Entry ticket to serious Astrophotography? - ZWO ASI183MC Pro Review

Planning to step up your astrohotography game from a DSRL and looking for a dedicated astro cam? Then you may come across the ZWO ASI183 model. But: Is it any good and worth your money? Watch the video to have me showcase the most important aspects of this camera and my opinion after almost one year of using it.
The videos mentioned in this video:
Power supply guide: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a6mzo5Jvm66LrJo
Calibration frames: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eGixlWmKfM13nLs
Dark databank: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y3rGm2BrrtOkpc0
William Optics GT71 review: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nJTahayvqNuMprs
Chrizzly Music: kzbin.info/door/ZL88lQYD-6cogzxGgsgxgg
#ZWO #ASI #Astrophotography

[@TiagoRamos79]

I think it's an excellent camera, mainly because of the 2.4nm pixel size. But otherwise I think the 533 sensor is superior. I have the Colors version for 1 year and a few months. I ended up getting the Mono version too. For the price this sensor is phenomenal. It's not the best sensor on the market, but for what it offers vs price it's unbeatable personally for me. The difference is who likes to photograph in a square like me (who already come from the times of the Apollo program). Some people like it, others don't, we have to respect democracy, that's how it is.

[@AstroGuy99]

A well made, extremely thorough, and useful review. Thank you Chris.

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Thank you for the kind words, too! Glad I could help :)

[@billchilds4261]

Excellent overview of the MC183 Pro! This very well done video was very informative! Keep up the good work!

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Thank you, appreciate your comment! :) Clear skies!

[@Farathus]

I have a 750mm F/5, a 2000mm C8 and a 400mm Canon lens I plan to use with this camera. Looks like the Camera will be able to produce good and sharp images with all of them. For the 2000mm I'll be oversampling, but binning should be able to fix that easily (According to astronomy tools I'll need 3x3 or 4x4 binning) It's only Software binning, without the advantages of CCDs, but I should be ok. The small sensor size also should be great to avoid any COMA from my reflectors in the images. Looks like it's a good match for me.

[@user-vn8cs8tt2x]

I ordered this and it just came in today!!! Would appreciate if you could do a setup tutorial in how you would use it to capture DSO and Planetary objects! subbed and looking forward to future videos!

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Hey there, hope you enjoy it and thanks for the comment! I can keep those ideas in mind, but in the close future I wont be able to make it. As a heads up, I would recommend to set the gain to something similar I showed in the video (50/100/111) and set the cooling temperature to something like -10 °C. Maybe in the future I can make a video. Good luck and much fun with the cam! CS, Chris

[@Brians_Astro-Adventures]

Great info tutorials.

[@Psychlist1972]

the ASI2600 does still need dark frames. It doesn't have that amp glow, but it will still have stuck/dead pixels which need to be calibrated out, as well as some level of noise. It's my main astro cam, though. I do like it. :)

[@pimpmytoast]

Nice videos :)

[@YYZSQL]

Thank you for the review of the 183MC Pro! I started my journey in astrophotography last fall and building my astrophotography rig. There is almost nothing out there reviewing the 183MC Pro. I'm considering this camera, the 533MC Pro and the 294MC Pro. All would be a big improvement over my Nikon D500 and Nikkor 200-500mm f 5.6 lens. What would you choose between the three I mentioned? Thanks again!

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Thanks for the comment! And welcome to this great hobby! :) Phew, thats a tough one. Many people are using the asi294 and I think its the "most known" beginner deep sky camera 🤔 Has a bigger pixel size of 4.63um and 14 Bit ADC but less resolution, the asi533 is similar with 3.7 um and also 14 Bit ADC. I think it highly depends on your focal length you plan on matching your scope with. You can use the fov calculator I mentioned in the video to check your combination. With the 533 and 294 you "have more space" towards the upper focal lengths. As I said close to the end of the video, my dream would be something like the ASI2600 with an APS-C sized chip, but thats another budget level...(or maybe the Omegon VETEC 571C which is a bit cheaper). From those three without knowing your FL, I'd probably go with the 533. I chose the 183 for myself b/c of the high resolution and my shorter FL scope (and because I didnt know any better haha). Hope I could help! Clear skies!

[@walsc]

I own all three of the cameras you mentioned. Go for the 533MC Pro, it causes the fewest headaches if you are a beginner in astrophotography. You can scale up the resolution in your software (Astropixelprocessor for example) if you have to.

[@spyda96]

Just found this channel. So I am pushing it with a 610mm Newt. Which version of the raspberry Pi are you using for the astroberry? Pi 3 or 4. Also are you using the PHD or the built in guider on the Astroberry?

