That C6 seems great as a portable setup. One extra accessory that I 100% recommend is the Starizona f/6.3 reducer. It is pricier than the Celestron one but will give you pinpoint stars on the 294sensor, edge-like performance.
Great video. I am looking at getting a C6 and hyperstar myself next year as an upgrade from my Z73. I also want to get in close with galaxies and planets so it will be good to come back to your videos on the back focus and eaf set up. All of your content is well presented and interesting. You really deserve more subs and views. Thanks for taking the time to do these. Hope your skies stay clear. 😊
Nice!!!! I'm glad this was helpful and appreciate you watching this one. I was thinking a few days ago. I can't just make a video about hyperstar and not the C6 on its own! I'm glad this had some value to it!
Thanks for the video. I have 2 C6's, I'm going to build a twin imaging rig. One with a ASI294MM and the other will have a ASI294MC. Living in the Pacific Northwest my clear skies are limited so I have to utilize all of my time. Thanks again for all your info. Clear skies!
Thank you for this. It’s what I was looking for. I have been imaging for a little over a year using an 81mm refractor and have been really enjoying it. I recently bought the Celestron 6 as my next scope with every thing you have . The only difference is I bought the Pegasus focus cube zero vs ZWO EAF. I have a ZWO on my 81 and love it. Last piece of equipment I’m waiting on is the Staizona night owl 0.4 reducer . They keep saying this year so I’m waiting. May break down and buy their 0.63 reducer. I am pairing this with the ASI 533MC Pro. Your videos give me the inspiration to move forward and get this out in first light. I’m both nervous and excited. Setting up a new profile in NINA and PHD2 and the headaches. My 81mm is running like clock work and I am spoiled right now but that’s about to change but may not to bad. I should pick it up quickly. I will be watching your channel intently for any tips and suggestions. Keep up the great work! Thanks, Mark MNJ
Glad this helped out in some way! The funny thing I was super nervous too when I got my C6. I came from a z73 and didn't know how it would go with collamating and processing. Took a little time but I really love this scope with all its qwerks, lol. Congrats on your C6 and wishing you clear skies! Thanks so much for watching this one!
Owl 0.4 reducer or Staizona reducer vs Celestron reducer. Logic tell me the expensive one is better. But how much better is the question? I have a 533MC Pro also. Would that benfit to use the high end stuff over Celestron?
I got a C6 which was deforked from the Nexstar Evolution mount. It's the same as the standard C6, only with a grey color finish. It's got the Starbright XLT coating. I need to figure out what the native backfocus for this thing is, so i can try imaging with my 533MC Pro. That aluminum dew shield looks like a nice option. And also the Starizona reducer/corrector, and a Hyperstar of course, thankfully it's 1/3rd price of the 8" EdgeHD Hyperstar. Time to put the C6 to work!
Thanks so very much for the info. Two questions, if I may: Isn't the .63X reducer also a coma corrector? And did you experiment with any images at native FL (without the corrector)?
I believe its a reducer only. I suspect the flattening is due to the mirror design from what I can tell. Honestly I am not sure I have not tried it at F10 I don't have interest in doing so as of yet. I primarily bought this scope for the focal length at F6.3 and F2.
Good Information. Maybe i get one to for galaxy Session. Love to upgrade to a 200pds but my Mount is not realy capable for it (ioptron gem28). This could be a great Option. And i think it's bether than a ritchey cretien.
Hi! Excellent and informative video about the C6. I own one and it is really awesome for the price. I just have some questions, if you use the focal reducer that gives you 945 mm of FL but then you add 105mm of back focus, that leaves you at 1050 mm of FL right? So, the telescope is now at F7? And the last question, is it possible to correct the elongated stars at the edge of the image with good collimation and precise back focus?
Hello! Bacfocus has no impact to focal length. It's just the required length that gets the camera sensor at the precise spot the telescope projects a focused image. With the 6.3 reducer the Focal Length will always be at 945mm @F6.3. I have had many collamation nights better than this one. I just don't dwell on it much. The C6 is capable of great star shapes with some time spent on collamation? is it perfect like a refractor? nope but its close enough! Hope this helps!
