Rowan AZ100 Mount Owners Thread

[Telescope40]

Hello. Bit of help please AZ100 owners.  I've never been able to get the app to show the sky in the direction to which I am facing. Have been able to do alignments but as the app seems to permanently face south I'm somewhat limited in my choices of alignment stars. 

Other apps I use - eg Sky safari  have a "compass" option which rotates your view if you are facing north, south, east or west.  Presuming something is switched "off" in some way and I am missing something blindingly obvious but thats just me all over 😃

Any suggestions appreciated. 

 

Thx   John 

Edited April 3, 2023 by Telescope40
spelling

[lifeonmars]

Hi  John 

I think if I have this right there is a option somewhere to reset your start position to another point.

At the moment my start position is horizontal and facing south and when the app is initialised the current south field of view displays  the stars in the southern part of the sky.

Have a look in the configuration menu have a look at page 7 of your instructions 4th item from the bottom of the page Titled 'Initial AZ position 'hope this helps.Good Luck.

 

Frank

 

 

[Stephenstargazer]

5 hours ago, Telescope40 said:

I'm somewhat limited in my choices of alignment stars. 

Instead of tapping on a star on the screen, just select one from the list for your alignment. I am fairly sure that works, but will check tonight.

[Telescope40]

3 hours ago, lifeonmars said:

Hi  John 

I think if I have this right there is a option somewhere to reset your start position to another point.

At the moment my start position is horizontal and facing south and when the app is initialised the current south field of view displays  the stars in the southern part of the sky.

Have a look in the configuration menu have a look at page 7 of your instructions 4th item from the bottom of the page Titled 'Initial AZ position 'hope this helps.Good Luck.

 

Frank

 

 

 

16 minutes ago, Stephenstargazer said:

Instead of tapping on a star on the screen, just select one from the list for your alignment. I am fairly sure that works, but will check tonight.

Thank you both. I’ll give both options a look. 
Regards. John 

[Stephenstargazer]

@Telescope40 have just been out and done a 1 star alignment on the moon.  I set my intial position (level South) and turned on. Connected my tablet to the control module web page by wi-fi. Turned on the motors. Used SEARCH to select the moon.  This was shown as my TARGET. An arrow appeared on the screen pointing in the direction of the moon. As I pushed the scope towards the moon the sky diagram did follow the direction of my scope until the moon was on screen. I then aligned it and pressed ALIGN 1st STAR. It is tracking now. ( NB not perfectly because it has a siderial rate only) I am not using Sky Safari at this point, but could do after first alignment.

If I understood your problem, your sky chart does not follow the scope direction when initially pushed around ? It should. Can I suggest you go into CONFIGURATION and check that you have a sensible Lat. and Long. for your location first. I believe the software needs a value in order to work. You should also have a green TIME indication and eventually a green GPS indication - mine stays amber some time (even 15mins?), but still works while finding more satellites.

Good luck !! let us know!

 

Edited April 3, 2023 by Stephenstargazer

[Deadlake]

In case people don’t go across the pond, Steve has posted a great YouTube on new Y balancer for the mount:

 

Wonder what other items Derek has tucked away?

[Stu]

4 hours ago, Deadlake said:

In case people don’t go across the pond, Steve has posted a great YouTube on new Y balancer for the mount:

 

Wonder what other items Derek has tucked away?

Nice. Is that a Rowan bit of kit? Not seen it before.

[Alan White]

8 hours ago, Stu said:

Nice. Is that a Rowan bit of kit? Not seen it before.

Stu, it’s a prototype just handed over at NEAF, see a post on Cloudynights.

[JeremyS]

So, Y-axis is altitude.

[BGazing]

Using AZ 100 as a single-target sync has been a breeze for solar and planetary.

However...tried it under the stars with a C11 and several problems emerged.

First, several alignments in Rowan app and the slewing to another star was not dead center, to say the least. Often outside of FOV even in 40mm Aero.

Switching to SS often resulted in freezing of the app at some point...and even stoppage of tracking. I would then go back to the app and had to restart the motors for it to work again well. Very weird behaviour. Both programs were on my S22 phone. 

