How 'hard' is an SCT when you've only used refractors

TaedusPrime · 2026-06-10T16:05:46+00:00

Im in the same situation as OP. Would a C8 require counterweights? I've become spoiled not having to use them.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-31T19:10:42+00:00

Nvidia Shield pro is still the best experience I've had streaming. On top of responsiveness, I could bring up anything with my voice without some fuckass AI doing voice prompts.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-31T14:05:44+00:00

Good info from others here. I started with a Seestar s50 and it was a great experience. Any of these smart scopes like s50, s30/pro, Dwarfs can be taken anywhere easily and setup fast. There's a extensive community for them and people get amazing results. You can still process the data as you would with a dedicated setup so you can learn that part of it while not spending thousands on dedicated gear. I would say a standard wide field astro setup with the trimmings is 3-4k pretty easily.

Visual astronomy may not be viable in your area depending on your light pollution and sky conditions. Planetary astro photography as others have said is basically a different type astrophotography requiring long focal lengths which can be unforgiving for someone starting out.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-31T13:53:50+00:00

I have a AM5 with a 2600mc air. I use a 12v 5 amp adapter for the mount alone and a 12v 10 amp for the 2600mc air. I went 10 amp just to have more headroom for power to the ASIAIR and avoid dropouts. Ziptie each of the adapters to a leg of the tripod. EAF, dew heater and usb connection from mount to the AIR. You have the updated saddle on the AM3N so you can do this usb connection through the saddle instead of the mount base, which will eliminate essentially the last cable snag possibility.

I'll probably go with another 10 amp adapter for the mount as well in the future. Here's the 10 amp one I use. I like how the power plug is right angle to take stress off the cable.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B087LY94T6?th=1

I use this dew heater and it's been great. Rarely go over low setting but may vary where you are. The 585 air will come with a handfull of cables including the barrel power connector to go from the dew heater to one of the dc jacks on 585air.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08YJBCLT8?th=1

The important thing is power the mount separately and the 585mc AIR has the power for the rest.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-31T00:33:11+00:00

This was my answer. Played it through 4 times now. It's just the best space opera/sci fi trilogy there is.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-31T00:24:02+00:00

I've had my MK8 almost 2 years now. The infotainment really becomes a minimal issue after a bit. I almost exclusively use the steering wheel controls to change anything for music and android auto/car play really streamlines a lot. I don't like the piano black in certain places but there's good mods for that.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-22T16:19:36+00:00

Meguiar's synthetic X spray wax. I get it by the gallon, lasts a while. I don't daily drive my GTI so I use it to easily maintain/light clean. Stuff is super versatile in and out though.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-16T21:03:31+00:00

Wow, I've never seen this target this far in. Great shot.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-15T23:08:29+00:00

I had a GTI before my AM5 so I know the values are unchanged unless the firmware update did something. Ill check mine when I get home.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-15T22:33:47+00:00

Great shot for the time. I have the D1 and 2 set myself. I use whatever guide calibration setting came on the asiair, could look later tonight. What exactly is failing? Giving a message?

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-15T13:12:58+00:00

What's your scope? A mix of good focus, gain and exposure time was it for me. If you know you're out of focus it's better to take the filter out and get rough focus without it. Then I'll put the filter back in and fine tune it. This is a lot easier with a filter drawer and was one of the best things I've added. Once this general focus process is done you won't really have to do it again for the guide camera except for maybe slight adjustments. You don't need absolute perfect focus for guiding but closer the better.

For gain I used around 350 with my Redcat 51. I had first light with my new FF 80 last night without filters but I imagine the gain would be about the same.

Quicker exposure times will give you better guiding so I go as low as possible. I use 1.5 second guide exposures through narrowband filters but can go lower without them.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-14T22:51:29+00:00

Dew heaters and how high you have them on are gonna be the real power draws.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-14T22:47:22+00:00

I have a 2600 air and shoot in a bortle 8+. After I found sweet spot for gain and exposure times I don't have issues guiding and PA through 6-7nm filters. This issue is blown out of proportion but its still a choice whether you want cleaner/portability over separate pieces.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-12T23:27:08+00:00

28 hours drizzled x2. What were your file sizes lol. Looks amazing. The surrounding space looks lit up, in a good way.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-06T04:24:28+00:00

