Explore Scientific Exos2-gt Equatorial Mount With Pmc-eight Goto System Reviews
With an increasing number of Wi-Fi-controlled devices available in today'southward marketplace, Explore Scientific's Exos2 PMC8 is a bold new offering.
This mountain is completely centred around its PMC8 Wi-Fi control system, doing away with the traditional handset controller completely.
Control of the mountain is instead achieved past pairing any Wi-Fi enabled Windows device (be it a laptop, tablet or smartphone) with the mount'due south own Wi-Fi unit and then using the ExploreStars Open Go-To app.
Back up for other platforms is reportedly in development.
The mount has an ST-4 port for autoguiding and is the first to characteristic a wireless driver for the pop ASCOM platform of open source telescope control software.
The Wi-Fi unit is separate from the mount body, attaching to the tripod legs via a bracket.
The ability supply for the Wi-Fi unit as well powers the mount's motors – control cables run from the Wi-Fi unit'south ports to the RA and dec. motors.
The ExploreStars Open Go-To app itself offers a fresh take on telescope command and is particularly useful for beginner and intermediate astro imagers, every bit its graphical interface guides you stride by step though the fix and alignment procedure.
There are many pictorial references of the heaven to help y'all forth the way.
The general layout of the interface is articulate and uncluttered, separating the system's many functions and menus from the mount's slewing controls.
Automatic slewing
The menu organization gives you access to the large database of objects, which are neatly organised into categories and subcategories.
All named objects in the database are accompanied past a good corporeality of articulate and interesting information, with pictures of each for you to wait through.
There is also the option to slew the telescope to the current object selected if information technology is visible above your horizon.
When manually slewing the mount, yous tin choose to use the onscreen directional pad or joystick, selecting the slew speed via a number pad or the distance from the middle of the joystick.
The greater the altitude, the faster the slewing speed.
The mount is relatively tranquility when in performance, with the stepper motors making a soft hum, although information technology does build up to a slightly musical note when slewing at maximum speed.
Externally it is constructed by and large of metal, with the motor housing a hard plastic.
A tubular steel tripod holds the mount head in place well, and vibrations in the eyepiece when observing died down within 10 seconds of the mount being intentionally bumped.
With the mount levelled and polar aligned, we outset tested for any variance in the plane of the puck that holds the telescope and the mount'south centrality (cone error). In that location was a very slight misalignment evident that was easily adjusted.
After going through the alignment procedure, we tested the Go-To part using a 32mm Plössl eyepiece and a i,000mm focal length f/5 Newtonian telescope.
The mountain worked well – in each instance it placed our called target within the cardinal 75 per cent of the field of view, even when slewing to objects in opposite areas of the sky.
Once your selected target has been acquired by the mount information technology will automatically rail it through the sky until you requite it another command, allowing easy ascertainment and the opportunity for some astrophotography.
The Exos2 PMC8 is portable plenty to travel, and its high-quality stepper motors and control system should produce skilful overall results in the field.
In the process of testing from our London-based location we did occasionally experience loss of the Wi-Fi connection to the mount.
After some quick and friendly correspondence with the manufacturer, Explore Scientific is now looking into the outcome, which it has assured united states is not a common occurrence.
Other than this anomaly, the mount performed well in all other respects.
Outstanding feature: Wi-Fi control and Go-To app
The Exos2 control system uses a two-channel multi-processor microcontroller with a massive eight CPUs, hence the PMC8 title.
This offers a great enhancement in processing power over the usual single processor used in most telescope control Go-To handsets.
Along with this processing ability, it also has neat pick over which type of device to connect with autoguiding for astrophotography, a wireless ASCOM connection, and the ability to gather electric current date, time and location information from your windows device, making the setup easier and more than convenient.
The connectedness to ASCOM allows you to tweak and modify the mount's control systems in a customised manner, either by using a pre-existing ASCOM add-on or past programming your ain modifications.
The ExploreStars Go-To app'due south graphical user interface is well designed, intuitive and easy to apply, even for beginners with little experience of equatorial mounts and limited knowledge of the night sky.
Chugalug-driven stepper motors
The mount has belt-driven dual stepper motors for greater smoothness when slewing and increased tracking accuracy.
The combination of a fiberglass-reinforced neoprene chugalug and Nema 11 bipolar stepper motors reduces any backlash that might be associated with a purely gear-driven system to a minimum.
Polarscope
The mountain has a built-in, illuminated-reticle polarscope.
The sky alignment etchings in the polarscope eyepiece are clear and easy to utilise.
The cherry-red LED illumination tin be dimmed and ensures that you can ever see the alignment etchings against a dark heaven, while too helping you to retain dark-adapted vision.
Highlighted manual controls
The transmission controls for the Exos2 PMC8 are highlighted in bright silver to contrast with the blackness metal and plastic that the main body consists of.
In short, anything that is to be screwed in, adjusted, locked or bolted stands out well, making all of the various pieces like shooting fish in a barrel to locate.
Tripod
The tubular steel tripod that has a built-in bubble level to help with accuracy when setting upwardly.
Each leg has 2 locking bolts to foreclose any slippage.
The tripod spreader also acts as an accessory tray that tin hold your various pieces of equipment.
Battery pack
Included in the package is a 12V Battery pack that uses eight D batteries to power the Wi-Fi controller and subsequently mount itself.
A bombardment pack grants you the freedom to set the mount up at any location with ease.
Nosotros would recommend using only high-quality batteries for the best performance
Price: £849.00
Weight: 13.5kg (without counterweights)
Supplier: Telescope Firm
Phone: 01342 837098
Website: www.telescopehouse.com
This review originally appeared in the February 2018 issue of BBC Sky at Night Magazine
Source: https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/reviews/mounts/explore-scientific-exos2-pmc8-wireless-go-to-mount/
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