ED80 v 130P-ds

[nephilim]

4 hours ago, Adam J said:

That was me. I will say again that I think the QHY168c is the OSC I would chose, but in budget then the ASI294mc Pro and the QHY8L make lots of sense. I myself am intending to go for a QHY163m, as mono is more sensitive.

Out of the two choices you highlight the QHY8L as the proven performer. However, its large pixels are not the best match for the focal length of your selected scope. It will do ok in terms of resolution in RGB but if you wanted to mix in some Ha (50% resolution on an OSC) you may find it to lack detail due to the very large pixels. Its the safe bet for an OSC camera, you will need to be able to do longer exposures though to make it work so a guide camera is a must.

The ASI294 is very very new and most people who have taken it up are doing EAA with it as opposed to classical astrophotography. Its very low read noise and very sensitive, so on paper it should be a winner. You will only need short exposures compared to the QHY8L. So 60 second exposures should work so long as you have enough of them. Exposure with the 8L will need to be longer....

So one question is, do you intend to make use of a guide camera from the start? If the answer is that you are not going to guide then I would go with the ASI294mc pro its also a muchmore modern design. If you are going to guide then the QHY8L is a safe pair of hands.

Thats good to know Adam.

Im intending to guide further down the line but not until im comfortable with the basics & only then if I can see any real benefit in longer exposures. The WZO is fast becoming my choice although I wont be making any purchases for another 3/4 months (June is when my overtime at work starts, which i'll need as mount, scope, camera,  new laptop, possible guide scope/camera, power tank, software etc is going to be around 3k & this is one of many reasons im spending a lot of time researching this )

Btw you mention that most people who've bought the WZO camera are doing EAA, excuse my newbie question but what is EAA?

[Adam J]

2 hours ago, nephilim said:

Thats good to know Adam.

Im intending to guide further down the line but not until im comfortable with the basics & only then if I can see any real benefit in longer exposures. The WZO is fast becoming my choice although I wont be making any purchases for another 3/4 months (June is when my overtime at work starts, which i'll need as mount, scope, camera,  new laptop, possible guide scope/camera, power tank, software etc is going to be around 3k & this is one of many reasons im spending a lot of time researching this )

Btw you mention that most people who've bought the WZO camera are doing EAA, excuse my newbie question but what is EAA?

EAA is also called video astronomy and stands for electronically assisted astronomy. It's similar to imaging but with shorter intergration so the viewer can see the image live and within a few mins at most but normally shorter. I think there is a video astronomy section on this forum with a chap posting images from the zwo294. 

[jjosefsen]

20 hours ago, nephilim said:

Thats good to know Adam.

Im intending to guide further down the line but not until im comfortable with the basics & only then if I can see any real benefit in longer exposures. The WZO is fast becoming my choice although I wont be making any purchases for another 3/4 months (June is when my overtime at work starts, which i'll need as mount, scope, camera,  new laptop, possible guide scope/camera, power tank, software etc is going to be around 3k & this is one of many reasons im spending a lot of time researching this )

Btw you mention that most people who've bought the WZO camera are doing EAA, excuse my newbie question but what is EAA?

Guiding will take your AP to another level, it really makes a big difference. ☺

[Skyline]

Interesting topic, thanks to the OP. Here's my 2p's worth.

ED80 Pros and Cons :

Pros --> Easy to setup, easy to use no collimation needed, reduces to f6.37 for imaging with reducer, only around 2.5kg weight. I have one. Not taxing on mount.

Cons --> Some CA can be evident, slower then a 130PDS especially if using DSLR. Cannot fix Astigmatism.

130PDS Pros and Cons:

Pros --> Faster scope then 80ED, with a SW CC f4.5, works well with DSLR, More Aperture for your Buck, truly 5" Apochromatic scope without suffering CA (Otherwise buy a 5" Triplet), Astigmatism easy to fix with clip loosening. Fraction of a price of a 5" triplet and over half price of an 80ED. Not taxing on mount.

Cons --> You have to collimate the scope, open tube - exposure to the elements, drawtube may interfere with light path (but can be fixed easily). Needs Coma Corrector

I have both scopes, between the two I use the 130PDS more, only because its faster.

[nephilim]

7 hours ago, Skyline said:

Interesting topic, thanks to the OP. Here's my 2p's worth.

ED80 Pros and Cons :

Pros --> Easy to setup, easy to use no collimation needed, reduces to f6.37 for imaging with reducer, only around 2.5kg weight. I have one. Not taxing on mount.

Cons --> Some CA can be evident, slower then a 130PDS especially if using DSLR. Cannot fix Astigmatism.

130PDS Pros and Cons:

Pros --> Faster scope then 80ED, with a SW CC f4.5, works well with DSLR, More Aperture for your Buck, truly 5" Apochromatic scope without suffering CA (Otherwise buy a 5" Triplet), Astigmatism easy to fix with clip loosening. Fraction of a price of a 5" triplet and over half price of an 80ED. Not taxing on mount.

Cons --> You have to collimate the scope, open tube - exposure to the elements, drawtube may interfere with light path (but can be fixed easily). Needs Coma Corrector

I have both scopes, between the two I use the 130PDS more, only because its faster.

Thanks for the info Skyline,

I've pretty much decided on the 80ED as there's so many recommendations for it, also weight is a factor as I'll be guiding at some point, which also means I'll be able to take longer subs so f/6.37 should be fine.

The one thing you've mentioned that I havnt read elsewhere is the 80ED suffering CA, (how noticeable is this & can it be taken out in post processing? 

I don't really want to be spending well over £600( price including reducer) on a scope that shows CA so this has me rather concerned. 

Regards

Steve

 

[nephilim]

Just now, nephilim said:

Thanks for the info Skyline,

I've pretty much decided on the 80ED as there's so many recommendations for it, also weight is a factor as I'll be guiding at some point, which also means I'll be able to take longer subs so f/6.37 should be fine.

The one thing you've mentioned that I havnt read elsewhere is the 80ED suffering CA, (how noticeable is this & can it be taken out in post processing? 

I don't really want to be spending well over £600( price including reducer) on a scope that shows CA so this has me rather concerned. 

Regards

Steve

 

I forgot to mention, I'll be using a CCD & not a dslr 

[wimvb]

1 hour ago, nephilim said:

I don't really want to be spending well over £600( price including reducer) on a scope that shows CA so this has me rather concerned.

Best way to assess this is to search astrobin for images taken with an ED80. Rather than seeing images from one person/location, you have access to lots of setups and conditions. That should give you a good idea whether CA is an issue.

[nephilim]

10 hours ago, wimvb said:

Best way to assess this is to search astrobin for images taken with an ED80. Rather than seeing images from one person/location, you have access to lots of setups and conditions. That should give you a good idea whether CA is an issue.

Thanks Wimvb that's a good idea. I'm also going to query this potential issue in the forum.

Steve

[willinliv]

Oh dear this could be a start of something expensive, been imaging via DSLR lens but if could bring together with scope would be very interested

[nephilim]

28 minutes ago, willinliv said:

Oh dear this could be a start of something expensive, been imaging via DSLR lens but if could bring together with scope would be very interested

Not quite sure I understand that, are you just using a dslr on its own at the moment?  (Very good for wide field shots)