32 replies to this topic

[tompa]

Hello.

I´m considering buying an all-purpose telescope (day-time, moon, planets, some deep sky). I find Omegon´s refractor AP 110/660 ED interesting. It has a reasonably large aperture, isn´t too big in size and low weight carbon fiber tube (4,8 kg, about the same as a Celestron C6). Someone with experience of this refractor? Is it any good?

 

Regards

Thomas

 

https://nimax-img.de...-Carbon-OTA.jpg

Edited by Uwe Pilz, 07 October 2020 - 12:01 AM.

[sg6]

Just on the numbers it is f/6 and for a doublet at 110mm I would have said a bit too fast.

F/7.5 maybe but I wouldn't at f/6.

OK, not for imaging aspects. Not sure I would for visual without expecting some minor color in brighter objects.

 

It is all based on: With those numbers I would be a little unsure.

[Jond105]

I don’t know many with the scope, but if you find member redbetter here, he has the same scope labeled as Orion. You could always ask him how he feels about it. Other than that, I have no opinion about it. Seems well built, won’t be color free, but way better than an achro in that range and looks mechanically great. 

[terrypaula]

If it is the same thing as the Orion you'll have color through the eyepiece but that can be filtered out of the view if desired.  As far as quality it is a very solid design with good glass as far as I can say.  A friend of mine has the Orion version and he really enjoys the views he gets.  He claims it is a very nice wide field scope.  As far as AP goes he has done a few images of the Moon.  The evening he invited me over we found ourselves looking at many 'o' Nebula.

 

Honestly I saw an ad for this scope and I entertained purchasing it myself after reading a few user reviews.  I always try to find reviews by people that have owned the equipment for a while.

I have a Meade LX70-M6 and the optics are wonderfully sharp and clear.  If you want to you could split stars all night long.  Absolutely NO color at all, no coma the views through it are as clear as a bell optics.  (Bells aren't clear as a rule, but you get the idea,)  The focuser on the other hand leaves a lot to be desired.  I ended up fitting an SCT focuser to it to eliminate any problems with They have optics that provide views resembling a nice APO refractor.  The only real issue I had after the focuser was acclimating the scope.

Sorry about getting off topic but I was making an example.

Whatever might be inhibiting the views a person gets with a particular piece of equipment can be altered to suite the users taste.  But I believe you'll be happy.

[junomike]

Some report minor CA, others report significant CA.

I know I'd be happy for DSO use but not Planetary/Lunar.

[Jaimo!]

Outch, just looked it up on Amazon...  $1200 (~1085 Euros) for a non-FPL-53 f/6 doublet, it think there are a number of better offerings out there.

 

I am not familiar with the European market, but I would be more inclined to lean toward some of the offering from Telescope Services or William Optics.  Half the fun is spending the time to get the best scope possible, it's a journey.

 

Good Luck,

Jaimo!

[russell23]

At that price one would be better off spending $599 on the AT102 ED.

[Jaimo!]

Outch, just looked it up on Amazon...  $1200 (~1085 Euros) for a non-FPL-53 f/6 doublet, it think there are a number of better offerings out there.

 

I am not familiar with the European market, but I would be more inclined to lean toward some of the offering from Telescope Services or William Optics.  Half the fun is spending the time to get the best scope possible, it's a journey.

 

Good Luck,

Jaimo!

I many be mistaken, according to Astroshop.EU it is FPL-53...

 

https://www.astrosho...bon-ota/p,55229

[SteveG]

At 660 mm focal length, be prepared for some field curvature when using low-power, unless your eyes are very accommodating.

[junomike]

I retract my statement and I'm sure others will as well. We ALL assumed it was a rebranded Orion 110mm F6.

Looking closer once Jaimo pointed out the price I see It's comprised of:

 

OHARA FPL-53 and S-NBM51 glass.

 

This changes everything and It should be more than acceptable for CA on Planets/Luna.

 

Here's a review of the now discontinued 100mm F6

[aneeg]

I believe Omegons are rebranded Sharpstar.

 

Arne

[junomike]

I believe Omegons are rebranded Sharpstar.

 

Arne

Closest size they have is a 107mm F6.5.....bit of a stretch on the variables (Aperture, Focal Length)

[Cbaxter]

I know this thread is about a month old but in case anyone has questions about the Omegon 110/660 FPL-53/S-NBM51 doublet, let me know what specifically you would like to know and I will try to investigate and answer for you. I just received this scope for use as a mid-sized visual and EAA scope. I also have the field flattener for when I do EAA. The skies are cloudy here in Tacoma but once the weather clears I will do a star test, take some EAA images with a D5300, and write a short review. I paid ~$1,100 plus $17 UPS express shipping from Germany. My first impressions are positive. Originally I had intended to mount it on an AVX mount, though once mounted in the rings, rail, and finder/guide scope, it is heavier than I thought it would be so I will be using it on an EQ6-R Pro mount. I have never had a CF ota tube before and I am not sure if I like it or not, compared to the usual metal ota I am used to.

