Skywatcher 200p and HEQ5

[Jackstay]

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone has heard of any horror stories or issues with that set up.  Would an amateur astronomer be able to add a ccd and an autoguider without overloading the mount?  How does it track?  Are the visuals with the OTA good?  Any bugs?  All answers would be appreciated.

Best,

Jackstay

[Steve Ward]

HEQ5Pro is fine with a 200P , but a bit of a windcatcher which can easily spoil imaging runs .

It's right on its limits with the addition of a camera , guidescope , guidecam etc , imaging-wise I'd recommend the ED80 refractor route personally.

The mount is superb , well capable of 4 minutes unguided with the ED80 if well drift-aligned

[brantuk]

I agree with Steve - it's a great combination for observing but a little too much on the limit for photography on anything but the most windless night. You'll need something smaller for imaging and an ED80 would be ideal for that. Some may disagree with me but the HEQ5 pro is the ideal grab and go mount if you're on the move - but I'd choose the NEQ6 Pro for a more permanent obsy set up.

[66mikeg]

+1 for Steve's comment susceptible to wind chatter unless protected by a windbreak of some sort 

[Jackstay]

From what I gather the NEQ6 would be better if I wanted to pursue imaging and possibly science - I am interested in doing spectroscopy etc.  If I did construct a wind break, would the mount still be laboured?  I am trying to decide over portability and longevity of the mount.  Is the NEQ6 worth the extra money given my goals, or can I endure?  How much of a portability issue would there be compared to the HEQ5?  If I got the NEQ6, would I be much less likely to take the scope to a dark site and make observations compared to the HEQ5?  Also, if I really wanted to go with the NEQ6, would it be worth it to spend ~$200 and get the 250?  How much of a difference is it between the 200 and the 250, night and day?  These are the questions I am seeking answers for.

Best,

Jackstay

[Steve Ward]

I think you would be advised to visit a showroom and see these things up close in the flesh .

Much easier for you to answer those questions yourself when confronted by the equipment in person believe me.

[brantuk]

When you put a large scope on a small mount it becomes susceptible to wind which causes vibration. The scope acts like a sail and this is critical for long exposure imaging - a 10mins frame can be ruined by a sudden breeze. It's not so critical for observing cos you just wait a couple of seconds for vibrations to damp down. I have found that a windbreak rarely helps with any scope in a stiff breeze.

Even when calm - touching the focuser can cause vibration on a weighty scope. I try to keep around 80% or less of the mount capacity for the scope weight (including ancilliary equipment). For the NEQ6 a 10" scope is about the limit for visual astronomy - it would be no good for imaging unless you have a dead calm night - even then an 8" newtonian would be much more appropriate, or a refractor or Sct of a lesser weight.

An HEQ5 is a much lighter mount than the NEQ6 which weighs in at 16Kg's. So the NEQ6 is a fair lump to lift around - though not impossible. I used to take my NEQ6 to star parties where it could be set up for a longer period - but my HEQ5 was used for circa 4hr sessions up at my local club - or just plonking out in the yard to snatch a couple of hours if the weather cleared up suddenly. It's comfortable with an 8" newtonian for observing - or something less weighty for imaging.

How much you're likely to use either is really a personal motivation and circumstances thing. Hth

[malc-c]

The combo works well, but for imaging / visual I would suggest the 200PDS as the alternative scope as its more suited to imaging.  I have a 200P and replaced the secondary with an Orion optics 58mm secondary to resolve an issue with the SW secondary which seem inherent on quite a few  200P's when used for imaging.

To give you some idea of size, here I am with the scope in its parked position in the observatory (apologies for the cheesy grin ! )

[Jackstay]

All great information.  Thank you all for taking your time to educate me about these things.  Does anyone know of a good rule-of-thumb about payload capacity?  I calculated if I went with the HEQ5 I would be at 87% of its payload capacity and 66% with the EQ6 - both calculations included OTA, guide scope, DSLR,  +1kg.  Is 87% too close to the limit for quality beginner astrophotography or just enough for me to get my bearings then purchase a bigger mount at a later date?  The consensus is, as it seems to suggest, that the EQ6 will give far superior images.  But as I am a beginner in AP, is the HEQ5 sufficient for now?

Best,

Jackstay

[malc-c]

Jack,

I think the bottom line is if you can afford the EQ6 then go for it.  Having the extra load capacity is always an advantage.  If the EQ6 is really going to stretch your budget then the HEQ5 will suffice.  You can save a fair bit if you opt for the syntrek versions and use EQMOD on a laptop, connected to the mount via an EQDIRECT cable.

Personally, for me the HEQ5 does the job, but then it is mounted in an observatory which shelters it from the wind (unless it's really gusty and blowing from the south where the scope is more exposed).  I started with the EQ5 and lost money selling that to upgrade to the HEQ5, and whilst the resale value of an HEQ5 can be quite good, it would probably work out more expensive buying the HEQ5 only to upgrade it a to an EQ6 a few months later.

[russ.will]

My experience of imaging with a 200p on an HEQ5 was limited. After the lubrication in the mount was cleaned and replaced and the slack in the drive train tuned out as far as possible, it was borderline possible. I was only using an EOS 450D and an ST80/QHY5 for guiding, so I didn't get in too deep before realizing I preferred my time to be spent visual observing. There are people out there churning out exceptional images on rigs like this, but from my own experience, I think they are greatly under selling their talent and perseverance!

That said, if there was no wind and you rotated the payload to be as close to the mounts C of G as possible, then it can be done. However, it felt like I was persevering in imaging with the HEQ5/200p just to be blumming minded. Had I stuck at imaging, I would have 1. Got an NEQ6 and 2. Bought a decent frac to make it easier still. Indeed, the WO ZS ED80II I briefly had, for all of it's faults, was SOOOO much easier to use, I sold the 200p and bought a Dob for visual use.

One question I'd like to ask the correspondents thus far; As portability is an issue, is there no love the the AZ EQ6 which seems to straddle the divide of HEQ5 weight and NEQ6 payload?

Russell

[malc-c]

One question I'd like to ask the correspondents thus far; As portability is an issue, is there no love the the AZ EQ6 which seems to straddle the divide of HEQ5 weight and NEQ6 payload?

Russell

Looking at the specs, Both NEQ6 and AZ-EQ6 have the same load capacity, and weigh about the same.  The only major difference is in the price, with the AZ-EQ6 being £300 more expensive.  But then you also get dual encoders on the AZ-EQ6 which is probably reflected in the additional cost.  But if you are getting into imaging I personally can't see the advantage having the option of using a mount in AZ mode can offer as this would induce field rotation when used in this mode for imaging.

[Baffa]

I would recommend getting a NEQ6 or AZ-EQ6. I use a 200PDS and a NEQ6 and with guidescope, cameras and other stuff the weight soon adds up. The NEQ6 is quite portable, it's just heavier but it's easy to remove the head and each part of it's own isn't that heavy. If you need to setup windbreaks and other stuff to be used with that HEQ5, well, that's not portable to me. ;-)

Anyway, it's well worth it, sure it might take 5 mins longer to setup but you wont lose hours of subs because the mount can't cope with the weight.

[Apharov]

My experience imaging with the 200PDS/HEQ5 + Canon 70D has been largely positive. Subs get lost due to wind, but even then the results can be nice: http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/214997-m81m82-on-a-windy-night/.