EQ6-R owners club

[alexbb]

9 hours ago, javaruba said:

Hi, all thanks for the information. I've managed to test the mount with a bench power supply capable of going from 4 to 15 Vdc and 10 Amps max. At around 13.8 Vdc and performing a star alignment, it will stall and make the whining noise. Going up to max volts ~15 Vdc it seems to work somewhat better and reach the alignment star, but by pressing the Ra and Dec simultaneously it would stall until I stop pressing.

The red Led is constantly on prior, during and post the stall. Strange enough I noticed that during stall and right after slewing it will vibrate a little. Attached is a picture of the bench Power supply I've used. 

I've also removed all equipment and counterweight and tested. Pressing Ra and Dec button together it will also stall sometimes while having the power supply at 15Vdc and reading 14.8 Vdc on the keypad. Here is a video of that test:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WnGhVauMv44LTgHAn34ADKT_oZb6BRQV/view?usp=drivesdk

As a reference, I've also tested with a rather larger fully charged Celestron Power Tank 17 with no success. Not sure if I put a 16 Vdc power supply it would do any difference.

 

I'm pretty sure you have a faulty mount then. Send it back for replacement.

[tasheeya]

Hi guys i have recently bought the mount, its inbuilt bubble level readings are wrong. anyone have this issue? anyway to calibrate it?

 

[Merlin66]

To be honest the easiest way is a small strip of Gaffa tape over the bubble tube - and ignore it.

Don’t worry too much it’s not critical......

 

[Miguel1983]

6 hours ago, tasheeya said:

Hi guys i have recently bought the mount, its inbuilt bubble level readings are wrong. anyone have this issue? anyway to calibrate it?

 

Hi, mine is wrong to, i use a smal Stanley Fatmaxx level to level the tripod, but there are mixed opinions of how important leveling your tripod is.

the only downside i find is that you always need to remove the mount from the tripod to level it first.

[Cornelius Varley]

6 hours ago, tasheeya said:

Hi guys i have recently bought the mount, its inbuilt bubble level readings are wrong. anyone have this issue? anyway to calibrate it?

 

 

5 minutes ago, Miguel1983 said:

Hi, mine is wrong to, i use a smal Stanley Fatmaxx level to level the tripod, but there are mixed opinions of how important leveling your tripod is.

the only downside i find is that you always need to remove the mount from the tripod to level it first.

Equatorial mounts don't need to be perfectly level to function correctly. Just use the bubble level to get the tripod somewhere near level.

[Miguel1983]

13 hours ago, Cornelius Varley said:

 

Equatorial mounts don't need to be perfectly level to function correctly. Just use the bubble level to get the tripod somewhere near level.

Just field tested that,  used the bubble level of the mount, and did the polar alignment with my newly accuired Polemaster, total error in PHD2 guiding was 0,14 then later on 0,20-0,30 !

Wasn't the clearest of nights so, not to bad at all.

[tasheeya]

On 25/12/2018 at 13:28, Merlin66 said:

To be honest the easiest way is a small strip of Gaffa tape over the bubble tube - and ignore it.

Don’t worry too much it’s not critical......

 

 

On 25/12/2018 at 14:37, Miguel1983 said:

Hi, mine is wrong to, i use a smal Stanley Fatmaxx level to level the tripod, but there are mixed opinions of how important leveling your tripod is.

the only downside i find is that you always need to remove the mount from the tripod to level it first.

 

On 25/12/2018 at 14:45, Cornelius Varley said:

 

Equatorial mounts don't need to be perfectly level to function correctly. Just use the bubble level to get the tripod somewhere near level.

 

looks like a common issue ? mine is completely off so the bubble level is not usable. I'm using the mount without extending legs so that's giving a normal level in a flat surface. I'm using a bubble level app in phone when I'm not sure about the surface.

Edited December 26, 2018 by tasheeya

[tasheeya]

i have few other questions too if you guys don't mind.

1) home position marker. i was using an AVX and it had those marks for dec and RA clearly but EQ6-R pro don't have them in both sides. i know this is not very important but its usable when aligning the mount. is there a way to add marks accurately than using a rough position?

2) when aligning the mount and when we need to select a certain 2nd or 3rd star, we need to use bottom arrow keys to get it and most of the time its displaying "searching.."  and its time consuming. sometimes its showing that for 10-15sec. is this normal? I have some trees and buildings covering my view so need to select stars to align.

 

[tasheeya]

Is this declination backlash is normal or not? It was 25,000+ms on AVX so i know that its way better than AVX.

 

[tasheeya]

On 26/12/2018 at 20:44, tasheeya said:

i have few other questions too if you guys don't mind.

1) home position marker. i was using an AVX and it had those marks for dec and RA clearly but EQ6-R pro don't have them in both sides. i know this is not very important but its usable when aligning the mount. is there a way to add marks accurately than using a rough position?

