Sky-Watcher Evostar 150ED PRO

[FLO]

On 12/07/2018 at 15:19, JeremyS said:

Exciting times! Who'll be first, I wonder?

 

On 12/07/2018 at 17:08, Alan White said:

I look forward to the first first light reports.

 

On 14/07/2018 at 06:55, Sunshine said:

Seriously big frac that thing is, I cant wait for someone's first light report

 

10 hours ago, F15Rules said:

It seems that only a lack of credible reviews is holding many people back from pulling the trigger?

Steve, could FLO not arrange for a member who has an ED120 already or similar refractor to loan an ED150 to do a direct comparison /review?☺

 

10 hours ago, paulastro said:

Good Idea Dave.  I've said the same thing to a friend of mine.

 

10 hours ago, F15Rules said:

Not for me to volunteer anyone, but John our eyepiece reviewing guru has the credibility/peer respect, and, er, he also owns an  ED120??

Fortunately John has kindly agreed to kick the new Evostar 150ED Pro's tyres for us here at SGL ? 

FLO has dispatched one to him, new and unopened. He should receive it Monday or Tuesday. 

It is something we had planned to do earlier but John has been on holiday. 

HTH, 

Steve 

[F15Rules]

30 minutes ago, FLO said:

Fortunately John has kindly agreed to kick the new Evostar 150ED Pro's tyres for us here at SGL ? 

FLO has dispatched one to him, new and unopened. He should receive it Monday or Tuesday. 

It is something we had planned to do earlier but John has been on holiday. 

HTH, 

Steve 

That's great news Steve! 

Will look forward to John's thoughts in due course

Dave

[Chris]

That's great news, I think something like this had to happen to get the ball rolling as SW where keeping performance close to their chest. £1620 is an utterly remarkable price, so we'll have to keep this in mind, but I'm hopeful SW can pull it off.  

[Tim]

8 hours ago, F15Rules said:

I don't image myself , so my interest is purely visual. Having owned several 6" F8 achromats and now a 5" fluorite APO, I can say that the additional aperture is very noticeable..However, much of any such light grasp increase of the achromats was negated by CA, increased light scatter and poorer contrast versus the apo..So, to me a good comparison of the new ED150 vs the FPL53 ED120 would be a good way to validate (or not) how well the new, non-FPL53 ED150 deals with these areas, and so whether the upgrade from 120 to 150 is worth going for?.

Dave

Thanks Dave, I hadn't noticed the comparison for upgrade comment

It does seem that 120mm doublets can really hit a sweet spot. I had the chance to spend a month with a Primalucelabs 120mm a while back, discontinued now, but it performed as well as a decent APO, sharp, no CA, snappy focus and healthy star test, pretty much like the Evostar 120ED by the sound of it but at a less reasonable price. It seems a big ask to have a 150mm with similar performance, although I assume that will be the intention of Skywatcher.

As an imager, there is quite a simple test that we can do with parfocal RGB filters. By focusing on Green light with a Bahtinov mask, switching to Blue and Red filters and comparing the pattern can instantly reveal the amount of variance in colour control, and whether the variance is intra or extra focal in nature. At some point, probably at a star party, I'd like to get together with an observer or two, with a few telescopes, and a couple of mounts working, and use the technique combined with visual testing to help form a reference point of acceptable limits of colour focal variation before CA spoils the image. Imaging isn't great for assessing contrast though, and defocused star tests via an image are not easy to achieve with enough magnification to make them useful, much better to do for real.

I don't think I've ever spent any time with a Skywatcher 120ED, do they show much spherical aberration? Will they handle excessive magnification without too much trouble? I have an Esprit 150, but only occasionally get to use it visually, however every time I do, it makes me want a dedicated refractor for visual. I think the Evostar 150ED would probably be too long for my little obsy for comfortable viewing, but a 120 should sit nicely there. I'll have to bag a sneaky peak through someones 120mm at Kelling or SGL star parties I think

Looking forward to John's review though, waiting with bated breath!

