Scope for ZWO asi2600mc Pro

[varius21]

Hello,

I am not very experienced in astrophotography so I would like some advice.
I just ordered a ZWO Asi2600mc Pro and I would like opinions on good scopes strictly under £2k to pair it with.

I am interested in DSO and to get to capture some of the smaller targets too.


Any opinion and advice will be much appreciated!


P.S. I own an EQ6-R Pro

[Icesheet]

With that mount, camera and budget there are numerous options open to you! Instead of suggesting a random scope my question is do you know what sort of targets you would like to image the most? E.g  Galaxies, Nebulae.. etc. Theres not really a one scope fits all when it comes to DSO. 

You can use these sites to see how various targets you might want to image frame at various focal lengths with the ASI2600MC. 

 https://telescopius.com 

or

https://astronomy.tools

Since you are new, the most likely recommendation will be a small to medium refractor in the 300-600mm FL range. It’s generally considered the most forgiving and fun entry to astrophotography. A petzval design may be beneficial too as it means you do not need to mess with backspacing to get focus and good stars across the frame. Then with some experience you can move to a scope with a longer FL if you want to go after smaller targets.

 

I say narrow down the focal length that frames the targets you are most interested in best then start looking at options.

 

Edit to add:

Anotjer good place is to look at pictures taken with the ASI2600 (or similar) on Astrobin then see what scope they are using. It will give you a general idea as well  

Good luck!

Edited January 25 by Icesheet

[varius21]

Thank you very much! I appreciate your input and suggestions! I will try the above

[Icesheet]

7 hours ago, varius21 said:

Thank you very much! I appreciate your input and suggestions! I will try the above

No problem 😊 I would add one more thing. If you haven’t budgeted for a guide scope/ cam and some processing software I would set aside something for that. 

 

[Clarkey]

Personally, if you have a £2k budget just for the scope, I would look to get something widefield and something else with a longer FL for smaller targets. However, as @Icesheet stated you do need to consider other equipment. For a colour camera I would also recommend a dual band filter.

With your budget and mount, the list of options is pretty long. I would say a Samyang 135mm F2 lens is a great option and pretty fast. Longer FL is any number of options - refractor, SCT, RC, etc. Just remember, with seeing limitations you will not gain much in terms of resolution above about 800mm FL (around 1"/px) for deep sky due to the seeing limitations. Obviously for planetary / lunar this is not the case.

[WolfieGlos]

1 hour ago, Icesheet said:

If you haven’t budgeted for a guide scope/ cam and some processing software I would set aside something for that. 

Absolutely this, it's amazing how much all of the "accessories" (which are "essential") add up to.

• Guidescope + camera - ZWO Scope+Camera £229 , SW Scope + ZWO Camera £319 (currently on offer) .
• Power supply - assume this is already in place for the mount, and now the new camera? If not, consider leads and a possible portable power pack if you want flexibility.
• UV/IR Filter for the imaging camera for broadband targets. If going with a dualband filter like @Clarkey mentions, note this should be used for emission nebula, and not for galaxies.
• Dew heaters and controller.
• Focuser - bahtinov mask (cheaper) or spending for an electronic version . Note you will get a bahtinov mask with most (or all?) William Optic scopes on the dust cap.

I've generally linked ZWO products on the basis you have a 2600mc PRO, and this would allow you to link up with the ASIAIR in the future if you wanted wireless control with a phone/tablet instead of a laptop. There are other options too - ZWO products included.

If the 2k budget is for scope and accessories, you can save on processing software to start with by using free software and "learning the ropes". Stacking can be done in Deep Sky Stacker, ASTAP or Siril. Processing in Siril or GIMP (or a combination of both). Others are available 🙂 Astro Pixel Processor I think is around £75 and PixInsight is circa £250 but PI is generally viewed as the "gold standard". Both of those paid softwares do come with a free trial though.

Hope that helps.

[Lee_P]

Lots of good advice here! I'll chip in to say that I've used a 2600MC Pro extensively and found it paired well with an Askar FRA400 telescope. I've written a review of that telescope here, and if you go to my gallery and scroll down a bit then you can see what that combo is capable of (with lots of imaging experience!) You should absolutely be budgeting for accessories as well, as others have mentioned. Note though that the 2600MC Pro has an in-built UV/IR filter, so you don't need to buy one of those. If I can be forgiven for plugging another article on my website, you may get some inspiration for accessories here.