2) when aligning the mount and when we need to select a certain 2nd or 3rd star, we need to use bottom arrow keys to get it and most of the time its displaying "searching.."  and its time consuming. sometimes its showing that for 10-15sec. is this normal? I have some trees and buildings covering my view so need to select stars to align.

 

 

On 26/12/2018 at 20:51, tasheeya said:

Is this declination backlash is normal or not? It was 25,000+ms on AVX so i know that its way better than AVX.

 

anyone?

 

[Stub Mandrel]

Sorry, PHD2 log viewer doesn't show that so I can't compare to my results.

My intuition is that (a) 4700ms is very high but (b) the 'you may need to guide in only one dec direction' messge is often pessimistic.

[tasheeya]

48 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

Sorry, PHD2 log viewer doesn't show that so I can't compare to my results.

My intuition is that (a) 4700ms is very high but (b) the 'you may need to guide in only one dec direction' messge is often pessimistic.

ok thanks. PHD logs don't have GA results i think.

my payload is 18kg/40lb ( 10" Newtonian and accessories), i have tested things for two nights and it seems to guide well. I'm getting 0.6"-0.7" total RMS without doing anything extra like PPEC/tuning and can get 15min subs with perfect round stars so ill just leave this as it is for now.

[mikey2000]

On 26/12/2018 at 15:21, tasheeya said:

Is this declination backlash is normal or not? It was 25,000+ms on AVX so i know that its way better than AVX.

 

I haven't had a look at the backlash on mine for ages.  But i ran it again tonight on my EQ6-R (first clear night in weeks!)  I got similar results.  I'm sure it used to be less but i can't really remember.  The Dec Backlash graph showed a nice V-shape with a little flat top, (like it always used to - I'm much better at remembering pics instead of figures/numbers...)

 

It's still happily guiding away with dec RMS sitting steady at 0.44" and occasional dec guide inputs, in N and S.  I've got a new scope (200PDS) and I've not payed much attention to the Dec balance yet.  (too excited just to get it outside!)

[Miguel1983]

Hi guys,

i wonder, did any of you set te slewing limits of the mount ?

Will this prevent the mount, while tracking, to move past the meridian ?

The manual states it wil stop the mount to "slew" past the slewing limits, but does this also apply for "tracking" past the limits ?

On one or two occasions i was just in time at the mount to prevent the camera from hitting the tripod.

These kind of settings are not my forte, i'm still struggling to wrap my head around celestial coördinates, would appreciate some guidance.

Also in what format do you need to input the coördinates ?

Thanks

[mikey2000]

On 26/12/2018 at 15:21, tasheeya said:

Is this declination backlash is normal or not? It was 25,000+ms on AVX so i know that its way better than AVX.

Just a quick update - I tried again on the last clear night.  the Dec Backlash is a lot less than yours.  I spent a few mins making sure the scope was well balanced in dec before this run.

 

 

Edited January 16, 2019 by mikey2000
double post of screenshot

[mikey2000]

AAargh - sorry for the double post of the screenshot.  I'm trying to edit it but it won't seem to update.  oops

[Stu]

Has that sorted it Mike?

[mikey2000]

Yep, that's better! Thanks.  I wonder where I was going wrong?   I'll try 'Edge' instead of Firefox next time to see if it makes any difference..

[tasheeya]

3 hours ago, mikey2000 said:

Just a quick update - I tried again on the last clear night.  the Dec Backlash is a lot less than yours.  I spent a few mins making sure the scope was well balanced in dec before this run.

 

thank you for checking it again. my setup was bit imaging side heavy when checking it.

i may try this tutorial on DEC to reduce some backlash, its for EQ6 but heard that its almost the same for EQ6-R as well http://www.astro-baby.com/EQ6 rebuild guide/EQ6 worm alignment.htm

anyone tried this or similar method?

[Brujo]

Hello.

Great mount.

I am using it with my C11 and TS RC6.

Was in doubt how to solve the problem, when I need to change scope.

Solved  it with a side-by-side solution, and the mount still works great also in astrophotography.

 

 

Edited January 21, 2019 by Brujo

[jimjam11]

Now that this mount has been out a while what is the consensus on its guided performance, and ease with which it delivers that performance in the lovely British weather?

 

Currently have an avx but like many people thinking this or the cem60 could be a great step up. I want something which is reliably seeing limited so I can stop fighting with my overloaded avx (which is great with less weight), and actually make the most of our limited clear sky...

[mikey2000]

I'm just south of Milton Keynes, at the edge of a small town.  Sky glow is a bit of a problem generally speaking (I never saw the Milky Way from my garden)

I'm extra happy with the guided performance of my Eq6-R.

