ToupTek ATR2600C AstroCam: A Deep Dive into its Astrophotography Prowess

[@redincal4603]

Hi, thank for this video!! Could you answer me whitch version is better? AR or IR filter?

[@Naztronomy]

I personally prefer the AR glass because we can add a separate UV/IR cut filter later on. Let me know if you have more questions.

[@DeepSpaceAstro]

Really nice review Naz! Very thorough!

[@Naztronomy]

Thanks, Rich 😊 Now if only I could afford to keep this camera!

[@tvanpeer]

As I just got myself one of these cameras, I am very happy with your review as guidance for my setup. I do think though that there are good use cases for using HCG. First one being narrow band and the second one dim objects like dark nebulae. In both cases you probably will not completely use your full well capacity and then the extra gain is very welcome. Any thoughts on that? And the dew heater is an essential component! I had a session the other day where the humidity was above 95%. I had set the dew heater value in NINA to 2, but still a dew spot formed. Next time with this kind of humidity I will stick to 4.

[@Naztronomy]

That's a great point about using HCG on dimmer objects. It makes sense and this would match what ZWO does. They switch to HCG as soon as you hit a gain of 100 (but you can't manually switch it off). I have the camera for another month so I'll try to image one of the narrowband objects you saw in this video once again with HCG. I've only used this camera in my Bortle 8 backyard so I haven't dared to shoot any dark nebulae. But that would be another good test. Thanks for the question and feedback! It's a great point. 95% humidity is very high! Where do you live? I had one session with really high humidity with the heater value at 2 as well and it took me way too long to figure out why I had a dew spot. Like you, I'm sticking with 4 when I'm expecting any kind of dew. Clear skies!

[@tvanpeer]

@@Naztronomy I live on an island in The Netherlands, so lots and lots of water around me, and in autumn we sometimes have fog, where humidity goes up. Usually humidity here is around 60-70%, so this was really an exception. When I tested my camera inside I had the impression that the camera was having a hard time to keep the temperature at -10°C with the heater at 4. But when I tested again yesterday that didn’t seem to be the case.

[@Naztronomy]

@@tvanpeer Ah cool! 60-70% is definitely more manageable, glad that 95% is out of the norm. Similar situation where I live (except I have water only on one side). I wonder if the issue you saw with the temperature is the power adapter. I've had issues with my ZWO astrocam keeping temperature in the past, I realized that it was my power adapter. For some reason, it wasn't fitting properly. I had to make sure I really push it in there then it was fine. I ended up getting a new adapter and haven't had that issue since. But yeah, even at -5C, I would randomly see the cooler struggling.

[@bobreagan3266]

can you or some one ex plain how to install and configure the tilt plate please

[@AstroAF]

I definitely think you should remove that screw. I heard there’s a prize inside! 😂 Great review Naz! Seems like an excellent camera. Competition is definitely a good thing for all of us. Cheers! Doug

[@Naztronomy]

I will unscrew it and post it in my next video. What's the worst that could happen? Thanks, Doug 😊