Great review! This was my first scope after getting back into the hobby and it definitely led me down the astrophotography rabbit hole, but I’m loving it! I ended up selling the SE mount and replacing it with an AVX and now have a wide field refractor along with the C8 to image with.

@AstroBackyard

2 жыл бұрын

I amazed at how many people took this exact route! It really says something about the quality of that OTA!

@DMJoyce951

2 жыл бұрын

@@AstroBackyard It has some sharp optics for sure! I’ve been having a blast with it during galaxy season.

@luboinchina3013

2 жыл бұрын

I also did the same replacing the Nexstar mount with EQ6R Pro. It was not bad, but by putting it on a stable mount, coma was revealed, So I switched to 8HD 😊 My current setup with modified Canon 5D Miii. As you said, 8SE on nexstar mount is perfect for star parties because its observing position is comfortable to observe for long periods of time even for small kids unlike the Dobsonian. I used it many times for that purpose, also for roadside astronomy events. Also the eclipse...

@mattestabrook

2 жыл бұрын

I have a similar experience--I got back into the hobby a few years ago and got the Evolution 6, a smaller cousin of the 8se. I've added a Hyperstar and an AVX mount and am loving it!

@titobattaglia7932

2 жыл бұрын

Well, that's the route I've taken too. For now it's a C6, and I mostly use it for lunar, but there's a C8 in my future fo sho

The 5" NexStar SLT (SE's Maksutov cousin) back in 2013 was the one that led me down the astrophotography rabbit hole, but buying a DSLR to attach to it, also led me to all around daytime photography too! A couple of DIY improvements that I made on that scope were the following: I made a focuser with a stepper motor and an Arduino nano, which was small enough to fit in the mount's arm. That way the telescope wouldn't wobble when I'd be trying to focus at 10x on my DSLR's back. I've also removed the plastic pointy ends of the tripod, and I've put 2 rubber rings inside each tube, with a hole in them to allow for a long screw to go through them and hold the telescope's weight securely. The long screw was that of a normal articulating furniture pad. This little mod reduced the vibrations when I'd touch the telescope, or when there'd be a slight breeze of air. I know that there are rubber pads that you can use instead, but this was a permanent solution and it also makes it look as if it was part of the original design of the tripod. Upgrading the finder scope with a Celestron 9x 50mm, and an illuminated cross hair eyepiece, had two effects: First it made the star alignment process much more accurate, resulting in a better goto experience, but ultimately, even when the alignment wasn't very good and the scope would end up nearby the object you'd be looking for, the finder scope having a 50mm diameter, would make dark objects bright enough to see and align manually, something that was previously impossible with just the red dot finder and the naked eye. Even with a poor alignment, the scope would turn close enough to the object, to put it in the field of view of the finder scope. One last DIY mod that I did was to make a WiFi interface to the serial port of the hand controller, using an ESP32 and writing a very simple program, that was just passing through the data from my iPad's SkySafary Pro to the telescope mount, making it remotely controlled over the WiFi that way. Overall, having limitations some times helps you find ways to overcome them, and I really enjoyed looking at the skies all these years with that little scope!

Short video, direct, focused, easy to understand, no embelishement. Subscribed!

Nice job on the review. I’ve had a CPC1100 and the older version of the twin fork before the CPC in an Eleven inch for years. They are bulletproof in the optical department. Never had an electrical issue like my buddies with a Meade. I highly recommend a hard case. I bought an SE mount used for my Orion Mak. Very easy to use even for a newbie.

I am a member for a long time. You always speak the facts. I own too much equipment and was thinking of this but what I learn to avoid. Thank you for sharing as always .

Hey ! Nice to see that you tried this telescope, I have a 5SE and it is really good even for astrophotography for the budget. Keep the good work !

Great video Trevor 👍! Been watching since 10k subs. I love your reviews. They are honest and reliable. Please keep up the great work

Great review and spot on. I've had my 8SE for 8 years and love it. The first thing I did shortly after getting it was replacing the OEM tripod with a heavy CPC tripod. Yes, it is much heavier and not easily transportable but I only take it from the back door to my back yard. I also added a remote focuser to keep the wobble down while I focus it. Its a great scope for the casual observer.