Cheers

[Peter Drew]

Interesting review currently on Cloudy Nights. (Refractors)

[AndyH]

Quote

..........With regard to false color on Vega, when I ran the focus slightly back out, I could see a light greenish tint. In focus, you see some hints of violet on Vega and other bright stars more so at higher magnifications. The amount of color an observer sees may also be dependent on their age and sensitivity to color in the dark, but it's not that objectionable when the telescope was focused, especially while observing planets where it's mostly color free. The color correction on and around the globe of Jupiter looked superb and I'm pretty sensitive to false color...........

The above is an extract from the D. Mounsey review. I know many, including myself, were wondering what the colour correction would be like in a non fpl53 lensed scope....... Sounds like what should be expected of a very good doublet. 

[Saganite]

Thanks for that Peter. It sounds very good, and so I await John's verdict with considerable interest.

[steppenwolf]

6 hours ago, FLO said:

Fortunately John has kindly agreed to kick the new Evostar 150ED Pro's tyres for us here at SGL ? 

FLO has dispatched one to him, new and unopened. He should receive it Monday or Tuesday. 

It is something we had planned to do earlier but John has been on holiday. 

Excellent news, a review from a trusted and experienced observer like John would settle this nicely! Lucky boy, John but will FLO ever get it back? ?

[John]

Just back from my hols today and very excited, not to mention a little flattered, to be given the chance to try this scope and report back to the forum on it. Once I have the scope I will open a thread and post initial comments and plenty of photos, followed by performance reports as I gain experience of using it. Please treat my thread as interactive and feel free to post any queries on the scope that you have. From my persepective as a visual amateur astronomer will do my level best to provide feedback on questions raised provided that they are within my capacity to do so (eg: it's no good asking how it performs at 4000 feet altitude ).

In terms of comparison instruments, I do have a very nice Skywatcher ED120 Pro and also a LZOS/TMB 130mm F/9.3 triplet plus one or two other scopes about the place.

I have many questions about this scope as I'm sure you do

 

[Mr Spock]

Look forward to seeing your review (weather permitting!).

[Mark at Beaufort]

I must admit that if I decide to purchase a 150 ED Pro I would trust John's judgement on this particular OTA. I have had occasions to observe and discuss projects with him and trust his opinions 100% - I am so glad that FLO and asked him to review this OTA because you will get an honest opinion from an experience visual observer. 

[Anderscn]

Very tempting indeed!

With FL only 1200mm it’s grab-n-go in my book?

Regarding mounting it would sit nicely on my Ayodigi ll on the Uni28. This combo keeps my 4” f/12 (same length as this 150ED) steady. 

Do you think this trend continues with an eventual 175ED or so in the future?

BR,

Anders

[Telescope40]

Hello all. 

This has now become the thread to follow.  Excellent news that an OTA is on its way to John.

will follow with much interest. My Meade 127 is snug in its case  - for now !! 

May be funny to see how the number of peeps following this thread may rise in magnitude over the coming weeks.

Regards to FLO and John in advance of any findings  - I will have interactive questions I’m sure. 

Clear skies to all as no eclipse is forecast !! 

John 

 

 

[Marky1973]

29 minutes ago, Telescope40 said:

Hello all. 

This has now become the thread to follow.  Excellent news that an OTA is on its way to John.

will follow with much interest. My Meade 127 is snug in its case  - for now !! 

May be funny to see how the number of peeps following this thread may rise in magnitude over the coming weeks.

Regards to FLO and John in advance of any findings  - I will have interactive questions I’m sure. 

Clear skies to all as no eclipse is forecast !! 

John 

 

 

I might have to stop following....just in case I do something stupid.....

[Tim]

1 hour ago, Mark at Beaufort said:

- I am so glad that FLO and asked him to review this OTA because you will get an honest opinion from an experience visual observer. 

