are plossl eyepieces goodare plossl eyepieces good

This SVBONY eyepiece review should get you up to speed with the budget stargazing options. They offer a 52-degree apparent field with clean, high-contrast images. To achieve six magnifications, you can have six eyepieces. If you do choose to go with a Plossl eyepiece, I highly recommend spending some extra cash to get yourself a decent good quality branded Plossl eyepiece rather than going for a cheap, generic eyepiece which is a Plossl only for the namesake. They are usable, but your eye will be extremely close to the top lens glass. My 20, 26, and 32mm Plossls will probably stay around. This is where the cheap eyepiece will frequently fail to deliver a good image, around the edges. The only reason it's in this list because of its price and a long focal point. Best suited for telescopes with f-ratios f6 or slower. 600 mm / 200X = 3 mm This will be the focal length of our highest power eyepiece. The Plossl's are very easy to modify, allowing me to use the bino-viewer on, all my refracting telescopes without having to cut down the tube length, p.s. 5-Minute Read, How To Increase The Magnification Of A Telescope; 5-Minute Read. https://www.widescreen-centre.co.uk/explore-scientific-70-eyepieces.html. Excellent, thank you for the breakdown, very much appreciated. The Hyperions work well in SCTs and you can't beat that large eyelens and eye relief ,JMO. Overall, I would highly recommend the goldline eyepieces. a Celestron 8-24 Zoom with a 2x Barlow 2x Barlow The Plossl has good color correction plus is free of the ghost images that plague the Kellner. They have a narrow AFOV but have a reputation for being very sharp.. I have four telescopes, but I use the same eyepieces in all of them. When you use a Barlow lens with an eyepiece, you get the magnification, but the eye relief is not affected. To achieve these benefits, they may use special glass and more costly manufacturing. The quality of a Plossl eyepiece completely depends on the brand and model, so be very careful in our selection. This is a good thing, because normally the shorter the focal length of the eyepiece, the less eye relief you have. So, I think it worth your while to try the Plssls. Your email address will not be published. What I can say is that, in general, eyepiece characteristics are inherent to the eyepiece. . Their eye relief is limited to about 70-80% of their focal length. Kellner eyepieces, on the other hand, are generally pretty close to each other in terms of quality so theres little chance you will get much variance in image definition between brands. But for the targets requiring higher mag Im still undecided between: The zoom can be used with any 1.25 focuser too. This means you will be able to see a greater expanse for the objects in space but with fewer magnification levels than Kellner or Plossl lenses. Quality this good usually costs a lot more. It costs a lot to get that last 10% of performance. They all work, but as you go up in price, you gain features or performance or both. Heres the short answer Plossl eyepieces are generally better than Kellner eyepieces, but they also tend to be more expensive. There are certainly much better options out there but at a significant cost. The magnification range that is appropriate to your scope. An Austrian inventor Georg Simon Plossl came up with the Plossl eyepiece design in 1860. This means less time trying to figure out which way your images should be oriented before examining them. Omni Eyepieces | Celestron Such eyepieces are able to offer great performance, i.e., satisfactory degrees of deviations, to about a 50.degree field. None of my fancy EPs have enough contrast for this application. We are a reader-supported organization. They have decent eye relief and little curvature of field. If youre still wondering between a Kellner vs Plossl, my advice to you would be invest a little extra cash and go for a good quality Plossl. Your email address will not be published. Between Kellners and Plossls, this means a 32mm Plossl, which maximizes the field of view in the 1.25 barrel diameter format, will show more stars than either a 32mm Kellner with the same magnification but a smaller true field of view, or a 40mm Kellner (or 40mm 1.25 Plossl, which has a 40 degree apparent field of view) with a lower magnification and the same true field of view. What apparent field of view and eye relief do I want? Look at the apparent field of view specs and understand what this means for the field of view. In that respect, they are similar to the Explore Scientific 82 degree mentioned earlier. Let's talk Barlows for idiots - Eyepieces - Cloudy Nights Celestron Omni Plossl Eyepiece | First Light Optics Meade telescope maksutov eyepiece ETX-105EC Super Plossl 