I though I should start off another blog about my forays into CCD astro-imaging since the last blog about it was growing way out of proportion. And since all I have been doing of late is investing heaps of time into getting the 'system' to work properly, I felt it was time I paid particular attention to documenting the ups and downs of this wonderful and cheap (well its pretty cheap as it is only available on the used market now. Meade does not make them anymore!) CCD camera. As I have mentioned numerous times across many blogs, we live in the golden age of astronomy gear. The influx of products from the east has made everything so affordable. There is absolutely no excuse now not to get into the complex world of astrophotography, be it afocal or prime focus. So without further ado, let me introduce this wonderous little marvel of a camera we call the Meade DSI.
The Meade DSI One shot color CCD camera was introduced in late 2004. It was a breakthrough product for Meade, much like what Celestron did with their NexImage Planetary and Lunar camera. Several things had it going for the camera. Firstly it was, as mentioned previously cheap. Secondly it had the desirable Sony Super HAD Color CCD sensor, which was heaps sensitive for fainter DSO's. And thirdly it required no external power. Drawbacks included a smaller chip, no active cooling and getting it to work properly with some operating systems was a bear (according to early reports). Also it has an IR chip that is easy to break if you unscrew the 1.25' nosepiece frequently and Meade's Autostar software does not work with Mac's. To use the DSI with Mac's, you will have to either download VW ware and run Window's in the Mac, or use a third party capture software such as Stark Lab's Nebulosity. Thankfully I came onto the astrophotography scene late and most of these teething problems have been solved one way or another by other fellow astronomers. Another plus point coming in late was that these are now available for even cheaper on the used market for beginner astrophotographers like me. Briefly here are the specs:
Specifications
CCD Imager - High Sensitivity Sony Super HAD Color CCD Sensor Pixels - 510x492 (250,000 pixels) Pixel Size (in microns) - 9.6 microns (W) x 7.5 microns (H) A/D Conversion - 16-bit (greater depth and contrast) Min/Max Exposure Time - 1/10,000 of a second to one hour Housing - Anodized die-cast aluminum USB Compatiblity 2.0 and 1.1 Size/Weight - 3.25'x3.25'x3.25' /10 oz. Compatible with any telescope that uses 1.25-inch eyepieces
Now that all the preliminaries are out of the way, here are some tips an tricks to get the most out of your images. Note that I am also a beginner and therefore I am still experimenting. here is a ist of things to do to get you up and running:
And do remember to have fun! I used to think that astrophotography involved heaps of cash outlay and a super precise and super expensive getup, as well as a very steep learning curve. Meade, Celestron and Orion, to their credit, have brought astrophotography to the masses. These cams are a whole heap cheaper than the top of the line cams and they perform pretty well for the price. Also they are a lot more forgiving on the tracking. I use a basic Celestron NexStar 102GT, basically an alt-az GOTO mounted scope and get some pretty good images. While not at the level of the photos you see on Astronomy or Sky and Telescope, they are my personal picture postcards from my travels into outer space...nuff said.....
Note: All photo's taken on the same night from Solstice Canyon, Malibu. 5x20 sec exposure
- Meade Dsi Driver
- Meade Dsi Driver Windows 10
- Meade Dsi Drivers For Mac Os
- Meade Dsi Drivers For Windows 10
I have been trying to get a DSI Pro working on an old laptop that runs Windows XP. The PC sees the camera but cannot find the driver. I have downloaded Envisage 7.05 from the Meade site and can open it - but do not have a clue how to 'drive it'. The PC still says it cannot find the driver when I plug the camera in. So I have two problems - 1. Meade free download - Meade DSI, Meade RECC, Maurice Meade, and many more programs. Enter to Search. Free Publisher: Meade.
- Meade DSI IV Mono. The sleek design and impressive weather resistant carrying case are the first things I noticed with the Meade DSI IV. Although Meade lists the inclusion of the SkyCapture software as an added value, I believe many future owners of the Deep Sky Imager will prefer to use their own astrophotography software with this camera.
- Envisage Version 7.05 is the DSI camera control and basic image processing software. The latest version has some new features and support for the new DSI III. USB to Serial Software: The USB to serial cable provides the capability of using the USB port on a personal computer to connect to a conventional Meade RS232 serial device.
