Max Ander
newbie
Reged: 07/11/08
Posts: 2
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hey guys this is my first post hope someone can help me make up my mind, ive been lookng at meade and celestron. the two ive been looking at are the lx90 10" and the cpc 925, im leaning towards the celestron because ive heard it has better optics but i want an expert opinion if anyone can shed any light on the subject it would be very helpful, thanks again!
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Dubreuil
member
Reged: 09/30/07
Posts: 24
Loc: Oshawa, Ontario, Canada
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I am far from an expert but If both scopes are new I think the optics are very comparable from both companies.
Might want to look into what mount is more sturdy and reliable.
I am sure you will be happy with either scope.
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Rheal
Orion SkyQuest Intelliscope XT10
8mm Baader Hyperion
Hopefully more eyepieces and a barlow soon.
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mv1000
super member
Reged: 05/27/07
Posts: 110
Loc: WI
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Welcome Max!
Celestron 9.25- much lighter. Not necessarily better.
This can go in the cats forum, but no biggy. It reflects light.
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Starmaster 14.5 Hybrid/Sky Tracker
TV 60 (Finally! A nice finder)
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w orchid
professor emeritus
Reged: 04/23/07
Posts: 662
Loc: Tampa, Fl
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Welocome to CN. If you can try going to a star party in your area, there is a good chance both scopes will be there.
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Celestron C8 orange tube circa 1982
Stellarvue SV102ED
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doug76
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 12/05/07
Posts: 2554
Loc: SE Louisiana
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In light of Meade's troubles, stick with the Celestron. And it is a killer scope, by all accounts.
Doug
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Doug
The Truckstop Astronomer
Meade 12" Lightbridge/Dob Driver II
Celestron C6 SCT
Celestron C6R/Moonlight focuser
Celestron XLT150
Astro-Tech AT80EDT
Celestron CG5-ASGT, CG-4
Celestron Nexstar SE (large)
Meade SWA 34mm
Televue Panoptic 24mm
Pentax XW 10mm, 7mm
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Astro-Tech AT66ED
Celestron Nexstar SE (small)
Televue Plossl 32mm
Smart Astronomy Solar System 14.5mm
BO/TMB Planetary 9mm, 7mm, 5mm, 4mm, 3.2mm, 2.5mm
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Max Ander
newbie
Reged: 07/11/08
Posts: 2
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thank you so much guys for the warm welcome! ive been trying to find a dealer for about 2 weeks now but ive had no success, i live in MN, Burnsville applevalley area would anyone know of a place to look?
-Max
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Al Canarelli
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 12/06/07
Posts: 1538
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Go to the Celestron web page and click on dealers. You will find about 6 "preferred dealers" amd many of them offer free shipping. The free shipping offer should be important to you, as this will save you about $150.
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Mike Rapchak
sage
Reged: 11/17/06
Posts: 449
Loc: Indiana, USA
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I'd go with the Celestron. Proven quality, considerably lighter in weight.
Mike Rapchak Jr.
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hosemonkey
member
Reged: 04/08/08
Posts: 84
Loc: Florida, USA
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But good luck getting a hold of someone from celestron if you have a question or a problem.
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sang33ta
professor emeritus
Reged: 07/08/08
Posts: 539
Loc: UK
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I'm off fork mounts at the moment. I'd go for the Celestron on an EQ mount it will be much easier to transport.
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Hioptic 152mm f12.5 Maksutov
Celestron Advanced CG5-GT Mount (Mr Noisy!)
Meade 4000 Super Plossl Set
Casio QV-2900UX
Got fed up of waiting for Meade ETX-150 so put this together for £500/$1000 
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hdt
super member
Reged: 11/10/07
Posts: 100
Loc: N35°10' W106°32'
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Welcome to Cloudy Nights!
I would check out the sponsor (Astronomics), and also local dealers. Doing a search for Celestron dealers in Minneapolis/StPaul, I get Radio City Inc. I don't know how far away that is from Apple Valley MN, but personally, a 50 mile drive (& paying sales tax) is worth it, to have someone set up a scope, show me how to collimate, etc.
Have fun!