6.4mm 1.25" w Sirius Plossls offer a 52-deg apparent field of view for clear, sharp images. A key thing to remember is that eyepieces are universal. They are all made by the same OEM manufacturer. In my opinion, you do not. Again, for no other reason than to compare it to the 17mm Hyperion and draw your own conclusions about Plssls. short answer: yes. Meade telescope maksutov eyepiece ETX-105EC Super Plossl 6.4mm 1.25" w capsule. Plssl eyepieces are good all-around performers, producing sharp images at the center of the field, but they have only four lens elements. What happens if you use an eyepiece that has a the wrong exit pupil? Im just starting out with astronomy and this really helped my understanding. Most modern telescopes use a focuser, or diagonal, that accepts 1.25 eyepieces. Between $100 and $250, I will call it mid-range. With a refractor, SCT or MCT, it is usually better to get a correct image diagonal than a correcting eyepiece. However, your budget must guide your purchases. Goldline Eyepieces - The Definitive Guide - Telescopic Watch Some include: Parks Gold Series, Celestron Ultima's, Meade Series 4000 Super Plssls (depending on year / origin / style) and a few others that I don't remember. Just start with 32 mm for your low-power eyepiece. https://telescopicwatch.com/best-telescope-mounts-for-astrophotography/, Then you look at the optical tubes. I possess an embarrassing array of fine eyepieces with names like Ethos and Nagler and Delos. These are matters of individual preference and budget. So, even if you have a Maksutov-Cassegrain scope, you should get a good experience from this eyepiece. You probably dont need to worry about upgrading them as soon as you get your telescope, unless you can see an optical problem in the one youre using or you find the short eye relief for the short-focus eyepiece uncomfortable. Free shipping for many products! I have the 38 mm and recommend it often. . This would definitely matter to observers who wear eyglasses when viewing. Its made up of four lenses in two groups. I am considering buying another eyepiece, maybe 6mm, and a Barlow, maybe 2x, to give me a wider and higher range of magnification. So save yourself this future unnecessary expense and just buy a Plossl. Many Kellners are made with field stops opened up to 50 degrees, in which case it can truly compare to a Plossl in any telescope with a focal ratio of f/6 or slower. However, you may see them at higher prices for the short term. You see the object in a wider expanse of space with more stars. They have good center sharpness but exhibit some field curvature and astigmatism. Choosing the most appropriate can completely change your experience in using telescopes. It costs three to four times as much as the Celestron Zoom, but if you have the budget, this is the one to get. Most telescopes come with one or two eyepieces, which gives you one or two magnification options. The 4000 SWA's were way overpriced for their performance IMHO. There is the 56mm Meade Plossl which magically turns my short FL refractors into their own finder scopes. To determine a magnification range, we will start with the aperture of the telescope, the size of the front lens, or the mirror in the back. Using this 40 mm Plossl eyepiece is an excellent way to get a wide field of view with your telescope. They deliver sharp images in almost all telescopes. For one thing, a wider field of view is almost always more pleasant. In this case, I am going to define this by the focuser and eyepiece size. If you are investing for the future, get the BH zoom. I must also warn you that some of these bad Plossls may actually turn out to be worse than any run-of-the-mill Kellner. This is the link to the eyepiece I am looking at potentially buying, would you recommend this over the Orion one or vice versa do you think? Does having a 70 vs 52 fov make a noticeable difference for double the price? Videos for related products. Visual astronomy is all about aperture, the more the better. It's no surprise that the eyepieces in our Sirius Plossl line are our best-selling telescope eyepieces. How Good Are Super Plossl Eyepieces for Astronomy? Since each eye has a different focal point, I suspect pulling the eyepiece out until reaching focus and then tightening the set screw. Here's the short answer - Plossl eyepieces are generally better than Kellner eyepieces, but they also tend to be more expensive. Understanding and using a Barlow Lens I also really liked my E-Lux 32mm, a Kellner. I often recommend it. Thanks, Angelo M. You picked a great first scope. The components of a Plossl eyepiece are the two groups of lenses. You also get 7 1.25 filters which include the following, #80A Blue Filter, #58 Green Filter, #56 Light Green Filter, #25 Red Filter, #21 . No price limit. Have Any Astronauts Been Lost in Space Forever. Here we have very good eyepieces with some extra features. If you look up transparency and seeing in the context of telescopes you can learn more about how atmospheric conditions will affect what magnifications you will choose on any given night. You could base this on 3, 4, 5, 6 or more focal lengths/magnifications. Tele Vue offers several series with apparent fields of view from 50 degrees to 120 degrees. It may be a bit less than that in reality but for practical purposes that is close enough. Do you need to have the best to enjoy astronomy? In your case, I would do this for the 30 and the 20. Most people will be fairly comfortable with eye relief of 12 mm or higher. Plossl eyepieces have an eye relief equal to about 80% of their focal length. And of course, NEVER look through a telescope pointed at the sun that does not have a safe solar filter covering the front. Even big telescopes are subject to limitations imposed by the atmosphere. The atmosphere is typically the limiting factor as we get to higher magnifications. These come in focal lengths from 2.3 mm to 25 mm. It's one of the best choices you have when it comes to budget stargazing. Note that the price categories are approximate, as prices can vary between retailers. Customer reviews Average Rating (16 Reviews): Write a Review and share your opinions! It should list what size eyepieces you can use. These are often compared to the higher priced offerings. Below 20 however, the eye relief makes it difficult for me and my glasses so Ive been replacing my 5-15 EPs with 82 degree EPs with more relief. So perhaps you do your line up like this. It all comes down to cost-benefit. The Japan made 16mm Meade 3000 was a very nice medium power plossl and the 40mm in that series was surprisingly nice as well. https://telescopicwatch.com/celestron-starsense-explorer-dx-102-130-reviewed/, If I was to upgrade these lenses, I was planning on working toward something like this: What follows are specific eyepieces that I have tried, own, or have read so many good reports about that I feel very comfortable recommending them. I can recommend these with confidence. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. This series of eyepieces may provide better value in this price range. Some of these series also offer 2 eyepieces for telescopes that can accept 2 eyepieces. Plossl eyepieces are great. I have had a good experience with the SVBony brand and the Agena Astro brand. The Orthoscopic Plossl eyepiece is for those who are interested in performing close-up work on specimens up to three inches away from them and still get high magnification. However, if you want to optimize your viewing experience, youll need to invest in a better-quality eyepiece. A Plssl is probably as good as any 32mm eyepiece in a 1.25 inch focuser. Here we get into the BMW, Cadillac, Porsche, and Ferrari of eyepieces. It's no surprise that the eyepieces in our Sirius Plossl line are our best-selling telescope eyepieces. Other than the limited AFOV, which you are apparently fine with, and limited eye relief in the shorter focal lengths there is certainly no reason not to choose Plssls. 10mm Orion Sirius Plossl Telescope Eyepiece | Orion Telescopes Or take one of your eyepieces and measure across the bottom of the barrel. This 10 mm Orion Sirius Plossl Eyepiece is a great, moderately high power ocular for observing small planetary nebulas and globular star clusters, as well as for planetary probing when seeing conditions don't permit higher magnifications. Ive read reviews about my scope. With a 130mm-F5 I would use a Plossl 32mm for its low-mag-wide-view. Some brands will add better lens coating, darker edges, or a higher quality case to their Super Plossl products, but strictly for performance, there isnt a difference between the two. There is no problem using a Celestron eyepiece in a Meade telescope, for example. Comparing Orion Telescope & Binoculars options, it appears that a Kellner can be found for almost half the price of a Plossl of the same focal length, although there are also equally cheap Plossls available from various sellers on Amazon that are highly comparable. Also, children do not often have highly developed motor skillsso I would avoid the frustration of switching out eyepieces, and consider a zoom lens. A Televue Plssl may be better than a generic one, but the difference is probably not worth the additional cost. Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links and I may earn a small commission (at no extra cost to you) if you click through and make a purchase. That said, I should also tell you that not all Plossls are created equal. Of course, the entire eyepiece must be manufactured and finished correctly to realize the design's full potential. Are plossl eyepieces still worth it? - Eyepieces - Cloudy Nights However, I have eyepieces that have larger exit pupils than 7 mm and they work well. These companies rebranded them under their own names. Plossl against Kellner eyepieces in a previous article, 5 Budget Telescopes That Are Sneakily Powerful. 11 = 163 = .5 https://www.amazon.com/Orion-8829-Wide-Field-Telescope-Eyepiece/dp/B000M89H7C/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=Orion+Q70&qid=1606584502&sr=8-2, The Explore Scientific 68 degree series would be better but at a much higher price. Think of these as your Ford, Chevy, and Toyota of eyepieces. https://www.amazon.com/Orion-8879-1-25-Inch-Enhanced-Telescope/dp/B000BMPBLK/ref=sr_1_8?crid=3KKUJRXYYN7DI&dchild=1&keywords=telescope+diagonal+1.25&qid=1610887695&sprefix=telescope+diagonal%2Caps%2C512&sr=8-8, Excellent article and very good recommendations. Even though the design has existed for more than a century, it has stood the test of and is still today the standard against which other eyepiece designs are measured. We often end up spending more on eyepieces than we did on the telescope. The way a Plossl eyepiece works is by using the convex lens and concave lenses to create an image that has both total magnification of what youre viewing, as well as erect images. If you just want eyepiece recommendations and dont care about the details, Im adding that section right below before we go into the specifications that answer the above questions and make use of the formulas. You will get varying opinions on this but I would not worry too much about this. If there is a local club, I would suggest you visit and consider joining. Plossl vs Super Plossl Eyepieces: The Differences - Stargazing Help These are highly sought after ep's, and hold their value well. Youd have to look into more complex designs which include a barlow lens, or simply use a longer focal length eyepiece with a quality barlow. Perhaps another review would be helpful. It sounds cool, they must be better than regular Plossls with that name, right? It also was considerably more expensive. In most cases, these are eyepieces that are focused on wider AFOV or better correction for low focal ratio scopes. Yes, the wider field of view of a Plossl is very helpful, but 40 degrees of Kellners isnt a soda straw (unless you are used to looking through very wide field eyepiece. If you are going to wear your glasses when you observe, you want at least 18 mm of eye relief and 20 mm is better. Required fields are marked *. Lets illustrate with an example using a 1200 mm FL telescope. Omni 6mm Eyepiece - 1.25" Learn More. Compared with a zoomable telescope eyepiece, they are pretty much the same in terms of the quality of the image. 1.25" Power mates with T ring adapter. It also gives the widest possible exit pupil in my dob and SCT, very handy when using nebula filters. They are not that expensive I would pay about $100 for both eye pieces. As we go up in price range, we gain capabilities that may not be immediately obvious. Planetary eyepieces: Ploessl or Orthoscopic and which brand Warranty Limited Warranty against defects in materials or workmanship for one year from date of purchase. Correct image diagonals are easier for beginners and they are great for using the scope during the day, but experience people dont use them for astronomy. EP-mm = magnification = afov Their 50 to 52 degree AFOV is wide enough for general observing. Although Kellner eyepieces will help you learn a lot in the beginning but soon will realize that youre missing out on something, and eventually you will be tempted to spend money on another good quality eyepiece. Kellner vs Plossl eyepieces for dobsonians? : telescopes - reddit A 20mm Plssl is probably worth it, if for no other reason than to compare the views it gives to the 21mm Hyperion you have. I have owned wider eyepieces, but ultimately I just prefer the Plssls (must be a mental defect). I just added the 4.7 mm. Comparing to Plossl eyepieces, Super Plossl is somewhat better for astronomy. I also struggled to see features on both (gas bands on Jupiter and clear rings on saturn). Or, you may find that you like the 8 mm and 6 mm used with the Barlow and can avoid the expense of two eyepieces. Good 32mm Plssls run around $30-$40. Plossl eyepieces have 4 lenses that are paired in two doublets. What's the difference between two Plssl eyepieces? The telescope comes with a 2x Barlow so I was thinking of getting one of the zooms you recommended. The one exception I would keep in mind would be when working with Newtonian reflector telescopes below F5. The longer FL Plossls (>15mm) have some distinct advantages over more complex designs without the major disadvantage of Plossls which is short ER. For that purpose it is probably easier to find one to borrow. I saw Jupiter today and its 4 moons but when I looked at saturn I struggled to get a really clear image and it was very small. 