Celestron 2x X-Cel LX Barlow - Full Review

[@MountainFisher]

Excellent review Bogdan, I also noticed the front lens doesn't unscrew so you cannot put it on eyepieces for up to 1.5x magnification. I found the X-Cel Barlow in my club's equipment for loan list along with a lot of X-Cel eyepieces and I tried a few of them plus the Barlow in my C6-N Newtonian with refigured mirror to near perfect optics and the X-Cel's are okay for the price, but they don't match TeleVue and are not much better than the higher priced generic branded EPs. I wondered about the 3 lens design of the Barlow and to be honest I think they should've gone with four because it is no better than their Omni 2x Barlow that came with a telescope bundle I bought. I thought the Omni was pretty good and I never saw any blue fringe with it whatsoever in a reflector with no chromatic aberration so if you see any it is your Barlow or eyepiece, also the Omni was sharp to the edges with a TeleVue 11mm Plossl. I keep it in my outreach bag for my club's outreach nights. The X-Cel Barlow I thought would be better, but it wasn't, just buy the cheaper Omni if you want a ''Shorty" Barlow and it unscrews thus making one eyepiece into possibly three. And as you said the Svbony is a better deal. I never tried any Svbony products, but some seem interesting. I have a 2x TeleVue for 1.25" eyepieces is what I mostly use. I also borrowed and then bought the Celestron 2", four lens 2.5x Luminos apo Barlow. I installed a Baader Neodymium Moon and Skyglow filter (I recommend this filter to everyone, it's awesome) and looked at Jupiter and its four moons were just gorgeous with a 19mm Luminos. Even though I needed more power for a closer look I could easily see the bands. The Orion Nebula was beyond my expectations, I felt like I was looking at a color photo, that filter is well worth its price and the Barlow worked perfectly. I can recommend the Celestron 2.5x apo Barlow, but not the X-Cel Barlow. I didn't try their 3x X-Cel Barlow as we didn't have any to borrow.

[@BogdanDamian]

@MounatinFisher Thanks for your feedback! You are right the bottom part of the x-cel Barlow doesn't come off. For a shorty it's a good Barlow but now that you mentioned it, I wonder how it would compare to the 2.5x luminos Barlow. Maybe I'll try to get my hands on one and make a video on it. As Barlows go, the 2x Tele Vue is pretty much unbeatable below 200 bucks. Clear skies!

[@PauI__]

Professional, informative, well put toghether video, congrats. I still have to get my first barlow but I might try first ES focal extender, I am slightly worried about the wheight

[@misaelescobarruiz1193]

Saludos amigo mandé a comprar un barlow de ese mismo modelo y pronto lo usaré para planetaria

[@A0111.]

I think it would be very interesting to test barlows at daytime with DSLR - it's not a comprehensive test, but a good way to assess sharpness, vignetting, and geometric distortions (if you manage to find a distant brick wall, or any other suitable object with a grid pattern)

[@ronm6585]

Looks good, thanks.

[@janomacko5764]

Some eyepieces tend to show vignetting in combination with a Barlow. I wonder if a shorter design of this one helps with this issue or not. Perhaps it's too eyepiece-dependent.

[@PauI__]

@Bogdan I see you are using the ts optics handle on your sv503, can you please let me know what screws you use, how long they need to be to be in order to fit. Thanks

[@BogdanDamian]

@PauI__ Hi Paul, I used two M6 12mm screws for attaching the handle to the two OTA rings. The minimum length for the screws would be 10mm, but I recommend getting some that are 12 or 14mm long just to be on the safe side.

[@PauI__]

@@BogdanDamian thank you, I will go search for some 12mm then

[@Stephen-gp8yi]

Hi bogdan I’ve just ordered two baader Hyperion eyepieces.was wondering if I need to buy a baader barlow or will my svbony barlows work as good?thanks.

[@BogdanDamian]

@Stephen-gp8yi Hi Stephen, that is nice! Your Svbony Barlow will work just fine with the new Hyperion eyepieces. You don't need a Baader Barlow.

[@patrikniskanen7170]

Did you change microphone after the "Can a 4” ED be everything you need?" video? I have noticed a decrease in speech quality for the last few videos. 😅 Nonetheless I have enjoyed your content! 😀

[@BogdanDamian]

@patrikniskanen7170 Thanks for your feedback! I actually did change a couple of aspects in the recording process. I'll do some A-B testing before recording the next video to eliminate any negative effects.

[@A0111.]

How about making a review of Svbony Sv137 2x barlow? I see it for AU$13.6 at a well known Chinese online selling platform. I used to have a TeleVue 2x barlow, but sold it, as I didn't see any difference in picture quality.

[@BogdanDamian]

@A0111. Hi! Thanks for the suggestion. I put the SV137 on the list with items to review in the future.

[@3dfxvoodoocards6]

Like

[@Euripides_]

Great video production always. But…. So much script! 😅