AZ-EQ6-GT advice please

[Jkulin]

Well after waiting patiently for a clear night, I set up my new AZ-EQ6-GT to try and gain it's first light.

I'm going to construct a permanent pier in the garden but in the meantime had dug some small holes and established a level area to setup my mount, I had set up more central in the garden and foolishly chose to believe my compass, what a big mistake, it would appear that the new mount was more prone to being affected by steel in the tripod that my old HEQ5 and therefore it turned out after an hour of trying to find Polaris to be about 30 degrees out, I felt a complete plonker! Once setup in pitch blackness I was able to resolve and obtain alignment using my QHY Polemaster.

Now as I am not using the Goto function preferring after polar alignment to use Cart du Ciel and EQMOD, I had therefore chose to ignore any calibration of the mount as it seemed superfluous to my requirements.

On trying to slew the mount it acted strange, it refused to recognise my reset of the Park Home position, despite resetting and then it would slew to what I had told was the subject M51, but stop half way and slew in a totally random direction, virtually pointing down rather than straight up.

No matter what I tried it would react slowly to be told to slew or it would slew in the wrong direction half way and need prodding again to get it moving and occasional would produce a sound like the belts protesting on being told where to go.

I'm at a loss, should I do a calibration even though I am not using the Goto function?

When doing my Polar Alignment, I had to manually return it to the parked position because it just would not go to the correct setting.

Everything is balanced very nicely, battery is new and foully charged.

Any thoughts you could give to the matter would be appreciated.

Many Thanks.

Kind regards,

John

[kendg]

Do the alignment and th PA using the handset. At least for the first time.

[SteveA]

If I were you I would be tempted to at least test the mount out using the handset before setting up with EQMOD etc. That way at least if all seems okay you know there is nothing systemically wrong with actual mount its self. If all is okay then you can focus efforts on the comms between the mount and EQMOD and the setup of EQMOD. If however the mount doesn't behave even with the handset, look to the power side of things. Okay the battery is fully charged, is the actual power cable okay? Maybe try an alternative cable?

Steve

[alacant]

Hi. How is the mount connected to EQASCOM? After the initial setup with the handset, how do you then transfer control to EQASCOM?

[mikeyj1]

well, you have to believe your compass, but give it a chance of getting it right - use a stick to set the mount in the correct direction before setting the tripod down.  then take some string and mark half way to position the rear legs equidistant about the string...then you are definitely facing north..

obviously date, location and PA all important to get right and +1 on handset alignment - it will show you the PA error when finished.

**remember the mount has to start from the 'home' position - scope up, weights down, pointing north**

The slew rate - automatically set to 3 when doing the alignment, but can be changed using the rate button (i use 6 or 7 for initial slew and then 3-4 for final).

never had any issue with Park, but if the start position is out then you'll have problems from the outset

good luck

Mike

[Ouroboros]

My AZ-EQ6 plays up like this from time to time. I was nearly tearing my hair out with it when I first got it. 

Incidentally, if this hasn't occured to you already, you can practice and investigate the mount's behaviour during the day.  Just point the mount roughly north, the mount doesn't "know" it is not accurately polar aligned. You'll know when it's behaving correctly because it will either point in roughly the right (or completely the wrong) direction when you try a mock calibration, or pointing at an object. 

I agree with SteveA's comments. Try with the handset first.  As others have pointed out the mount must start from the home position. 

The routine I follow when using the hand set is as follows. 

1. Set mount to home position manually. 

2. Switch on mount. Input required initial settings into handset. Polar align.

3. Switch off mount and quickly return mount to home position manually.  This is resets the mount/handset. 

4. Switch on mount. Re-input initial settings into handset. Skip polar alignment bit. Start 3-star callibration. 

5. Slew to target. 

It may be you have a power supply problem though. What sort of battery supply are you using? They recommend a supply capable of delivering 12V, 3 or 4A and 17AH. My mount will start playing up in the sort of way you describe when my battery pack starts to run down. You can check the voltage being provided to the mount in the "utilities" section on the handset.

[SteveA]

29 minutes ago, Ouroboros said:

It may be you have a power supply problem though. What sort of battery supply are you using? They recommend a supply capable of delivering 12V, 3 or 4A and 17AH. My mount will start playing up in the sort of way you describe when my battery pack starts to run down. You can check the voltage being provided to the mount in the "utilities" section on the handset.

Just a suggestion, but if you have any doubts about the power, it may be worth investing in a 12V mains supply. You may not feel this is appropriate for using outside if you are not set up in an observatory, but for testing it would be useful.

Steve

[Jkulin]

Thanks for all your replies, I've left the Tripod out in the garden last night as it is perfectly aligned to North, so that issue was resolved through my own stupidity.

I'm using a mains 12 volt supply that operates it perfectly when controlled by the handset, but will later today double check it's operation and control during daylight with the mount replicating an imaging session like last night.