Yes, without putting pressure on John, his thoughts and opinions carry a lot of weight. Very much looking forward to reading it. I wonder who will provide some information about imaging performance? I expect there will be a slight lead time delay until AN or S@N bring out an all round review/honest opinion from an experienced visual and imaging POV.

Personally, i'm a little disappointed, on behalf of retailers, that sites have already started cutting prices, forcing FLO etc to follow suit. I expect that the price from SW has remained stable. I work in retail too and it is demoralising to have to sell decent products, deserving of a reasonable mark-up, for a very low profit margin. So extra points to FLO for going to the extra expense of funding the couriers etc for John to do a review, and double extra points if the review is available on SGL, it must be tempting to keep the review only available on the FLO site after funding it???

[AndyH]

15 hours ago, Anderscn said:

Very tempting indeed!

With FL only 1200mm it’s grab-n-go in my book?

Regarding mounting it would sit nicely on my Ayodigi ll on the Uni28. This combo keeps my 4” f/12 (same length as this 150ED) steady. 

Do you think this trend continues with an eventual 175ED or so in the future?

BR,

Anders

8+ years ago, you would have been laughed at if you had predicted affordable 150mm ED doublets would be available. So, a few years in the future, nothing would surprise me to be honest. The only thing that might halt or slow development of a bigger scope is physical size, weight and potential sales numbers. What focal length would a 170-180mm ED frac need to be... F9+? . Just looked at a pic of a Meade 175ED next to a SW 150ED. Oh my, that's a BIG scope !

With this 150ED scope, it's very close in dimensions to my Tal 2M(150F8) newt. I know my Tal MT-3S carries that easily , so if I was in the market for a big ED frac, I'd be very, very, very tempted knowing that I wouldn't need to buy a new mount  

What interesting times we live in !!

Andy

[spaceboy]

I'd be very interested to hear of a side by side comparison between the SW ED150 and APM 152 ED. In my mind the chances are the glass and optical performance is going to be the same but the ED150 is priced considerably more favourable and similar to what I have seen used APM 152 ED sell for. 

I have to say I have been tempted to go with a single scope set up for some time and the ED150 would be a high contender if the views are anything near the ED120. I imagine with more cost effective ED glass and 30mm extra aperture there is going to be some noticeable CA. Using a SA filtered, fast achro I can say during the course of observing CA can be tolerated by my eyes almost to the point I have to look for it. I'm not sure if this is due to the scope reaching ambience or that my eyes adapt to the dark ?? What ever the case, at £1620 it's a steal if you have a suitable mount to begin with

[Alan White]

Good call Steve and FLO, Johns the man for testing as a visual observer, very trusted by many here on SGL.

I await John's finding with interest out of curiosity at present, rather than desire to know and buy.
 

[FLO]

21 hours ago, Tim said:

Yes, without putting pressure on John, his thoughts and opinions carry a lot of weight. Very much looking forward to reading it. I wonder who will provide some information about imaging performance? 

We are predicting roughly half of Evostar 150ED owners will use the telescope at least occasionally for astrophotography so there will soon be plenty of images to view and discuss. 

21 hours ago, Tim said:

I expect there will be a slight lead time delay until AN or S@N bring out an all round review/honest opinion from an experienced visual and imaging POV.

I am sure you are right and I look forward to reading the review. I expect anyone else interested in refractors will be too. 

21 hours ago, Tim said:

Personally, i'm a little disappointed, on behalf of retailers, that sites have already started cutting prices, forcing FLO etc to follow suit. I expect that the price from SW has remained stable. I work in retail too and it is demoralising to have to sell decent products, deserving of a reasonable mark-up, for a very low profit margin. 

It isn't easy. They have made it available to non-specialist retailers who typically have little or no astro product knowledge so sell on price alone (their customers often then contact FLO for support!). The important thing, for me, is other specialist Astro retailers can see it isn’t FLO leading this race to the bottom. FLO monitors then responds to competitor’s discounts (we owe that to our customers) but doesn't herself instigate reckless pricing. 

