131 replies to this topic

[Mike W]

I think the 24pan will go down in history as the best eyepiece ever made! Thanks Paul D. (RIP) I know you all agree...................

 

Please, no other eyepieces. Start your own thread!

Edited by Mike W, 14 April 2025 - 09:35 AM.

[vrodriguez2324]

Hands down the 24mm Panoptic is the best eyepiece in its class. Is there another eyepiece that maxes out the true field and provides better correction in 1.25 inch format? I don't think so.

[Ernest_SPB]

Hm... "the best eyepiece ever made" vs. "the best eyepiece in its class"? 

I agree with perfectness of the eyepiece limited by: "maxes out the true field and provides better correction in 1.25"

[RalphMeisterTigerMan]

I agree that is is the best eyepiece in it's class. Having owned several of them and now have a 20mm Pentax SMC XW 1.25", I actually enjoy it just a little bit more than the 24 Pan. The eye lens is huge and the eyepiece is very comfortable to look thru.

 

Clear skies and keep looking up!

RalphMeisterTigerMan

[NOLAMusEd]

In the 1.25" wide TFOV, it's hard to beat. I went with the 22 as both my scopes have 2" focusers. But if I had a binoviewer...

[JoeBlow]

I think the 22mm LVW likely comes second in this class. The LVW is razor sharp to the edge and very easy to use. But it noticeably lags behind in transmission compared to other eyepieces in this focal range. The LVW also doesn't maximise the FOV in 1.25". I love my LVW, but I regret not getting the 24 Pan when they were a lot more affordable. 

[desertlens]

I'm cautious with words like 'best'. I will say that the 24mm Panoptic is one of the most versatile eyepieces I've ever encountered, ƒ10, ƒ6, you name it. It also doesn't overload the smaller refractors I tend to use.

[Jon Isaacs]

I'm cautious with words like 'best'. I will say that the 24mm Panoptic is one of the most versatile eyepieces I've ever encountered, ƒ10, ƒ6, you name it. It also doesn't overload the smaller refractors I tend to use.

 

The 24mm Panoptic is an excellent eyepiece.  

 

One of the things about the 24mm Panoptic is that it short on eye relief for those wearing eyeglasses. 

 

Jon

[CHASLX200]

I was not a Pano fan. Not crazy about the 22 and 24. But like the 27. Like to try a 35 and 41.

[denis0007dl]

All Panoptic series are moved to Made in Japan, instead Taiwan like was so far.

BTW, Pan 24 as best ep ever?
Optically, or mechanically?

Its not in both cases.

[5u4]

The 24 Pan is one of my favorites for sure. Now that it comes without an undercut, I like it even more. Had all the Pans except the 35 and 41 at one time or another, only one I didn't like was the 19. Agree with JoeBlow, the 22 LVW seemed a bit low on transmission.

[Granite Glasser]

The 24 Pan is superb!

It is not only my "finder" eyepiece, but it is also  my "take it ALL in and enjoy the view in supreme comfort"!

Super dark belowground, pinpoint stars to the very edge, widest possible TFOV in 1.25" format, lightweight, no blackouts or other annoying aberrations, and it just oozes TeleVue quality!

FYI:  I do not wear eyeglasses, so eye relieve is not an issue.  In fact, eyepieces with ~20mm of eye relief specifically designed for eyeglass wearers are quite uncomfortable to me, even with adjustable height eye guards.   

I've never looked through the "famed" 22mm Panoptic, but am not a fan of the extra 2" "skirt". 

For me, it's the TeleVue 24 Panoptic all the way for my low mag / widest field eyepiece!

 

PEACE, 

Bobby G. 

Kalamazoo, MI 

[Jon Isaacs]

I've never looked through the "famed" 22mm Panoptic, but am not a fan of the extra 2" "skirt".

For me, it's the TeleVue 24 Panoptic all the way for my low mag / widest field eyepiece!

 

 

The skirt can be removed from the 22 mm Panoptic, that is how I use mine, as a 1.25 inch only eyepiece.  The barrel is quite long.  One of these days, I am going to have a machinist friend shorten it.

 

Jon

[RichD]

24mm Pan is outstanding, very hard to criticise. Superb correction and comfort if you don't need glasses. I find it has excellent exit pupil behaviour too, very tolerant of eye placement.

In my f12 maksutov, it's a superb deepsky eyepiece. 2mm exit pupil and essentially perfect image.

[CHASLX200]

ER was my only gripe on the shorter WF's and Pano's.  My 27 works with glasses and i would guess the 35 and 41 would also.

[scotsman328i]

24 Pan, incredible ocular! One of my favorites and most versatile being a 1.25” format. One I’ll never part with even with the release of the 24 Delos. The 24 Pan has extraordinary punch packed in such a small package. 

[Jon Isaacs]

 

Dont get me wrong: I love to have Panoptics 24mm in my collection by latest run, but Takahashi TPL eyepieces are MUCH better optically, and Panoptics are far away from word SUPERB IMO.

 

I see the TPLs are 48° eyepieces with 4 elements. How do they compare to the 24 mm Panoptic at F/5?

 

Jon

Edited by Jon Isaacs, 14 April 2025 - 10:12 AM.

[Dobs O Fun]

Let's keep this topic about the Televue 24panoptic unless it's a comparison between the two.

 

Thank you

[MrJones]

I’ve always preferred the ES68 versions due to better distortion decisions IMO. But I have no problem with people loving their Pans.

[RAKing]

The 24 Pan is an excellent eyepiece, and I think it's the "Gold Standard" in a Binoviewer!  One of my all-time favorites.

 

I think it's one of TeleVue's best sellers because of so many pairs they have sold.

 

Cheers,

 

Ron

[vkhastro1]

Love my TV Panoptic 24mm pair in my APM binoscopes/binoviewers.

My Zeiss 25mm W-PL long eye relief pair has higher transmission and eye relief at the expense of smaller FOV.

Did direct comparison with APM 24mm Flat Field, ES 24mm 68° & TV 24mm Panoptic in my binoscopes/binoviewers - TV Pan was the clear winner Optically (I do not use glasses to observe).

 

Gary

[vrodriguez2324]

I briefly owned the 24mm Celestron Ultima Edge (UFF in a different housing). I wanted to try it out, the price was right, and I am a fan of LER even though I don't wear glasses.

 

In a head to head against the 24 Pan it was no contest. The 24 Pan is the clear winner. The 24 UFF appeared dimmer and softer in my brief experience with it. 

 

Eyeglass wearers must make concessions in this category (The 24UFF is still a very good eyepiece, but the 24 Panoptic is a level above).

[PJBilotta]

What surprises me about the 24 Panoptic (and ES 24/68 and UFF) is that all three of these eyepieces could be slightly more eyeglass friendly, but the manufacturers haven't made them so. For me, it's the one element that makes the 24 Pan less than perfect.

On all three, the slightly recessed eye lense and slightly raised design of the eyepiece top and eyecup reduces the effective eye relief. All could have a couple more mm of effective eye relief, similar to when you decloak the Meade 24 SWA to make it perfectly glasses-friendly.

Were Televue to tweak this just a tiny bit, the Panoptic would be perfect.

[pj_thomas]

The ES 68 24mm is a close second to the Panoptic 24 and at half the price on sale, so for some, the ES 68 24mm is superior.

[scotsman328i]

The 24 Pan is an excellent eyepiece, and I think it's the "Gold Standard" in a Binoviewer!  One of my all-time favorites.

 

I think it's one of TeleVue's best sellers because of so many pairs they have sold.

 

Cheers,

 

Ron

Ron, like Televue says “often copied, never replicated.” lol.