EQ mode

H

My second night shooting with EQ mode and I must say it’s the best update for this little scope.

Takes less time to setup than ALTAZ, no need to level, compass calibration ( when needed is a breeze), and I am now shooting with 20/30 second exposure time.

Daemon42

You sure about no need to level? First time I used it, I was seeing consistent tiny star streaks in every single exposure and I'm about 99% sure it's because the tripod base itself was not levelled. I think it's more important than ever.

Lilo

Daemon42
Read a bit about eq mount principle and how it works. And you'll understand that attitude of base of the tripod doesn't matter at all.

H

No need to level. No star trails etc. I make sure I am pointing due south, latitude set at 38 degrees

Gordon

How do you accurately level the S50 in EQ mode?

Digital Don

My experience with both the S30 and S50 has also been that no leveling within the app is required. I use a Skywatcher wedge on al SmallRig FreeBlazer tripod and use the half-ball mechanism to level the wedge using the built-in bubble level. My images in EQ mode have been very good with no trailing.

Don

Daemon42

Yes, that's accurate. Level the base, not the Seestar unit. It's inherent in the instructions when you enable EQ mode and it shows that the unit must be absolutely vertical when pointed north (or south), which means the base must be levelled. Trust me, if you do not you will see short star trails. Not in the direction of tracking, but perpendicular to it.

curtismacc

There are 2 "Levels" being discussed here.

The first is the "Adjust Level" function which is done using the Seestar App. This is very important when working in the Alt-Az mode. The feedback from the App tells us when the base of the Seestar is level to the horizon. It has not use when using EQ mode, especially since the base of the Seestar is tilted at an angle to the horizon.

The second level refers to leveling, or not, the tripod that the Seestar is sitting on. Is this required for a good Polar Alignment - No. Polar alignment is done with the Altitude and Azimuth controls on the Wedge or on the Tilt/Pan Fluid head, whichever is used. This will make up for any "out of level" condition for the tripod. If you get star trails without leveling the tripod it is not due to lack of leveling, but due to one of many other possible root causes. However, leveling the tripod does have one advantage which is the fact that it minimizes the cross talk between the Alt and Az adjustments during the Polar Alignment process. If the tripod is out of level, when you adjust the Alt you are moving he Seestar both in Alt and Az depending upon the cosine of the tilt of the tripod. Similarly when you adjust Az you will be moving slightly in Alt as well. This means you end up going back and forth between the controls until you zero in. With a level tripod this is eliminated, or at least minimized.

Again, you can get an accurate Polar Alignment regardless of whether the tripod that the Seestar sits on is level or not. And once you have an accurate Polar Alignment any dropped frames or star trailing will be due to any of a number of other reasons such as wind, seeing conditions, high thin clouds, inaccuracies in the Seestar gearing/motors, etc. If you Polar Alignment is good but not perfect (as I suspect it is in most cases) this will also lead to lost frames and elongated stars from time to time, but is will not be because the tripod isn't level.

I have posted multiple video tutorials on YouTube which you can search for as I explain all of this and more in detail

Best Regards,
Curtis