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Hi there! Saw your other comment too but I'll answer you here in this one ;) Welcome and thanks for commenting! Yeah with the optimal image scale youre pushing it a bit, but these are just recommendations and not hard rules. Used the 183 on my 800mm Newton (with 1x1 binning) and it still delivers decent images, depending on the seeing and sky quality, so it will still work with you at 610mm. I have the Pi4 and I'm switching between using PHD2 and internal guider. Currently Im using the Pi as a standalone autoguider running Ubuntu (my 2 newest videos) where I opted for PHD2. Clear skies!

[@markwood1660]

Sorry to jump on the comments here but I didn't see any other way to ask a couple of questions related to the Astroberry - Pi set up. Perhaps i missed it in one of the the other videos ( all very good by the way ) but basically Ii am setting up a second rig which seems to be very similar to yours. 183MC, SestoSeno 2 , Guide Cam, EQM35. My main problem other than that Astroberry is quite flaky on the Pi is how to add specifically the Sesto into EKOS profile while also keeping the EQMOD connection for the mount. Do you have any setup that you can share before I throw in the towel and decide to go back to a windows Mimi PC, Thanks Mark

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Hi Mark! No problem topic-wise and thanks for commenting. Havent used the Pi much with a mount requiring EQ-MOD (a few tries with a Skywatcher NEQ-3, but without the Sesto Senso). I did however run into a problem once when setting up the Sesto Senso 2 while at the same time having the GPS-USB dongle connected to the Pi. (There were some special settings in some USB/Init file in the raspbian system files. If I remember correctly, the link to a forum post should be under my "Ultimate smart telescope Ep.2" video, but if the error really translates to the EQMod, I'm not too sure... But before you go that path, try this: Have you at any time connected your Sesto Senso 2 to a Windows PC? If not, you should connect it with the original SW from Primalucelab. There you can check and upgrade your firmware -> and I highly recommend to do so. I have two Sesto's, both came with a quite old firmware and that led to issues on Windows (in NINA), too. Basically you just start the program, click on the focusser in the GUI and upgrade the FW once via USB and then maybe try again on the Pi. Hope that helps, if not, there are still always the INDI forums at www.indilib.org/forum.html Good luck & CS! :) Chris

[@markwood1660]

@@ChrizzlyUniverse Thanks for the quick reply - I also have 2 Sesto and use them on a win PC on my other mount so they are up to date. and working through NINA. I will check the Indi site to see if i should be using a different Ekos connection for the EQM35 rather than EQMOD.. otherwise i think it will be time to acquire the mini pc for the travel mount also - at least I know that it will be stable. Mark

[@gooby8507]

Dumb question as im new to all this astrophotography stuff but am i able to put this on a sct telescope?

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

There are no dumb questions ;) I dont own an SCT so I cant tell you from a practical standpoint, but my understanding is that this should be possible, as the camera uses standard diameters for connecting. Just be aware of the optimal focal range for this pixel size (I'm talking about this topic in the video, too). SCTs tend to be in the higher FL range (>1000mm) and this pixel size of 2.4 um is mostly suitable for mid-range focal lengths (200-800mm). Ofc you can use binning with this camera up to 4x4 so its more suitable for higher FL, but then your image resolution goes down. Hope I could help! Clear skies! ✨

[@olivierbufole1291]

how good is the live view for this? I want to able to see a dso in live view so I can get a good pic before I start the exposures.

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Hey! Depends on what you mean by live view - i.e. which exposure range... I usually shoot 5-10s shots to check my framing and then try around with 30-60s if the guiding etc works and if I'm happy with the sub-length. So I'd say, yes in that sense🤔 For plate solving, 1-2s exposures are enough to center the target.

[@olivierbufole1291]

@@ChrizzlyUniverse so if you were to start imaging a dso, can you see it before you start taking long exposures?

[@olivierbufole1291]

For example, Andromeda looks faint where I live. I have a eos 40d and it can't pick it up in live view so I'm wondering if the asi183mc can see fainter dso in live view before taking the long exposures.

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

@@olivierbufole1291 well as this camera does not have a live display, you can set the refresh rate in your astro-capture software of choice by yourself. Typically, you can see rough outlines already with 1-2s refresh exposures. M42 for example would be clearly visible with these settings, M31 too. Of course for fainter nebulae you might need longer "refresh rates" aka continous exposures. Hope that clears things up! Clear skies!

[@ngers3614]

Welche Funktion hat das Flachkabel rechts am Astroberry bei 21:41?

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Hi! Das war mal ein Versuch mit Livebild zur Remote-Überwachung des Teleskops mit Pycam. War eine IR Kamera, aber für dieses Video nicht relevant 🙂 CS!