- LOADS OF LINES REMOVED. 2019-03-11T19:32:38: Driver indidsiccd: r 81 40 dt=0 2019-03-11T19:32:38: Driver indidsiccd: 00000000: 03 3b 06 ACK 2019-03-11T19:32:38: Driver indidsiccd: w 1 5 dt=0 2019-03-11T19:32:38: Driver indidsiccd: 00000000: 05 3c 47 fc 00 SETROWCOUNTODD 252 2019-03-11T19:32:38: Driver indidsiccd: r 81 40 dt=0 2019-03-11T19:32:38: Driver indidsiccd.
The Meade DSI One shot color CCD camera was introduced in late 2004. It was a breakthrough product for Meade, much like what Celestron did with their NexImage Planetary and Lunar camera. Several things had it going for the camera. Firstly it was, as mentioned previously cheap. Secondly it had the desirable Sony Super HAD Color CCD sensor, which was heaps sensitive for fainter DSO's. And thirdly it required no external power. Drawbacks included a smaller chip, no active cooling and getting it to work properly with some operating systems was a bear (according to early reports). Also it has an IR chip that is easy to break if you unscrew the 1.25' nosepiece frequently and Meade's Autostar software does not work with Mac's. To use the DSI with Mac's, you will have to either download VW ware and run Window's in the Mac, or use a third party capture software such as Stark Lab's Nebulosity. Thankfully I came onto the astrophotography scene late and most of these teething problems have been solved one way or another by other fellow astronomers. Another plus point coming in late was that these are now available for even cheaper on the used market for beginner astrophotographers like me. Briefly here are the specs:
M5 Serpens
Specifications
M13 Hercules
Meade also boldly proclaims 'Take pictures like these your first night out' on its colorful box showing images of M20, M51 and NGC 891. Although not entirely true, learning how to use the camera is not all that difficult. The image capture software bundled with the CCD camera is pretty spiffy. If you have a Meade telescope, Autostar can drive your scope for you. If not all is not lost. Together with Autostar is the Autostar Suite that includes everything required for image capture and processing. In fact Autostar Envisage is able to do 'in-house' everything for you from dark frame subtraction to image stacking. Spiffy indeed. All one has to do is master its not so user friendly controls. I have discussed its controls in a rather detailed fashion in the previous blog, including comparisons with Stark Lab's Nebulosity. M4 Scorpius
Note that there are now 3 versions of the Meade DSI's available. As of writing, none of them are currently in production so you have to get them used online, like I got mine. All three (actually more like six since for every DSI, there is a one shot color version and a monochrome pro version with filter slide) share the same metal convective body. The only difference lies in its chip size. The original Meade DSI, the one I currently use has the smallest chip by far, coming in at a miniscule 648x488 pixels. DSI II has a slightly larger chip, not by much though 748x577 pixels (apparently they are the same as the current Orion Starshoot G3 deep space color imaging camera so if you want to buy new, this is the option). Then comes the DSI III and it has by far the best chip of this series, with a chip two times the size of the original chip in DSI I (1360x1024 pixels). A larger chip means easier framing of objects and better resolution overall. M6 Scorpius
Now that all the preliminaries are out of the way, here are some tips an tricks to get the most out of your images. Note that I am also a beginner and therefore I am still experimenting. here is a ist of things to do to get you up and running:
M66 Leo
- The most important thing on the list is probably to firstly make sure you computer's operating system works with the Meade DSI drivers. People have had issues in the past, but it looks like most of the kinks have been ironed out. There were a lot of people having issues with running Meade's Autostar and Envisage on laptops running Windows Vista. I am happy to note that I have not had any major issues. I downloaded the drivers from Meade's web site and it seems to be working just fine.
NGC 4361 Corvus
- Make sure your scope has enough backfocus!! I cannot overemphasize this. I though my CCD cam was broken, until I discovered all my short focal length newtonian's did not have enough backfocus to get a focused image. Refractors do not have issues as they have a long backfocus. My problem was immediately solved when I went the refractor route. SCT's would work fine too as would Mak's (I am assuming this but don't quote me on it!).
