rob288
member
Reged: 05/13/08
Posts: 60
Loc: New Zealand
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Well I have on good authority today that the LNT versions are going going or almost gone and where back with the ETX AT .
The ETX AT will be out later in the year, alot of other changes on other models as well, but have no definete facts on those so will keep to myself.
Suggest if you want the ETXPE with LNT get it quick, not that the LNT was much of a feature anyway.
As always with Meade interesting times ahead.
I do wonder whether its cost cutting or getting rid of a problem, will Celestron and Synta follow suit?
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Meade LX90 8 Inch SCT UHTC LNT, Meade 884 field tripod,
Super Plossl 9mm, Super Plossl 15mm Ultra wide, Super Plossl 26mm, 2x Barlow,
Bak4 Binoviewer, 6.3 Focal Reducer, Nikon D200 astro camera,
20x80 Astro Binos, Starry Night Pro Plus 6.23
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brianb11213
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 02/25/09
Posts: 2078
Loc: 55.215N 6.554W
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Quote:
Suggest if you want the ETXPE with LNT get it quick, not that the LNT was much of a feature anyway.
The ETX LS is hardly a replacement ... it's bigger, heavier and a lot more expensive.
Quote:
I do wonder whether its cost cutting or getting rid of a problem, will Celestron and Synta follow suit?
Actually my experience with the LNT (on an LX90) is that it works reasonably well, given the awful mounting hardware. As a red dot finder it's absolutely useless but I hate RDFs anyway. As an alignment aid it's a major convenience.
The LS technology - with a wide field camera - must be a great deal more expensive; and (though I have no experience) I'd expect significant problems with auto alignment using the LS in typical sites with obstructed horizons and semi-cloud-covered conditions. I hope I'm wrong, but cynicism conditioned by long experience rules my head.
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Joe Lalumia
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/24/07
Posts: 3600
Loc: Rockwall, Texas, USA
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I agree with brianb--- the LNT on my LX90 works great-- especially handy for public star parties when you setup before dark--
I do a fake alignment and just push enter for each star-- later when the stars come out I execute a goto to a known star and SYNC-- gotos become very good after the first SYNC.
The public wants to see something--- and FAST--- not stand around while you mess with the alignment--- kids are especially impatient!
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LX90 8" LNT, SV Nighthawk & TelePOD, SV 80/9D & M4 mount, ETX 90, Orion XT10i, 20x80 binoculars, SV-BV3s-- www.texasastro.org
"Great minds discuss ideas;Average minds discuss events;Small minds discuss people." Unknown
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jgraham
Postmaster
Reged: 12/02/04
Posts: 6751
Loc: Dayton, Ohio
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It'll be interesting to see what happens with the core ETX line, I can't imagine the LS will replace the older ETX models as it's so much more up-scale, though it does continue the line of thought of the LNT; making the alignment process easier for the novice. As for the LNT, I like it and the red dot finder is soooo much better than the tiny ETX finders. I've also found it to be very effective for when I go off-road and manually slew to targets.
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-John
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Homebuilt scopes from 4.25-16.5"
Meade LXD75-N6/SN6/SC8, DSX-90, ETX-60BB, ETX-125PE, DS-2130
Orion StarBlast, BinoViewers, Coronado PST
Rebel XT/XTi, DSI Pro (I, II, & III), DSI, LPI, Electronic Eyepiece, Phillips SPC900NC
Tasco 60mm Refractors
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Starlighter
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/03/07
Posts: 4490
Loc: Sunny California
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When you see the ETX-LS you'll want one. I's built like a tank. The gears are all metal. No need to train them either. Yes, it's heavier and yes, it costs more, but you get what you pay for with this one. If the software isn't buggy, the scope should be a big hit.
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Celestron C4-R 102mm achromat
Celeston Nexstar 6SE SCT
Meade 80mm APO Triplet
Televue NP-101
Televue TV-85
Vixen A70Lf
Vixen A80Mf
William Optics 66mm Zenithstar Patriot
Celestron CG4 EQ mount
Orion Skyview Pro AZ mount
Vixen Portamount
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rcd47
sage
Reged: 03/15/08
Posts: 259
Loc: East Texas, USA
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Glad I got my 125PE when I did last Summer. For me it's the right combination of portability & aperture for the price I paid. After replacing the battery and doing a reset, the LNT works great on mine, so I like it. Just plop it down, take a seat and watch it do tricks for a couple of minutes and I'm nearly ready to go. 
