Planetary Camera and Barlow for a C11XLT - recommendation needed.

[WicklowSkies76]

I posted this possibly on the wrong forum yesterday [Imaging - Planetary] so mods please delete the other one if necessary. 

Hi there, I sold my Neximage 5 a while back and am in the market for a planetary camera to use with my C11 XLT. As far as my limited knowledge and ability to research goes I think the Altair GPCAM3 385c Colour (details at bottom of post) might be the best bang for buck due to the high framerate. I was also recommended the following 2x Barlow (Altair Lightwave 2x Flat Field Tele Extender Barlow) as an ideal Barlow to accompany the 385c.

The two should cost in the region of £400. Without getting into crazy money can anyone recommend a better option than this or does this look about right for the 11" C11 XLT and planets?

Aside from an ADC are there any other filters or accessories I should purchase to maximise on the poor seeing and low altitude of the planets at 53 degrees North?

Thanks in advance!

 

The Altair GPCAM3 385C camera features the new Sony Exmor IMX385 CMOS sensor. It has a larger area of 7.2 x4.05mm and 2mp resolution, and is the "big brother" to the Sony IMX224, with similar super-low read noise. 

- 2mp Sony IMX385 Exmor Sensor 7.2 x4.05mm (larger with more pixels than the 1.2mp / 4.80x3.60mm IMX224).
- Exceptionally low read noise of approx. 0.62e electrons (e-) in our tests, making the camera good for solar system imaging / stacking video frames. (See read noise vs. gain chart).
- Saturation (full well) capacity approx. 19Ke electrons (e-).

Video astronomy and long exposure deepsky imaging: The GPCAM3 385C delivers great results for for both deepsky imaging and video astronomy (or EAA) using the Live Stacking features in the free AltairCapture software or SharpCap. Time-lapse all-sky imaging and video is fully supported, and the camera can be used with a wide field C/CS mount lens to image large areas of sky.

Speed and reliability in one camera: USB3.0 and on-board memory buffering give much faster transfer speeds than the GPCAM USB2.0 series, pushing the USB3.0 format to the limit, yet within a stable envelope. Memory buffering almost completely eliminates dropped frames and corrupted video files, a common problem with USB cameras, and enables faster more consistent frame rates, even with less powerful notebook computers. Consistency and stability is improved for video capture sequences - especially desirable for scientific applications.

Edited June 7, 2020 by WicklowSkies76

[Cosmic Geoff]

You could look at what folks who take images you admire are actually using.

I use a ZWOASI224MC with my CPC800. Previously I used an ASI120MC with a C8 SE, and the best results were comparable with the later setup. In theory you would want a barlow or tele extender but with a large scope you may well find that using a barlow is not worth the bother, unless you have great seeing at your location.

I have found that the seeing is the main limiting factor asides from atmospheric dispersion.

[JamesF]

Personally I think I'd probably be tempted to go mono before considering an ADC, but not everyone wants to go down the route of filter wheels etc.  I'd perhaps also consider the IMX290-based cameras and make a decision on barlows etc. once the camera decision is made.  It may not be necessary to use one at all thanks to the trend for smaller pixel sizes in more recent cameras.

If you have a look at images posted here by "Kokatha Man", I believe he is using either an ASI290MM (plus filters) or an ASI224MC, depending on conditions.

Also worth thinking about in my opinion is some kind of remote control of the focuser, either by fitting a motor controller to the existing focuser or (perhaps more preferably) adding a secondary focuser to the back of the OTA and motorising that (so you avoid mirror movement issues by getting focus "about right" with the main focuser and then use the secondary for fine focus).

James