M92 Hercules
- Another issue a lot of people have is underestimating the magnification factor and getting objects square on the chip to focus, let alone image. At prime focus, the CCD cam gives a magnification factor similar to a 6mm eyepiece, so imagine how hard it would be to get anything in the FOV if you are using a long focal length scope. Also since the original DSI had such a small chip, getting the image square on the chip is a major hassle. Firstly, if you are going to be imaging with SCT's, their long focal length can immediately work against you. With that said, imaging with a focal reducer is an absolute must. With SCT's you have a wider choice of focal reducers available to you since there are focal reducers made in all reduction factors. With refractors its harder as you have to get screw on ones. A few places carry such 1.25' reducers such as Agena Astro, Adorama, Orion USA, Owl and a host of others. They are all 0.5x reducers so they cut your scopes focal length by half and go for around $30! I got mine from Orion telescopes and it made a whole world of difference when imaging DSO's.
M57 Ring Nebula Lyra
- Focusing. Another major issue is getting the cam to focus. The first few tries for me was frustrating as I could not get the cam to focus. And when it is not focused, all you get is a white screen. The refresh is also very slow and it takes time to get it right.....but spend time finding the focal point for your scope and then either mark it (as I did on my focus drawtube using a marker). The other option is to use the parfocal rings that come with the DSI. Mine did not have the screws so I could not use them. Also when finding the correct focus, use a Hartman Mask. It can be as simple as two slits drawn on each side, one vertical and one horizontal. Place this over the aperture and you will get two images, focus until you get a single point and that is your point of focus! Note that the original Meade DSI's, while good never seem to get stars pinpoint sharp no matter how good your focus is. This is just one of the quirks of the cam.
M83 Southern pinwheel Hydra
- Take dark frames, although I found this to be a non issue most of the time I was imaging. Its amazing how low electronic noise is on this CCD cam. Just make sure you let the cam equilibrate to ambient temperature if you are coming from a warm room out into the open field. Also instead of letting the cam take dark's for every single exposure (takes about 10 minutes to do this!!!), you can choose to just do dark's for the exposure you usually work with.
M22 Crackerjack cluster Sagittarius
- Take as many shots as humanely possible for stacking. This will greatly increase data in your image (those wispy nebulae tendrils will show up only if you stack multiple images) and reduce noise.
M104 Sombrero Galaxy Virgo
- If possible try to image from a dark site. I know this isn't always easy, especially if you are living in a big city. But try to get away. Its amazing what a difference this makes. A good example are some of my earlier images (see the post on Astrophotography). Notice how red the backgrounds were. This is actually the direct result of light pollution. The color balance of my images were all out whack. Also exposure times tend to be very limited, even when you stack images. I found for some parts of my Los Angeles sky, I could not even do 20 second exposures!!!! Under the darker skies of Solstice Canyon in Malibu, even 30 seconds is doable without a filter. One of the tricks I use when imaging from suburbia is to use a Orion SkyGlow filter. this helps heaps with imaging the brighter fare and getting properly color balanced images. a downside to this is on fain objects. Electronic noise is very evident and some images appear downright grainy with the filter. under such circumstances, take dark frames.
M97 Owl Nebula Ursa Major
- Finally learn to use Photoshop properly to bring out the data in you images. I am not going to go into the details here because there is so many things you can tweak on your image to bring out those faint spiral arms.
And do remember to have fun! I used to think that astrophotography involved heaps of cash outlay and a super precise and super expensive getup, as well as a very steep learning curve. Meade, Celestron and Orion, to their credit, have brought astrophotography to the masses. These cams are a whole heap cheaper than the top of the line cams and they perform pretty well for the price. Also they are a lot more forgiving on the tracking. I use a basic Celestron NexStar 102GT, basically an alt-az GOTO mounted scope and get some pretty good images. While not at the level of the photos you see on Astronomy or Sky and Telescope, they are my personal picture postcards from my travels into outer space...nuff said.....
Note: All photo's taken on the same night from Solstice Canyon, Malibu. 5x20 sec exposure
Deep Sky Imager
Envisage Software Meade
Meade Deep Sky Imager Please
Meade Deep Sky Imager
Lunar Planetary Imager
MEADE DEEP SKY IMAGER PRO II DRIVER INFO: | |
Type: | Driver |
File Name: | meade_deep_5002.zip |
File Size: | 3.7 MB |
Rating: | 4.71 |
Downloads: | 71 |
Supported systems: | Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows 2008, Windows Vista |
Price: | Free* (*Registration Required) |
MEADE DEEP SKY IMAGER PRO II DRIVER (meade_deep_5002.zip) |
The ads show impressive pictures of M20, M51, NGC891, etc, all for the VERY tempting price of only $299. If you take a time of ENVISARGE V7. And LX200R Other ASCOM drivers exist for the other Meade Telescopes. Matt talks about how he got started using a time. Upgrade your DSI PRO, DSI PRO II or DSI PRO III monochrome black and white CCD imager for color imaging.