 

I'm currently loading it up with a 200PDS, ASI1600MM + filterwheel and guiding with a converted 9x50 finderscope with QHY5L-iiC.   With just a few minutes of SharpCap Polar Alignment tool and EQMod guiding via PHD, I routinely now get Ra or Dec RMS inside 0.6".  My pixel scale is 0.78" so I'm happy!    I'm aiming at the HorseHead Nebula tonight, only a few degrees from the celestial equator and it's still perfectly happy. (0.4"RMS RA and 0.6"RMS Dec after about 40 minutes)

I'm still not over keen on picking the damn thing up though!

[Droogie 2001]

Hi. I have just received my new Sky Watcher EQ6-R Pro mount.

Being new to Sky Watcher mounts means I am having to learn a few extra things but hopefully I can get up to speed quickly.

Since receiving the mount I have updated ASCOM to the latest version, installed the EQ Mod EQASCOM driver successfully.
I am currently using the Syn Scan to connect to the mount and laptop so using PC Direct Mode. Will get the EQ Direct cable soon..

I have managed to get everything to connected up correctly, so far so go.

With my old Celestron AVX mount I would use my Polemaster to Polar Align then use the Celestron Handset to perform a ‘Quick Alignment’ after having inputted time and date. No need to actually line stars up in reticules just literally press Quick Alignment
I could then use my Plate Solving in SGP to go to the target and begin imaging.

I will of course still be using my Polemaster. But with the Syn Scan there does not seem to be any sort of Quick Alignment option. There is a 1 Star, 2 Star and 3 Star alignment options.
How do I use EQ Mod without having to aligned any stars up?  Surely it needs some sort of map built up even if it is not accurate. I am sure this can be done but not sure what I am missing?

Note. I have not installed the ASCOM SkyWatcher SynScan Mount Controller (6.0.6262, June 2017) . Do I need this as well as the EQ Mod EQASCOM driver?

Thanks.

 

[mikey2000]

Droogie - congrats on the new mount!  Definitely get the EQ direct cable as soon as you can - my old method of PC-Direct through the handset seemed to be prone to unexpected and random problems, all cured with the proper eqdirect cable. 

 

At this point, the synscan handset can safely be put into long term storage the AstroBits box that we all have somewhere in the garage.

 

So, don't worry about Synscan alignment.  EqMod can do all this for you.   If (like me) you tear down and store the mount after each session, you'll need to realign each time you set it up.  Eqmod makes it easy and entirely replaces the synscan alignment routine.   The catch here is that you must always have your astro-laptop to do this.  Synscan handset is more of a standalone solution.  Eqmod alignment seems top class and also opens the door to pulse-guiding instead of ST4 and PEC (not that my eq6r really has much periodic error anyway....)

 

Here's what I do to align.

1) Polar align (whatever method you prefer).  Then set the mount to your preferred home position (mine is pointing straight at the celestial pole, weights down)

2) Connect EQMod to the mount to a nice bright star and have a planetarium app running too. (I use stellarium)

3) Pick a target in the planetarium app and tell it to issue the slew command (Ctrl-1 in stellarium)

4) It will probably miss by a long margin.  

There are two ways to proceed here:

  i)You can now platesolve and issue a sync command via your platesolve app

or

 ii) use EQMOD to manually slew the mount so it is pointing at the original star. Then use the planetarium to issue a sync command (ctrl-3 on stellarium)

 

That's eqivalent to a one star alignment.  Repeat steps 3 and 4 as many time as you like.  I find EQmod's alignment algorithm gets very accurate, very quickly.  I usually only need one 'manual' sync somewhere in the (very) rough area I intend to image then it's sufficienly accurate that the platesolve completes the rest in just a few iterations.  It takes just minutes.

Either way, you can see a list of sync points being added in EQmod if you use the expanded interface. (I asssume you are familiar with EQmod)

 

if your platesolving app is good enough, you don't even really need to use bright stars.  Any old target will do for the aligning/sync   I prefer a bright star as the AGP imaging app I use seems to struggle with platesolves if you are way way off target and also a bright star is handy for setting up focus with a bhatinov mask.

 

Here's a link with more technical stuff http://welshdragoncomputing.ca/eqmod/doku.php?id=alignment_overview

(at the top, you can link back to the rest of the eqmod documentation contents pages.)

 

I hope that helps!

 

[Droogie 2001]

Thanks  Micky. Yes will be getting cable very soon (next week I suspect) but just wanted to get a idea of what to expect as things can get confusing when in the dark trying to sort this. Also cannot fully test plate solving until outside.

So if I Pole Align with my Polemaster. Then use SGP to Plate Solve at Polaris as a means of creating an alignment point in EQ Mod then this would the same as performing a 1 Star Alignment? I would then set this as the Park point as well. This is what I did with the AVX before doing the Quick Alignment option on the AVX handset.

After this I would then perform a solve and synch plate solve in SGP for the target image, preloaded by me.

Also do I need the other ASCOM SkyWatcher SynScan Mount Controller (6.0.6262, June 2017) , is this as well as the EQ Mod EQASCOM driver? 

Thanks