EQMOD connection timeout

[Cynan]

Hi everyone,

I've acquired a SkyWatcher SkyMax 127 with SynScan GOTO mount and have been happily checking out the moon and even Jupiter once I managed to sort out the alignment (not that straight forward for a beginner when it wants to set the alignment using stars behind your house! The iOS Skywalk app is a life saving trying to find alternatives and what the stars you're looking at is called).

Anyhow I'm now at the stage where I want to start tracking via using PHD Guide and taking images with my camera. Hopefully I can then use Skywalk to find the star I want to look at and then guide the scope there myself and cut out the alignment woes.. at least that's the plan!

So I purchased a Chipi-X USB to serial adaptor which I read works on Windows 8 and with these mounts. I can confirm it connects to the SynScan handset as I've managed to update it to the 3.35 drivers without issue.

I've also installed .NET 3.51, the latest ASCOM platform and EQASCOM drivers.

However ESASCOM doesn't appear to detect the scope. I've tried setting the handset to PC Direct mode but still nothing. It just comes up with Error Connection. Timeout.

I know that using the handset and PC Direct mod isn't advised, but I read that it should work with the latest firmware and I wanted to get everything working at least once for a trial run before I invested in a 'EQDIRECT' cable.

Does anyone have experience and could suggest something to try?

Many thanks!

--Cynan.

[Bizibilder]

Exactly which mount do you have? -  as EQMOD only works with certain mounts.

[chrisshillito]

EQMOD only works with skywatcher EQ mounts. There is a list of supported mounts on the EQMOD Project website.

Chris

[Cynan]

Hey - thanks.

It's a Sky-Watcher SkyMax-127 SynScan AZ GOTO. I've tried with using ASCOM and the Celestron scope driver and I can't get that to work either.

I didn't think it would be this complicated!

--Cynan.

[RobertC]

I've also been having issues with trying to get my EQMOD to connect to the correct com port, works perfect on stellarium to say the least.

[Bizibilder]

Unfortunately EQMOD won't work with that mount.  Nor can you guide with PHD.  The mount is an altazimuth (it goes up and down in one axis and round and round in the other (sorry to oversimplify!)) and is not "aligned" in any way - you can just put it down and let the supplied software do all the alignment for you - it "learns" where it is and can then goto objects by calculating their position using the built in computer and star positions.  Unfortunately you cannot do long exposure photography with that kind of mount.  To do astrophotography you need an Equatorial mount - these can be aligned with the Earths axis and will "track", using motors, in order to compensate for the rotation of the Earth.  Your alignment needs to be good and the "final touch" can be achieved by correcting any tiny alignment inaccuracies by guiding.

if you are interested in starting out in Astrophotography then you could invest in "Making Every Photon Count" by Steve Richards - available from FLO http://www.firstlightoptics.com/books/making-every-photon-count-steve-richards.html  (usual disclaimer).

[Sandancer10]

Hi, as RobertC said above try using Stellarium, you shouldn't have any problem connecting with that. Go to the plugin and select Telescope control, enter your scope details and the correct COM port and you scope should appear on the screen. All you do then is select an object -press Ctrl 1 together and the scope will slew to it.

Hope this helps.