CPC800 or C8SGTXLT Goto?

[BlueAstra]

The time has come. I now have my new Tesco CC with 12m 0% credit so I am free to shop around. My dilemma is which one? I'm sure its been asked a many times before. First of all my situation.

I have to set up and remove my scope from the patio after each session, so it must be easily portable and fairly quick to set up. I like goto because it maximises my observation time while I learn the sky. I want to do some photography and get a good record of what I see. I think I've got close to what I can do with my current kit. 8" doubles my current aperture.

At first I thought C8 because an equi mount is best for photography. But then I thought of the set up required, and the odd positions the eyepiece gets to and swung to the CPC. Saw some great photos published with the CPC, quick to set up, and could always get a wedge for better photos.

Well, looks like the CPC. Or perhaps the C8? Or have I missed something better? Any opinions would be welcome.

[Doc]

Out of the two I would go for the CPC800.

But how about the.....

Skywatcher Explorer 190MN Mak-Newt Astrograph and a EQ6 with goto to mount it on.

Much better at imaging and very good at visual then the CPC, and with the EQ6 it will be future proof for any other scopes you get.

[brianb]

Skywatcher Explorer 190MN Mak-Newt Astrograph and a EQ6 with goto to mount it on.

1. It's a bit specialist.

2. It's HEAVY, personally I don't think the EQ6 would be sufficient for long exposure astrophotography. Well, it wouldn't be 9 nights out of 10, given the winds we get round here.

The CPC800 is a great all round scope, capable of excellent results visually and photographically, provided it's properly collimated & allowed to cool to ambient temperature (another thing the Mak-Newt has against it is very slow cooling). As you say the altaz fork mount isn't ideal for long exposure deep sky work but then IMHO few mounts under say £5K are. The altaz mount simply restricts exposure lengths, up to 30 sec across most of the sky it's fine ... and the tracking is great for webcamming moon & planets too. The only thing I'd suggest is working out whether you can stretch to the 925....

Don't forget that, for a SCT (irrespective of how it's mounted), you WILL need a dew shield AND a dew heater ... unless you live in a desert. You should also budget for a jump start power pack, at least, a large capacity deep cycle leisure/marine battery is preferable.

BTW I think it's a mistake to run up a credit card balance just because the interest is deferred for 12 months.

[SteveL]

If at *ANY* point in the future you are planning on doing long exposure astrophotography, save yourself a whole world of hurt and expense, and stay away from anything that requires a wedge I`ve been there, so I think I am qualified...

A fork mount means you are stuck with what the main OTA is, plus whatever you can attach on top. An EQ mount will be allow you to change everything and anything on the top...

[BlueAstra]

Yes, read a review of the astrograph and it sound very good. Definately worth considering. However, I still have the equi v. az mount decision considering I have set up and down each night.

[Doc]

1. It's a bit specialist.

2. It's HEAVY, personally I don't think the EQ6 would be sufficient for long exposure astrophotography. Well, it wouldn't be 9 nights out of 10, given the winds we get round here.

The CPC800 is a great all round scope, capable of excellent results visually and photographically, provided it's properly collimated & allowed to cool to ambient temperature (another thing the Mak-Newt has against it is very slow cooling). As you say the altaz fork mount isn't ideal for long exposure deep sky work but then IMHO few mounts under say £5K are. The altaz mount simply restricts exposure lengths, up to 30 sec across most of the sky it's fine ... and the tracking is great for webcamming moon & planets too. The only thing I'd suggest is working out whether you can stretch to the 925....

Don't forget that, for a SCT (irrespective of how it's mounted), you WILL need a dew shield AND a dew heater ... unless you live in a desert. You should also budget for a jump start power pack, at least, a large capacity deep cycle leisure/marine battery is preferable.

BTW I think it's a mistake to run up a credit card balance just because the interest is deferred for 12 months.

For visual the CPC is a great scope but I would not use one for AP.

For AP an EQ is a must and the 190MN combo with an EQ6 is pretty stable just look at the photo's took by SteveL they are pretty impressive.

I agree maybe a bit specialised, especially collimation wise due to it's fast lens b ut then so does the CPC need careful collimation.

[BlueAstra]

1. It's a bit specialist.

BTW I think it's a mistake to run up a credit card balance just because the interest is deferred for 12 months.

I agree. It just means I can keep the money already saved in the bank for longer and get more interest. (yes I know its only 0.000001%)

[BlueAstra]

If at *ANY* point in the future you are planning on doing long exposure astrophotography, save yourself a whole world of hurt and expense, and stay away from anything that requires a wedge I`ve been there, so I think I am qualified...

A fork mount means you are stuck with what the main OTA is, plus whatever you can attach on top. An EQ mount will be allow you to change everything and anything on the top...

I know you are completely right. But could I move the EQ mount plus scope from the house to patio and back, and do a decent set up, and still have time to do some observing?

[beetlejuice]

I know you are completely right. But could I move the EQ mount plus scope from the house to patio and back, and do a decent set up, and still have time to do some observing?

I have a EQ6/C9.25 setup. It's heavy, no doubt about that but it's relatively easy to set up. I usually set up and level the tripod first and then set the head on and fine tune the levelling. I then do a quick alignment on Polaris - not too fussily as I'm principally a visual observer. Then I stick my C9.25 on - I have marked the mounting plates so balance is instantly achieved, then I put the counterweights on (location also pre-marked on the dec shaft). Finally I do a check on the polar alignment and tweak if necessary. Total set up time about 20 mins. I then let the scope cool for an hour or so and then, by that time, the clouds have rolled in

[Psychobilly]

I have a CPC800XLT and I do use it for Astrophotography - but its permananetly setup in the observatory on a pier and wedge... Given the time again I would definitely have gone for a GEM mounted scope...

Peter....