75-225X, 1.5X Barlow 3. This is why many telescopes come standard with at least one Plossl eyepiece. Then set your maximum based on your aperture and split it up. Both will provide the same magnification. SV207 30mm Super Plossl Eyepiece. I dont own nor have I used it, but Orion has a very good reputation. No, adapters are not needed but they may come in handy when you want to change the focal length or add other lenses such as filters or Barlow lenses. 5 Best Telescope Eyepieces in 2023 [+Beginner's Guide] Within the budget-friendly realm are the 6mm and 9mm Goldlines/Redlines (66-degree Ultra-Wide-Angle) for telescopes with a focal ratio of f/8 or longer, and the excellent 58-degree Planetary eyepieces, sold by a variety of sellers on Amazon and by Agena Astro, which come in a wide variety of focal lengths and are optically superb for their price. I was just wondering if plossls are still worth it or should get a better eyepiece in a 30mm range. Pentax K-70 Astrophotography: The Ultimate Camera on a Budget! In comparison, Aspherical lenses generally have no color distortion but might not work out well if the telescope user needs really high magnification. PS. Despite one being fundamentally superior to the other in terms of image correction, Kellners and Plossls are generally quite comparable in terms of the image you actually see. In order to help you narrow down your choices, weve created a short guide that can help you figure out what the best viable option is. If you are new around here and you want to get started with the hobby, check out our astronomy for beginners guide or the recommended gear page. Would a higher magnification eyepiece help do you think or am I already pushing my telescope (XT8) to highest sensible magnification I can with BH zoom on setting 8mm and 2x Barlow? I took notes and now can shop with confidence They include links to them where they can be ordered. Apparent Field of View: This is a measure of how wide a view the eyepiece will provide as compared to alternate eyepieces. If you had to choose 1 low-power 2 EP for chasing deep sky objects (again, at 600mm f7.5), what size piece would you go for? Telescope Eyepieces Guide - High Point Scientific The sharp/crisp view you get from your 40mm Plossl comes down to the relatively low magnification it provides. A super Plossl eyepiece is a top-performing eyepiece that can be used for a variety of tasks, from viewing objects in the distance to looking at microscopic things. 1. Because some objects look better at low power, some at medium power, some at high power, and some at very high power. Now put the zoom on a 3X barlow and you have: Using the zoom approach with a Barlow your eyepiece set would consisit of a 32 mm low power eyepiece. Cheap to try, and if you don't like it, easy enough to sell also. Lets give an example. You can do the calculation which will show that the 70 will have a significantly wider field of view as compared to the 52. The ES 82s are my favorite eyepieces, especially in the 1.25 format. We are a team of active amateur astronomers, here to help you with all your astronomy and science related needs this is anything, from reviewing the latest telescopes to be released to talking about gravity and neurons. Required fields are marked *. I have just one Meade product currently and that is a series 4000 1.25 inch UHC type filter which I use for outreach. It includes two high-magnification Plossl eyepieces and five lower magnification zoom oculars with an adjustable focus in the kit. Nothing will stop you from trying to go higher, but in all likelihood, the image will be poor and not worth the cost of eyepieces to achieve it. These are considered to be the least expensive eyepieces for serious astronomy and are offered in focal lengths from about 6mm to 40mm. The Hexagon Zoom Eyepiece is made from durable plastic material that resists scratching and it has an eye relief distance of 15mm. . These eyepieces are technically called Symmetrics, since Plossls can have different focal lengths for each doublet, but they are always marketed as Plossl. The Plossl eyepiece is a type of optical system that was invented by Ernst Abbe. eyepiece shows signs of use with caps and bolt case, 32 mm Plossl very good cond. Plossl eyepieces have a wide FOV and are known for their clarity and sharpness. Explore Scientific 68 34 mm or ES 82 30 mm would also be good choices at a significantly higher price but with better edge correction. Dont worry about the math, as its simple stuff you can do with any calculator, on paper, or perhaps in your head.