Hi I have an SBIG STT-8300 camera. I would like to use PHD2 for guiding, using the 8300 guider. For full size images, I would like to continue to use The Sky X Pro controllong the main STT camera. I have found if I open PHD it will connect and work, but then I cannot access the main camera in TSXP. The same things happens if I open TSXP first, and then open PHD2. Any advice or help would be much appreciated. Regards Philip
As is the case for the vast majority of computer-connected equipment, it is only possible to access the camera from one program at a time.
Hello Phillip and Doug, This is my first post here. I live in the middle of Australia at Ayers Rock and have the pleasure of doing my photography under gorgeous central Australian dark skies that consistently give us readings on the dark sky meter of between 21.5 and 22. Wonderful. I have to pull my mount down every night because the temperature during the day reaches 44 degrees Celsius or 111 Fahrenheit. Yuk. I have a TEC 140 with my camera SBIG STT 8300 with self guiding filter wheel permanently attached and find I have to get my second scope out once a week and drift align using PHD2. It is anoying having to do the drift align this way and then pull down my W/O Flt110 and swap back to my TEC 140. If you could tell me or shed some light on how to connect the 8300 to PHD2 using either the Guide camera in the SBIG or main camera that would be great. I will attach the link to my flickr page so you can see examples of my work with this set up. I also use an Astrophysics 1100 for my mount. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Link to flickr page: https://www.flickr.com/cameraroll Mark
Hi Mark This is my second post! The issue I had was that I use The Sky X Pro to run everything. It is nice to have that ability, but TSXP guiding is a hit and miss effort with me, and according to the Software Bisque forums, with other users as well. When guiding works, it can be very good, and at other times it is useless. A few years ago, I used PHD which was utterly reliable, simple to use, and free! Then the STT camera came out, with integrated autoguider, in front of the filters. Like the majority of people, I naturally assumed it was two cameras, but you will see Doug's reply to my post above. There is an interesting set of posts in this forum under STT cameras. Not knowing the above initially, I thought I could use PHD with the autoguider, which I can, but then I can not use the main camera at the same time. Vice versa is also the same. Yes, I could buy Maxim, but I would have to learn it, and would still need TSXP for all my other needs. In essence therefore, I am going to have to wait for Software Bisque to make autoguiding quite a lot more straightforward, which will not be long in coming. However, you can connect to your STT camera with PHD, but you will not be able to use both CCD's. One or the other. If you are only using PHD to drift align (something I have not done in years), then I do not see why you cannot connect to the STT. What software are you using? I used TSXP to connect PHD and the autoguider. Regards Philip
Hi Phillip and thanks. I would only use the camera to polar align with PHD2 as when I image I use the internal guiding with the STT. I would not use both at the same time. I will try to see if PHD2 recognises the STT and go from there. Thank you for your response. To control everything I do use Maxim Dl version 6. Mark
Mark I just opened PHD, and connected to the mount only with TSXP. Then I launched PHD, and it connected. You should be able to do it with Maxim instead of TSXP. Philip
Now believe it or not I wait for fine weather to try this as at the moment in the middle of the desert we have cloud. Although great electrical storms.