Technology changes...makes you wonder what we'll be looking at (or through) ten years from now. 
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Randy
Edmund Astroscan
Meade ETX125PE
Skywatcher 102mm F5 & Alt/Az Mount
Orion ST80/Mini EQ1
Tasco Starguide 114/Celestron Hand Paddle
Pentax 10x50 Binoculars
Philips SPC 900NC
Stellacam EX
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StarWars
Postmaster
Reged: 11/26/03
Posts: 13787
Loc: CyberSpace
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Well, I guess it's possible Meade might remove the LNT from the ETX line and switch back to the AT model. Only to save money with manufacturing cost.. 
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Sony Digital Media player..
MX 460 earbuds
Celestron 2x Barlow Lens
Orion Collimation Eyepiece
Rigel Quick Finder
Assorted Bino's 
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rob288
member
Reged: 05/13/08
Posts: 60
Loc: New Zealand
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As I said the info came from a person in the know, the LNT is being removed and the scopes will be sold as ETX-AT models. They are making adjustments to what comes with other Meade scopes as standard accessories, not sure excatly but thats all I have been told. I am sure its cost cutting myself, will the other two big players Celestron and Synta follow suit, hard to say, they have to be competitive and thats the bottom line, I know here in New Zealand the retail sales of electronic items such as scopes has taken a real hammering lately. One dealer though is getting $1795 NZD for the last of his Meade ETX90PE and $2700 for the last of his Meade ETX125 PE.
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Meade LX90 8 Inch SCT UHTC LNT, Meade 884 field tripod,
Super Plossl 9mm, Super Plossl 15mm Ultra wide, Super Plossl 26mm, 2x Barlow,
Bak4 Binoviewer, 6.3 Focal Reducer, Nikon D200 astro camera,
20x80 Astro Binos, Starry Night Pro Plus 6.23
Edited by rob288 (03/28/09 04:10 PM)
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rmollise
Post Laureate
Reged: 07/06/07
Posts: 4557
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Quote:
I agree with brianb--- the LNT on my LX90 works great-- especially handy for public star parties when you setup before dark--
Same here...the LNT on my 125 has always worked great...and I really prfer the red dot finder component to the insane little finders that the earlier ETXes were saddled with.
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Uncle Rod
Rod's New Book:
Choosing and Using a New CAT
Available now!
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StarWars
Postmaster
Reged: 11/26/03
Posts: 13787
Loc: CyberSpace
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Meade must think The ETX-PE LNT and ETX-LS possess similar features...
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Sony Digital Media player..
MX 460 earbuds
Celestron 2x Barlow Lens
Orion Collimation Eyepiece
Rigel Quick Finder
Assorted Bino's
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teskridg
sage
Reged: 01/15/08
Posts: 277
Loc: PA
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The ETX-AT scopes work great; there never was a case in my opinion for the PE upgrade as the AT was so easy to set up and use. I'd forget the red dot finder and the stupid right angle finder that the AT has. I'd be happy with the non-PE version and would only add a Rigel Quickfinder or a Telrad.
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Tim Eskridge
CPC 800
Scopebuggy
Burgess Binoviewer Model 24
8mm Radian
11mm Nagler
15mm GTO
20mm Burgess binolite and Stellar
26mm Meade SP Series 4000
30mm Vixen NPL
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JT5
professor emeritus
Reged: 11/08/07
Posts: 576
Loc: Ozarks of Missouri
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Joe:
What does the SYNC (Synchronize?) function do? I have not run into this yet in the manual for my ETX-125PE. Does this improve the go-to align for all future set-ups? I also bought my ETX for the sole purpose of "star parties" that I host, but have not had enough experience with it yet.
My ETX has been with Meade three times since I bought it six months ago and weather has not been good this winter in the limited amount of time I have had the scope.
John
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My wife shares my love of the night skies and tolerates all of my other hobbies.
Televue Pronto w/Starbeam pointer and Televue tripod
Meade 2045D, ETX-125PE, 12" Lightbridge
Celestron: 7Amp PowerTank, 15X70mm binoculars
Meade, Swan and Televue Lenses (33, 26, 20, 15 & 9mm), Televue Barlow
Catsperch Observing Chair
Member: Astronomical Society of Eastern Missouri
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Arthur Dent
Galactic Hitch-Hiker
Reged: 10/23/08
Posts: 1177
Loc: South Yorkshire, UK
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Hi John
SYNC makes the tracking of your scope IN THAT PART OF THE SKY much more accurate.
