Nexstar 6se good for beginner?

[alter]

Hello, I recently purchased a Nexstar Powerseeker 127eq but I'm disappointed in it so far and thinking of returning it. I really don't like the mount. I upgraded from a celestron firstscope and the powerseeker's tripod seems kind of flimsy with a lot of screws and dials sticking out and when I try to use the scope its own dials bang into itself, limiting the scopes movement and making it hard to easily point at what I want. Also the counterweight feels like it will slide off at any time since only one screw is holding it on,etc. Anyway I was thinking of getting a Nexstar 6se, it seems like its a simpler design and with the computer easier to find stuff with. I was wondering if that was a good choice for a beginner. I think if I got a 4se it will be too small and if I have to spend that kind of money I want to get one I won't have to upgrade for a while. I want a scope I'll be able to use easily, which doesn't take up a lot of space, and which I can get into photography with later on. I appreciate any advice. Thanks.

[OleCuss]

IMHO, the 6SE is a good telescope and well-suited for use by a beginner. Not the best choice for astrophotography although some do surprisingly good photos with similar.

For astrophotography you'll likely end up wanting a very good German Equatorial Mount (GEM) with a high quality (but likely fairly small) refractor. There are other choices that can be made as well but that is sort of the lower-cost option for high-quality astrophotography (AP).

But I generally don't recommend that beginners start out buying telescopes for AP. Better to get something for visual use and then start planning and plotting your future course. After all, if you start out in Astronomy with a good 6-8 inch Dobsonian and then later buy a good AP rig, then while your AP rig is acquiring hours-long images you can still be using the Dobsonian rather than being bored out of your skull.

[sxinias]

Hi,

The Celestron 6SE is an excellent telescope for beginners and advanced astronomers alike. It's aperture is large enough to began to see details of many deep space objects. It also does planetary objects very well .... a good all around telescope that is portable and easy to use.

The 6SE is designed as a light-weight, portable, visual, telescope. Here it is king. It has an azimuth mount and a lightweight tripod; neither particularly suited for astrophotography. Having said that, you can do some credible work imaging the brighter deep space objects like the Messier Objects with the 6SE using short exposure, azimuth mount techniques and a DSLR camera. Here is a link to a thread that discusses photography with azimuth mounts and gives some examples of what can be done: Astrophotography with Azimuth Mounts

Here is a photograph of M8, The Lagoon Nebula, captured with a C6S OTA (identical to the 6SE OTA) on a SkyWatcher Synscan AZ mount (not near as sturdy or stable as the SE mount):

[mikeyfly]

The Celestron 6SE is an excellent telescope for beginners and advanced, and you can get great images even with just a webcam, if you look around on the forum you will find lots of info on 6se and some images from it.
mike
Here are some that i got from mine using a webcam----->

[jimt]

Short answer to your question is YES! the 6SE is a great starter scope. Go for it.

Joe, is that your Lagoon Nebula? It is awesome.

Jim

[tmohr]

Alter, I'll agree with everyone here. I picked up a 6SE at an estate sale a few weeks back. I've been out with it several times now. I can setup, tripod level, mount secured, and Sky-Align in just under 20 minutes (I tend to be distracted by shiny things <stars>). Last night's session was 7+ hours long, every goto had the object within the supplied 25 mm eyepiece. Jupiter, Uranus, Mars, Saturn, multiple globular and open clusters all well within reach. I even got to see Scultor Galaxy (NGC 253), M33, M31, ..... truly an awesome little performer!

[alter]

Hey thanks for all the good advice. I've made the decision to return the 127eq and bite the bullet and order the 6SE. Thanks again.

[jimt]

You will be very happy you did.

Jim