I shoot with refractors. Wondering how does this scope handle focus during the night? Is there any image shift when slewing vertical? Is a focus adjustment needed during the night? My refractors hold focus exceptionally well during the night. 'm wondering if I might be better served with a 102mm or 115mm refractor. Even though these have less FL than the 6", cropping in with the 115 or even the 102 could make up the difference in FL. Rarely would I shoot this scope at F10, so the FL of 945 is the target. All in with scope, reducer, dew shield, dew heater, Bob's knobs, and adapter I'm looking at $900. Close to a 115mm refractor and more than a AT102. I shoot with a 533 so I have a good crop factor going there also. Although, it requires extra accessories, sure can't beat the bang for the buck with the 6". Decisions.
All good questions. I refocus just as much as my refractors and I have not noticed any difference there. I focus with filter changes and when the temp dips. I have not noticed any image shift with my SCT either. The question to ask yourself is if you are the type of astrophotographer that needs perfect stars all the time. When you add collamation into the mix your stars wont be perfect every single time. Now blurX will fix most of this for you. This is important if you will be traveling with it alot. You will need to collamate it frequently and you will also need to give yourself extra time to do it as well before the imaging session begins. I think the C6 is a great value given the focal length and aperture but it has some extra steps involved and you need to be willing to work with it in post sometimes. It's the perfect second scope but having a refractor that all you need to do is focus has its advantages too. Hope this helps!
@@astronotna Thanks for the reply. After watching your unboxing of the Askar 103, I'm seriously considering it over all else. The 1x flattener makes all the difference, Not losing any focal length and little light gathering, it's probably the way to go for the long haul. My AM3 can handle that scope with no issue as well as 5 min subs.
Hi, Thank you for the info. I was wondering if you have ruled out the star elongations on the edges as not being from a slight polar alignment error or the less likely field rotation? (I didn't see which mount you are using, although I'm assuming that it's not a tracker with that size of scope). Thanks again!
Hey no problem glad you found this video useful. I always align within 25 sec and I am using an AM5. My elongation happens because I am a street astro imager and sometimes I can't spend the time collamating enough I get it decent but I think I could definitely get it better if I didn't have to move it all the time. Also from what I understand the mirror design contributes to this as well as this is what the edge series does better than the SE.
Hey Astronotna I love the channel! I Have the Askar 103 apo and C6 as well and i'd love to be able to use the Askar guide scope that came with it to guide with my C6 but I can't seem to find a good way to attach the guide scope. Do you have any advice?
Glad you enjoy the videos and thanks for watching them. I used this finder shoe for my c6. Worked great for my 30mm and 50mm guide scope. I removed the C6 finder scope from the c6 and used the screws to attach the the base. Hope this helps out in some way! SVBONY Universal Dovetail Base, Finderscope Mount Bracket, for Installation of Finder Scope for Optical Telescope a.co/d/fsNvpuV
@@astronotna Thanks so much! I ended up getting this mount bracket and it has worked ok. I recently upgraded to the Celestron OAG to help with balance on my AVX mount since the finder shoe is at an angle. I know the AVX isn't the best so I've done a hypertune on it to give it a fighting chance of sub arcsecond guiding at this focal length
Can you please do me a huge favor and measure how long that Celestron reducer is (not including the camera side threads)? I’m trying to figure out if there is room for my particular filter wheel to fit behind the EAF. Thanks!
@@astronotna thanks! I guess it actually makes more sense to measure all the way to the end of the threads, since that's part of the optical path. Can you please measure that too? It looks to be around 35mm I believe.
Great video! I am looking to get this scope with a Celestron AVX and use it with my Canon EOS 70D (APS-C sensor), autoguiding with the help of a ZWO ASIAIR Mini. I am wondering about how to insert a filter/filter drawer/filter wheel. I looked at the ZWO EFWmini 1,25" and a simple ZWO filter drawer. What would you suggest and can the standard image train work with 1,25" filters? Many thanks in advance.
