a good idea but i got the telescope for christmas and i dont know if i can bring myself to sell the eq5!

However that is a good plan and i might consider that in the future :D

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Polar alignment is essential to photography I'm afraid - without it you get trails. (Of course I'm assuming here you are using the standard non goto motors?)

I know of a few who have managed up to 5 minutes on an EQ5 (standard motors, not GOTO) before PE in the worm spoilt the image

Ok thanks for that :D i might have a look at some motors instead :)

Do you know of any websites that sell second hand GOTO / Heq5 mounts?

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If you are prepared to find your targets manually and are happy with 30 sec exposures then a single ra motor will do the trick. You won't be able to guide but with good polar alignment and a well balanced rig I would think 60 sec exposures would be well within your reach and it'll cost around £80-£100. you'll get a good taste of ap and it'll give you time to save for a bigger mount which you WILL want if you stick with ap :)

Hope this helps

Scott

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If you are prepared to find your targets manually and are happy with 30 sec exposures then a single ra motor will do the trick. You won't be able to guide but with good polar alignment and a well balanced rig I would think 60 sec exposures would be well within your reach and it'll cost around £80-£100. you'll get a good taste of ap and it'll give you time to save for a bigger mount which you WILL want if you stick with ap :)

Hope this helps

Scott

Thank's for the reply Scott , i think im just going to get some ra motors so i can save my money and get a HEQ5 in the future :D

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Sorry, I didn't realise that you didn't have the RA motor.  If you are on a tight budget I would get the single-axis motor (£69) and if you don't have a polarscope then you will need that as well (£37).  Then you will be able to get exposures of one minute or more - what scope are you using?

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Sorry, I didn't realise that you didn't have the RA motor.  If you are on a tight budget I would get the single-axis motor (£69) and if you don't have a polarscope then you will need that as well (£37).  Then you will be able to get exposures of one minute or more - what scope are you using?

My budget is around £150 - £200 so i guess i could get Dual axis motors? i have a polar scope built into the tripod. Oh and my scope is a Skywatcher 200p on a Eq5 mount :)

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You only need the single axis motor, but the dual axis might be more convenient in use, you do need to be a contortionist to reach that DEC knob sometimes.

My Flickr gallery (see signature) will show you what a beginner can do with a 200P/EQ5.

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My Flickr gallery (see signature) will show you what a beginner can do with a 200P/EQ5.

I looked at your Flickr account last night :) i have to say there are some great images on there!

I really like your pictures of M27 and M51, i hope i can get some pictures like that in the future :D

Do you have your Canon 1100D modded for AstroPhotography or is it stock?

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I looked at your Flickr account last night :) i have to say there are some great images on there!

I really like your pictures of M27 and M51, i hope i can get some pictures like that in the future :D

Do you have your Canon 1100D modded for AstroPhotography or is it stock?

Thanks a lot.

The camera is not modded.  I thought about having it done but most of the time I am filtering out red light rather than wanting to capture more.

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Thanks a lot.

The camera is not modded.  I thought about having it done but most of the time I am filtering out red light rather than wanting to capture more.

Do you think it would be worth getting a camera modded? i have seen pictures of before and after they have been modded

And the after pictures look considerably better.

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