Thought it would be easy...surely C11 is not too much. Used on Planet for this purpose, so I guess no flexion either, two counterbalancing weights. Just overall weird. Any help is much appreciated...

[swsantos]

Here is my post from Cloudynights, was really late last night when I posted it and planned to post it here in a new thread today, but instead will add it here...

Since getting my AZ100 I had been lobbying Dave and Derek to develop a Y axis balancing feature for it. This past weekend I had the great pleasure of meeting them at NEAF and they, to my great surprise, provided me with a prototype Y-axis balancing adapter based on our discussions to test.

Y-axis balancing is a feature which allows the saddle to be raised and lowered so that balance can be achieved with the telescope pointing straight up. With an eyepiece in the diagonal and perhaps a heavy finder onboard as well, a telescope’s center of gravity is above its centerline sometimes significantly and as such when it is moved towards the zenith it wants to pitch up and over because of it. Working against that one must apply friction control to the altitude axis which has to be increased with altitude. Two axis balancing on both the X axis by moving the telescope back and forth and on the Y axis by lowering the saddle results in being able to let go of the telescope at any altitude position without any friction in use and having it not move at all. The telescope floats without friction at any altitude without the need to adjust axis tension for different altitudes. The late great Charles Riddel who engineered two axis balancing into his Half Hitch family of mounts, recommended setting the Y axis balance for one’s midweight eyepiece and that that would result in good balance throughout your whole eyepiece range that’s smoother and easier to manage with less azimuth friction than otherwise would be required. I found that to be the case and that is how I used it with my Nova Hitch.

Rowan Astronomy’s excellent implementation of Y-axis balancing is via an interface between the mount and saddle and it, I am happy to say, works perfectly. The adapter attaches to the mount in place of the saddle and the saddle attaches to the adapter such that it can be moved downwards then securely tightened by four knobs into the balanced position. There are under-saddle knobs which also serve as stops with which the saddle height can adjusted and by using them you can make on the fly saddle elevation adjustments for different eyepieces or a binoviewer should you want to use it that way. I prefer to balance with my midweight eyepiece and then leave it alone which results in much less altitude axis friction fiddling using my other eyepieces than otherwise would be required without it. There are also threaded holes in the adapter itself into which the AZ100 panhandle can be attached because the panhandle’s stock saddle attachment cannot be used with the adapter in place.

I also found that the same Y-axis balance point appears to work with different telescopes. I balanced my 8” Edge HD with a 17mm Ethos on the Y-axis then put my Televue NP127 on it with the same eyepiece and it balanced on the Y-axis without having to readjust the saddle. Two very different telescopes Y-axis balanced using the same eyepiece from the same saddle position so the Y-axis balancing point seems more dependent upon the eyepiece and not the telescope so the same position should work well across different telescopes. Newtonians probably notwithstanding.

From my experience two axis balancing is a mount dynamics game changer. There is a much better experience managing balance with manual mounts like a non-motorized or motors-off AZ100 as well as I imagine using the AZ75 presuming there will be a compatible adapter made for it as well. Even a motorized AZ100 benefits because proper balancing and altitude axis tension adjustments are still needed to get the most out of it as anyone who uses their motorized AZ100 like I use mine as a hybrid manual / push-to / go-to knows.

See two axis balancing in action ... here is a video of my 8" Edge HD with 17mm Ethos. Both the altitude lock and altitude clutch are completely disengaged and the telescope is free floating.

https://youtu.be/tJGveULQZKc

Pictures of the adapter installed

 

Edited April 23, 2023 by swsantos

[swsantos]

3 hours ago, JeremyS said:

So, Y-axis is altitude.

No Y-axis is telescope up and down by moving the saddle up and down as opposed to X axis by moving the telescope forwards and backwards. Y axis balance results in the telescope being in balance while pointing straight up and is desirable because with a heavy eyepiece in the diagonal the telescope's center of gravity is above its pivot. The Y axis balancing adapter allows you to lower the telescope so that its center of gravity is coincident with its pivot axis.

