CGEM Mount

[kris h]

I am saving up for a cgem mount but have been reading reviews

and people have had problems with tracking and the mount

turning up side down with the counter weight pointing to the sky

but some say this is from poor power connections

so if anybody has got one or used one are these problems easily

fixed. Your thoughts and advice much needed

[durr]

Kris, My friend bought one from the widescreen centre a few weeks back and it seems to be working fine. Like you said the power connections on these mounts can cause strange slews to happen. I bought a CPC 925 last month and was shocked when the thing went literally all over the place, and then some one told me to check the cable and widen the pin in the connector and bingo, perfect alignment everytime. He as an 11" Schmidt on top and we have had no trouble with the mount. Steve

[tmarkuk]

I've had mine since February, the only issue I have had was with occasion error codes on the handset reporting that it had lost contact with the mount. However I recrimped the RJ12 connector (just gave it an extra squeeze really) and I've seen no issues since.

I've had no problem with the power connector, mine has a secure screw in collar to keep it tight which I think is standard on the CGEM now.

If you are interested in PEC curves then check my website, the link is in my signature.

[NickH]

I had a review unit which was pretty close to perfect when on the autoguider, tracking was good as well in the testing I did... I have heard however, that many of them have since had some problems. Best check with your dealer as to what they think. Ideally an independent dealer too, one that stocks a wide range of mounts. Personally I liked the one I had, but then as a mag reviewer, you never know if the one you get is a "special" or not..

[Roger_Laureys]

Kris,

I received my CGEM last week and I must say I am quite impressed:a solid mount with a nice finish. The GOTO's are dead on and when I compare it with my CGE and G11 mount it's quite good value for the money. It can take my C11 without problems.

There were some problems with bad handcontrollers but this problem has been solved. Power problems have been reported but were mostly due to a bad connection ( now solved with a secure screw connection) or insufficient battery power. As an added plus for me I can also use the controller and GPS unit from my CGE with it.

Best regards,

Roger

[tmarkuk]

I'll also note that when I took mine out for a rare evening of visual observing for a messier marathon earlier in the year the goto's were solid all night after a decent alignment. Slinging from one side of the sky to the other without missing a beat all night long.

[kris h]

A messier marathon sound good when i get my scope & mount ill do that.

What scope have you got on your mount

[NickH]

I found the one I had pretty darn good too.. for the record, and quoted as such. Plus, I have to give Chris at DHinds some kudos for being exemplary in support..

[tmarkuk]

Normally mine has an Orion Optics 250mm reflector on it plus guiding and imaging kit, though right now it's having an easy life with only my ZS66 and guide scope on it. The 250mm needs a tear down / rebuild and I'm enjoying doing some widefield imaging.

[gost]

Anyone know if it's possible to use the AUX-port to connect to a computer instead of using a USB->Serial adapter and connecting to the hand control?

Otherwise, what's the AUX-port intended for?

[Psychobilly]

From the Nextstar site - CGEM Section...

AUX Port- located on the control panel on the right ascension motor housing. This port is designated for "smart accessories", for example, the optional CN-16 GPS module - Celestron part number 93963. Also, as noted above, the hand control can be connected here as well. The connector is a 6 conductor RJ-12. The signaling is TTL and so a serial port on a PC should not be connected to this port.

Peter...

[gost]

Ok, would be great to connect the PC without the HC.

[Psychobilly]

Again from the Nexstar site..

For scopes with no PC Port on the mount, use Celestron's Auxiliary Port Accessory Kit (part number 93965) which provides the required PC Port. Connect the serial port on your PC to the PC Port on the Auxiliary Port Accessory. Ken Hutchinson has created a document describing how to build a PC Port adapter for the AS-GT, SE and SLT mounts - click here for details. Matthias Bopp has created a document describing how to build a PC Port adapter for the NexStar "i" Series mount - click here for details. If you do not already have one of these adapters, I would recommend you purchase the new version 4 user upgradeable hand control (read this for info on purchasing the upgradeable hand control) and refer to option 1 immediately above.

The links wont work from the pasted text...

So here they are...

http://www.nexstarsite.com/OddsNEnds/ASGTHC2PCAdapter.htm

Peter...

[Astro_Baby]

I had a fiddle with one - the one thing I noticed is that the power connector is quite deep on itrequiring an extra long 13mm long DC jack.

The one I had in my care for a day was supposedly broken but in fact it was a duff power cord. I didnt get to play with it as I didnt have a tripod for it.

The world nearly had a CGEM strip down guide there