Hi, I was imaging with TSX and Maxim 6 controlling the camera. The system was guiding fine and then suddenly started producing totally black guide frames. Pixel values were NaN. I disconnected the camera from Maxim, powered down the camera for several seconds, powered back up, re-connected the camera in Maxim and used the GuiderCapture program to capture the guide images. Several of the images are in the attached .zip file. This happened 3 times last night. My firmware is version 2.41 and the current is 2.43. I have read that you should not update unless needed because you might end up with a brick. Should I update? Hardware problem possibly? All help will be appreciated! Larry Leitch
Does the same issue occur with the main imaging camera? Are you using the internal tracking CCD? Are your drivers up to date? Do you have the latest version 6.08 of MaxIm DL installed?
Larry, maybe, you could check configuration of your camera using CCDOps as described in our "How To" section. Then you could create a log file via SbigDriverChecker64 application. In this case, select either all checkboxes using "All" button and/or "Camera" checkbox only, which checks if your images are blank, ie. ADU = 0. Take a few tracking images, than send me your log file for inspection. Jan
I do have the latest version of Maxim. The sbigudrv.dll in the driver was one day out of date and I updated that to 01-30-15. Also updated the firmware. Last night, I collected >2500 guider frames looking at an electro-luminescent flat panel with no problem frames. The images were only 9 kb. Attached is a log file (in 2 parts). If it is not what is needed then I will need further instruction. Larry Leitch
I have checked both log files, but I do not see any error there. Also, some of your images from your zip file above have some stars inside, some looks to have ADU of all pixels zero. So, have no idea what to check now. Jan
I was imaging last night and some of the images from the main imager were good, some had large patches of gray and black, some were mostly black with some spots of white (larger than a star), and some were totally black. I quit at 2:00 AM. At 6:00 AM, I got good flats. The problem is intermittent. This camera is not usable in this condition. The images are too large to attach. Would looking at them be useful? Dropbox? Larry
Yes, you can put some to Dropbox. BTW, I was not able to open your fits above using neither Maxim 6 nor CCDOps applications. I had to use another app. Jan
It appears that a reply that I made did not make it through the ether. Here is a link to DropBox: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/mczhxxawb56rfq0/AAC9Oq6yRL2V35GnRhvShDFTa?dl=0 BTW, I was able to unzip the files in this thread and read them with Maxim 5, 5, and CCD-Stack. Larry
Last night I was imaging M81. I got 4 good images and then on black/gray image and from then on all images were totally black. I have examined the USB connections and have found no problems. The camera is connected directly to the Mac-Mini computer; there is no hub between the camera and the computer. This camera is less than a year old and I assume that it is still under warranty. What do I have to do to get it into a usable state? Thanks. Larry
Further information: I bought this camera on June 6, 2014 but was unable (because of weather) to install it in the remote observatory until the last week of August. Here is a thread that started on Sept. 10, 2014 https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/SBIG/conversations/topics/257895 Cold weather was not a problem in Sept. ;-) Larry
I just spoke with you on the telephone. As we discussed, try setting your camera set point temperature to -30 or higher instead of -35 and see if it makes any difference. If not, give Bill in repairs a call and see if he has any ideas.
I have a feeling this camera might need the mod done at the fan connector in the rear of the camera. It's fairly easy to do if you can solder a short jumper wire. Email me tomorrow Larry, bill@sbig.com, and we can determine if this is indeed the case. -Bill
Hi all, I met several times this problem with my STLX 11002. Finally, by trial and error, I could find that the problem is related to the HDMI cable connecting the guiding CCD and the camera. This short HDMI cable, supplied with the camera is relatively thick and heavy, and is not very much constrained in the female HDMI plugs located in the camera and the filter wheel. In my camera, the slightest lateral push on the cable is enough to lose contact, and black images are obtained for the guider. Sometimes, even the weight of the short HDMI cable is enough to stop the contacts as the telescope is slowly rotating during the night. Do you have an hardware solution to suggest to have a more reliable connection between the guiding CCD in the filter wheel and the main camera? Thanks for your help! Yves
Is it only the guider camera that gives totally black images? My main camera gave the black (and otherwise worthless) images. Did some cable restraining straps fix your problem? Larry Leitch n
Hi Larry, then we do not have the same problem. In my case, when I have a bad contact in the HDMI cable connecting the tracking CCD in the filter wheel box and the main camera, the guider images are totally black (no noise, intensity = 0.00) but the main camera images come OK. I tried to put cable restraining straps on the HDMI cable, but then the contact was permanently off because the straps were exerting some lateral force on the HDMI cable, and with the slightest lateral force on the HDMI cable, the contact is interrupted with my guider CCD. So I took the straps away, and it works sometimes and fails sometimes. Friendly regards Yves
The camera is now working. It has been working since late spring(?), early summer. No problems. The culprit was two missing jumper wires. It is a great camera - now. Larry