#First dedicated Astro Cam : Repost from Astrophotography Forums for better fit

15 messages · Page 1 of 1 (latest)

sick pilot
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Hi all, I've been using an old canon 5d mk ii for a few years now with my refractor and have a pretty reasonable workflow for capturing data atm

Im looking to make the jump to a dedicated cooled camera. Ive got a couple on the list that I've narrowed it down to, either the 294 or 2600 (either zwo or qhy)

I guess the first question is how tricky are the 294s to take calibration frames for and to use in general? I've heard reports that they are a bit fiddly and cumbersome to use. Im comfortable spending more if the quality and ease of use goes up so both are within my scope but then again Im happy to save some $ if im not going to see vast improvements.

and then secondly, just looking for opinions on if people think the extra effort in going mono along with the associated costs is worth it for the flexibility of more efficient capturing sessions and the option to go narrowband and some point in the future. Or if that extra effort is not worth the payoff compared to using a "simpler" osc from capturing to final image.

Look forward to opinions on any or all of the above

regal edge
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I would say the 2600 since it has a larger and better sensor but there are other options other than zwo and qhy and I would really recommend those as they're not as badly overpriced

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As for mono that's up to you, if you have enough clear nights it might be worth going mono but if you're like me where in this winter I had less than 10hrs then going osc would make things simple

sick pilot
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Open to other options as well thats for sure.
Im also in Aus so actually finding things is half the challenge

regal edge
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If you trust aliexpress then there's the touptek imx571, costs around 1400€, not sure in aud

hushed breach
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theres like nothing to not trust on aliexpress

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if you wanna go even cheaper theres other options of small companies buying directly from china and shipping it

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normally not possible with markups

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$1000 usd for the imx571 color

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mono is also more expensive, the camera is 300 more, and filters get really expensive depending on your needs

summer bobcat
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I don't know if this helps but I went from a Canon 50D to an ASI533MC-Pro and I've had great results from it. It's especially easy to use with an ASIAIR if you don't mind playing the ZWO game.

hushed breach
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1000 usd for the asi2600mc equiveleant

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a cooled 585 sensor or 533 are also viable and those are cheaper and smaller sensors

sick pilot
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I mean I'm open to having a look
I guess only concern is if you get the one out of the whole batch that does have issues then you're kinda left with a dead camera. Maybe not dead but yeah