15 replies to this topic

[terevorlein]

I have been working on getting a CG5-ASGT working for some wide field (700mm FL) astrophotography and I am trying to get guiding and dithering set up.

(yes I know I won't have the best results with this mount) 

The hand controller is the Nexstar + model with an headset port on the bottom. I bought a Serial to USB converter with a prolific chipset and a Celestron specific cable to go from the handset to the Serial Port. After connecting the mount to a computer running Windows 10 I power up the mount while holding the info and undo keys and it says

"transmit data"

I have tried connecting to the mount with CFM and HCUpdate and both say no device found. 

I am wondering if anyone else has had this problem and where I should go from here.

Thanks,

Trevor

Edited by terevorlein, 25 March 2021 - 07:25 PM.

[Bean614]

IIRC (its been a few years since my last ASGT CG5), the ASGT has a Pinout that's different from all other Celestron  Nexstar mounts.  In fact, I recall having to buy a 'Special' Aux-Splitter' from Celestron for the ASGT,  since the one they make for ALL their other mounts won't work with the CG5 ASGT. 

[brlasy1]

I have been working on getting a CG5-ASGT working for some wide field (700mm FL) astrophotography and I am trying to get guiding and dithering set up.

(yes I know I won't have the best results with this mount) 

The hand controller is the Nexstar + model with an headset port on the bottom. I bought a Serial to USB converter with a prolific chipset and a Celestron specific cable to go from the handset to the Serial Port. After connecting the mount to a computer running Windows 10 I power up the mount while holding the info and undo keys and it says

"transmit data"

I have tried connecting to the mount with CFM and HCUpdate and both say no device found. 

I am wondering if anyone else has had this problem and where I should go from here.

Thanks,

Trevor

This link helped me get past my issues with the update.

 

https://www.nexstars...SGTFirmware.htm

[terevorlein]

This link helped me get past my issues with the update.

 

https://www.nexstars...SGTFirmware.htm

Thank you that website has been very helpful in determining my hand controller version.

 

 

 

 

IIRC (its been a few years since my last ASGT CG5), the ASGT has a Pinout that's different from all other Celestron  Nexstar mounts.  In fact, I recall having to buy a 'Special' Aux-Splitter' from Celestron for the ASGT,  since the one they make for ALL their other mounts won't work with the CG5 ASGT. 

Would this be the Aux Splitter you were mentioning:

https://www.bhphotov...html?ap=y&smp=y

 

Edit:

Looks like I need a more expensive and different one for the CG5

Edited by terevorlein, 25 March 2021 - 07:45 PM.

[Bean614]

Thank you that website has been very helpful in determining my hand controller version.

 

 

 

 

Would this be the Aux Splitter you were mentioning:

https://www.bhphotov...html?ap=y&smp=y

 

Edit:

Looks like I need a more expensive and different one for the CG5

The one in the Link works with every Celestron mount EXCEPT the CG5 ASGT.   The one you need is, I think , around  $39.95.  You can find it on the Celestron site.   And, my point in even mentioning anything was to show that 'things work differently' with the CG5, so be careful!

[brlasy1]

Thank you that website has been very helpful in determining my hand controller version.

 

 

 

 

Would this be the Aux Splitter you were mentioning:

https://www.bhphotov...html?ap=y&smp=y

 

Edit:

Looks like I need a more expensive and different one for the CG5

Sorry.  Here's the correct link.

https://www.nexstars...NexStarPlus.htm

[mclewis1]

The pinout for the AUX port on the ASGT is not different than any other Celestron NexStar mount but it is a bit more sensitive electrically. The ASGT specific splitter just contains some pull up resistors to ensure that the signal strength (the differentiation between a 1 and a 0) is a bit more consistent.

 

Not finding the mount (when the mount and HC are working) is just about always a problem with the serial com port driver used by the USB-serial adapter. You should see the adapter being recognized as a USB device when it's plugged in, and you should also see the new com port number show up in the device manager table. If you aren't seeing that then don't bother with the mount, you have a USB or PC problem.

 

There is a very good Prolific serial adapter device driver link on Mike's website.

 

I would un install all the device apps and drivers being used by the mount, reboot, and then first re install the Prolific com port driver and get the adapter working and then install CFM and do a firmware check/upgrade on your hand controller.

Edited by mclewis1, 25 March 2021 - 08:06 PM.

[terevorlein]

The pinout for the AUX port on the ASGT is not different than any other Celestron NexStar mount but it is a bit more sensitive electrically. The ASGT specific splitter just contains some pull up resistors to ensure that the signal strength (the differentiation between a 1 and a 0) is a bit more consistent.