Edited by Cbaxter, 25 April 2020 - 01:04 AM.

[dufay]

I believe Omegons are rebranded Sharpstar.

 

Arne

 

I think the telescope in question is this one from Long Perng: http://www.longperng...?act=view&no=20

 

The big European re-branders usually sells telescopes from different manufacturers.

Edited by dufay, 25 April 2020 - 01:29 AM.

[Cbaxter]

I had a short break in the clouds tonight. That LP may be the body/mechanics, but almost all of the 110mm F/6 clones that I have seen have been FPL-51 doublets (orion eon 110), not FPL-53, like this one.
*removed my initial first light assessment as I only very briefly looked through the eyepiece and it was through some thin clouds* I will start a new thread at a later time when I can do a better/proper/fair assessment.

Edited by Cbaxter, 25 April 2020 - 03:39 PM.

[kris neirinck]

Hello,

 

Any update regarding this telescope - especially for astrophotography?

 

Regards,

Kris

[Cbaxter]

Hello,

Clear skies and available time to observe are rare where I live so I've little time to use the scope. However, my impression so far follows.

Pros:
- 110mm FPL-53 doublet at or less than the cost of the Orion EON 110mm FPL-51.
- visually excellent color correction even on Moon and Venus.
- Photographically very good color correction on very bright stars/Venus. From what I can tell, not being an expert and also new to AP, the color correction is at least as good as images I've seen from some reasonably similar sized FPL-51 triplets.
- Photographically flat field with a field flattener, I have only used the "Orion FF for short refractors." FF spacing was critical.
- Carbon fiber OTA (if you prefer CF)
- 2.7" hybrid r&p focuser has performed very well for me. I especially like the dual rotation points for framing in AP, or for visual, safely rotating a diagonal without loosening the 2" retainer.
- retractable dew shield.
- tight tolerance on all scope/focuser mechanics.
- the advice and support I received from Omegon/Astroshop was very good. They took the time to examine sample images and provide me with very detailed responses to all of my questions and concerns. When I first tested the scope for EAA I was getting diffraction artifacts that I was concerned were from lens spacers or pinched optics, the vendor was very accommodating and patient with me. It turned out that the star artifacts were my own fault and caused by a makeshift extended dew shield I had taped to the end of the built in dew shield. I live in a very humid climate and do not have a dew heater.

Cons:
- Carbon fiber OTA is very light on the objective end, and so with gear attached to the already heavy focuser the scope is impossible for me to balance without adding weight to the front of the scope. I realize this issue may not be unique to this scope. I mounted a Sky-watcher Evoguide 50ed directly on top of the front most OTA ring to help add additional weight to the front, but I still had to add additional weight to the front.
- I personally think that the weight savings of CF over Aluminum is negligible.
- I feel like the CF OTA takes 1.5 to 2 times as long to reach equilibrium as my metal OTA Orion 120ST.
- A 102mm FPL-51 EQUIVALENT triplet can be had for about the the same price from other manufacturers. I don't know first hand but from researchimg I understand that a triplet design, even if it is FPL-51 equivalent instead of FPL-53, MAY provide better correction of various optical aberrations than an FPL-53 doublet such as this Omegon 110ed.

That is all I can say about this scope so far. If you have a specific question please ask and I'll investigate when I am able/weather permits.

Edited by Cbaxter, 21 June 2020 - 02:03 PM.

[civis]

I just got this refractor from Germany, 110mm/F6 APO, allegedly FPL53. This is my first telescope, build quality appears excellent, the focuser is fantastic.

Tested so far only on bright stars, Vega etc., using Mead 5000 8.8mm and 4mm EPs, found severe color fringing, red and green mostly. it also fails a star test - inner focus shows clearly defined well separated defraction circles, outside focus shows barely visible pattern, with almost no separation. Plenty of red fringe on tree branches in daylight as well.

Will be returning it most likely, not a great first experience.

Edited by civis, 26 September 2020 - 09:35 PM.

[Pelle]

Hi!

 

I'm also interested in this scope and intend to use it for astro photo. Mainly with a mono asi183 and a 0.6 reducer. Probably also using my micro four thirds cam.

Someone has more updates about it? Civis did you return it? 

 

Regards,

Per

[Cbaxter]

Pelle,

For astrophotography there are much better options available near the price range of this scope. Look at some similarly priced 70mm or 80mm triplets. You don't necessarily need the extra apature for astrophotography and the added weight will put a higher demand on your mount. I own this scope and apparently got a very good example of it, but after hearing via PM about several other folks experience with this scope, it sounds like the quality of this scope varies widely from very good (my example) to very poor. I use it mostly for visual, for which the fast fpl-53 doublet design performs very well. If your goal is astrophotography I recommend going with a more widely known and well regarded triplet. As far as the .6x reducer you speak of, I do not have first hand experience with such a reducer but my general experience tells me that unless it was designed for a specific scope and with small sensors in mind, it probably will not perform well for astrophotography. I think it would likely just add or exacerbate aberrations, especially in an already fast f/6 doublet.