Hello! You can definitely use the 70D however with the celestron t ring adapter you would already reach 105mm of backfocus and be already out of spacing to add a filter wheel or drawer. But you wouldn't need those things with a one shot color camera. They do make clip in filters for Dslrs that will serve you much better if your camera has been modified for astrophotography. Also 1.25 on a apsc sensor would give you significant vinegetting unfortunately. You could also get a dedicated astro camera and solve all the above issues. Then you can use a filterwheel or drawer and maintain proper backfocus with a sensor that is not IR blocked like most stock dslrs are. Hope this helps!
@@astronotna Thank you! And by the way, I think your informative and down to earth videos are great. Your advice helps enormously. I believe I will start with an unmodified camera and learn a bit more. In my opinion an unmodified camera gives less color saturated images, which I think look more natural (also better contrast) 😄. I will learn and then decide to either invest in modification or take the leap to a ZWO camera. If a ZWO camera, your video is EXCELLENT! Keep up the good work, it is much appreciated.
Thanks my friend I will try! You can always reach out and DM me over on instagram. I'm happy to chat with ya about the hobby to get you rolling in the right direction.
Found a C6 SCT today for $150 from an estate sale. Positive I'll get it. I'll be using a dslr starting out with it. Anything besides the focal reducer I'll need to get starting out with it?
very informative thank you! (agree about the dew ring -it is essential! 🙂
That C6 seems great as a portable setup. One extra accessory that I 100% recommend is the Starizona f/6.3 reducer. It is pricier than the Celestron one but will give you pinpoint stars on the 294sensor, edge-like performance.
Learned a lot from your video. Thanks!!
That's great to hear! I am glad this was helpful
Great video. I am looking at getting a C6 and hyperstar myself next year as an upgrade from my Z73. I also want to get in close with galaxies and planets so it will be good to come back to your videos on the back focus and eaf set up. All of your content is well presented and interesting. You really deserve more subs and views. Thanks for taking the time to do these. Hope your skies stay clear. 😊
Nice!!!! I'm glad this was helpful and appreciate you watching this one. I was thinking a few days ago. I can't just make a video about hyperstar and not the C6 on its own! I'm glad this had some value to it!
Thanks for the video. I have 2 C6's, I'm going to build a twin imaging rig. One with a ASI294MM and the other will have a ASI294MC. Living in the Pacific Northwest my clear skies are limited so I have to utilize all of my time.
Thanks again for all your info.
Clear skies!
For sure! And yes so hard here in tye pac nw! Sounds like an awesome set up!!!
Thank you for this. It’s what I was looking for. I have been imaging for a little over a year using an 81mm refractor and have been really enjoying it. I recently bought the Celestron 6 as my next scope with every thing you have . The only difference is I bought the Pegasus focus cube zero vs ZWO EAF. I have a ZWO on my 81 and love it. Last piece of equipment I’m waiting on is the Staizona night owl 0.4 reducer . They keep saying this year so I’m waiting. May break down and buy their 0.63 reducer. I am pairing this with the ASI 533MC Pro. Your videos give me the inspiration to move forward and get this out in first light. I’m both nervous and excited. Setting up a new profile in NINA and PHD2 and the headaches. My 81mm is running like clock work and I am spoiled right now but that’s about to change but may not to bad. I should pick it up quickly.
I will be watching your channel intently for any tips and suggestions. Keep up the great work!
Thanks, Mark MNJ
Glad this helped out in some way! The funny thing I was super nervous too when I got my C6. I came from a z73 and didn't know how it would go with collamating and processing. Took a little time but I really love this scope with all its qwerks, lol. Congrats on your C6 and wishing you clear skies! Thanks so much for watching this one!
Owl 0.4 reducer or Staizona reducer vs Celestron reducer. Logic tell me the expensive one is better. But how much better is the question? I have a 533MC Pro also. Would that benfit to use the high end stuff over Celestron?