[@frylancer001]

Chip 183 has 5496 x 3672 px! I have QHY 183 C, beginner, first tested in sharpCap, expozition 30s, gain 30 (max 50), with L-enhance filter, but no nebula did appeared. What´s wrong? :(

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Hi there! From your description, three things come to my mind: The relative gain setting will differ between the ZWO and the QHY, so I'd advise you to set it to about 1e- per ADU in absolute gain. (You need to look into the graph provided for your camera, for me with ZWO its about 100 - 111 relative gain, as seen in the video). Gain 30 might be reasonable, but I dont know the QHY settings. Next thing I'd check, if you are actually focused, because faint nebulae might be invisible if you are too far off. Last thing I could think of would be that your target is outside your field of view (FOV). Do you use platesolving? Maybe try to find a target you can find more easily and try again. Normally with 30s, you should be starting to see some shapes, I'll usually take 60s and 120s test shots. Btw I'm also using the L-enhance ocassionally, I think that does not contribute to the problem. Hope I could help you with some of the tips, good luck and CS! Chris

[@frylancer001]

@@ChrizzlyUniverse Hi! Thanks for your answers. Yes, I´m good focused (Bahtinow mask), now I´ll have ZWO EAF, stars in location were sharp. I used Omegon planetery uncooled 178C, same pixels and nebulaes were immediatelly visible, BUT Gain set on maximum 5000! QHY has only about max. 50, recommended gain about 10 - 30 (with narroband filters), so I did tested whole range of gain, with 20 - 30s and still nothing visible. I dontt know what´s platesolving and there is another feature - offset. So, I think if I should set the exposition on 120 - 130 s???

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

@@frylancer001 Okay, so then my suggestions are not the problem it seems, if you are sure you are pointing your telescope to the correct patch in the sky. (Platesolving is a computational technique to solve a taken image mathematically and compare it with a databank in order to know at what patch in the sky your scope is actually pointing, I use this to get my framing spot on). I use an offset of '10' for my 183 MC and I think you can raise your exposure, yes, depending on the light pollution in your area. Apart from that, Im not sure what the problem would be, you do see stars, right?

[@frylancer001]

@@ChrizzlyUniverse Yes I saw. I´ve 10´telescope, quick 4,7 and 2,3 with 0,5x reducer, so system very fast! I did tested this 2,3 ratio on M33, galaxy was visible and on nebulas in Auriga, these nebulaes were not visible, so its weird....than tested in cam Omegon 178 (but gain 5000) and nebulaes were immediatelly visible....

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

@@frylancer001 Ok that is very odd. Only thing I could think of would be a different data format for the images... but apart from that, its an actually quite strange phenomenon...

[@RichardKCollins]

Dark databank. Can that be automated?

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Hi! Depends a bit on what setup/software you use. Kstars on Linux supports a tool to capture frame databanks, in NINA you can pretty much do the same by setting up different sequences in the sequence tab. I recommend watching my video on frame databanks: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y3rGm2BrrtOkpc0 Depending on your favorite stacking software, you need to include the files then. In Pixinsight, I've created master darks and master bias for my typical settings. For Deepskystacker, it will create master darks/bias automatically for every session, so you can simply use those later on. The databank creation for me took 2-3 days, with the camera/controller-PC running overnight taking all these exposures. Hope I could help, CS!

[@fredmercury1314]

Would this work well on a Celestron Evo 8?

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

Hey, as in every situation, it depends what your goals is. If you want to image the moon, the small chip size gives high magnification and higher recording fps (-> lucky imaging), but then there is no use of the cooler (because you take short exposures). For deep sky, the pixel size is rather tiny for the focal length (see the section in the video). As I saw, the Evo 8 is an alt-az mount, so you will run into problems for longer exposures, as your image will rotate, not so much recommended for long deep sky exposures. Conclusion: => Lunar, planetary: yes, possible, but cooler unnecessary (you can get cheaper planetary cams); Deepsky: Not so much, due to small pixel size + Alt-Az mount on Evo 8. Hope that helps! Clear skies

[@fredmercury1314]

@@ChrizzlyUniverse Thanks! I found a used one for a reasponable price but I think I'll pass. Would you be able to recommend a planetary cam in the £500 region, that's better than my Canon EOS 2000?

[@ChrizzlyUniverse]

@@fredmercury1314 Hm, I guess you're from the UK, so I dont know if you have access to the Astroshop's inhouse brand 'Omegon'. I have the Omegon Velox 224c and use it mainly for guiding, but it should also be well suited for you for planetary/lunar. You could also look for something with similar specs from ZWO etc. Cheers!

[@fredmercury1314]

@@ChrizzlyUniverse Thanks so much!

[@joedizzelfoerizle]

I'm not so sure, smells like up-dog if you ask me 🤔