[lifeonmars]

Could I please ask for some info regarding the panning handle and eyepiece balance weight clearance with the azimuth motor housing as it moves in altituide.

Is it possible for  the  pan handle it to collide with the motor housing anyone with this set up any practical hands on experience with this.

Any info greatly appreciated.

Ta Frank

 

 

[Adam_Wade]

Rowan owners, I need your advice please on which configuration would be best, GoTo or Push To.

i) AZ100 + Encoders + GoTo motors

or

ii) AZ100 + Encoders + DSC Pro 

Assume you had the Berlebach Planet tripod and were dual-mounting a 120ED (20 lbs total) and a C11 (35 lbs). Magnification of targets generally from 120x-280x.

I would prefer keeping the mount simple to use and set up with minimal technology--given a negative experience with an AVX GoTo GEM.

 

Edited May 3, 2023 by Adam_Wade
Additional information

[Deadlake]

From what I've read the AZ100 will be fine in general with a 130 mm APO and C11 on the other side.

I'll be able to tell you soon as have a C11 in bound.

If I was buying from scratch I would go straight for the motor kit and have it fitted at the factory. 

The Nexus is great however I usually use sky safari and the only real use case against SkySafari is to deal with an wifi issues (which I think are rare and not really a decision point) or more importantly for dark site trips where the red colour and low light level of the Nexus will not effect dark sight adaption. The final point is really the only justification for getting the Nexus and of course the Nexus attaches via a serial cable to the motor controller so it's not one or the other.

Might be easier to just get the motor kit and then add the Nexus depending on how you get on with using Sky Safari?

The other point with the motor kit is it sips power, might be good to see what other CN observers have done in attaching the battery pack to the top off the AZ100 mount so no cable wrap and better portability.

Going with the motor's of course doesn't stop you using the slow mo controls, you just need to turn the motor's off.

 

[Adam_Wade]

Thank you for the detailed explanation! Order has been placed.

The amount for the tripod and mount was 3x what I had originally planned, but that is why I also missed out on the T-Rex mount when it was widely available.

[John]

10 minutes ago, Adam_Wade said:

Thank you for the detailed explanation! Order has been placed.

The amount for the tripod and mount was 3x what I had originally planned, but that is why I also missed out on the T-Rex mount when it was widely available.

I've used early versions of the AZ100 and currently have a T-Rex. I can assure you that the AZ100 is every bit as good as the T-Rex, has more functionality potential now and is of course fully supported by the folks at Rowan.

 

[Stephenstargazer]

22 hours ago, lifeonmars said:

Could I please ask for some info regarding the panning handle and eyepiece balance weight clearance with the azimuth motor housing as it moves in altituide.

Is it possible for  the  pan handle it to collide with the motor housing anyone with this set up any practical hands on experience with this.

Any info greatly appreciated.

Ta Frank

 

 

There is of course no problem if you put the clamp handle and weight on the right hand side. If you want to keep clamp and handle on left then Rowan make a spacer that moves the clamp out. Depending on where you position the handle, I suspect the weight could still potentially clash or have limitted movement.

 

[swsantos]

13 hours ago, Adam_Wade said:

Rowan owners, I need your advice please on which configuration would be best, GoTo or Push To.

i) AZ100 + Encoders + GoTo motors

or

ii) AZ100 + Encoders + DSC Pro 

Assume you had the Berlebach Planet tripod and were dual-mounting a 120ED (20 lbs total) and a C11 (35 lbs). Magnification of targets generally from 120x-280x.

I would prefer keeping the mount simple to use and set up with minimal technology--given a negative experience with an AVX GoTo GEM.

 

An AZ100 with encoders and goto motors can still easily be used in push-to so you can have your cake and eat it too. The AZ100 with motors is ready for anything, even not using them if you don't want to.

I had the AZ100 unmotorized for a while and got the motor kit when it became available and installled it myself which was easy. Regarding the slow motion controls, with the motors installed but not turned on they have a little more resistance than before the motors were installed but I like it that way the controls have a nice feel.

