john32712

The capacity of weight they can handle.

Mark, I had to use FocusMax with my Atlas. That worked well. Sorry, I know this doesn't help. John

"In February 2016, it was reported that FTDI had published another driver on Windows Update with DRM components intended to block non-genuine products. This time, the driver will communicate with affected devices, but all transmitted and received data is replaced with the arbitrary, looped ASCII string "NON GENUINE DEVICE FOUND!", which could cause irregular interactions with devices" Are you sure it's not a device issue Nigel?.

Thanks for letting us know!

Mike, We all could use a clearer how and why! If you get any info that could be beneficial, please be sure to share it! Best, John Nemcik

Mike, I think the hesitation in response is based on many of us performing the task, but with not great frequency. The last time I performed, I had just upgraded Autoslew and I believe "Superfit" was applied automatically to the model. The real shame here is the lack of updated documentation.. To illustrate further, there have been a few releases of Autoslew that have confused everyone, no mention from ASA why they were released, when they were released, or what this accomplished. The typical comment of, "just read the attached doc file". Can you ever over communicate on technical matters? If I were you, I would send your request directly to ASA support with the same doc and level of questions. This forum is frequented by only a few with really in depth knowledge and as you can see by your responses, not a big help. You have a lot a questions regarding model calculations and I would not want to tell you something inaccurate. Apologies for not providing more help! John

Very Nice Mark! Looking forward to seeing the revision with the OIII data.

Thanks Nigel!

Nigel, where are you finding this better documentation? John

Thanks Luis, I am switching scopes, going from a focal length of 1100 to 2800. I'm a little concerned....

Luis, Are you autoguiding or unguided? John

Love your webpage! Some of your galaxy shots are amazing!

Hi Nigel, No worries! Yes the upgrade is not cheap and I'm sure you'll be able to function well without it. Now that I have taken the plunge and have experience the difference, I'll never own another mount without absolute encoders. Warmest regards

Nigel, Apologies for the slow response! I live on Marco Island Florida where the recent hurricane has devastated the area. Anyway, regarding the benefits.... 1. In my opinion, for the level of sophistication of the drive system, it made no sense to me to have a mount that could lose its position if power was lost or various other reasons. Let's face it, even the lowest level of consumer mounts has a home find routine that "counts" from the initialized position. I'm sure this comment will not sit well with some. But I love that the position of the mount is known always and extremely accurately 2. It might be my imagination, but the mount appears to track better and slews seem more accurate 3. If I remember correctly, it took about 5 weeks to get my mount back What you probably want to know the most, is it worth it? I would say a resounding yes! Startups are a breeze and home finds are a distant memory John

Hi George, I upgraded my mount, DDM85XL, to the new absolute encoders. Best thing I ever did! You won't regret it.... John Nemcik