Upgrading from a SPC900

[Gadget]

Hi All

I am having some great fun with the Philips SPC webcam and also getting some great results and it is really easy to set up and use which helps but it has also got me wanting to upgrade to maybe a more dedicated lunar/planetary cam but what would be the next step that won’t break the bank but would also give me a noticeable improvement

I have seen a few Meade dsi cams on eBay for sale and Opticstar do a range of planetary cams as well and also there is the Imagingsource cameras but not sure which one of these as they seem to have similar model numbers DMK,DBK,DFK etc

All I really know for sure is that I would like a colour one as I don’t want to be messing around with filters etc at this stage

Thanks for any help

Kevin

[Merlin66]

The DMK is the mono, B&W version; the DBK/DFK is the colour chip version (with/ without IR filter)

I use the DMK series for solar Ha imaging. Excellent camera which does what it says on the box.

[Psychobilly]

DMK21AU04.AS was recommended to me by a Certain Nick H.. when I asked the same question a while back (although there are newere cameras available since then) ... Definitely does what is says on the tin...

Peter...

[Gadget]

Thx Guys

Looks like the DMK21AU04.AS will be on my x-mas list

Just a couple more questions is it best to get the one with the built in IR filter or without and also is it best to use the supplied capture software or just carry on using ones like craterlet /wx etc And aslo can these cams be used to get some of the brighter DSO’s ?

Thx

Kevin

[dc509]

I've been looking at the Imaging Source cameras as well for exactly the same reason. The other factor to take into account is the chip- they have 3: the 21, 31 and 41. The 21 is 640x480, the 31 is 1024x768 and the 41 is 1280x960. The chips are different sizes as well: 21 is 1/4", 31 is 1/3" and the 41 is 1/2". But the drawback of the bigger chips is the frame rate that they can capture. The 21 will do 60fps, the 31 30fps and the 41 15fps. I'm going for the colour version, because I can't afford the filters and wheel and taking LRGB images of things like Jupiter which rotate rapidly is probably beyond my skills!

Apparently these cameras work best with IR filters, and the version without the IR filter is for those who prefer to add their own filters. Not sure about the software.

Overall, my research has led me to the conclusion that the 31 is probably the best compromise for me - I'm most interested in planetary and lunar. It's got much better resolution than the 21 and a better frame rate than the 41.

Hope this helps

d

[Merlin66]

I have the DMK21 and DMK41... I'd agree the DMK31 would be a good compromise.

I still use the IC Capture V2.1 which does the job very well.

Yes, you can use it for DSO, spectroscopy etc etc.

Remember that although you can get long exposures it's still an uncooled camera.

[astroman001]

For planetary work the best combo would be the DMK21 with Astronomik type II RGB filters and Atik manual filter wheel. The Astronomik filters have built in IR/UV protection. Even though a good compromise on costs, this is still an expensive option. I have them. However starting again, I think I would go for the colour version the DBK21. I have seen fantastic results taken with it and you dont need to mess about with RGB filters etc. You would need an IR/UV filter however. Ths would be the cheapest and still excellent combo.

Hope that helps

Peter

[MartinB]

The Astronomik and Baader type II filters are expensive. They are "interference filters" and are supposed to have very precise band passes and very high transmission (particularly useful for deep sky work). A cheaper option is the Baader absorptive filters The RGB goes in a filter wheel and the IR block on the nose piece.

[bus_ter]

I would also like to improve my planetary images, but I'm not convinced the SPC990 is much of a limiting factor. There must be a lot of imagers who have upgraded from a webcam to one of these dedicated cameras. I would love to see an image produced on each camera, from the same telescope, on the same night to compare directly.

Taking that idea further I would love to see a roundup and comparison of all the available cameras in one big test. Something thst is quite common with regular consumer cameras. You soon realise that the published specs don't always reflect in real world image quality.

[Gadget]

Thanks for all the help and advice it has been very helpful

It looks like I’m still getting confused with all these different model NO’s I said in my last post I would be going for a DMK 21AUO4.AS but that is a mono cam I should have said DFK21AU04.AS the colour one with built in IR cut filter although there also is the DBK version which does not have the built in IR cut filter is there any advantage in not having the IR cut filter and just adding one yourself?

Thx all

Kevin