After initial alignment, you may GoTo an object, M42 say. If you then SYNC, the tracking of M42 more accurate over a longer period - not suffient however to take long-exposure images. The downside of SYNCHing is that GoTos are affected in other areas of the sky, however people have reported star-hopping from one part of the sky to the next, SYNCHing as they go and that seems to work.
Hope this helps
Art
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If I like it, the wife says that we can't afford it!
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Meade ETX105 (a nice "Grab & Go" scope) & Celestron NexStar 6SE with Bob's Knobs.
Various EP's from 6mm to 26mm, Baader Hyperion 8-24mm Zoom, a 2x Barlow, 2" diagonal and 7Ah PowerTank.
MRF and Antares 8x50 RACI finder scope - both for the 6SE's OTA, whilst the ETX gets a plain RDF.
Canon EOS 400D DSLR (un-modded) and SPC900 webcam. Finally climbing the AP Learning Curve!
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JT5
professor emeritus
Reged: 11/08/07
Posts: 576
Loc: Ozarks of Missouri
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Joe & Arthur:
I have looked through the menu for the ETX-125PE and do not find a SYNC function in the AutoStar's Menu (Page 22 of the manual) .
There is, however, a discussion (Page 27) re High Precision: If High Precision is turned on, when looking for a faint celestial object (i.e., nebula or galaxy) that requires slewing to a bright start and center it and then press ENTER to Sync. "At this point the telescope has a high resolution alignment to that part of the sky and it then slews to the object that was originally requested."
Is this the SYNC function?
John
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My wife shares my love of the night skies and tolerates all of my other hobbies.
Televue Pronto w/Starbeam pointer and Televue tripod
Meade 2045D, ETX-125PE, 12" Lightbridge
Celestron: 7Amp PowerTank, 15X70mm binoculars
Meade, Swan and Televue Lenses (33, 26, 20, 15 & 9mm), Televue Barlow
Catsperch Observing Chair
Member: Astronomical Society of Eastern Missouri
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Joe Lalumia
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/24/07
Posts: 3600
Loc: Rockwall, Texas, USA
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YES------------ high precision first sends you to a nearby star where you SYNC--- then it goes to the object you originally selected. Do not SYNC on planets-- however you can SYNC on other objects by holding down the ENTER key for 2 seconds --- controller will beep and ask you to press ENTER again.
I used the SYNC method of alignment again last night at a local star party-- before it got dark I did a FAKE two star alignment-- never looked -- just pushed ENTER for each star-- when Sirius came out I did a GOTO to Sirius, centered it in the eyepiece, and SYNCed on it, and gotos were fine--- in that direction of the sky.
During the evening I would SYNC on other Messier objects-- and kind of worked my way around the sky SYNcing--
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LX90 8" LNT, SV Nighthawk & TelePOD, SV 80/9D & M4 mount, ETX 90, Orion XT10i, 20x80 binoculars, SV-BV3s-- www.texasastro.org
"Great minds discuss ideas;Average minds discuss events;Small minds discuss people." Unknown
Edited by Joe Lalumia (03/30/09 11:53 AM)
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JT5
professor emeritus
Reged: 11/08/07
Posts: 576
Loc: Ozarks of Missouri
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OK. Thanks Joe..
John
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My wife shares my love of the night skies and tolerates all of my other hobbies.
Televue Pronto w/Starbeam pointer and Televue tripod
Meade 2045D, ETX-125PE, 12" Lightbridge
Celestron: 7Amp PowerTank, 15X70mm binoculars
Meade, Swan and Televue Lenses (33, 26, 20, 15 & 9mm), Televue Barlow
Catsperch Observing Chair
Member: Astronomical Society of Eastern Missouri
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Odin
super member
Reged: 03/21/07
Posts: 192
Loc: Ont, Cdn 46N 84W
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As Joe has Implided the Sync works Great. Excellent way of Aligning on the GO. Luv my ETX
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*=== Life Is Great Under The STARS ===*
LX90 8" EMC
Rigel Quickfinder
ETX125PE UHTC
60mm Refractor Meade Digital Series
Meade Electronic Eyepiece
32mm,26mm,15mm,9.7mm series 4000 Super Plossl
2x Barlow
10x50 Tasca Binoculars
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sang33ta
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 07/08/08
Posts: 767
Loc: UK
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I never had any problems leveling my AT scope and pointing it north so if they can sell it cheaper all the better for them. It would be nice if they could supply it with one of those little compass eye piece level mates though.
