Welcomed home my EQ8-R last week and along with its RC12 payload have begun the process of integrating it into my workflow, the shambles that it is.

I'm a Stellarmate user/customer (I believe in open source but also believe people need to eat!) and hit a few snags, so thought I would share my experiences here hoping that my mistakes don't become someone elses.

The first thing about the mount that I noticed (other than just how wonderful it looks!) is how quiet it is even compared to my "old" EQ6-R, the high pitched whine is gone, it's a steady low pitched set of motors that inspire confidence.

Using EQMod and direct connect to the USB port in the mount it looks and acts exactly like the EQ6 as you would expect, however the Autohome button called out to me - for those not familiar with it, this is a "Paramount" style feature designed for remote observatories to enable you to get the scope back to a known "good" position should it lose its way between slews and restarts, etc but in order to work, more hardware is needed in the mount, either additional encoders (Aux encoders) which used to be called Freedom Find or some sort of home position sensor.

To my understanding the EQ8-R no longer has Freedom Find encoders like the EQ8 but instead has a different solution - whatever the actual detail, the problem is that when you attempt to use Autohome in the control panel it fails with an error saying act it can't detect the Aux encoders and fails to Autohome. Not a great start for the new mount given that I am running semi-remote! Logged a bug/feature request at Jasem's request and have also asked SkyWatcher for assistance - let's see what gives.

Undaunted I decided to give this wonderful beast time to do some imaging, thinking it was a long focal length (2300+mm) I naturally assumed that guided using my OAG would be the best way to go.

I'm not a PHD2 user - have never really understood the need for it with the built-in guider having done a great job for me in the past, so I went with what I know and here's where things get more interesting (to be clear what follows is probably NOT an EQMod driver problem).

Tracking/guiding was incredibly smooth on one axis, less than 0.4 arc secs RMS, however in the other it was horrendous, nearly double the RMS at 0.9 and considerable deviations and corrections required. The scope seemed to be having trouble keeping the guide stars in the FOV, not a complete surprise at this FL but certainly far from stable - my guess is a balance issue with teh scope, in that it's too balanced east/west.

So being in a hurry (never a good idea) I thought I'd use the PPEC control panel and do some training of the two axis in the hope the mount would be smarter than me and figure out a way to smooth it out. Whoa was that a mistake!

PPEC training has always been something I've avoided in teh past with the EQ6 because it usually resulted in my INDI connection crashing (I run client on my Mac, Stellarmate on an RPi at the mount) - and the tracking and guiding was always good enough for shorter FL's that it was never really a problem.

This time, clicked on "train" and the good news, no crashes. Both axis trained after a few (4) minutes. What happened next I still don't completely understand....

I switched on PPEC through the Control Panel and a short period of time later my imaging session was returning random dark patches of "sky" and the guider had lost all stars.

I finally ventured out to the dome to find the scope weights up and the indicator light flashing red (meaning PPEC was enabled).

Lesson - don't turn on "new" features without either a camera in the dome or better yet being physically close enough to observatory to catch potential problems!

I wasn't sure what the problem was so the next training session a few nights later I did the same thing, but this time sat next to the scope - maybe it's how I am using the PPEC training feature (in my defence, the documentation seems non-existent or hard to find) but I can report it's the same problem. Training finishes, but as soon as the RA PPEC is enabled the scope goes into what looks like accelerated sidereal tracking on the RA axis.

Switching RA PPEC off I noticed that the DEC axis does something similar with PPEC enabled albeit at a much slower rate.

My assumptions are that I'm either running PPEC training incorrectly OR that there's a subtle difference between EQ8 and EQ8-R firmware or APIs that are related to both problems.

Clearly more investigation to be done, I'm happy to run any diagnostics or traces that people might want to see especially if you are thinking about adding one of these otherwise amazing mounts to your observatory.

Following up, tried running PPEC training again during a (much better) guided session followed by activating it and the same problem occurs - the mount goes into an accelerated sidereal slew (like 50-100x) before either crashing into the hard stops or horizon limits coming on.

Would love to know if anyone else is using an EQ8-R with INDI at the moment and either having the same problems or, better still not!

This new group here may be able to shed some light on the issues...

www.facebook.com/groups/2820380478089374/?ref=share

I have the older EQ8 and am very interested to hear user reviews on this new -r version, so watching with interest..

Glad to hear it, but deleted my FB account years ago. Not a big fan of what they’re doing.

I’m close to desperation on this, but after a few runs of OAG at <0.5RMS RA at 2400mm FL with CLOUD I am feeling that maybe PPEC isn’t a big problem.