@ZeeZee9

Жыл бұрын

Hi! Can you see deep space objects with this scope?

@johnpatterson6205

Жыл бұрын

@@ZeeZee9 Some. I've seen the Ring Nebula, Orion Nebula and the Sombrero Galaxy. Andromeda appears as a blue blur. If you want to use it for astrophotography, I've been told that you will have to upgrade it to Hyperstar if your 8 SE is Fastar compatible.

AstroBackyard hey man, most of the time I see your astrophotographs which are amazing, I'm from Brazil and I really like astronomy, congratulations for your work

Got this for my son & I a couple years ago for Xmas. Nixed the mount and stuck the tube on an AVX last year. Picked up a 2nd 8se and did the same. Now we have two 8se tubes sitting on AVX mounts and thoroughly enjoy them.

Incredible video Buddy. As always, great stuff!

Great review, thanks! This will be my first telescope now that I have a patch of reasonably dark sky right in my backyard with plenty of room to move around.

Super review dude! I think you touched upon the pros & cons of this kit very nicely :-) Such a neat package and a great entry to astronomy in general! Hope you enjoy Cherry Springs and get plenty of clear skies! 😀

Great Review! I appreciate you sharing your experience with this telescope.

Great review! This was my first non-department store, Black Friday scope and got me hooked onto astronomy.

I have the 6SE and loved it so much, I went down the rabbit hole you mentioned. I now have a 8HD on an AVX mount and going deeper and deeper…

First time I've ever watched a premiere. That was cool. Thanks Trevor! Great video!

Started with the Nexstar 4se 2 years ago during lockdown then discovered your channel as I wanted to do more than planetary. I think we can all relate to the rabbit hole. 2 years on and there’s a 9.25 EdgeHD, Rasa and a 10 micron mount. So much for “babe I’ll only get the 4se and will never need anything else” 😆

@mickmoonstudycansell1889

2 жыл бұрын

Spot on 🤣🤣🤣, I think we've all said that to our partner, then a year goes along with several thousand ££££'s spent.

@mattestabrook

2 жыл бұрын

@@mickmoonstudycansell1889 Don't worry honey, this is my "Forever Scope!"

@mickmoonstudycansell1889

2 жыл бұрын

@@mattestabrook 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣👍👍👍👍

The 8SE was our openeing into the hobby, since then we have replaced the mount and gotten a proper DSLR, finderscope, guidscope, ect. but the tube remains our primary telescope and it does so much for us even in our light poluted sky.

@keithkorthals6183

Жыл бұрын

Optics of the OTA is good!

My senior return to astronomy led me to this very scope. But, after more research and reflection, I ended up with a Evolution 6" loaded up with a ZWO ASI183MC, EAF and ASIAIR Plus. The Evo mount is great with the 6" and extras for bright show and tell with our grandsons.

@mattestabrook

2 жыл бұрын

This is almost my experience exactly!

Thanks for the great review.

Great review Trevor!

Nice review. I have a Nester 6SE and an Evolution 8HD. They are both great. I did manage to image M81 with the Evolution. A bit of an experiment with short exposures just to see if it could be done. But where they excel is with the larger planets and the Moon. Great scopes!

Nicely done! Great information and well presented. Was great to meet you at AIC 2022!

Great video, very informative. Thanks.

Amazing and helpful review

I had the 6se version. It tracked amazingly well. The mount is much more stable in the 6. I set it Mars one evening around midnight and went to bed leaving it on. At 8 am the next morning i awoke to seeing Mars in the daylight still in the eyepiece. I added the Revolution Imager camera to this setup and was able to get lots of deep sky images by stacking images. Even the Horsehead! The SE’s are a great starter set that last you a lifetime visually, get you started in astrophotography, and then let you move the OTA to a heavier EQ mount and add a 6.3 reducer and do some amazing work.

@myfishingadventures1509

Жыл бұрын

Wow, thank you I came here to Learn about the mount as I am getting a 5 or 6se. That gave me a bit more confidence

@aztronomy7457

Жыл бұрын

@@myfishingadventures1509 The 6 is the better way to go if you want to eventually do AP. I actually think the 6 + Focal Reducer is one of the best ways to capture smaller objects and galaxies. You can put the 6 on an EQ mount, and still have enough weight left over to add accessories to keep it under the AP weight limit (50% of mounts maximum weight). However IMO the 6 for anything other than planets isnt' very good unless you have VERY dark skies. You'll be able to see ring nebula, a couple star clusters, and andromeda but thats about it.