 

Not finding the mount (when the mount and HC are working) is just about always a problem with the serial com port driver used by the USB-serial adapter. You should see the adapter being recognized as a USB device when it's plugged in, and you should also see the new com port number show up in the device manager table. If you aren't seeing that then don't bother with the mount, you have a USB or PC problem.

 

There is a very good Prolific serial adapter device driver link on Mike's website.

 

I would un install all the device apps and drivers being used by the mount, reboot, and then first re install the Prolific com port driver and get the adapter working and then install CFM and do a firmware check/upgrade on your hand controller.

Thanks,

It does recognize as a USB device and on my computer on COM3. 

I will try to reinstall and worst case purchase the cables from Celestron.

[c2m2t]

Hi Trevor!

I have my ASGT mount working with Sky Safari and it works flawlessly. My mount is approximately 15 years old and I do believe I did upgrade the HC about 9 years ago. I purchased a serial cable designed for Celestron hand-controllers and I connect my iPhone  with a Skywire from Simulation Curriculum. I also have a SkyFi unit as well but prefer to use SkyWire with the ASGT. The great thing about having the HC in the controlling setup is that you can still use the HC to slew the mount as opposed to using the arrows on the iPhone. The iPhone provides no tactile feel so using the direction arrows is a pain in the butt, whereas with this Celestron HC you can feel the buttons...much easier to center targets. I also have an HEQ5, but the Sky Safari/SkyWatcher interface does not allow the use of the Synscan HC... so your only option is the arrow buttons on you iPhone.

 

Cheers, Chris.

[MikeBY]

I have 2 of these mounts. I keep a NexStar* HC specifically in case of needing to update or reload firmware and have 2 NexStar + controllers for normal use. 

1st off, what version firmware is installed on the HC and MCs?  Really old MC boards may not be updatable. Is there a specific reason you are updating?  

 

I'm Running ASCOM 6 drivers and a USB to Serial adapter on a Windows 7 laptop.

People seem to run into issues with drivers running Windows 10.  My best suggestions are to run drivers in Windows 7 compatibility mode and  'run as administrator'. Make sure the administrator account/password is correct because you may not get an error message if it's not.  Also, install and run the software from an account that has full administrator privileges. That should avoid permission and share issues for the most part. A Win10 driver might show a port but it still might not be usable to other software using a Win7 drivers because of 32bit/64bit and other compatibility issues.

 

Once you have basic functionality established there are some tweaks to help with guiding, backlash, etc. but most are documented here on CN or on the nexstarsite, which is a great reference. 

[terevorlein]

Thanks for all the replies, is there a specific bit rate you have the Serial Port at?

Thanks,

Trevor

[terevorlein]

Ok, Quick Update, it is now working, I had to use windows 7 and a new driver.

Thanks for all the help,

Trevor

[terevorlein]

Now it keeps getting weirder, I can connect to the mount and guide and slew it though APT but when I try to update the firmware it says "Hand Control Not in Programming Mode." When I look at the hand controller screen it says "transmit data" 

The version is

HC 4.10

MC 5.07

Is there any workaround, with a windows 7 computer using a prolific adapter. 

Thanks,

Trevor

[mclewis1]

Trevor,

 

Are you pressing the UNDO and INFO buttons together as it powers up to put the v4 HC into programming mode?

 

https://www.nexstars...wToVersion4.htm

 

If you've got the HC in a confused state you can also reset it by holding down the 0 button as you power it up. This doesn't always work for an HC stuck in "transmit data" mode but it's worth a try. This is the same as doing the Factory Settings reset from the Utilities menu.

[terevorlein]

Yes, and the screen says "transmit data". I can always go back to the normal alignment procedure and control it though the computer and I have performed a factory reset once. 

Thanks

[mlord]

I recently acquired the electronics from an ASGT mount, and the MC firmware on it was 5.07.

 

So, I had a go at running MCUPDATE.EXE through a V5/Nexstar+ hand-controller (HC) running the latest 5.35.3177.  This attempt failed, leaving the AZM MC in a messed-up (no firmware) state.

 

So, I grabbed HC firmware 5.22.3280 from the link at NexStar Resource Site, and then did the necessary CFM contortions to install it onto the Nexstar+ HC.   https://www.nexstars...us5.22.3280.zip

 

Tried again now with MCUPDATE.EXE.  This time it worked, successfully installing MC firmware 5.20 onto the messed-up AZM MC, and also then onto the ALT MC.

 

So.. updating ASGT mount (MC) firmware is indeed possible with a V5/Nexstar+ hand-controller!

Edited by mlord, 21 March 2025 - 09:24 PM.