Bugs are however and turning on PPEC if the mount hasn’t been trained causes EQMOD to crash. Same thing happened with my EQ6-R so I think there’s. Bug, need to report it.

I loaded up the SynScan controller for Windows and it will run the Autohome routine with an offset even, so clearly there’s a simple,way to do it.

If anyone can recommend a USB sniffer I’ll see what they’re saying to each other and go from there

Have you got the version with encoder...?
If the standard non encoder version, then it still has the autohome sensors fitted on each axis shaft, as the old model does, as for PPEC, never ever used it, never saw the need as always autoguided mine, but can aLso go 10 mins easy without any guiding.

As an owner of the new EQ8 can I ask you a few questions, as I am thinking of upgrading to this version...
What are the new clutches like, ie, to they hold nice and tight with not much force on the levers, also is there any noticeable backlash on either axis, if you hold the scope and have clutches tight and gently rock the scope, do you feel any...as the older models were plagued with backlash...

They’ve both got encoders, or at least I hope they do! If you mean the upgraded Renishaw that comes with the H version, no, just the poverty pack version for me. Sad

If you meant something else, not sure. To he best of my knowledge neither have the Aux encoders fitted, per Skywatchers own note:

‘Note: Freedom-Find encoders are not present on the EQ8-R or EQ8-Rh. “

I know when I go into the Aux Encoder section of the handset controller and try to,enable Aux encoders I get an error, which is why I’m assuming the mount won’t Autohome under INDI, from what I can see, neither does EQMOD on ASCOM as there is not talk of any bugs.

If live got a different experience or insight would love to know more. No reply from Skywatcher, not surprised...

Hmmm, this part won’t excite you or of it does it will be from the wrong reasons.

The levers are nice and long, which is good because unless I locked them down quite hard, there wasn’t “backlash” in the drive train BUT the entire shaft would slip on the clutch and rotate without using much force.

Not sure if that intentional or not, but I eventually locked it down pretty tight and it’s fine now. I’m permanently setup so I tend not to think about clutches etc. a lot once their all in place, things stay that way for months at a time. I know everyone’s not that blessed.

Having said that, it’s a bloody good unit, I can’t speak for the EQ8 Pro but this is a lovely bit of kit and the belt drives are amazing.

Freedomfind, not so much.

For those of you that like a good graph, here's one of last night guiding session from here in inner Melbourne - conditions were scattered cloud but the ASI290mm pretty much sees through anything that's not a thunderstorm!

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but unless you have the H version then you HAVE NOT GOT ANY ENCODERS ON THAT MOUNT, but you have got the autohome function, as that does NOT use the encoders it uses seperate sensors on both shafts to work...
The EQ8-r pro that you have is the basic model, the EQ8-Rh has the encoders.....sorry.... that’s why you Cant get them to work, you do t have them....freedom find means it has encoders, no freedom find, means no encoders....

Not sure I explained that very well...

You have put in your post above, that “both of them have encoders” then further down you have put “ that they done have Aux encoders” well they are exactly the same thing, so you have contradicted yourself, which is where you are confused, and your basic model EQ8 mount Has NOT got encoders on it

The old EQ8 pro, the one I have, has encoders in both axis, they are not great but it has them.

When skywatcher brought out the new EQ8 they decided in there wisdom to make two models, the basic one without encoders, and the H version with them on just the RA axis.

Encoders are a different thing altogether than the tracking motors and the GOTO system in the mount.

You have the new model basic version, and so it DOES NOT have any encoders, so if you move the mount while switched on with clutch released and then lock the clutch down, it WILL NOT know where it is, whereas mine and the new H version would know and can carry on tracking.
Freedom find is linked to the encoders, and is what I have just mentioned above.

Sorry I might have been a bit sarcastic with my first response which doesn't always translate, but I am reasonably confident that a computerised mount has to have some form of encoder or it wouldn't be able to "count" how far it had moved. I am assuming you mean "additional" encoders and I am not confused or sad about that - as you say, that's what this model gets you.

And just to note, that according to Skywatcher neither the R or the RH features Freedom Find "aux" encoders (for their website).

What I don't understand is why the "Autohome" feature doesn't work with the EQ8-R - hence initiating the thread and the big report. I can get the Autohome to work via software control using the app on a Windows machine directly connected to the mount, so there appears to be a way to tell the mount to do it - so I am guessing with, as you say no auxillary encoders on these new mounts that this means we need new code?

From what I understand the RH model simply features a higher resolution encoder, not additional encoders, but not having had the opportunity to take one apart yet, I am of course talking out of my bottom.