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Sirquack
super member
Reged: 05/03/08
Posts: 141
Loc: Iowa
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sang,
I would not call the CPC AA mounts difficult to transport, in my mind they are very easy and ergonomic over an EQ design.
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CPC 1100 XLT
8" DIY DOB
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w orchid
professor emeritus
Reged: 04/23/07
Posts: 662
Loc: Tampa, Fl
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Keep us posted on your decision.
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Celestron C8 orange tube circa 1982
Stellarvue SV102ED
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sang33ta
professor emeritus
Reged: 07/08/08
Posts: 539
Loc: UK
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I find carrying the fork and scope heavy even on just an 8" (but I'm a girly)
With an EQ design I can split it OTA + (mount/tripod)
even if you have a big scope with a lot of counter weight you can split it 3 ways
OTA + (mount/tripod) + Counterweight
With forks you get to a size where you need 2 people to move it long before you do with a GEM. IMHO
It looks like Celestron decided to dump the fork, I expect for just such reasons. You see all the time.. "should i buy a Meade or a Celeston" and the answer "a Celestron because it will be lighter"
Oh and look at the specs for Celestron 11" v Meade 10" they weigh the same even though there is an extra inch aperture on the Celestron
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Hioptic 152mm f12.5 Maksutov
Celestron Advanced CG5-GT Mount (Mr Noisy!)
Meade 4000 Super Plossl Set
Casio QV-2900UX
Got fed up of waiting for Meade ETX-150 so put this together for £500/$1000
Edited by sang33ta (07/14/08 09:47 AM)
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Sirquack
super member
Reged: 05/03/08
Posts: 141
Loc: Iowa
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Where are you reading that Celestron is dumping the CPC fork design? I find the CPC1100 OTA/Dual Fork easy to carry. It was purposely designed with the grab handle on one side, and the recessed bottom handle to make it easy. The OTA rests against your belly when carried correctly.
I have a 3 acre yard, and easily walk the fork/OTA about 50yards to where I've preplaced the balanced mount. I'm no girly man, but I'm no Arnold either.
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CPC 1100 XLT
8" DIY DOB
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Bob Griffiths
Post Laureate
Reged: 10/10/05
Posts: 4125
Loc: Frederick Maryland
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I'm in my mid 60's and actually been using a handicapped mobility scooter to get around the yard after leg surgery last winter...BUT I can walk short distances without the need for the scooter..
The POINT THAT I WANT TO MAKE is that I purchased a CPC1100 a couple of months ago that I will mount in my observatory BUT store it now in the garage and I can haul it 30 yards out of my garage to my "spot" in the backyard easier then I can my little 100 mm Orion Gem mounted refractor.
I use the scooter to carry down the Tripod to my "spot" then walk the CPC1100 down ..The Refractor requires 3 trips and I can;'t do that (just walking) so I use the scooter ...
For viewing comfort the Fork mount is also a lot more comfortable to use....
As for the Celestron vs Meade deal... flip a coin.
I also have an Meade Autostar controlled scope and the Celestron Hand Controller is a joy to use whereas the Meade is a royal pain ...at least for me.its not as straight forward has too many menus to accomplish what the Celestrons does easily and quickly ..BUT others may feel differently them I do on that score... ..
I prefer Chevy to Ford ...so take that into account also... LOL
Bob G
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CPC1100
Nexstar 8i + GPS & Rays Brackets
Denk S1 power switch
Orion 100 mm Refractor
Meade LXD 55 ...AR-5 127 mm Refractor
Exploradome Observatory S.I.E. (Smiling Irish Eyes)
39*21'03" N
77*28'12" W
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sang33ta
professor emeritus
Reged: 07/08/08
Posts: 539
Loc: UK
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Quote:
Where are you reading that Celestron is dumping the CPC fork design?
I didn't mean it as strongly as that, just an observation that they seem to bring out more and more GEM and single arm models every time I look. I just took a quick squiz at Celestron.com and I only see 3 fork models for example compared to Meade who have mostly fork models.
Celestron seem ahead of the game in getting scope weight down and if you ask people which is their most used scope it's normally a light one that's easier to carry outside.
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Hioptic 152mm f12.5 Maksutov
Celestron Advanced CG5-GT Mount (Mr Noisy!)
