Mount Review (Preliminary)

The mount is not yet field-tested but the purchase decision was based on:

• Budget (no braking or robbing of a bank)
• Sturdiness, robustness, wind resistance
• Superior tracking accuracy for lunar imaging
• Built-in polar alignment scope
• Independence with hand control
• Wi-Fi capable (with optional dongle)
• Similarity to the Orion Atlas EQ-G mount
• User reputation and reviews, personal habit

When fully set up the mount weighs about 35kg with counter weights. A discount coupon for body building is not included. In turn the mount is stubbornly sturdy and is as unshakeable as the pole star.😉

The EQ6-R Pro bundles two 5kg counter weights. One of them fixed at the lower end of the also included Ø18mm shaft is sufficient for balancing the mount for an 8-inch SCT with a CMOS camera or a DSLR.

The conventional Ø5.5/2.1mm power supply receptacle has been replaced with a GX12-2 type BNC providing a more secure connection. The mount bundles a GX12-2 plug and cable with a car cigar lighter plug at its other side, ideal for use with power stations, say, in the field.

The mount can be controlled with the included famous SynScan hand control running firmware V6.x.x. It further supports computer control via USB 2.0 (type B) or wirelessly with an optional Wi-Fi adapter which generates its own spot. Sky-Watcher's dedicated SynScan app is tailored to PCs (Windows / Mac) and smartphones / tablets (Android / iOS).

Note that the Wi-Fi adapter is optional and that the USB port of a smartphone/tablet must support OTG. Either the hand control or Wi-Fi can operate the mount but not simultaneously as both the hand control and the external Wi-Fi adapter share the same RJ-45 input port on the mount's main panel. A sister model, the EQ6R-W mount bundles the external Wi-Fi adapter, but in turn not the hand control. Else both mounts are identical. Bluetooth is not provided as basically expendable because of short range and connection reliability.

The EQ6-R Pro incorporates an illuminated polar alignment scope with adjustable brightness, quick and helpful in various imaging or observation conditions.

The mount is compatible with ASCOM, Luminos, Sky Safari, StarSeek, Stellarium, SkyTrack, etc. The author operates the mount via its USB port without the SynScan app, instead with a laptop PC running SharpCap 4.1 Pro, GS-Server and Stellarium (a matter of taste and habit). Here, the hand control and WiFi adapter are not in the loop, but can rescue an imaging session when unable to bring along or fire up a laptop (the Murphy countermeasure).

When using the SynScan app instead of GS Server/EQMOD be sure to download and install Sky-Watcher's ASCOM driver for the SynScan App if you use planetarium or capture software in which to choose from. In any case, your controlling PC needs the ASCOM platform. This is the astronomy core engine comparable with a PC operating system. Vendors of ASCOM-compatible software usually supply proprietary driver software which seemlessly interface with ASCOM.

USB Cable Connection

When connecting the PC with the USB port (type B), after a little while the Windows Device Manager shows under LPT & COM:

Profilic PL2303GL USB Serial COM Port (COM3)

The COM port# may be different on your PC. This serial connection requires a baud rate of 115200 ! If you have used for instance 'EDMOD' or 'GS Server' with an older Sky-Watcher or branded mount, such as the Orion Atlas EQ-G, then please modify the baud rate setting from 9600 to 115200. The EQ6-R Pro will not connect at 9600 Baud. The SynScan app for Windows in Serial mode (via the USB port) selects 115200 by default and connects flawlessly.

The EQ6-R Pro mount internally employs the serial protocol for receiving commands and returning responses. Behind the USB port is basically a USB-to-Serial converter.

Hand Control

The bundled SynScan 'V5' hand control, HC, arrived with firmware version 6.00.07. Though the versions have grown, the hand control still does not keep date and time (no RTC and internal battery). The display of V5 is smaller than that of the V3 hand control. It has a RJ-45 (8-pin) socket for its spiral RJ-45 cable, further an USB type B port primarily for firmware updates and an universal RJ-12 (6-pin) port for accessory.

Wi-Fi Control

The EQ6-R Pro requires an optional Wi-Fi dongle which connects with the SynScan app. The first attempt to connect wirelessly failed with several computers and portable devices. It establishes a spot and shows up as 198.162.4.1 as specified, but throws a "Communication Error" message. Working on it.