One of the most popular and highly regarded affordable telescope mounts, the Celestron Advanced VX, is on special at BINTEL
Is this telescope mount for me?
We’d class this as one of the smaller, but fully featured computerised mounts. It’s large enough to carry a decent sized telescope including a Celestron C8 SCT and works well for both visual and astro imaging duties. It’s portable and each of its main components – tripod, mount head, counterweight etc – can be easily lifted and moved around by one person. A handy feature for when you need to pack up in the dark after an observing session!
(The Advanced VX at its regular price would normally be closer to the Sky-Watcher HEQ5 and has a similar range of features. At this current special of $1199, it’s the same price as the Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer GTI mount and tripod. If you’re tossing up between two, the Sky-Watcher won’t have the carrying capacity of the Advanced VX but it is lighter and easier to move around.)
What types of telescopes can I use on the Advanced VX?
Basically, any type of telescope that’s under about 13.5kg. Most telescope tubes made the in the last few years have either narrow or “Vixen” or wide “CGE” dovetail bars and the head on the Advanced VX can accept both. This mount has a been a popular upgrade for Celestron StarSense Explorer DX series telescope owners who want to move into astrophotography with a full “GOTO” mount. If you have a telescope that you’d like to mount on the Celestron Advanced VX, you’re more than welcome to have a chat with us.
Here’s a few telescopes OTAs (Optical Tube Assemblies) that would suit the Advanced VX mount:
What about using my DSLR camera for Milky Way and wide-field deepsky images?
Yes, you can use the Celestron Advanced VX as a star tracker mount with your DSLR camera. You’ll need a DSRL and lens plus a dovetail rail like this one. Bolt it into the base of your DSLR camera and then mount it on the Advanced VX.
What’s included?
The Celestron Advanced VX mount includes:
- The mount itself
- A full height tripod
- One counterweight
- Celestron hand controller
- 12v power lead with a standard cigarette lighter plug
Are there optional extras?
Yes! There several options. First of all, you can add the ability to control the mount via app on your phone or iPad/tablet with this Celestron accessory:
Another alternative is the more comprehensive ZWO ASIAIR. This is a complete but tiny astronomy computer that can control your mount, DSLR or ZWO camera and even lets you plan astro imaging sessions. (Please note there are several versions of this available.)
There’s also the option of portable power:
Or power the mount from the mains at home:
Celestron also has a couple of options for automatic mount alignment and guiding:
There’s a lot more to the Celestron Advanced VX mount and drop BINTEL a message if you’d like to know more.
Cheers,
Earl White
BINTEL