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If you could buy only one...

spiral962

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spiral962

spiral962

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 would it be the Meade LX90 ACF 8" or the Celestron CPC800 XLT? The reasons why you would choose it? Im looking to get back into the hobby after 10 years and used to have a 80mm short tube and a Celestron starhopper 8".. I used to always want a Meade but now Im worried about repairs/parts with all the drama they are going through..Celestron seems like they are making alot of accessories for their scopes and doing well financially..I know both are quality but I worry about buying a Meade now..Seems like they only make a handful of scopes now and hardly any accessories compared to the mid-nineties..

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ronin

ronin

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Meade are now owned by Sunny as Celestron are owned by Synta, so in those terms little in it.

Oddly for spares I think Meade now have to option to purchase spares such as drive boards and other components from their website.

Since Sunny acquired them I have not heard howls of anguish or talk of models disappearing. Actually heard very little at all. The reason I know of the spares was from a link put up on the CN site in a post.

To an extent both scopes have been around for some time and so I would have expected problems to have been developed out. Again both are likely the same weight so either OK for suitable for a hernia.

Which is the better, really wouldn't like to decide, I see few problems reported on either model, several opinions but not a lot of real reports. If anything less on the CPC, but they could be less common (which I suspect they are).

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dweller25

dweller25

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Meade are now owned by Sunny as Celestron are owned by Synta, so in those terms little in it.

Oddly for spares I think Meade now have to option to purchase spares such as drive boards and other components from their website.

Since Sunny acquired them I have not heard howls of anguish or talk of models disappearing. Actually heard very little at all. The reason I know of the spares was from a link put up on the CN site in a post.

To an extent both scopes have been around for some time and so I would have expected problems to have been developed out. Again both are likely the same weight so either OK for suitable for a hernia.

Which is the better, really wouldn't like to decide, I see few problems reported on either model, several opinions but not a lot of real reports. If anything less on the CPC, but they could be less common (which I suspect they are).

Ronin - thanks for the info re the owners of Meade - I did not know that.

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spiral962

spiral962

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Thanks everyone... I was into astro with 35mm film a little with my short tube when I had it..I know I will get into that, so all along I been thinking wedge on these two scopes..But now Im considering a Celestron VX8 edge HD..It really looks like this would be a killer set up for everything I want to do.. If I could ever afford to use the fastar feature, it would be even better.. :grin: Does anybody have any thoughts on that set up?

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ollypenrice

ollypenrice

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The SCT is wrongly marketed as a do-all when, in fact, it is best regarded as a specialist scope. You mention a wedge so this makes me think you want to do DS imaging? You can do this but it is not what most DS imagers choose and there is a reason for that. Neither Meade nor Celestron make fork mounts that are easy to use for DS work. I found the Meade infernal. There are people on here who have used the American fork mounts for DS imaging but there are not many who still do so. 

If you are returning, the kit scene has changed and you might be best advised to tell us what it is you want to do. I doubt that anyone wanting to do long focal length DS imaging today would go within a million miles of an American fork mount. They can be trounced by better designs.

Olly

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spiral962

spiral962

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When I was into this years ago I always wanted a SCT.. I loved the DOB Starhopper I had but it was not very portable..I want a scope mainly for visual so the wife and kid can enjoy to.. I want to take pics of planets,moon and some DS objects with DSLR if I decide to.. I  plan on a focal reducer also.. Im not made outta money so I have to find a setup that will cover everything as evenly as it can.. My wife cant believe how much "telescopes' cost anyway so I wont be able to buy another setup for awhile.. Thats why I was thinking the Celestron VX8 edge HD.. Seems like it would cover everything well.. I know I would be trading off in some areas, but seems like for what I want to do, it would be the best choice.

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ollypenrice

ollypenrice

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For DS imaging the long focal length and slow F ratio mean you'd need phenomenally accurate autoguiding and this means a tip top mount. You'd be better advised to go for a scope with a shorter focal length and faster F ratio which would not require anything like so accurate a mount. DS imaging is mount, mount, mount followed by mount.

Olly

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Peter Drew

Peter Drew

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I used to supply Meade and Celestron SCTs. Each one was optical bench tested before delivery, the Celestrons at the time were, on average, better than the Meades. The best Meades were as good as the best Celestrons but they were rare. These days there seems to be little between them as they all seem pretty good. :smiley:

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CodnorPaul

CodnorPaul

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I love my C8 but a lot of people on here seem to dislike them. When I compare it to any newt I have looked through, including 10" ones, it provides a better, crisper image, which others have commented on also. I am not saying it defies the laws if physics by it is very good. Get what you want and enjoy it - Meade, celestron, tak, TV, skywatcher it matters not - using it matters

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