@myfishingadventures1509

Жыл бұрын

@@aztronomy7457 thank you so much. And yes, that is my plan eventually. Have a great day.

@ZeeZee9

Жыл бұрын

@@aztronomy7457 Hi. Is the 8SE better for deep sky objects?

@aztronomy7457

Жыл бұрын

@@ZeeZee9 yes if you take it to dark skies. In a light polluted backyard you can see some decent stuff with the right filters.

Excellent Review Video. Thank You.

Used my 8SE with an AVX mount and a DLSR for my first deep space photos. Very versatile OTA. I actually have it on my Sky Watcher EQ6R Pro right now for galaxy season.

@mojomojo2091

2 жыл бұрын

Any chance that you have some of your captures up loaded anywhere taken with your 8SE and dslr? i have yet to buy my own because Australia and the inflation down here and can only water from the mouth while looking at other peoples images for now.

@eyesoftexasskywatch

2 жыл бұрын

@@mojomojo2091 I do have a short video on my you tube channel called "Davis Mountains State Park IC63 M33 M42" that all three images I used the 8SE OTA on an AVX mount with the F6.3 Focal Reducer. The camera was an ASI294MC-Pro. I also have a moon and solar eclipse video I used the 8SE OTA with in the channel. Cheers, hope you can get a scope some time soon!

Great review, Trevor! Couldn’t agree more with you on the AP rabbit hole😄 While I have had & enjoyed doing visual astronomy with the C8 SCT for a long time, it was also my first scope for astrophotography… and boy, it’s not just a rabbit hole… it’s more like a black hole! Now my AP toolset includes a HEQ5 mount, two other refractor scopes, a cooled CMOS camera, a planetary camera besides an assortment of filters. As I heard it said elsewhere, “a black hole is what is left in my wallet after I got into astrophotography!”😂😂

Great video! I just ordered mine a few hours ago. I'll eventually get a phone mount for it. It will be my first step down the rabbit hole!!

Wow! I was truly amazed to see you looking into an eyepiece!! :) :)

Sweet! Thanks for the review, dude! 😃 Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

You speak like Mark Roper. Very intelligently and precise. Nice video

I have the older non SE 5" Nexstar. Nice little scope. Excellent optics.

You just confirmed my experience with the 5SE. It's a great scope, but usage of the mount is limited to the solar system for photography. I ended up selling it and boughta C8 on an AVX mount.

@samraisbeck3079

2 жыл бұрын

totally an awesome telescope... that's why every photo i've ever seen uses an alt az mount... right?

I have a 5se and really enjoy it when I get chance. Going to look at that smart phone adapter you mentioned

8SE is a great first scope! It is my first telescope. Excellent optics. The mount is definitely wobbly. With starsense, the alignment is spot on and can track objects a lot better than sky align or 2-star align.

I have the Nexstar 8 EdgeHD and quickly fell into the Astrophotography rabbit hole - on my 4th camera now (An ASI 294MC), 0.7 focal reducer and Wedge. I also added a guidescope with ASI224 mini. It’s capable of good EAA images using live stacking in SharpCap 4.0. Typically I’m using between 3 and 20 second exposures but sometimes manage 30 seconds. I’m not able to get guiding working smoothly enough yet to enable longer exposures. I have the StarSense auto align as well and that makes alignment pretty easy. Love the scope and I’ve compiled a few videos myself on KZread showing what I’ve captured. Thanks for this review!

Thank you for your review , I was planning to one and you made video right on time (y) I would love if you can post some more on Celestron 8SE.

Completely agree with your review and this is a great solar system visual observation telescope!

Thanks Trevor for stoking the gear-acquisition lust again for a C8 ;D I have and love a C6 I bought used and I'll never part ways with it until we both stay functional. It's a killer, hyper-portable OTA. I'll second what other SCT users suggested: factor in the cost for a 0,63 reducer. It does not magically turn a SCT into a rich field telescope but greatly augments the range of objects it can show satisfactorily.

