Meade LX200GPS w/ ASCOM, NINA, PHD2 & Stellarium connections
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ต.ค. 2024
- This is my setup. With the help of others, through forums, I believe I have finally gotten the equipment to function properly. After viewing many other TH-cam videos, I felt that my setup, on this Meade telescope, really needed a Video to help others with setup and connections who maybe using a Meade LX.
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I just viewed this tutorial today. Thanks for taking the time to put it together. It seems that you do not use a reducer or flattener. How well do your final images come out (especially the edges)? If you're not using a full frame camera, this may not present as too much of an issue. Would you say that your setup is better geared for planetary imaging vs. deep sky? Also, I assume that using a reducer/flattener will increase the train length, seriously limiting where in the sky you could point. Thoughts? I have a good ZWO tech stack (including a full frame CMOS camera) that I'd like to try using my older 10" Meade (Peterson modified) LX200 SCT, but I'm not sure the effort would be worth it - especially without a reducer & flattener.
Great video. I have a 10 LX 200 Classic and I use Nina, PHD guiding and Stellarium and everything works as it should including plate solving in Nina using ASTAP. I polar align using the Meade classic hand controller. When I choose a target in Stellarium, I can acquire the target in NINA and Nina will slew to the object and try to center the object. Nina controls the centering and it gets the target in view and attempts to center. At this point it seems like Nina makes corrections to center the object and moves the mount too much as if it is over correcting. Have you ever run into this situation and if so, how did you find a solution?
hello sir thank you for your video .please i dont found the autostar updater 6.1 .... if you send me a file please ......
You have almost the exact setup I have, except my LX200 is not the gps. I have a question for you: Do you use the Park function in NINA, or do you do something else? I have been trying g to get mine to park for almost 2 years now, and none of the forums or Facebook groups have been able to help.
I use NINA when I am imagining to Park the telescope, I also use my hand controller at times. When using NINA, it parks, and the hand controller notifies you to turn off the telescope. NINA does not turn off the telescope. Sometimes I turn on the Park when setting up sessions in NINA, which automatically parks after the last session. Or you can uncheck that feature and Park with the hand controller or NINA’s button control under the Telescope tab. For Forum help, I most of the time go to the LX200GPS Group, search for groups.io. Sorry for not looking at my channel for so long. Hope this information helps.
Nice setup! Did the Meade zero-shift focuser motor not work, or were you looking for better performance?
The Meade Microfocuser does not work with ASCOM drivers. So, you cannot remotely control it via software like NINA. Motor was fine and I saved it for storage. Now I can use autofocus features in software. I will say that as the video hopefully covered, I have the ZWO focuser out half of the Meade’s focuser travel as the starting point. I then manually get a fairly good focus at that point with the focus knob. After that I let the software do its thing. That gives it room to move in and out. The ZWO program lets you put in the limits of the focuser travel from zero to your focuser’s max travel. In the Mead case it is 4000 as I recall being the max.
You can view my Meade to EAF video get info on the project. I did the modification based upon someone else's modification.
Super helpful video! Can you show how you have your guide camera connected? Do you use the autoguider port on the telescope?
When the video starts showing the telescope, it is the side view of the telescope and you can see the guide scope is at the top of the picture with the silver guide camera attached to it. The guide camera’s USB cable (gray) comes out of the back of the guide camera and travels down to the USB Hub. I do not use the autoguider port which is an ST4 cable. The two ports beside the autoguider port, on the base of the telescope, are used and go to the USB Hub also. Hope this answers your questions. Thanks for watching the video.
@@gadgetmanbowen3081 thank you! I’ve been struggling to get mine tracking and every little bit helps. PHD2 just says my mount can’t use pulse guiding. Anyway I’m glad to see it’s possible. Love your videos!
@@ChristianPsencik
Thank you for your kind words and liking the video. I have spent many years trying to get things tracking right on the LX as I covered in the text after the video’s intro. In retrospect, I think the main issues were the balance, gear messing and PEC training. Check out MeadeMods TH-cam videos on how to take the slop out of your RA and DEC gear meshing.
I got the balance to work out by removing the 80-mm ShortTube Orion guide scope and going down to the 50-mm Orion Mini guide scope with helical focuser but still using my Orion StarShoot Autoguider. You need to balance from 90-deg up to horizontal position. That is the telescope should not move with out the clutch engaged at any position during the balancing. The balance to the right or left can be achieved with weights on the arms but I got it to balance with my DewBuster controller mounted to the left arm. I think some people suggest some downward movement to the east is recommended but not much.
I have not tried the OAG method of guiding as yet. That maybe another project after my recent knee replacement starts letting me get around better.
As for connections, I have two older #507 Cable Connector Kit adapters and I got two RS232 to USB adapters from StarTech (Part# ICUSB232IF) for both of my RS232 ports on the telescope’s base. As mentioned before, I do not use the ST4 cable from the guide camera that would plug into the Autoguider port, but I do use the USB cable from the guide camera to my USB Hub. In the past the ST4 cable has worked even on PHD.
The next improvement was ditching the ST4 cable and changing to all USB connections and resolving the ASCOM drivers to use, as covered in the text after the intro screen. If you get the ASCOM drivers installed PHD should work well. Make sure your RS232 ports are being picked up as COM Ports by checking with Device Manager. If you are using the RS232 to USB adapter and you do not get a COM Port then the adapter is not correct or there are wiring connection issues in the flat 6-wire telephone cable.
Hope this helps.
Hi. Just a question: how do you avoid the risk of the camera hitting the base of the fork? in the video you point to south but, what happen if you want to point, let´s say, to NGC281 Pacman? Does the Autostar software rejects that due to the evident clearance problem?
In this video you have to watch the slewing and stop it if you are going to have a contacting condition. There will be some areas of the sky you cannot image when the camera sticks out the back to avoid collisions. I have another video putting the camera on a 2" diagonal that makes it go vertically up. I have done some images at night and tested in the house using the vertical train. However, due to weather I have not been able to do much. Another person mentioned the vertical imaging train and stated it works for him. Do not know how a reducer will work in the vertical imaging train.
where did you get the bracket to attach the autofocuser bracket to the curved part of the Meade micofocuser?
That is a 3D print. I have a silent video on doing the Microfocuser mode using a ZWO EAF; In the text below the video, there is a link to download the drawing file and a l ink to the TH-cam video I when by for the mode. Here is the info:
Ref: • Ep 038 - How to Make a Home Made Auto... this link has a link on the page to the 3D model to download. www.thingiverse.com/thing:437...
I found a printer to do the 3D print. You will have to search for one in you area or online but you need the 3D file to send to them.
Dang that seems harder than trigonometry
Well, it is not that long to do, only when you are trying to explain the procedure. I stopped using Nebulosity to preview. I now go straight to NINA’s camera view. You do not have to run the ASCOM diagnosis either, just the connection to the telescope. Probably takes me 5-minutes when I am in the field.
@@gadgetmanbowen3081 it’s like anything else just have to get pass the learning curve. I Appreciate the insight!
Why is there a jet engine next door?
The airport is not far away from where I live. The planes are low for landing and takeoff.
@@gadgetmanbowen3081 i thought you were gonna say its my motor mount noise lol