Review: Pegasus Astro Pocket Powerbox

[@southernexposure123]

I've watched most of your videos today and find them very informative. I'm not sure how many devices I'll need for my meager - at this time - set up. I now have Stellarium and a few stacking and post processing apps in my PC but at the moment my next concern is whether to buy a smart phone just for astronomy apps. My biggest concern is whether the smart phone polar align apps work good enough out of the box to replace eyeball viewing of Polaris. To get in position to see through the alignment scope I'll have to do a lot of stretching exercises to be able to get down low enough to see through my polar scope (or extend the tripod legs to a point where stability could be a limiting factor. I understand that rough polar alignment is "only" a starting point in the mount alignment process. Thank you for your time.

[@NebulaPhotos]

Another good alternative is polar alignment with SharpCap Pro. Search for videos about it. I hope to do a video on polar alignment methods soon. I also can offer more personal help on Patreon. Cheers!

[@southernexposure123]

@@NebulaPhotos Thank you very much.

[@siegfriednoet]

Interesting video again as usual, thank you ! Don't you have the need for more 12V power outputs ? Main camera, guiding cam, filter wheel, mount, motor focusser, .... ? How do you solve that ?

[@NebulaPhotos]

My guide cam and filter wheel don't use 12V power, they are both powered over USB. So the only four 12V outputs I need are for: mount, motor focuser, main camera (cooler), and USB Hub.

[@siegfriednoet]

@@NebulaPhotos ah yes, ofcourse, didn't think at that (just beginning with photography in astro) Thank you for the answer !

[@mehedihasan-yc9eb]

I have another 'Advance' version of pegasus device. Aside, have a 12v 10.83amp DC adapter, can i use it for this device?

[@NebulaPhotos]

I'm not sure and don't want to give bad advice. I would suggest emailing them this question: support [at] pegasusastro [dot] com

[@kevinashley478]

00:20 whoa, you sound like you have a sore throat or something.

[@mikehardy8247]

I bought the Astro Pocket Power Box Advance. It's $100 more than the "Micro" but it has a powered 4 port USB HUB built in. I'm using the Pegasus with one of 2 trackers, else "SW" Star Adventurer, or MOVE-SHOOT-MOVE. 5V to eliminate need to wory about these trackers batteries was worth it for me. Not sure if this "intermediate solution was available at time of this review. I was going to build my own with "buck/boost " modules off Amazon. This is totally worth it for convenience, and all the tinkering I'd have had to do wasn't worth it. I previously built a Dew heater controller using PWM LED dimmer modules, 4 for $10 compared to around $130 for commercial product. Keep being AWSOME!

[@StephenMattison66]

Great info, thanks, but this video should/could have been < 10 minutes.

[@fazergazer]

I started using my original pocket power box for its extra power ports. Problem occurred when I added dew heaters and needed to connect to it from my windows 10 PC....using their drivers and control app, I continue to get error “cannot find known device”. Now helps from Pegasus and only see stuff on CN about the power box advanced...

[@KB2AT]

I love using mine. Great video Nico.

[@NebulaPhotos]

Thanks Chris!

[@johnlong5235]

Would you do a ASIair review? Can it be used with PPB micro? Your videos are very helpful.

[@matthewmansfield3817]

Pegasus do not supply a power lead anymore so you will have to pay an extra £20-£60 for one of theirs.

[@AstroQuest1]

Great video Nico. I have the PPB and use a HUB hub as well and love love it. I also leave mine connected with the USB Hub but did not know I could turn each port on and off - thanks for the info. - Cheers Kurt

[@NebulaPhotos]

Thanks Kurt, Clear skies!

[@Spaced_Out_Bill]

Great review. I'm buying one now! Thank you.

[@davidemancini7853]

Love your videos Nico, very professional😎what USB HUB do you use to connect your usb cable?

[@NebulaPhotos]

Thanks! Anker 7 port powered Hub: amzn.to/2uydA79

[@dennismichels7194]

A review of your experience with the Stellervue 86 would be appreciated

[@NebulaPhotos]

The major issue with a review is that Stellarvue only made a very limited first batch and then discontinued the scope due to an issue with the manufacturer. Now, I believe Stellarvue only makes their scopes in-house. Email me if you have any questions though!

[@bpm990d]

I love mine. I should have bought the Ultimate even though it's crazy expensive. Built in USB hub & stepper driver for a focuser, so you can get less expensive focuser.

[@NebulaPhotos]

Yeah, I already had the Optec FocusLynx and associated motor, so the decision was pretty easy for me. If I was starting from scratch with no focus motor, I would probably go Ultimate too.

[@jimcauthen2132]

good comparison of the different power management options. I'm currently a power-pole guy, but will be upgrading to the Pegasus Powerbox v2 soon for its ability to do even more with cable and weight management (removing dew heater & USB hub), so that justifies the price for me. As for the video, your voice was off sync by quite a bit during parts of the video - i thought maybe it was my AppleTV, but even on the laptop the voice sync was far off.

[@NebulaPhotos]

Thanks for the note about voice sync. Someone else mentioned it and I’m looking in to what went wrong

[@Thunder_Dome45]

I'd love to know what your battery setup is. I use a power tank with a 9ah battery I put in there for the mount and camera cooler, and another battery for my laptop, but they only last 8-9 hours. If I use a dew heater it might last 4 hours.

[@NebulaPhotos]

I use a marine lead acid battery like this: www.walmart.com/ip/EverStart-Marine-Battery-Group-Size-29DC/20531543 I believe it's 118 amp hour, which is usually overkill, but nice not to worry about running out of power.

[@astronorthwet636]

I was wondering about the powered USB hub. Glad to hear I made the correct choice, but would be interested to know why a powered hub is better.

[@NebulaPhotos]

In my experience, powered hubs are more reliable. I've heard this from other astrophotographer too, some of which use expensive INDUSTRIAL powered hubs. Also, some of my devices like my flats panel (the Pegasus Flatmaster) are powered over USB, the Anker has 2 ports that can provide 5v.

[@paulradford6902]

Hi Nico, can I run the PPB off a 17ah jumpstarter battery which I currently use to power my HEQ5 Pro and Zwo Asi Air?

[@NebulaPhotos]

Should work. It comes with a cigarette lighter style plug for running off battery.

[@paulradford6902]

@@NebulaPhotos brill. The other option is getting the new Zwo Asi Air Pro that has built in power ports like the PPB but I think each port has a lower output compared to the PPB and I don't think you can run a DSLR off it.

[@PeterClarke55]

One criticism I have with the power box is its lack of Ascom software. I would love to be able to use the power box with APT or NINA but without Ascom that is not possible. I think all users should contact Pegasus to supply this feature, what do you think?

[@bpm990d]

I'm just starting to use NINA and are you talking about the Switch tab under equipment? If that's what you are talking about, then I'll send Evans an e-mail inquiring about an ASCOM driver for the PPB.

[@NebulaPhotos]

It does have ASCOM support but I have never used APT or NINA so not sure about their feature set. I forgot to mention in the review, but I do have it set up in SGP through ASCOM.

[@bpm990d]

@@NebulaPhotos I think that is an ASCOM controller for the temp & humidity sensor, but lacks the interface tools for the dew heaters and each power connector. I was just on the Pegasus site and they released another device that sits in between the PPB & the Ultimate. The new version has a USB 3 Hub.

[@NebulaPhotos]

Ah, I see. Thanks