I'll experiment with some of your ideas above and report back.

Is there anyway to reset the EQMOD parameters as I did wonder if the issue is related to it being setup to use my old HEQ5 Mount, similarly is there a way to reset the AZ-EQ6 mount to factory?

I'm using a synscan cable to control the mount into my laptop which has been working perfectly, but I do have another so will try that as well.

Thanks for all your help.

[Ouroboros]

6 hours ago, SteveA said:

Just a suggestion, but if you have any doubts about the power, it may be worth investing in a 12V mains supply. You may not feel this is appropriate for using outside if you are not set up in an observatory, but for testing it would be useful.

Steve

That's what I do now. I work out of a warm room supplied with mains suitably RCD'd. I run the 12V from the mains powered supply out to the mount on a 10m long cable.  It's very much better to be able to work hour after hour without having to worry about power to the mount.  I'm now wondering whether to use my old battery pack for less critical items like heaters. 

[Jkulin]

Thanks for the advice, but as I said I am running mains supplied 12volts via an adapter.

I'm going to try two different mains adapters and see whether the PSU is not shoving out enough voltage.

[Jkulin]

Just thought I'd upload pictures of the mains PS and the setup last night,  as I said I will check the mains Power supply against a spare and see if I get any problems with the alternative, just in case the original is not shoving out enough volts.

[Horwig]

This might be totally un connected to your problem, but I had fun when I started to use my AZ-EQ 6. I was using Stellarium and eqmod. At first I'd point at a known object, and sync in stellarium scope, then likely as not when I gave it a goto to another object it would go the wrong way, or end up pointing some distance away, or stop entirely. What I was not doing was initializing the mount, ie, the mount must be switched on pointing North, counterweights down, and then the mount and software know that it's pointing North when connected, then when I manually move to point at an object, and sync in stellarium, everything works.

Don't know if that is in any way related?

 

Huw

[Ouroboros]

9 hours ago, Jkulin said:

Is there anyway to reset the EQMOD parameters as I did wonder if the issue is related to it being setup to use my old HEQ5 Mount, similarly is there a way to reset the AZ-EQ6 mount to factory?

I have no idea, but it's a thought isn't it. I thought the options in EQMOD were to select a Synta mount EQ5/6 - they're sort of generic -so shouldn't need to be reset.  Others might know better.  There will be text initialising files saved somewhere I suppose that you could  edit.  Failing that you could uninstall and reinstall EQMOD. 

I'm still inclined to think it's a problem of not starting the mount at the home position and/or a power supply problem. 

What's you start up routine for using EQMOD?  I set the mount manually to the home position, then switch on the mount. Fire up Cartes du Ciel and connect to mount. Cartes du Ciel always assumes the mount is parked in the home position, which it is because I put it there.  I usually then unpark the mount and then slew the mount at some object not too far from the celestial pole just to make sure the whole setup is behaving properly. I then repark the mount back to the home position. I fire up the EQMOD polar alignment tool, unpark the mount and polar align. Once that's done I then usually repark the mount, which isn't strictly necessary, unpark it again and then start callibrating the mount to various celestial objects. Then I'm ready to observe or set up the imaging. 

[Jkulin]

Thanks everyone, I think I have sorted it and you all sowed the seed, so please accept my humble apologies.

I set it up and as some suggested I plugged the hand controller in and before rotating I thought I'd just check out some of the configurations, one of the utilities was power voltage and lo and behold it displayed 10.4 volts!!! this rang alarm bells as not only had some of you mentioned this but also when I had been checking my old unit out I recalled that it made noises and odd behaviour when the power supply was dropping voltage.

I then changed the power supply and all seems to work fine, it returns to the Park position perfectly and rotates completely without stuttering and failing.

So hopefully the problem is fixed.

Thank-you very much, hopefully first light tonight :-)

[Ouroboros]

Cowabunga!

[Ouroboros]

PS. It'll cloud over now! 

[Horwig]

1 hour ago, Jkulin said:

 

I thought I'd just check out some of the configurations, one of the utilities was power voltage and lo and behold it displayed 10.4 volts!!!

Yup, not good,probably 10.4 is JUST too low.

Good to have it sorted

 

Huw

[Jkulin]

And it did cloud over and became very humid, so rather than get everything soaked I called it an evening and decided to wait for a better opportunity.

Fortunately I bring everything from my garage round the home on a pneumatic tyred trolley, it makes it much easier and easier on my back.

At least everything is now sorted for when the nights become a little longer.

Ta everyone.

[chrisshillito]

22 hours ago, Jkulin said:

Is there anyway to reset the EQMOD parameters

Yes there is. With EQMOD not running use the toolbox application the installs with EQMOD to delete the ini files (there are three - select each in turn via the dropdown). Next time EQMOD runs it will create new files with defaults assigned (i.e. just as with a clean install).

Chris