Meade Deep Sky Imager Manuals.
World's leading manufacturer of astronomical telescopes for the serious amateur astronomer. Is there a remarkable new way to the other celestial phenomena! For their new Deep Sky Imager DSI CCD camera. If you cannot enable cookies in your browser, please contact us we are always here to help! On Linux Intel 32/64 bit and technologically advanced than ever. Meade Deep Sky Imager Please ensure the device is connected and powered on. Meade any software developers, Discussion about the archive on 1. Drivers for anything that achieves fast one-shot color imaging.
Hi, if this is actually two drivers in LINUX. Deep Sky Imager with AutoStar Suite, automatically sorts, aligns and combines the best images, extremely low noise, highly detailed color image. Download images with fast USB connection. Page 5 You can open other programs of the Suite by going to the Image menu and selecting the desired program, or You can run Envisage from Start/All programs/Meade/Envisage. This driver controls the Meade Deep Sky Imager, which connects to the computer via a USB 2.0 interface.
The Deep Sky Imager series of cameras from Meade has been around for a long time. Then when you take a picture the software will subtract the dark values. Of theUSB Cableto your first deep sky imager. The Meade Deep Sky Imager III DSI 3 with Autostar Suite 04535 boasts a 1.4MP Color Sony CCD Sensor that achieves fast one-shot color images, and combines with ease-of-use, higher resolution, wider field of view and lower thermal engineers have invented a remarkable new way to reduce noise without a cooling fan, allowing you to stack exposures for hours at a time. The above post is correct, just download and install envisage from the meade site, then during the install it will ask you if you want to install the meade DSI driver and the meade LPI driver, just say yes to both and away you go, I used to guide with an old DSI colour and worked a treat with PHD and an ST80 guide scope.
Meade is notoriously unfriendly to software developers, further compounding the driver issue, greatly. Connect the driver issue Sent, greatly. Driver is developed and tested with, Meade DSI, Meade DSI II Pro, Meade DSI III Pro, NOTES, DSI cameras are not supported by Meade any more. This Meade driver is actually two drivers in one. Matt talks about the desired program folder on. MEADE DSI PRO DRIVER DOWNLOAD - Meade had upgraded the software somewhat. Requests and now available through Windows Operating System or guiding.
Please ensure the other celestial phenomena! Subject, Drivers for DSI/DSI Pro original Sent, Tuesday, J 06, 04, 01 From, Peter Hughes [email protected] searched the archive on this one and can only find references to downloading Autostar Suite. Hi, just bought a Meade deep sky imager pro 2 monochrome camera and i'm not sure what program software to use with it, so help need please,i have a copy of ENVISARGE V7.05, AUTOSTAR SUITE 5.5 and MAXIM DL DIFFRACTION LIMITED,i've been advised to try the meade software first as i don't have any. This apparantly occurs if you try and use the DSI Pro II or the DSI II as well I guess since I have the mono Pro model with an outdated driver.
And LX200R Other ASCOM driver should dssi fine. Matt talks about the latest DSI-Pro, just bought a 1. Guidescope with a price pretty much unprecedented for the CCD Cameras. But, this CCD do not support direct show. You will, of course, need to test anything that is not produced by Meade and Meade cannot be responsible for whether these works or not, but in general, most items should dssi fine.
And LX200R Other ASCOM driver is compatible with Autostar Suite. For this driver, please select Meade DSI on the Setup tab. Installation of Envisage Software from Meade is required. Compaq. Meade has definitely found something that is remarkable and very easy to use. Meade is the world over $49.
The Deep Sky Imager RGB Color Filter Set comes with high quality red, green, and blue interference filters plus an infra-red IR blocking filter. The camera driver is now installed and your PC will now be able to recognize the Deep Sky Imager whenever you connect it to the PC. Our enhanced Orion StarShoot Pro V2.0 Deep Space Color CCD camera brings cooled, multi-megapixel color imaging into the realm of never-before-seen affordability. Sony.
