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Tele Vue eyepieces vs stock stuff

SacRiker

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SacRiker

SacRiker

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With the Nexstar 8se (2032 focal length) is it worth getting a Barlow?  I have seen some people say it's not useful...but I don't know the reason.  Would a 15mm TV EP be good enough to get a good view Saturn and Jupiter?

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John

John

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I've voiced my option that Tel Vue plossls are optically excellent many times but here is another viewpoint from a US based amateur:

http://www.astromart.com/articles/article.asp?article_id=329

In the interests of balance not everybody agrees though:

http://www.brayebrookobservatory.org/BrayObsWebSite/HOMEPAGE/PageMill_Resources/Comparison%20test%20of%20TVPlossl%20vs%20Brandon.pdf.

Having owned lots of Tele Vue plossls and having compared them to other types I've found them very good myself.

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John

John

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With the Nexstar 8se (2032 focal length) is it worth getting a Barlow?  I have seen some people say it's not useful...but I don't know the reason.  Would a 15mm TV EP be good enough to get a good view Saturn and Jupiter?

I had my best ever views of Saturn a few years back with an 8" Celestron SCT and an 8mm Tele Vue plossl. That gave 250x which is a really good magnification to use on Saturn with an 8" scope. With Jupiter though the best views often come at around 180x - 200x. Jupiter does not seem to respond quite so well to very high powers as Saturn does.

The Tele Vue 2x barlow lens is excellent as well and makes a good alternative to owning the shorter focal length TV plossls.

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Laurie61

Laurie61

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With the Nexstar 8se (2032 focal length) is it worth getting a Barlow?  I have seen some people say it's not useful...but I don't know the reason.  Would a 15mm TV EP be good enough to get a good view Saturn and Jupiter?

The view would be fine but you might like a bit more mag, It will depend on your local seeing conditions but I would want to be at around 200x with an 8" scope.  :smiley:

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SacRiker

SacRiker

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If I bought 32mm and an 8mm Televue Plossl, in addition to the stock 25mm that comes with the scope, do you think I would have most bases covered (planets, nebula, binary stars, clusters)? 

Trying to avoid the barlow to keep costs down.

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John

John

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...and can anyone speak to the quality of the 25mm eyepiece that comes with the 8SE?

I think the included one is the Celestron E-Lux 25mm plossl. It has orange printing on it ?

If so, it's a standard plossl rather like the standard Skywatcher plossls and many more under lots of different brandings. I think they are generally of Taiwanese origin and are certainly better than the 3-element MA type eyepieces that are included with many scopes these days. It should work well with your 8SE I would have thought.

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LMC

LMC

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Either the TV Plossls or the Brandons should give you excellent views. Not sure how to quantify how much (or not?) better they are over the Celestrons, but you should see a difference on a good night

My EP collection has been governed by availability : TVs, Meades and Orion/Celestrons are pretty much all I can get my hands on - and I mean 'Hands-On". I insist on trying before buying,(I live 3 hours away from the nearest dealer so its not a quick shop),and of this bunch the TVs hit the right spot for me.

Took a punt though on a 24mm Brandon and FWIW its the best eyepiece in this fl I've ever seen! Fantastic thing. I'm buying more!

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SacRiker

SacRiker

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So the consensus seems to be that TV Plossls are worth the cash.  I'm looking to get a 32mm ($145) and either an 11mm or a 7mm....any idea which would be better for planetary viewing from a fairly light-polluted area?

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John

John

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In all honesty I think you would find both the 11mm and the 8mm useful. The 11mm would be great on Jupiter and also on other planets and the Moon when the seeing conditions are average. When things are good the 8mm will be great for Saturn, Mars, the Moon and binary stars as these targets can "take" the higher magnifications.

Sorry to present you with a quandary !

If you want to spread the expense, go for the 11mm first.

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SacRiker

SacRiker

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In all honesty I think you would find both the 11mm and the 8mm useful. The 11mm would be great on Jupiter and also on other planets and the Moon when the seeing conditions are average. When things are good the 8mm will be great for Saturn, Mars, the Moon and binary stars as these targets can "take" the higher magnifications.

Sorry to present you with a quandary !

If you want to spread the expense, go for the 11mm first.

Haha, yeah I was hoping to avoid further deliberation.  

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Saganite

Saganite

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Televue plossl's are the mainstay of my eyepiece case.

They are quite excellent for what they cost, and buying used, you cannot go wrong.

I recently sold my superb 11mm for what I paid for it 8 months previously. I only sold it I hasten to add because I recently purchased a second

10.5mm for binoviewer use.

Everything about them, their build quality, their optical peformance,their value for money is in my opinion excellent, and the only way to improve

on them is moving  up to widefield Televue eyepieces.

Buy the 11mm but get the 32mm at some stage, you'll never part with it. :smiley:

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ghostdance

ghostdance

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Just come in from an hour or so with old Jove who was looking resplendent this evening. Some lovely cloud detail in the Equatorial belt. I was using my Circle T 9mm ortho, 6mm TV Radian and TV 8mm plossl....all were very good to great (little bit of odd reflection going on with the Rad, not sure what that was from, investigation needed) but the TVP 8mm was beautifully sharp and clear. Highly recommend. The Circle T was no slouch, but I did think the TV brought just a little more...

And I echo Saganite on the 32 TV Plossl - it is a joy to use. I'd not be without it :)

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Fish

Fish

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Just for the record I have an e-lux 25mm that came with a 8se and it is a great eyepiece, I use two 25mm TV plossls in my binoviewer and if I compare the e-lux to TV there is not much in it . If I was you I would get the 32mm and 11mm, the 8mm offers very little over the 11mm and is tighter on the eye relief.The 32,25 and 11 mm will work out fine for your 8se and give you some great viewing.

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DRT

DRT

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I agree with those who have recommended the TV Plossls - I had a full set for a while and they were excellent. I only sold them because I prefer a wider FOV.

I also agree that you should get the 11mm before the 8mm. I find that a large SCT, high magnification and light pollution is not a good combination. I don't use anything below 13mm in my CPC1100, which has a focal length of 2800mm.

I have owned a number of barlows, including the Tele View 2x, 3x and 2x Big Barlow and have never been comfortable using them. I much prefer using an EP that gives the magnification I am looking for rather than introducing more glass.

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ronin

ronin

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TV plossls were usually the standard suggested upgrade over here.

Then 2 things occurred.

TV increased the price in a single big jump, and eyepieces like the Astro-Tech Paradigm(US name) became available at a lower cost.

So suddenly TV plossls were no longer an inexpensive upgrade and there was a good alternative.

The "big" aspect of the TV plossls was that no-one ever mentioned a bad one, they may have cost more but is seems they were 100% good. Which I suspect was a big plus aspect, you didn't have to wonder if you were going to get a good one or a poor one. You always got a good one.

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SacRiker

SacRiker

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TV plossls were usually the standard suggested upgrade over here.

Then 2 things occurred.

TV increased the price in a single big jump, and eyepieces like the Astro-Tech Paradigm(US name) became available at a lower cost.

So suddenly TV plossls were no longer an inexpensive upgrade and there was a good alternative.

The "big" aspect of the TV plossls was that no-one ever mentioned a bad one, they may have cost more but is seems they were 100% good. Which I suspect was a big plus aspect, you didn't have to wonder if you were going to get a good one or a poor one. You always got a good one.

Have you used the Astro-techs?  Good experiences?

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