The 9.25 evolution is a legend, meant to have one of the best sct mirrors out there due ti being f2.2 rather than f2, the f2.2 is easier to produce and the 9.25 has rhe reputation of the better mirror in its class and flatter field. That was until the HD series

I have an older Celestron 8. I deforked it, added a dovetail, now i use the OTA on my go-to mount. I can still use it on the original mount, too. win-win.

I have a 1997 C8 that I use on a tuned and belted HEQ5 Pro mount. A great visual and planetary scope. I throw a focal reducer/flattener on for deep sky astrophotography.

I had the 8SE for 15 years. I bought it for $2500AU back then and sold it 2 years ago for $2300AU. Remarkable resale value. It was sad to see it go, but it funded the new gear... This scope is perfect for outreach events. Countless children and adults looked through this and saw Saturn and Jupiter for the first time. That never gets old!

@dilip_1997

11 ай бұрын

What did you upgrade to, if I May please?

@nickbrown320

7 ай бұрын

Why would someone pay nearly full price for a 13 year old telescope?! The 8SE retails I’m the US for $1600. Are they harder to find in Australia?

@gerard518

7 ай бұрын

$1600 USD is roughly $2500 USD so it seems like the prices are similar. I have a 4se new in the box I've never opened. Bought is almost 4 years ago. This has inspired me to open her up and set the telescope up.

@GuiPb

7 ай бұрын

15 years ago 2500 was a lot of money 😂😂😂😂😂

I got this combo many years ago. I found the mount was not really good enough even for planetary imaging because it tended to move in small rapid jumps. So I sold the mount and got an HEQ5 Pro. This improved planetary imaging considerably. After awhile, I sold the Celestron 8 inch and upgraded to the 9.25 inch, which the HEQ5 Pro could handle for planetary work without a problem. I then got a 4 inch APO refractor which complemented the 9.25 SCT quite well and fit the HEQ5 Pro mount very nicely. The good thing about Celestron equipment is it keeps its value and there is always a used market for it.

@_Rodrigo_Inacio_

4 ай бұрын

😱

8SE OTA + HEQ5 for me! Loving it so far.

Great job,Astrobackyard.some day I observed through this telescope, Great the 8SE.almost I think yours photographs are great than others,

@thanurawishwagithkahandawa1010

2 жыл бұрын

Some day I observed through this telescope, great the 8SE,

I've had this telescope now for a few years, would love a follow-up video on some upgrades you'd recommend to taking it to the next level for astrophotography. Thanks

"....down the astrophotography rabbit hole." How true for any cool hobby.

You're absolutely right about the astrophotography rabbit hole. I feel I have gone as far as I can with my 6se on a Alt-az mount and now I' thinking things like an EQ mount and even a dome! Now if I can only talk my neighbors into cutting down their cedars.

It is a great scope. But I wish I knew more from the starting gate. When I first purchased it I live on a 3rd for a complex and I went to the balcony to use it. I mainly used it there and if I wanted to point south I'd point it out the window. I didn't want to carry everything all the time down and back up so may flights of stairs. My only grip was the power head that connects to the arm was loose, since I never really could see in all directions I always manually pointed the scope and never really realized this problem. Saying all that I like the scope a lot. I was able to show my family the moon and planets. The smile on all our faces were so worth.

Perfect presentation. I subscribed = )

Great video Trevor as always hope to see you at the Cherry spring Star party

I use the celestron adapter as well but I use it on skywatcher twatcher 200 P/1000 it works perfectly, I also use it on the skywatcher 127/1500 Maksutov computerized Tabletop and it works awesome too, right now I only do moon footage but as soon as the skies clear up I wanna do more astrophotography, love your work...keep it up

Have owned an 8se for about 4 years and still use the OTA, but on a different mount. I've paired it with a asi224mc and taken great planetary images. Hooking up my asi294mc paired with 6.3 reducer, its also great for galaxies and smaller planetary nebula. Just an all around solid starter scope that can grow with you.

@user-yh8ce7tg8l

2 жыл бұрын

Been considering pairing the 8SE with the ASI294MC myself to see how it does, any suggestions on where to pickup the reducer?