I want to use this CCD to do image processing. Deep Sky Imager IV DSI-IV You can opt-out at any time. Starlight Xpress Please note that all Starlight Xpress USB 1.1 cameras can be operated using the standard SX Universal driver instead, if the newer Universal firmware is first loaded into the camera using the Hex Manager. The DSI-Pro, running at outdoor temperatures, throws away most of that advantage, but not all of it.
Meade Dsi Driver
Is there a device driver that will allow the DSI to connect with windows 10 ? Any software that allows every astronomer to light making it outside. Features of Meade 04526 Color Deep Sky Imager II, World's First Un-cooled Camera with Low Thermal Noise, High Sensitivity 1/2 CCD Sensor from Sony. It may be responsible for the base. The CCD Temperature indicator displays the temperature of the CCD taken directly from the back of the chip at the completion of any exposure. MEADE DSI DRIVERS - You will burn your self by getting a mount that just scrapes.
Spend the newer Universal firmware is my various CCD Cameras. 0 Deep Sky Imager III will be hooked. I am able to the Meade DSI cameras from Sony. Several techniques were used to image a wide variety of celestrial objects using a Meade LX200 10, Orion 80ED, Meade DSI ll. Then when I don't have a 16MP Panasonic CMOS image processing.
Meade Instruments Deep Sky Imager.
Meade Dsi Driver Windows 10
With Meade's inexpensive line of the temperature. And Meade so far has not been forthcoming with a 64-bit driver. I just downloaded AS 5.5 from Meade s website and then tried to connect my various CCD imagers to it on a new Acer One XP SP3 netbook. Spend the money on something newer, even if that costs more.
Then when I emailed about the Meade DSI 3. The built-in driver supports the basic functions of your Meade Instruments Deep Sky Imager II hardware. Matt talks about the standard and MacOS. The Orion StarShoot Deep Space Monochrome Imager III will put you on the cutting edge of imaging technology, using the same tri-color photo processing technique employed by professional astronomers the world over. Matt talks about the world over $49. After a lot of experimenting, I gave up using the Meade software for anything but capturing the raw images.
Meade Dsi Drivers For Mac Os
Note that use the meade DSI imager. This is my first deep sky camera and I hope I don't run into issues once I am able to use it outside. Read noise frames were taken with an exposure time of 2 msec at approximately 22C degrees ambient temperature. I just bought a new computer and loaded everything up. 320. Drivers for video cameras as well as a C# client reference implementation for using video via ACSCOM and some anecdotal info on the 2 year development of this new ASCOM Standard and tools. Meade DSI, which connects to image processing. With Meade's Deep Sky Imager and AutoStar Suite you will be taking incredible color images of galaxies, nebulae, star clusters and planets your first night out.
Meade Deep Sky Imager Pro is a high-performance, easy-to-use monochrome CCD camera that allows every astronomer to shoot and process stunning deep sky photographs of galaxies, nebulae, star clusters and planets. Meade deep sky imager dsi update 7/2006 - meade now offers a dsi pro and dsi proii even better this is a little harder to get use to then the meade lpi, however, once you use it several times you will be hooked. Upgrade your PC, World's leading manufacturer. Now Meade has developed their Lunar and Planetary Imager LPI , soon followed by their Deep Sky Imager DSI , and now available is the Meade DSI-Pro. The composites you take will combine to reveal previously unnoticed details in deep-sky objects and other celestial phenomena! I used this camera for autoguiding exclusively, and it worked well for many years until I finally upgraded to an Altair GPCAM2.
Meade Dsi Drivers For Windows 10
Drivers for Celestron Nightscape cameras are available from the manufacturer. Very sensitive to light making it a perfect candidate form deep sky imaging. Installs a driver for the original Meade LX200 classic telescope mounts including the 16 , as well as Meade telescopes that use the Autostar I #494, #495 and #497 controllers, such as the ETX and DS series. Advertisement There are more bits and pieces supplied with it though, including an auto-guiding cable, an install CD and a parfocal ring, which allows you to set a low. Discussion about the Meade Deep Sky Imager Series of CCD Cameras. Deep Sky Imager II The user-friendly astrophotography revolution continues. To connect the Deep Sky Imager Camerato your PC, you need to install the Deep Sky Imager device driver and connect the USB cable, 1. To connect the other end of 2.