21 hours ago, Tim said:

So extra points to FLO for going to the extra expense of funding the couriers etc for John to do a review, and double extra points if the review is available on SGL

Thank-You ? 

John will have the telescope for several months (assuming he wants to keep it that long) so can post his thoughts and findings in an ongoing conversation with other SGL members, who will draw their own conclusions. This is different to a traditional magazine-style review which must out of necessity speak to the reader, follow an established format and finish with a conclusion that is frozen in time when published. We are not against magazine reviews, that would be silly. Writers such as yourself and Steve Richards do excellent work for S@N. But FLO is focusing on what works best at SGL. 

21 hours ago, Tim said:

it must be tempting to keep the review only available on the FLO site after funding it???

John will write whatever he wants here at SGL. There is no proof reader or editor (imagine his response if I suggested that!). He has no format to follow and no deadline. He isn’t obliged to buy the telescope but if he does we will of course offer him discount. If he doesn't then it will be made available ‘ex-demo’ at our website with the same discount. It is a relaxed and open arrangement ? 

We will be doing more of this. I.e. after John we will send the telescope (or another one) to @RayD who has kindly offered to do a video review. And prior to that we will send Ray a Tele Vue 85 which will then be made available to John, if he is interested. 

All good fun. 

Steve 

[Tim]

1 hour ago, FLO said:

John will write whatever he wants here at SGL.

 

That's a real service to the community Steve, I'm not sure I'd have the goodness of heart to fund a public review that may go on to benefit the non-specialist astro retailers that are also the ones driving the prices down!

Excellent news on the video reviews too. At a sales conference we attended the other day the point was made by many of the other retailers that the younger generation really have Youtube as the goto source of information regarding just about anything these days.

[FLO]

A competitor just discontinued the price to £1,569! 

The Sky Watcher Evostar 150ED, a 6” ED doublet, is now only £1,569. Bonkers!  

We have matched the price and if you have purchased one from FLO in the last 30-days we will email you FLO Gift Vouchers equal to the price difference ?

We will continue monitoring prices... 

[floyd fan]

Hope this scope turns out to be a cracker, I'm just waiting for the flood of secondhand ED120 Pro's. ?

[spaceboy]

On ‎01‎/‎08‎/‎2018 at 21:37, FLO said:

A competitor just discontinued the price to £1,569! 

The Sky Watcher Evostar 150ED, a 6” ED doublet, is now only £1,569. Bonkers!  

We have matched the price and if you have purchased one from FLO in the last 30-days we will email you FLO Gift Vouchers equal to the price difference ?

We will continue monitoring prices... 

? WTH !!!

Am I correct in assuming this is an introductory price Ste?? If so do you know how long this will last?? If it is the set price how long can the 120ED remain at £1100 I wonder? I bet the 120ED used prices are no doubt going to suffer if all the reviews are correct about how good the 150ED is.

[Stu]

 

? WTH !!!

Am I correct in assuming this is an introductory price Ste?? If so do you know how long this will last?? If it is the set price how long can the 120ED remain at £1100 I wonder? I bet the 120ED used prices are no doubt going to suffer if all the reviews are correct about how good the 150ED is.

It’s a cracking price, no doubt. I wonder how long before someone tries £1499!!

More seriously, I hope the price does stabilise at a sensible level that allows some margin retention by those that add value.

Equally, I think the 120ED and 150ED are quite different propositions, so doubt that those with 120s will necessarily want to shift them on for a 150. There is a big difference in weight and mounting requirements; the 120 is credibly ‘grab and go’ still, whilst the 150 needs more thought!

[John]

 

....Equally, I think the 120ED and 150ED are quite different propositions, so doubt that those with 120s will necessarily want to shift them on for a 150. There is a big difference in weight and mounting requirements; the 120 is credibly ‘grab and go’ still, whilst the 150 needs more thought!

Having run the two scopes side by side for a couple of sessions I very much agree with this