@samraisbeck3079

2 жыл бұрын

isn't that interesting... you don't' use the mount being hawked here... because if you did you would know that a celestron 8se mount cant hold even a dedicated astrophotography camera much less all the other parts required to make astrophotography work on any level...

@jasonwilliams675

2 жыл бұрын

@@user-yh8ce7tg8l I have the Celestron 6.3. Bought it a few years ago from AgenaAstro.

@jasonwilliams675

2 жыл бұрын

@@samraisbeck3079The mount is pretty pathetic and probably over the max capacity right out of the box...but In all fairness to Celestron, the stock 8se at 2000mm FL and f10 isn't really advertised nor intended as a astrophotography setup. The mounts tracking accuracy only has to be good enough for amatuer visual astronomy, which it is.

@samraisbeck3079

2 жыл бұрын

@@jasonwilliams675 it took the world famous astrophotographer hocking this telescope on this mount less than 45 seconds of his 11 minute 3 second advertisement to imply that this setup can indeed be used for astrophotography. that's not ok.

Another great video Trevor. Thanks for the shout out on my Jupiter.......my kids always get a kick out of seeing dads hobby on KZread

Great review Trevor. This series of scopes although best seller get ignored by the telescope KZreadrs besides Chuck. LOL. I started with the 6SE and later changed the mount to an AVX mount. I now shoot with an EdgeHD8 and EdgeHD11. My comment about the single arm…it keeps the scope light weight and VERY portable. Yes the arm Is a little weak but the weight on the double arm scopes…well The CPC1100 weighs 110lbs. You have to pick up the whole thing and land it on a small nail. These Nextstar scopes are fun, capable and get used because they work without much trouble.

Finally found Canadian content. 👍 Awesome review.

The tripod and mount are the same that come with the NexStar 6se. With the 6se it's rock solid. I recommend getting the f6.3 focal reducer. I'm able to capture deep sky lobbyists with the 6se and its great. The 8se would be even more amazing. Prices are up a lot on the Nexstar series recently so look for discounts from trusted sellers...sometimes they run really good specials. Highly recommended.

Been waiting to buy this since I was a kid in the 1980s. It's now 2022 and I'm heading to my local camera shop to get one soon.

my friend just bought a 2nd hand one for $700Au..... cleaned the glass and mirrors for her and it's perfect. Love the focal length from such a small scope considering I use an 8inch reflector on my EQ6-R... want to try this on an EQ6-R

I have One Those Telescope on an Alt-az mount With Gotos. And I have Been Doing Astrophotography with It, and Don't Get Me wrong🤣. It Does Work If You use The Right Technique Of Not Taking longer Exposures and Lots Of Them. great Review Trevor!

I wish you had mentioned (or elaborated on) the built-in wedge. Great review!

Well because of your channel I went down that rabbit hole a couple years ago thanks 💰😐🐇

Great review

I'm currently using a Celestron Travel Scope 70 and a vintage Jason Explorer 400 for viewing. I plan to upgrade to a larger version of this scope, the Evolution 9.25. For me, when I researched the 8SE, there were a few things that were off-putting for me. The lack of a manual clutch system combined with the need for 8 AA batteries or the AC adapter unit was a big one. I have a huge back yard in the middle of nowhere, and would have to string together several extension cords to reach my usual observing spot there. The Evo 9.25 solves this problem by having both a rechargeable battery that lasts 10 hours PLUS the manual clutch system in case you need it. Once I'm able to buy a computer, I'd also hook it up to the mount to get better tracking on things from inputting of GPS coordinates and control it from there.

I was really hoping to get your opinion with the wedge you can buy for these. Always love your videos.

I am Going to get a 8se next year and cool video

What’s up I have been enjoying your videos for a long time thank you for all you do for the astronomy community. I have a question, I have the 8se and I have been using my Canon 5d mark IV for astrophotography purposes, specifically of the moon and planets but while it seems ok for the moon it is hardly good for further planets like Jupiter and Saturn because of how small they are in the frame leaving all that surrounding empty space. My question is I’m considering getting a dedicated astrophotography camera instead and I’m looking at a few of the non Celestron models and wanted to see what you think of making that switch from the canon and which dedicated astrophotography camera is your top recommendation given a $1200 budget. Thank you!

