Short Review of the Paramount MyT

[AMcD]

In early January I purchased an unused ex-display Paramount MyT Mark 5 from FLO to replace my aging Losmandy G11.  Unusually for me, I did virtually no research, and certainly none of the anxious back and forth and scouring of SGL and CN that should go with these weighty decisions.  I was looking to replace the G11, and I could not resist the level of discount on a 'premium' mount arising from it being an ex-demo item and proximate to the impending launch of the new MyT Mark 6 mounts from SB.  Whilst that approach to things is probably unwise, I also found it quite liberating and, happily, my experience of the mount thus far has been extremely positive so far.

The build quality of the mount is very impressive.  Even though I am used to the beautifully machined aluminium of the Losmandy, the quality of the construction on the Paramount is immediately evident.  The only slightly surprising thing has been the level of sound emitted from the MyT when the mount is tracking.  I understand that this is normal, but the MyT is louder than my G11 in this regard.  The other notable difference to the G11 is the absence of clutches. The RA and DEC worms on the MyT are either in the engaged position or not.  This means there is a specific transport and unpackaging protocol for the mount to avoid damaging the worm gears.  It has also caused me to think more carefully about the consequences of the observatory roof impacting the telescope as the roof will now not simply push the scope out of the way as would have been the case with the G11's clutches.

Whilst through the mount cabling is provided for, I have found it is not really a practical proposition despite the mount being able to accommodate it.  The reality is that it is incredibly fiddly to accomplish, not really suited to thicker cables such as USB3 without an optional versa plate spacer, appears better suited to set-ups using scope rings on the versa plate rather than dovetails and, as I understand it, risks limiting the life of the cables threaded through the mount as they move repeatedly during slews.

I have a roll off roof observatory in which the mount is permanently mounted.  FLO supplied an adapter plate to enable me to mount the MyT on my existing pier.  The observatory is controlled remotely over the Internet and the mount power supply and communications were wired into the existing system:  

At least for me, this is definitely a mount that required a detailed reading of the instruction manuals prior to setting it up, particularly when it came to ensuring that the mount communicated with the observatory computer (to ensure operation with the software used for capturing data and controlling the observatory remotely) and for getting the best mechanical performance. I found it necessary to plan a pretty structured commissioning process to ensure that I completed all of the steps necessary to get the mount working as it should.

With respect to the software, the mount requires downloading the MK5000 driver and the installing of SBs own software, TheSkyX, which comes included with the mount. TSX does initially present as complex, but if you are used to SGPro or NINA, it is not a particularly steep learning curve as far as the basics of the programme go.  The T-Point module in TSX is excellent and makes accurate polar alignment and the construction of an accurate pointing model quick and easy. Once the T-Point model is completed, ProTrak can assist with accurate tracking.  The PEC evaluation and modelling module is also very easy to use and effectively automates periodic error evaluation, modelling and the application of the PEC model. 

Once the all of the software is set up the mount can be roughly and then finely polar aligned using the T-Point module. This module allows very accurate polar alignment to be achieved in short order.  Thereafter, having calibrated the guiding module in TSX, the SB PEC module can be used to build and apply a PEC model.  Prior to the PEC model being applied, the peak to peak error on the mount was in the region of 5 arc secs, well below the guaranteed specification of 7 arc secs.  After applying the PEC model there is no detectable periodic error reported by the TSX PEC module.  The final set up step was to perform a 300 point T-Point model to ensure accurate go-to pointing and to maximise the efficacy of ProTrak.  Once the model had been constructed and applied, the mount placed the object slewed to in the centre of the cross hairs every time.  

In circumstances where I prefer to control my system with SGPro or NINA, except for T-Point, PEC and Protrak, I am using TSX as a very large ASCOM driver for the MyT.  This requires the downloading of the SB ASCOM 2X Driver to allow SGPro or NINA speak to the mount.  In this regard, the TSX software is conceptually similar to the Germini.Net software used as the ASCOM driver for the G11.  Having started TSX once in Administrator mode, I have been able to connect the MyT to NINA, SGPro, PHD2 and the Talon roof opener software.  The MyT will park prior to the Talon closing the roof in response to an "Unsafe" message from the Cloudwatcher.
 
In terms of customer service, the service from FLO was excellent.  With respect to Software Bisque, have only needed to contact SB once following a delay in them responding to my email request that they register my mount and software (the process is not yet automated).  They responded immediately to the reminder and were apologetic for the delay.  The website now has my subscription details and additional downloads of updates etc. have been smooth.

Of course the proof is, as they say, in the pudding. Once I had polar aligned, completed the PEC training and completed the T-Point model, I took a 5 minute unguided test exposure in order to get a rough idea how the mount was performing.  This is the single unguided 5 minute exposure (which has had noise reduction applied and been stretched in PixInsight):

Following PEC and T-Point modelling and with ProTrak activated, during guiding with PHD2 I have found the MyT performs well, maintaining an RMS of between 0.25 and 0.35 with an off-axis guider in good seeing.  Importantly, whatever the RMS that is achieved, the RA and DEC RMS figures are consistently very similar.  

I have not had much chance to image with the mount due to the inclement weather, but I did manage this HOO image of IC443 comprising 4 hours of OIII and 2 hours of Ha with RGB stars.   It was taken with my TS130 Apo and QHY268M with Antlia Pro filters and guided with an OAG and ZWO 174MM:

For a price, the MyT Mark 5 can be upgraded in due course with the MK6000 electronics that are standard on the new Mark 6 versions of the mount and, as I understand it, it is easy to swap out damaged belts and worms if that becomes necessary, although again the parts are very expensive.

All in all, I am very pleased with the mount so far, and somewhat relieved that my impulsive approach at the outset has not yet lead to disaster.