I got a C6 which was deforked from the Nexstar Evolution mount. It's the same as the standard C6, only with a grey color finish. It's got the Starbright XLT coating.
I need to figure out what the native backfocus for this thing is, so i can try imaging with my 533MC Pro. That aluminum dew shield looks like a nice option. And also the Starizona reducer/corrector, and a Hyperstar of course, thankfully it's 1/3rd price of the 8" EdgeHD Hyperstar. Time to put the C6 to work!
Thanks so very much for the info. Two questions, if I may: Isn't the .63X reducer also a coma corrector? And did you experiment with any images at native FL (without the corrector)?
I believe its a reducer only. I suspect the flattening is due to the mirror design from what I can tell. Honestly I am not sure I have not tried it at F10 I don't have interest in doing so as of yet. I primarily bought this scope for the focal length at F6.3 and F2.
Great overview as always 👌 would love to add it to compliment my Z73 but maybe next year 😅
Thanks my friend! It's a great scope especially for a lightweight set up! Just don't pay too much for one! The pricing is so crazy right now!
@@astronotna yeah I just checked them out for fun and out here in Ireland it's 1k euro! Maybe make that 2 years 😂
Oh my gawsh!!!! lol
The star issues are more an issue with coma from the reducer than from collimation imo.
Good Information.
Maybe i get one to for galaxy Session. Love to upgrade to a 200pds but my Mount is not realy capable for it (ioptron gem28).
This could be a great Option. And i think it's bether than a ritchey cretien.
Hi! Excellent and informative video about the C6. I own one and it is really awesome for the price.
I just have some questions, if you use the focal reducer that gives you 945 mm of FL but then you add 105mm of back focus, that leaves you at 1050 mm of FL right? So, the telescope is now at F7?
And the last question, is it possible to correct the elongated stars at the edge of the image with good collimation and precise back focus?
Hello! Bacfocus has no impact to focal length. It's just the required length that gets the camera sensor at the precise spot the telescope projects a focused image. With the 6.3 reducer the Focal Length will always be at 945mm @F6.3. I have had many collamation nights better than this one. I just don't dwell on it much. The C6 is capable of great star shapes with some time spent on collamation? is it perfect like a refractor? nope but its close enough! Hope this helps!
I shoot with refractors. Wondering how does this scope handle focus during the night? Is there any image shift when slewing vertical? Is a focus adjustment needed during the night? My refractors hold focus exceptionally well during the night. 'm wondering if I might be better served with a 102mm or 115mm refractor. Even though these have less FL than the 6", cropping in with the 115 or even the 102 could make up the difference in FL. Rarely would I shoot this scope at F10, so the FL of 945 is the target. All in with scope, reducer, dew shield, dew heater, Bob's knobs, and adapter I'm looking at $900. Close to a 115mm refractor and more than a AT102. I shoot with a 533 so I have a good crop factor going there also. Although, it requires extra accessories, sure can't beat the bang for the buck with the 6". Decisions.
All good questions. I refocus just as much as my refractors and I have not noticed any difference there. I focus with filter changes and when the temp dips. I have not noticed any image shift with my SCT either. The question to ask yourself is if you are the type of astrophotographer that needs perfect stars all the time. When you add collamation into the mix your stars wont be perfect every single time. Now blurX will fix most of this for you. This is important if you will be traveling with it alot. You will need to collamate it frequently and you will also need to give yourself extra time to do it as well before the imaging session begins. I think the C6 is a great value given the focal length and aperture but it has some extra steps involved and you need to be willing to work with it in post sometimes. It's the perfect second scope but having a refractor that all you need to do is focus has its advantages too. Hope this helps!
@@astronotna Thanks for the reply. After watching your unboxing of the Askar 103, I'm seriously considering it over all else. The 1x flattener makes all the difference, Not losing any focal length and little light gathering, it's probably the way to go for the long haul. My AM3 can handle that scope with no issue as well as 5 min subs.