The LN on the PE was fradgile and got broken too easy.
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Hioptic 152mm f12.5 Maksutov, CG5-AGT, Meade Super Plossl Set, Casio QV-2900UX
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JT5
professor emeritus
Reged: 11/08/07
Posts: 576
Loc: Ozarks of Missouri
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Out of curiosity, if the AT can be calibrated and there is no LNT, where do the electronics reside, is it strictly an Autostar function?
John
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My wife shares my love of the night skies and tolerates all of my other hobbies.
Televue Pronto w/Starbeam pointer and Televue tripod
Meade 2045D, ETX-125PE, 12" Lightbridge
Celestron: 7Amp PowerTank, 15X70mm binoculars
Meade, Swan and Televue Lenses (33, 26, 20, 15 & 9mm), Televue Barlow
Catsperch Observing Chair
Member: Astronomical Society of Eastern Missouri
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Joe Lalumia
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/24/07
Posts: 3600
Loc: Rockwall, Texas, USA
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Inside the hand controller--- NO "BRAINS" in the telescope!
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LX90 8" LNT, SV Nighthawk & TelePOD, SV 80/9D & M4 mount, ETX 90, Orion XT10i, 20x80 binoculars, SV-BV3s-- www.texasastro.org
"Great minds discuss ideas;Average minds discuss events;Small minds discuss people." Unknown
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Fish
sage
Reged: 10/13/07
Posts: 470
Loc: Norridgewock, ME
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Good afternoon,
The new ETX-LS not withstanding, I believe it would be in Meade's best interests to revisit the original concept of the ETX line: "Everyone's Telescope", great optics, reasonable mount and OK controls at a competitive price. Yes, it had its quirks and some of the "features" of the day could be upgraded. Keep it basic, intuitive and affordable.
The ETX-LS - and Meade's other higher-end offerings - are fine for those that desire all the bells and whistles but to capture the beginner or second-scope buyer I believe something to the original ETX would be a good path for Meade.
OK, change the focuser. And the finder. Maybe the RA drive could be quicker on the uptake as well. And . . .
But KISS nevertheless!!
Regards, Marc
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Goseck Observatory
Kunming 152 f/5.9 & Baader Wedge
Orion ED80 & LS75FHa2/B1200
Meade 102ED & LS18CaKMDd2
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sang33ta
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 07/08/08
Posts: 767
Loc: UK
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I'd redesign it a bit, it's got great optics but I'd put it on a single dovetail arm and higher up from the base. I'd also get rid of the awful mirror flop by putting a rack and pinion focuser on it. Oh and it needs hex bolts on the back for user collimation instead of sending back to Meade!
Meade CEOs should use their scopes then they would know all this stuff needs fixing!
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Hioptic 152mm f12.5 Maksutov, CG5-AGT, Meade Super Plossl Set, Casio QV-2900UX
Edited by sang33ta (04/12/09 10:05 PM)
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brianb11213
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 02/25/09
Posts: 2078
Loc: 55.215N 6.554W
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Quote:
I'd also get rid of the awful mirror flop by putting a rack and pinion focuser on it.
And lose the flexibility given by the huge backfocus adjustment? Do you want to be able to image with SLRs, use binoviewers etc?
As for "awful mirror flop", my ETX 125 had none at all, neither does my 8" LX90, and my Celestron CPC1100 has about half the dismeter of Saturn's globe. I can live with that.
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wfj
sage
Reged: 01/10/08
Posts: 258
Loc: California, Santa Cruz County
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Likely they are dropping LNT because of cost - if you want to *pay* for auto alignment, then you'll go for the ETX LS, which is the evolution in this technology.
As to scrimping, a low end red dot can't be beat for cheap finder. It's hard to see what else they can drop and still have the sharp optics, GOTO alt/az functionality - the plastic is already as thin as you can make it (perhaps an all-plastic OTA?). I suppose a Autostar 494 might increase margin by $1.23 - $2.89. Or perhaps you use the NGC line "push to" approach and save another $3.53 on motors and worms, and thin down the plastic fork and base more.
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