NEQ6 Strange noise?

[Astronome]

Hi,

Just got a new NEQ6 and installed and setup:

Two problems that I was not expecting...

When I slew at high speed the motor sound is quite as expected but when I release the slew it sounds like a chatterring or rattle on both axis slews. Sounds like no grease in the drive train??

Second problem is that I cannot align the scope it keeps saying 45deg error failure to align. However, it will find polaris?

Any ideas?

Regards,

John M

[Earl]

The rattle from my discussions with Wayne as he was serviceing my EQ6 is down to the drive chain.

The generic parts in there are not the best for the job, but with tweaking and the such they can be improved.

We debated for some time replacing some parts for better custom made parts, but decided to not do that at present, as there are other possibilitys which need to be looked into.

[barkis]

Most of the EQ6 Mounts have this odd sound, I know mine does, but I've been reassured that it is not something to worry about.

It's a weird tinkling sound, but it's much better than the racket my Meade LX made when slewing. Frightful din in the dead of night.

Ron.

[SlipperySquid]

I know in the HEQ5 you can tighten down a couple of the gears as these are what make the rattlng noise, also adding a bit more grease can help.

I know it worked for my HEQ5 but I can't be 100% on the NEQ6

[Deneb]

This sound is normal, mine does it as well.. that is the EQ6 Pro. It's working so why break it...

Nadeem.

[Astro_Baby]

You can tune it out but to be honest I'd leave well alone. They all do it.

[ollypenrice]

One of mine makes this noise, one doesn't, and both work well. So the alignment problem; just to be sure...

You dec axis is aligned on Polaris?

You are set to Northern Hemisphere, not Southern?

Your date and time are correct, remembering that it uses the American Month-Day-Year confuser?

Your Long Lat are correct?

Your time offset from GMT is correct?

You are starting the alignment from a position of rest in which the scope is pointing at Polaris?

Your scope is aligned more or less along the line of the dovetail, not somehow at an odd angle to it?

Your clutches are tight. (This one has had me a couple of times!)

You are confident that you have identified the alignment stars correctly?

I can't think of any other obvious ones but maybe someone else can?

Olly

[GME]

Hi,

about the align issue, well it have come across my path as well. Using a HEQ5.

It appaers sometimes without any reasble couse, can't find out wye but the solution I use is to make a factory reset and then enter all the same values again and it works as it should .

very strange it is, like there are some faulty table value inside the software that pops up under serten sircomstances,

any way since I upgraded to the latest software it have not occuered.... yet, been using it 4-5 times now and all normal still

Regarding the sound yea guess all of them more or less have this issue, but its nothing to wory about it just sounds bad, and its due to the design as stated above.

Clear skies evryone

[PhoenixRising]

My NEQ6 Pro makes the same "rattling" when it stops too. The EQ6 Pro I had before didn't though. Seems like a characteristic of the mount I guess. Daren't go inside though, not till I have to anyway.

[mark7331]

My NEQ6 makes the same noise and works very well.

Follow Olly's check list and your alignment should be fine. Just remember: after you performed your polar aligment make sure your scope is back in the 'home' or starting position (pointing towards polaris and counterweights pointing down) - this has thrown me a couple of times and makes the scope pointing way off.

Use Stellarium to check that you're looking at correct stars for alignment.

Mark

[Astronome]

What a great bunch of guy's.

Thanks for the info.. You are all very reasuring when things dont seem right.

Re the noise I will leave it alone.

Re the setup- well northern .vs. southern did not see that in the setup.. Could be that.. I will have a look then do a factory reset.

I had put all the lat long in etc..

Thanks,

John M -Astronome

[Astronome]

Olly,

Actually I have two scopes on a new Altair Large plate but I did not think the alignemnt of the plate to the puck was critical. Just took the old one out and installed the new one. Scopes are across the plate..

Surely just the fact that I align the scope at polaris through one scope is ok?

Maybe I screwed up the calibration in replacing the v slot with the three set screws?

regards,

John M - astronome

[steppenwolf]

Actually I have two scopes on a new Altair Large plate but I did not think the alignemnt of the plate to the puck was critical.

It isn't even remotely critical because the alignment process including the all important 'Start Position' resolves this by its very nature.

Surely just the fact that I align the scope at polaris through one scope is ok?