If you are just curious though, you can check out the following link for some EAA style AP I do with this scope.

https://telescopius....ision_id=100325

Other folks can likely recommend a respected 80mm triplet around the $1400 price range that will be much better for astrophotography.

Regards and clear skies.

[Pelle]

Thanks for your honest review! Looking at your images I think they look really fine and the stars are very good! Since there are mixed results with this scope perhaps the design is sensitive and hard to produce consistently. What draws me to it is the lower weight of the dublett and the cf tube. Also the focallength is close to what fits the 0.6 reducer the best (600 mm). But the mixed results with this scope means I will probably stay away from it.

[Matthew Star]

This topic feels not ended to me hahaha.

Not sure if there are rules for that?

I can start a new topic, but here are some folks who at least used this Omegon AP 110 f6 ED

 

If you compare it to a 102 fpl53 APO Triplet, for Astro 

Photography it can probably not compete.

But searching for a Rich Field Grab and Go that is useable for the Moon and bright stars as well, it maybe is very interresting?

 

It gathers more light with its 110 Aperture.

Compared to the SkyWatcher 120f5 this Omegon gives a large wide 4,42 FoV  and a 6.67 Exit Pupil using a Pentax XW40 EP.

The SW120 f6  gathers more light with is 120 Aperture, but can only go to 3,5 FoV and has than a 6mm Exit Pupil using a Pentax XW30, cause a XW40 gives this scope a 8mm Exit Pupil.

The Omegon will appear brighter.

 This Omegon 110 f6 maybe is not perfect looking at the moon of Jupiter, but probably A LOT better than the 120 f5, so you can use it as an All Round  Grab-and-Go for visual.

Am I right?

If the CA is compareable to the 102ED f6 doublets than this is a very interresting lightweight Rich Field Grab and Go.

Edited by Matthew Star, 19 January 2022 - 05:23 AM.

[Cbaxter]

This topic feels not ended to me hahaha.
Not sure if there are rules for that?
I can start a new topic, but here are some folks who at least used this Omegon AP 110 f6 ED

If you compare it to a 102 fpl53 APO Triplet, for Astro
Photography it can probably not compete.
But searching for a Rich Field Grab and Go that is useable for the Moon and bright stars as well, it maybe is very interresting?

It gathers more light with its 110 Aperture.
Compared to the SkyWatcher 120f5 this Omegon gives a large wide 4,42 FoV and a 6.67 Exit Pupil using a Pentax XW40 EP.
The SW120 f6 gathers more light with is 120 Aperture, but can only go to 3,5 FoV and has than a 6mm Exit Pupil using a Pentax XW30, cause a XW40 gives this scope a 8mm Exit Pupil.
The Omegon will appear brighter.
This Omegon 110 f6 maybe is not perfect looking at the moon of Jupiter, but probably A LOT better than the 120 f5, so you can use it as an All Round Grab-and-Go for visual.
Am I right?
If the CA is compareable to the 102ED f6 doublets than this is a very interresting lightweight Rich Field Grab and Go.

Having owned the Orion 120 f5 achro and this Omegon ed 110 doublet and looked through them side by side, I can tell you that my example at least is very well corrected for an f6 ed doublet. Moon and planets look beautiful with only vary slight and thin color on the outer edge of the moon and Venus at very high magnifications. The CA in my example really is only slightly detectable on a few very bright objects. As far as being an alternative to the f5 achro, sure, it has similar focal length and speed, it's significantly more expense though.

I love the Omegon 110ed for visual. The 2.7 inch r&p focuser is very nice, the CF scope is light for its size, and at 660mm f6 it should provide a much superior view compared to the 120 f5 achro at nearly the same tfov with a given eyepiece. The Orion may show a slightly brighter image since it has a slight apature and speed advantage, but the image will not be nearly as sharp as it will in decent ed scope.

Edited by Cbaxter, 20 January 2022 - 01:49 AM.

[Matthew Star]

Before I wanted a Rich Field All Rounder, I had the chance of buying this one for a third of the price.

Now, if I want to buy this Omego Carbon Fiber AP110 / 660ED it' s comparable to the price of a 102ED Triplet.

I'm breaking my mind over this and cannot deside.

[Cbaxter]

Before I wanted a Rich Field All Rounder, I had the chance of buying this one for a third of the price.
Now, if I want to buy this Omego Carbon Fiber AP110 / 660ED it' s comparable to the price of a 102ED Triplet.
I'm breaking my mind over this and cannot deside.

not sure which 102mm triplet you are comparing it to based on price but regardless I have a feeling the 102mm triplet will be the better all around scope and definitely superior CA correction. The triplet will also likely produce better astrophotography images if you ever want to do that. This scope was interesting for visual at about ~$1100 USD but now it is showing in some places as almost &1800 USD, definitely not worth it!