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IEQ 45 Question

Tech support got back with me, they are quick, they basically said if I feel comfortable doing it and since I had there blessing it would not void the warranty. This is nice, a company that will let you work on stuff under warranty, 2 thumbs up!

Astro-Physics Mach 1 GTO
10" LX200 "Classic" with UHTC Deforked
Astrotech AT130
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Great! I'll look forward to see how you make out.

Fortunately, mine seems to be working well - it has managed my 10" Newt, at 48" and 30 lb + very well. I used the iOptron balance utility, which seems to have worked well.

My main niggles are the plastic spreader, which almost negates the lightness of the mount - putting one hand under the spreader to carry the mount almost slices the fingers. I'll be wrapping some duct tape around the three vanes until I can figure out something better.

And, those azimuth adjustment bolts, which are "square cut" on the ends, instead of being rounded, which makes the azimuth adjustment pretty rough. I'll see if I can find some replacement bolts.

But, on the whole, I'm impressed.


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Sounds like you are not getting the support from iOptron you should be getting. To be told "some are noisier" is a very poor comment on their Quality Control and on their customer support.

I wouldn't agree with this. I've found their customer support to to be top notch. If a company replaced a mount every time someone thought it was a bit noisy, they'd quickly go out of business.

Fact is, some mounts ARE noisier than others, and some people are more sensitive to noise than others. Seems prudent for a company to push back a little to avoid a replacement for what could just be a very minor issue. It's then the customer's responsibility to persist if the issue is truly a serious one - which is exactly what he did. Sounds like iOptron responded quickly and appropriately.


- Dan 



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Agree here about iOptron support - IME they are really trying their best and doing a great job at it - this from my experience with my 45. I don't penalize them for being honest, it's refreshing IMO for a company offering product in this price range - if not outstanding. Knowledgable folks working with the customer to get the job done is outstanding support in my book. This is a company commitment to service, and I think though it's not a mach1, providing the same level of knowledgable and honest support to the customer is just fantastic.

Clear skies - Jim Crazy PNW imager !




AA Flat-Man



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I just purchased an IEq45 mount. I have a couple questions for owners of this mount.

1. Is your mount excessivly noisy? Slewing it sounds like a small jet plane taking off and during tracking i can hear it from 20 foot away, no kidding... I have had both an LX200 and a cgem and they were much quieter.
2. Hand controller is excessivly slugish, the dec+ button sometimes takes may hard and long presses to get working.
3. The dec motor sounds like a telephone modem most the time.

I have put an email into ioptron tech but I want to hear some owner opinions. Most of what I have read here and other places have been positive, but after my first night with it I am less than impressed.

Periodic error is not good, backlash in dec is high (setpoint of 850). Tracking while guiding is not good, due to the high PE.

I am going to give tech support and the mount time, but it may be going back.



An update:

The mount is quieting down, still not silent but not nearly as annoying.
Tech support sent me a new hand controller that is much more responsive.

I can't say enough about their tech support, they have been very responsive and very helpful with my issues.

I still have a few bugs to iron out, I have been having some issues getting round stars while guiding. I am pretty sure I will be able to get all these issues worked out though
Astro-Physics Mach 1 GTO
10" LX200 "Classic" with UHTC Deforked
Astrotech AT130
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