If this is how you are setting your mount up as the 'Start Position' then you are mostly going to be starting from an incorrect position - remember, Polaris is NOT at the NCP but in many FOV's, it will be present if aimed at the general area of the NCP however, this is not the same as being at the correct start position which is weights down, telescope pointing 'up'.

[ollypenrice]

No, sorry, I agree that the saddle plate does not have to be aligned along the dec axis. Rather I was thnking of the kind of misalignment that might introduce massive cone error. I should have phrased my question better. I think the scope should be aligned parallel with the dec axis though, to avoid cone error. I'll stand corrected on this though. Steve?

Olly

[Starblazer]

That is one thing i've been trying to get into my head.

For me, when I polar align, I was of the mind that in doing so meant that the scope should also have polaris in the center of fov of my 250px and that it should be central in the finder. This isn't true though as it stands, It's usually a little way out of the field of view in the 250px but in on the finder, albeit off to one side.

So I am guessing that this offset it due to the scope pointing north rather than offset to be on polaris.

It's all soooo confusing haha.

[Astronome]

Ok, I will leave well alone on the strange noise.

However, I have found that I have the saddle plate on 90deg out.

How is this? Well if you look through the polar scope with the telescope pointing at Polaris - you see nothing through the polar scope because the hole in the shaft is at 90deg. I will shift the dovetail plate on the shaft and then try again.

ATB

John M

[Psychobilly]

It's meant to be like that .. keeps the scope out of the way when your using the polarscope.. saves you hitting your head on it...

[sbooder]

I thought I would use this thread to ask about an EQ6 noise. I got to use my new NEQ6 pro for the first time tonight (not bad ay, it only arrived yesterday), anyway, I heard all the noises I have heard about but there was one I am not sure about.

There is constant double noise that sound like a very very quiet house alarm in the distance, or like the noise a CD sometimes makes when it is being read but only rhythmic and constant.

I am new to servo/stepper motors (if that is what they are), is this normal please.

[malc-c]

Type in HEQ5 into Youtube and you'll come up with lots of vids where folk have the same gear "vibrations" when starting and stopping fast slewing... as been mentioned it can be dialed out and the lubrication improved, and there are lots of videos with before and after clips

[sbooder]

This is not the end of a slew noise, this is a tracking noise.

[James]

The four or five EQ6's I've had/tested/still use all have that noise. It's not a problem, in fact I think it sounds kind of cool but that may just be me....

James

EDIT: I'm referring to both the start up/stop noises and the tracking noise

[NickK]

I thought I would use this thread to ask about an EQ6 noise. I got to use my new NEQ6 pro for the first time tonight (not bad ay, it only arrived yesterday), anyway, I heard all the noises I have heard about but there was one I am not sure about.

There is constant double noise that sound like a very very quiet house alarm in the distance, or like the noise a CD sometimes makes when it is being read but only rhythmic and constant.

I am new to servo/stepper motors (if that is what they are), is this normal please.

Happens on mine (first light tonight) too.

Just a high pitched whine and a quiet ticking initially.. it's the motor controller chips (whine) and the motor movement.

I'm assuming they're using pulse-width-modulation (PWM) to control the stepper motors, so hence the high pitched sounds at some rates.

[sbooder]

You can hear the sound I am talking about on this youtube clip. It is the sound after each slew just after the beep as it starts tracking. As I said it is a double swis swis sound. So it is not unusual and it is not because I had the balance wrong, because the mount in the clip has no payload.

[Skylook123]

There is a chattering sound, of various intensities depending on the precision of the adjustment of the gear train, as the stepper motors accelerate to full speed, then decelerate. Shouldn't mean much, but some of you yonger folk with ears that work are more sensitive to the rattle. If you ever use EQMOD to use a lappy to drive the mount and satellite chase, if the rate demanded gets very high it will sound like the family silver has been dropped into a blender. Scary.

Some people also are quite sensitive to the operating noises from the mount while it tracks. I'm not as old as a dinosaur, but I was there before their footprints hardened in the mud so my hearing is "challenged". I hear nothing, but my much younger friend who observes with me says it is much quieter than a certain other manufacturer's coffee grinder/rock tumbler sound.

[Sp@ce_d]

Got my NEQ6 this week.. and my mind is put at rest ( but not my ears!) by yet another informative thread on SGL

It has all the characteristics discussed here. The annoying one is the high pitched whine and distant car alarm sound.. ouch..gets right in my head.. Oh well, my ears can't have been that damaged from "Playin LOUD" all those years!!

At least it's a lot quieter than my ETX!!