Meade 4000 Super Plossl Set
Casio QV-2900UX
Got fed up of waiting for Meade ETX-150 so put this together for £500/$1000
Edited by sang33ta (07/14/08 01:27 PM)
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ibn ezra
member
Reged: 04/23/08
Posts: 22
Loc: Virginia
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Hi Max,
You're just a couple of steps behind me on the path toward your new addiction! Welcome to CN!
My previous scope was a Celestron PowerSeeker Pro 127mm Newtonian -- but the mount was simply unbearable (as was the focuser), so I decided it was time to step up something more 'serious.' Thought I would share some of the thoughts about my initial experiences:
I opted for the GEM mount because I had seen some of the fork mounted rigs at the astronomy club and I wanted something something more manageable -- plus I had already grown used to concept with the PowerSeeker's EQ mount. In the end I went for the Celestron C6-A [XLT] on the CG-5 AS[GT] mount. The combination was under $1k and seemed like a good place to start. I had read many harsh reviews of the CG-5 mount -- but my budget (and happy marriage) couldn't bear the next logical step up (Atlas EQ-G) -- so I was resigned to the fact that I would be sorely disappointed with my purchase.
My expectations were so low that when the CG-5 arrived I was actually a bit taken aback by it's size and weight. The C6 OPT was also bigger than I was expecting (those pix on the web are so darned small, and without any context!). It's not a 'sling it over the should and head off into the field' combination. The fact that some folks call it a 'grab and go' still makes me scratch my head. A 9" SCT of any flavor dwarfs this rig... and needs a beefier tripod and mount, to boot.
You might want to consider portability when evaluating a scope -- unless you're simply going to roll it out onto your back deck. Just peruse the used equipment market and you'll find plenty of folks who got more aperture than they wanted to lug around.
Peripherals are addictive... and they add up, quickly. The power supply, a star diagonal upgrade, a dew shield, upgraded finder and a couple or three eyepieces really eat into the wallet. Be sure to leave room in your budget for the extras you want.
My first night out was all about figuring out how to use the GOTO functionality and getting used to my equipment. I didn't get much observing done and at times found myself wanting to fall back to manual operation -- but, alas, there are no controls on the mount to support that.
Just a few observations,
-iE
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Celestron C8-S OTA
Celestron CG-5 ASGT Tripod & Mount
William Optics CF Dielectric Diagonal
StellarVue F50B2 Finder
Baader Planetarium Hyperion 13mm Eyepiece
Celestron 25mm Plössl
'You must accept the truth from whatever source it comes.'
-Maimonides
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scopethis
sage
Reged: 05/30/08
Posts: 239
Loc: Kingman, Ks
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Check those specs again--Meade uses an oversize primary mirror.
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Kolenka
professor emeritus
Reged: 06/01/08
Posts: 593
Loc: Seattle Area, WA, USA
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Quote:
Quote:
Where are you reading that Celestron is dumping the CPC fork design?
I didn't mean it as strongly as that, just an observation that they seem to bring out more and more GEM and single arm models every time I look. I just took a quick squiz at Celestron.com and I only see 3 fork models for example compared to Meade who have mostly fork models.
Celestron seem ahead of the game in getting scope weight down and if you ask people which is their most used scope it's normally a light one that's easier to carry outside.
I agree with your statement that the most used scope is an easy to move one. Although I don't believe I agree that Celestron is leading the way with the weight issue.
Just like GEMs, forks come with varying levels of quality and weight tolerance. Celestron doesn't seem as interested in Meade at trying to make forks usable as an AP mount. If Celestron was more interested at making these 'jack of all trades' type of scope offerings, I would bet we would see a lot more weight variation in the Celestron forks as well.
These differences aren't really bad for the market either, since it gives the buyer plenty of choice of the type of mount they can get their hands on if they aren't too picky about the OTA.
If you wanted a Meade on a GEM, it isn't hard to get LX200-ACF optics on a GEM, you are just sunk with buying the GEM and OTA separately.
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Meade 10" LX200R
Orion 80ED
Nagler 7T6, 9T6, 13T6, 17T4, 26T5
Canon XSi, TIS DMK 31AF03
Northwest Astro Photoblog
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