Thanks for the review. That was great. Probably going to get the 8SE for my wife. We have zero light pollution at our cabin, so it seems an obvious hobby to take up. One suggestion from a person who wages a war with armies of bugs: spray the juice on the back of a hand and rub it on your forehead, cheeks, neck, etc. No reason to spray it in your eyes, nose, or mouth. Cheers!

@davestelling

Жыл бұрын

Good advice, Russell!

Good review, thank you. Could you make other video showing the "super easy" set up of the arm controller?, cheers.

I have the Meade LX90 8". The fork makes it more stable than this single arm solution but also quite a bit more heavy too :)

Started with the Evolution 8 which is pretty similar in all aspects and sure enough, the simplicity lead me straight down the rabbit hole

This is one of the easiest smart scopes and the most comfortable to use. As you said a joyous planetary observer. Even my SE4 delivers great images of the gas giants and Venus. It has a latitude table built in to make it a hybrid mount, but I seldom use it...as the computer tracker on the AZ does a great job. Speed 6 is my preferred with the 4" and speed 4 with the 8". The included red dot finder is still my favorite spotter....but that's just me. The mirror flip knob for optical to proper camera to enjoy easy switching with the same aim is a nice touch. I don't find the tripod to be too shakey....compared to a lot of similar priced Newton and SC scopes...it is sturdy....but the computer mount comes off and sits on a static platform easily....so my yard tree stump is perfect. Taking it in a car is very easy as the whole apparatus comes off as a tabletop mount which I sit in the rear floorboard. Tripod I toss in the trunk free of any delicate mounts.

I have this telescope as my second purchase after a 12 inch dob. I really love this scope, image quality as far as visual astronomy is superb. My advise is pair this scope with the Celestron Starsense and you are good to go in short order. This scope also works well with the Celestron SkyPortal if the budget is a little tighter. As far as eyepieces is concerned the Celestron OMNI range is a good fit which offers satisfying results.

@dilip_1997

11 ай бұрын

Hi ,I'm fairly new but why would you need 2 telescopes? Meaning why pair this with Celestron star sense ?

Such an underrated channel 🪐 🖤

This is a great gateway scope. I've had mine for about 4 months and now I've fallen into that Astrophotography rabbit hole with a William Optics GT71 and Star Adventurer GTi on order... With the smartphone adapter I've been able to get images of Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, the Orion Nebula & the Sombrero Galaxy. I'm hoping to get Andromeda this weekend during a camping trip. For travel, the ota isn't too heavy and I use the Celestron duffel. The mount goes into the original shipping box and the tripod goes into a duffel.

@girlenedesouza2829

Жыл бұрын

Just purchased one today. What’s else I need? Any tips welcome,thank you.

@ryanfaulkner6842

Жыл бұрын

@@girlenedesouza2829 start slow. Power adapter, dew shield and an 18mm eyepiece. I’ll be getting a 10mm soon. I’ve tried 5mm & 7mm and they were too much for my seeing conditions.

@girlenedesouza2829

Жыл бұрын

@@ryanfaulkner6842 : thank you for respond so quickly 😉

Hey Trevor, can you do a full tutorial on how to align the telescope? I have one exactly like that and I've had some difficulty with it.

I’ve got a Meade ETX-125, works almost exactly like the SE-8. Same alignment and tracking but only 5 inches of aperture so deep sky is very difficult especially in light polluted areas. But the ETX-125 is a great budget telescope and excels in planetary imaging with a good ZWO camera.

I use my Celestron 1100 Edge HD that I have on my Pentax camera, don't look up at the sky to often, but for those long distance nature photos it's a great bit of gear.

Great review and I'm considering getting the Celestron NexStar 8SE. I noticed some type of box at the bottom of the tripod (8:25), with a wire connecting it to the single arm fork mount. Forgive me because I am new to this, but what exactly is that box? Is it needed and how much is it?

