Advice needed --- ZWO vs. Altair Astro (294 sensors) ---

[Steve1984]

Hi all,

After spending the last month or so trawling the internet for reviews and information on which ZWO camera I should purchase, I thought I had settled on the ZWO ASI294MC pro cooled camera. That was until I looked at Altair Astro’s Hypercam 294C Pro TEC. Now I am split between the two!

Despite searching high and low for user reviews for the Hypercam 294c I have only found one (on CloudyNights) and yet there as so many for ZWO’s 294. Does anyone have any experience with the Hypercam 294c camera that wouldn’t mind giving me an honest idea of how it performs and if they are able to, a comparison to the ZWO equivalent please?

I am leaning towards the Hypercam at the moment as for only £25 more it offers the 4GB memory buffer, ‘practically zero amp glow’, free armoured case, 12V power supply cable and a year free sharpcap pro subscription. My concern is, with all these extras, are they compensating for something else? If not, then why is it most go for the ZWO brand with this sensor?

Many thanks in advance,

Steve

(My current setup: SW Evostar 80ED, SW HEQ6, Canon 650d. Controlled through APT)

[david_taurus83]

I bet you could get a 12v cable and Sharpcap subscription for less than £25!

I dont own either but I've read the right hand side amp glow, even though it looks extreme, calibrates out just fine. Not seen many example images of the Altair. What is the benefit of 4gb of buffer?

[Steve1984]

7 minutes ago, david_taurus83 said:

I bet you could get a 12v cable and Sharpcap subscription for less than £25!

I dont own either but I've read the right hand side amp glow, even though it looks extreme, calibrates out just fine. Not seen many example images of the Altair. What is the benefit of 4gb of buffer?

Hi David,

You are probably right about the power cable and sharpcap!

From what I understand the 4gb memory is used to aid data transfer reliability but most of what I have read leads me to believe the 'standard' 256mb that comes with ZWO's PRO cameras is sufficient for most applications.

So ruling out the extra's the hypercam comes with and the memory buffer difference, I guess it really comes down to whether there is a difference in the two cameras overall performance.

Thanks for the response,

 

Steve

[Anthonyexmouth]

i went the zwo route because it came with all the adapters needed to get the correct back focus with the flattener i am using. the altair doesn't. i also didnt need a power supply and its never going in a case although it does come with a very nice padded case. as for sharpcap i already have it and its only £10

 

[Steve1984]

1 minute ago, Anthonyexmouth said:

i went the zwo route because it came with all the adapters needed to get the correct back focus... ...the Altair doesn't.

 

That's a great point! I didn't even notice that!

What about the 'heated optical window' the Altair offers? Have you had any issues with the cooling on the ZWO having any adverse effects that might require this?

 

Thanks,

Steve

[Anthonyexmouth]

not had the camera very long but no issues so far and couldnt find any others who had issues. 

being able to buy from FLO was a selling point for me too. 

[fwm891]

Just purchased a 294MC from FLO, I already have lots of 12VDC power supplies so no need for another - all the spacers and extn rings played a part as they're included.

[Adam J]

On 09/08/2019 at 15:41, Steve1984 said:

Hi all,

 

After spending the last month or so trawling the internet for reviews and information on which ZWO camera I should purchase, I thought I had settled on the ZWO ASI294MC pro cooled camera. That was until I looked at Altair Astro’s Hypercam 294C Pro TEC. Now I am split between the two!

 

Despite searching high and low for user reviews for the Hypercam 294c I have only found one (on CloudyNights) and yet there as so many for ZWO’s 294. Does anyone have any experience with the Hypercam 294c camera that wouldn’t mind giving me an honest idea of how it performs and if they are able to, a comparison to the ZWO equivalent please?

 

I am leaning towards the Hypercam at the moment as for only £25 more it offers the 4GB memory buffer, ‘practically zero amp glow’, free armoured case, 12V power supply cable and a year free sharpcap pro subscription. My concern is, with all these extras, are they compensating for something else? If not, then why is it most go for the ZWO brand with this sensor?

 

Many thanks in advance,

 

Steve

 

(My current setup: SW Evostar 80ED, SW HEQ6, Canon 650d. Controlled through APT)

 

My advice is to go with the tried and tested solution. 

[Adam J]

On 09/08/2019 at 18:30, Steve1984 said:

That's a great point! I didn't even notice that!

What about the 'heated optical window' the Altair offers? Have you had any issues with the cooling on the ZWO having any adverse effects that might require this?

 

Thanks,

Steve

The ZWO is designed to indirectly heat the optical window with waste heat from the thermal electric cooler. I have not heard of anyone having problems with it. 

[Bobinius]

I have the Hypercam 294C. Works just fine, the starburst is there but you can correct it with the darks. Nice case, the cam is solid. I cannot compare it to the ZWO version (I don't have both, I don't know if anyone is going to buy both... :)) The cooling works ok. We are talking about SharCap pro if I'm not mistaken it is not the same as Sharp Cap (more interesting features). I have the ZWO 1600. The nice thing about ZWO is their USB 3 cable really light and flexible. They don't have the 12V (the one provided by Altair is a bit short for my setup). I don't know if there really is an objective superiority for ZWO (other than the fact that they have more experience in producing cameras). The  Altair case is really useful though and that's one thing that bothers me for the 1600 MM Zwo, this missing case. 

[Steve1984]

Thank you for all your replies. I feel you are right Adam, tired and tested could be the way forward and with this being my first astro-cam, getting the ZWO would likely mean it will be easier to find advice and help with it when I get stuck!

Thank you for the info on Altair's 294 Bobinius. Yes it was Sharpcap Pro I was taking about. The case does seem nice and would be useful to me for securely storing the camera when not in use/travelling.

So after all that, I think I have settled on the ZWO ASI294MC again!

 

Thank you all.

[Anthonyexmouth]

9 minutes ago, Steve1984 said:

Thank you for all your replies. I feel you are right Adam, tired and tested could be the way forward and with this being my first astro-cam, getting the ZWO would likely mean it will be easier to find advice and help with it when I get stuck!

Thank you for the info on Altair's 294 Bobinius. Yes it was Sharpcap Pro I was taking about. The case does seem nice and would be useful to me for securely storing the camera when not in use/travelling.

So after all that, I think I have settled on the ZWO ASI294MC again!

 

Thank you all.

The ZWO comes with a very nice padded case. Not a hard shell but still very good.

[Rocket Stars]

I bought a Altair 178 recently. 

One of the decisions for me. Was the build quality. Both have the same sensor. But in my opinion, Altair has better build quality. That matters a lot to me. 

ZWO has many happy users. So I think you don't will be disappointed either.