Star Adventurer GTI

[upper verge]

current setups are:

nikon Z5, multiple lenses (including 150-600mm telephoto), regular tripod untracked.

8" dobsonian, ASI178mc, also untracked.

right now i mainly just use the nikon for regular photography + moon shots with the 600mm, and the scope for planetary or occasionally untracked lunar mosaics.

wondering if a star adventurer would be the logical next step for this? i've needed some sort of tracking for a while now, but i'm not sure how future proof this would be down the road because of weight limits.

i don't intend on doing much DSO stuff, lunar and planetary are the big draws for me (and on the occasion where i do want to i feel like the z5 + gti would be enough) and from what i've seen those types don't require much precise tracking.

only issue i can think of is that for lunar mosaics having go-to features is nice?

[wary dome]

I dont have a ton of experience but I use a SA GTi with a D7200 and 80-400; it tracks well enough 600mm ff equivalent, the payload should be fine for your 150-600
if you know you are going to be putting a big planetary telescope or your dob on it in the future, you might want to invest in a sturdier mount

Even if you choose the GTi now, you can sell it later or keep it as a secondary/travel mount

[plain nymph]

Idk what u mean by "those types don't require much precise tracking"

Are you going for DSO or planetary with the gti?????

Deepsky always requires precise tracking, especally with the gti and a 150-600

[obtuse crescent]

He said he doesn't intend in doing much dso, so yeah planets don't require that much accuracy

Tbh if you don't care about dso I don't see a reason in getting the sagti, for planets aperture is king and lenses won't ever match the dobson

[upper verge]

the dob is an orion xt8, i don't think i'll be putting that on a mount ever- i'd rather just eventually get a dedicated planetary scope

also good point, yea i might be thinking too hard about future proofing

[upper verge]

fenice is right in that i don't do a ton of dso overall, i might try some wider field stuff but generally i have no intention on doing advanced dso stuff

[plain nymph]

Thats what was confusing me

[upper verge]

yea this is my problem, the xt8 and ASI178mc are of course superior for planetary/lunar but the fact that it's untracked makes it difficult- was hoping to maybe get a c6 eventually for the gti? just barely makes it under the weight limits

[plain nymph]

You have problems hand tracking?

[obtuse crescent]

I've seen someone use the c6 on a sagti for dso so it's not a terrible option

[plain nymph]

Or you want the gti for light dso stuff too?

[upper verge]

it's just a pain especially if i have a 2x barlow, for stuff like jupiter i can get by but a lunar mosaic at 2400mm hand tracked is almost impossible

[plain nymph]

Alr yeah

[upper verge]

specifically because of the processing, recordings where the moon is drifting out of frame don't work well

[plain nymph]

That was my thought aswell

[upper verge]

this is good to know, i'm assuming if it works for dso it'd be more than capable for lunar/planetary stuff in terms of tracking

[plain nymph]

For sure

But you haven't thought about a goto dob?

No because you still want light dso stuff?

[obtuse crescent]

You won't have issues for planets but consider that guy using it for dso as a unique case rather than the norm, in general that mount isn't good enough for that focal length

[upper verge]

i actually didn't think of that but yea i do generally want a tracker for light dso/widefield stuff and special occasions like during an eclipse or earthshine or whatever, also those look comparatively expensive

[plain nymph]

Alralr, it's just the fact that you have to downgrade aperture

Which is kinda the only thing you need for planetary xd

[upper verge]

when you say aperture don't you just mean focal length? i don't think the c6 would be a downgrade though

[obtuse crescent]

No, the larger the aperture the more potential detail you can get

A 6" and a 12" with the same focal length won't have the same detail

[upper verge]

ohh

[obtuse crescent]

Which is why I was saying that using lenses for planets/moon wasn't that good of an idea

[upper verge]

oh yea i don't plan on it

i mean i use the 600mm for the moon but that's it

would the difference between the xt8 and the c6 be that noticeable?

[obtuse crescent]

I'm not too sure, prob not by eye

But the difference in light gathering between a 6 and 8" mirror is like 40% or something like that

[upper verge]

and combined with the fact that the c6 would be at 600mm more than the xt8 + the fact that i can do tracking, i feel in the end the c6 would work out better

[obtuse crescent]

Would be easier to use for sure