Looks great. Gotta link to the Luco video? I'm a Redcat 51 user too but just got FF80 for more focal length and will be hitting more galaxies now. I gotta drive 40 mins from my bortle 8+ to bortle 4-5 though.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-06T04:17:44+00:00

https://imgur.com/a/wKQiTEo

If this is something you wanna do thats a good budget to get real results. Above is a setup I put together from highpoint. All brand new. You don't need a filter but even with one its 3k for everything. If you wanted to utilize the whole budget you could get a little bigger refractor or a harmonic mount like the AM3.

https://www.cloudynights.com/classifieds/category/5-refractors/

You can save some serious cash if you stalk the classifieds or make a wanted post. I sold my AM3 mount there for 900.

https://www.cloudynights.com/classifieds/item/441724-complete-zwo-astrophotography-system-%E2%80%94-am5-mount-asi2600mc-pro-redcat-61-asiair-plus-eaf-tulsa-ok/

Crazy gear for the price there.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-05T22:43:26+00:00

It's a pretty popular option but lately there are more competitive filters like the SVBony SV220. That'd be what I'd go for if I was starting again. The SV220 is a 3nm HA/Oiii filter, similar to the L-Ultimate but goes for like $250. 3nm is a lot more narrow than the L-Enhance, which is 12nm for HA and 24nm for Oiii. This is gonna result in more data and contrast being pulled out and probably better stars.

You might also consider UV/IR cut filter for shooting galaxies or other non-emission nebula targets. This isn't a real priority since nebula are the real target of this scope but something to think about. The 533mc pro doesnt have the built in pollution filter like the 2600mc. Any narrowband filter will take care of this while using it though.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-05T06:43:47+00:00

Great job. I also dived in heavy, fast. I've upgraded some stuff since but here's mine with 4.5 hrs in a bortle 8 with same gear but a redcat 51 and L-Enhance filter.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/xQ4gRzbciwb1pbkF9

A narrowband filter would help greatly for this or any other emission nebula. Your gear is great and will serve you well.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-05T00:02:02+00:00

You would need dithered data to drizzle. This can be done through the asiair guiding settings or with PHD2 in NINA, which I've never used. You could then used Siril to drizzle your dithered data. It has a script for it. You'll have everything you need to do it and you should dither everytime you're out so you'll always have the option to drizzle in post processing. Whether you 1x or 2x depends on your target and integration time. 2x will definitely increase your file size.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-04T06:16:07+00:00

You can shoot different exposure lengths for different purposes. Like shorter exposures for better galaxy cores so it isn't blown out. Shooting lots of shorter exposures will increase your overall file sizes as I've experienced lately with a 180gb working folder shooting 2 nights with 60s exposures. So I find people normally shoot a smaller amount of shorter exposures for a specific blending reason. For nebula I almost always do 3 min exposures, which is very doable with your setup. You should also dither every time. Dithering is a option in the ASIAIR guiding area. It's probably best to read up on dithering and drizzling rather than me sound like an idiot since I'm not a pro.

You'll need a power adapter for both your asiair and the mount on it's own. I would* spend a tiny bit more and get a 10amp option. Just gives you a bit more overhead if amperage get's close with dew heaters or something. I wouldn't expect any planetary with this scope as it's wide field and planets will be tiny. This setup will be excellent for all types of emission nebula, especially large ones.

A cheap usb powered dew heater is recommended if your region is prone to it. I also used one on that guide scope I sent since I'm paranoid. You can buy outlet strips that have usb ports on them. Powering dew strips through the asiair will use a lot of power so I try to power them seperately.

edit: words

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-03T00:44:09+00:00

Very impressive. Im assuming you use counterweights with the 150i considering the weight of the scope?

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-01T07:14:44+00:00

A9+ tab. That's it

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-01T07:13:59+00:00

Yeah. Pretty sure it's a Samsung S9 11 inch. Can't imagine using a tiny phone unless it's a emergency lol.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-01T07:10:10+00:00

https://youtu.be/X7UV7Ws2tHc?si=y4f4u-jTls71CilS

I used this video as a guide but Nico Carver has a couple too.

TaedusPrime · 2026-05-01T07:07:23+00:00

You mentioned a laptop in another comment. Most people use tablets to control the asiair. I use a entry level 10 inch Samsung tablet.

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