Think you could 3D print and sell another one of those EAF couplers?
I could probably make that happen. DM me on instagram.
I really want to see someone try the ASI 2600mc Duo on this set up to see if it would work
Hi, Thank you for the info.
I was wondering if you have ruled out the star elongations on the edges as not being from a slight polar alignment error or the less likely field rotation? (I didn't see which mount you are using, although I'm assuming that it's not a tracker with that size of scope).
Thanks again!
Hey no problem glad you found this video useful. I always align within 25 sec and I am using an AM5. My elongation happens because I am a street astro imager and sometimes I can't spend the time collamating enough I get it decent but I think I could definitely get it better if I didn't have to move it all the time. Also from what I understand the mirror design contributes to this as well as this is what the edge series does better than the SE.
Hey Astronotna I love the channel! I Have the Askar 103 apo and C6 as well and i'd love to be able to use the Askar guide scope that came with it to guide with my C6 but I can't seem to find a good way to attach the guide scope. Do you have any advice?
Glad you enjoy the videos and thanks for watching them. I used this finder shoe for my c6. Worked great for my 30mm and 50mm guide scope. I removed the C6 finder scope from the c6 and used the screws to attach the the base. Hope this helps out in some way!
SVBONY Universal Dovetail Base, Finderscope Mount Bracket, for Installation of Finder Scope for Optical Telescope a.co/d/fsNvpuV
@@astronotna Thanks so much! I ended up getting this mount bracket and it has worked ok. I recently upgraded to the Celestron OAG to help with balance on my AVX mount since the finder shoe is at an angle. I know the AVX isn't the best so I've done a hypertune on it to give it a fighting chance of sub arcsecond guiding at this focal length
Can you please do me a huge favor and measure how long that Celestron reducer is (not including the camera side threads)? I’m trying to figure out if there is room for my particular filter wheel to fit behind the EAF. Thanks!
23mm without the threads on a caliper
@@astronotna thanks! I guess it actually makes more sense to measure all the way to the end of the threads, since that's part of the optical path. Can you please measure that too? It looks to be around 35mm I believe.
You were close it was 33mm
@@astronotna thanks a ton!
Great video! I am looking to get this scope with a Celestron AVX and use it with my Canon EOS 70D (APS-C sensor), autoguiding with the help of a ZWO ASIAIR Mini. I am wondering about how to insert a filter/filter drawer/filter wheel. I looked at the ZWO EFWmini 1,25" and a simple ZWO filter drawer. What would you suggest and can the standard image train work with 1,25" filters? Many thanks in advance.
Hello! You can definitely use the 70D however with the celestron t ring adapter you would already reach 105mm of backfocus and be already out of spacing to add a filter wheel or drawer. But you wouldn't need those things with a one shot color camera. They do make clip in filters for Dslrs that will serve you much better if your camera has been modified for astrophotography. Also 1.25 on a apsc sensor would give you significant vinegetting unfortunately. You could also get a dedicated astro camera and solve all the above issues. Then you can use a filterwheel or drawer and maintain proper backfocus with a sensor that is not IR blocked like most stock dslrs are. Hope this helps!
@@astronotna Thank you! And by the way, I think your informative and down to earth videos are great.
Your advice helps enormously. I believe I will start with an unmodified camera and learn a bit more. In my opinion an unmodified camera gives less color saturated images, which I think look more natural (also better contrast) 😄. I will learn and then decide to either invest in modification or take the leap to a ZWO camera. If a ZWO camera, your video is EXCELLENT!
Keep up the good work, it is much appreciated.
Thanks my friend I will try! You can always reach out and DM me over on instagram. I'm happy to chat with ya about the hobby to get you rolling in the right direction.
Found a C6 SCT today for $150 from an estate sale. Positive I'll get it. I'll be using a dslr starting out with it. Anything besides the focal reducer I'll need to get starting out with it?
Just the celestron spacer to get correct backfocus and your set!