I used the OTA on another mount. The optics were good. Deep sky astrophotography was good but not excellent. Some mirror flop. I also took pictures of Orion nebula with this mount that came with it. It was challenging but I did it! I got started in astro imaging with this scope but I should just have gotten a better setup from the beginning! I still use this for visual fun nights out! Agree with all pros and cons. I have problems with star alignment as it gets me close to the object but usual not exactly on and I need to hunt a little bit. Oh....forgot to mention that I made a wedge and could drift align it to Polaris. Use to use it for deep sky photography on a DSLR camera. It worked!

Great review! I've been using an Orion 6 inch Dobsonian but really want to up my astrophotogrqphy game with a tracking scope!

Hoping sometime within the next year or two, you can do a review on the new harmonic mounts that are about to burst onto the scene. ZWO has obviously released their Harmonic AM5, Pegasus Astro will soon be releasing their NYX-101 Harmonic Gear Mount, then we have the Sharpstar Mark III Harmonic German Equatorial Mount, and finally iOptron will be offering their HEM27 and the HEM27EC hybrid harmonic mount. It would be interesting to have a comparison chart showing their features and specs side by side, and then maybe a part II video where the performance is analyzed and given scrutiny, such as guiding at short and long focal lengths to stretch their capabilities.

Good job❤❤❤

I had its baby sister - the 6SE - same mount but smaller OTA and easier to haul in and out of car when out ina field. Aligning the mount was always frustrating which is why I ditched it for a HEQ5 Pro mount and I have never looked back. The OTA is ok, but when trying to image something like the flame, the nearby alnitak is warped because of the way the focus has to be tight at the centre. I have imaged loads of deep sky obejcts with mine - but never on the Alt Az Mount - so I would say, invest in the OTA but get a decent skywatcher mount. the on board power is very old school on the original mount - I ditched using AA batteries for external power supply which was more reliable. I lke the fact that you get a long focal length in a compact package - a comparable refractor would be much longer in the boot of my car. It also comes with option to build in a dew heater and not just wrap some wire in some material around the outside. I also intend to use this OTA and HEQ5 Pro mount with my ASI Air (using eqmod cable) for better GOTO and guiding capabilities Overall I really like my 6SE

Nice job

This amazing telescope!!!

Hey Trever, enjoyed the review. Will you be getting any footage from cherry springs?

I've been having a lot of issues with the phone adapter not lining up correctly. The directions on everything for Celestron are always vague so figured I'd ask. Is it better to use a smaller size eyepiece? I have been using a 40mm and can't see to line it up at all. I would love to use it more especially now since the planets are rising early in the morning. So, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Great review. Can you expand on the astrophotography rabbit hole? I would like to be able to use my mirrorless camera to take pictures.

I sure agree with you. After using a Celestron Super C8 plus for years I bought one of the first Nextstar 8's in the year 2000. It was the gray one. But the mirror is not so good any more, and the electronics do not work any more .I have a New Nextstar 5 it is a great scope also. But the Nexstar 8 SE is an excellent telescope.

Deep sky astrophotography is possible with this alt az mount, it just requires time to figure out what is possible and how long you can push the exposure length, depending on the location of the object. I've taken some decent photos with mine.

@barrytdrake

2 жыл бұрын

I use it with the Celestron EQ adapter for deep sky astrophotography. It works well enough for me.

It is ok with a telrad finder. overall a good jumpstart to the hobby. Thanks, 3vor for the video.

I noticed that you have the dovetail tightening screw at the top. Is goto working in that orientation? I did the same when I mounted my 127 Mak and all the gotos were off when the altitude of the target would change considerably from the alighment stars. If I place the OTA with the tightening screw at the bottom, goto is working perftectly again.

I was literally just looking at Celestron and was looking at this one as well as the "Celestron EdgeHD 8 OTA" and "8” ROWE-ACKERMANN SCHMIDT ASTROGRAPH". My questions were answered for the NexStar 8SE, but I'm hoping to find something that can do visual and astrophotography at a higher focal length, until I can afford 2 separate telescope setups.

I remember you saying that the best telescope for a beginner was an 8” dobsonian. I was wondering what your opinion would be of the new Celestron StarSense Explorer 8” Dobsonian. It claims to use plate solving with your cell phone. It sure looks like it would make finding objects very simple for a beginner. Living in very light polluted skies this would be great if it works. I can barely make out a constellation here.

Great information! Can the NexStar 8SE be moved manually too at an object or is it my electricity only?