ST4 Cable when Autoguiding using ASCOM

[JimothyC]

I'm in the process of tidying up the rats nest of cables connected to my mount, and I'm keen to get rid of any that aren't needed. 

The camera I'm using for autoguiding is a QHY-5IIL and it has an ST4 port and my mount also has an autoguiding port. However when I'm running PHD I get it to connect to the mount via ASCOM rather than the 'on-camera' option.

So the question is, do I still need to connect the ST4 cable between the mount  and the camera?

It would be great to get rid of it, as it's far too long and swings about in the breeze. 

[Oddsocks]

44 minutes ago, JimothyC said:

So the question is, do I still need to connect the ST4 cable between the mount  and the camera?

No, the ST4 cable is only needed when guiding using the 'On Camera' guide option.

When using ASCOM 'Pulse' or 'Direct' guiding the guide commands are sent direct to the motor controller via the USB-Serial cable, the ST4 cable is redundant and can be removed.

[JimothyC]

1 hour ago, Oddsocks said:

No, the ST4 cable is only needed when guiding using the 'On Camera' guide option.

When using ASCOM 'Pulse' or 'Direct' guiding the guide commands are sent direct to the motor controller via the USB-Serial cable, the ST4 cable is redundant and can be removed.

Thanks for that. I thought that would be the case, but I'm not a fan of risking an imaging session with experimentation if I can help it. Cheers