Edited May 3, 2023 by swsantos

[Stephenstargazer]

12 hours ago, Deadlake said:

Might be easier to just get the motor kit and then add the Nexus depending on how you get on with using Sky Safari?

The software to use a  motorised AZ100 with a DSC (and perhaps a Nexus?) is not available yet. There would be no gain in adding a Nexus to the motor controller which already has a WiFi output, which is all the Nexus does. You would need a DSC or ano to avoid using Sky Safari. The Web browser Rowan built in software is not at present a complete alternative, though someone may be using a mount with that alone???

I see that @Adam_Wade has ordered already so I point this out for others. In fact installing the motors at a later date is a very easy job with excellent instructions to follow. People should not be put off trying a manual AZ100 first if they are unsure. After fitting motors the slow motions are not actually very pleasant to use, though it is possible. It is of course not difficult to unfit motors!

I see that @swsantos and I disagree  about the slowmos with motors - but I do agree about push to being useful and the benefit of tracking 🙂

Edited May 3, 2023 by Stephenstargazer

[Deadlake]

16 minutes ago, Stephenstargazer said:

The software to use a  motorised AZ100 with a DSC (and perhaps a Nexus?) is not available yet. There would be no gain in adding a Nexus to the motor controller which already has a WiFi output, which is all the Nexus does. You would need a DSC or ano to avoid using Sky Safari. The Web browser Rowan built in software is not at present a complete alternative, though someone may be using a mount with that alone???

The why sell the serial connection to connect the motor controller to the Nexus?

Connects the AZ100 motor system to Astro Devices Nexus DSC. 
Search for objects in the Nexus databases and issue goto commands to the mount. 
This lead must be connected to the RS232 socket on the AZ100 motor controller. 

Guess a @Dek Rowan Astro question?

Edited May 3, 2023 by Deadlake

[Stephenstargazer]

Not at all - the serial connection is for a Nexus DSC. I have the cable and patiently wait to use it. (The Nexus and  Nexus DSC are two different products from Astro Devices, and do not have the same functionality.)

Hope that clears the misunderstanding . 

PS there are in fact a Nexus, Nexus II, Nexus DSC, and Nexus DSC Pro.    https://www.astrodevices.com/

Edited May 3, 2023 by Stephenstargazer

[Deadlake]

1 hour ago, Stephenstargazer said:

Not at all - the serial connection is for a Nexus DSC. I have the cable and patiently wait to use it. (The Nexus and  Nexus DSC are two different products from Astro Devices, and do not have the same functionality.)

Hope that clears the misunderstanding . 

PS there are in fact a Nexus, Nexus II, Nexus DSC, and Nexus DSC Pro.    https://www.astrodevices.com/

Ok, I meant Nexus DSC, presume that works?

[Adam_Wade]

@Stephenstargazer
I ordered the AZ100 mount with encoders (but no motors) exactly for the reasons you described:
the slow-motion controls, even with motors turned off, feel different and "have more resistance" per the manual. 

@swsantos 
I am glad you installed the GoTo kit yourself and found it easy. Had that not been the case, I would have ordered the motor kit with the mount yesterday. I even watched the YouTube videos showing how it's done.

I have never used a Push-To or Alt-Az mount before, coming from an AVX. I wanted to experience what a high-end manual mount feels like with high-power views and only slow motion controls.

Besides, the GoTo kit at 1200 GBP/~1500 USD is a lot of change for me. Prior to the pandemic, I remember when that amount could get you a very decent mount + tripod.

[Stephenstargazer]

10 hours ago, Deadlake said:

Ok, I meant Nexus DSC, presume that works?

Not yet is the answer! The Rowan website says it will be able to work with a Nexus DSC.

The Motor Drive System Manual states : Connections:  RS232 - For Nexus DSC

@Dek Rowan Astro e-mailed me in January "Firmware coming soon for the AZ100 to work with the Nexus DSC, which we should be able provide a Beta version for testing. "

The firmware has not been updated since version V1.0.4 issued in November. So this is still a work in progress.