best voltage 383L+

[GH-ATIK]

Hi ,
because the last crash at 13,5 V , I´m not sure about the oiptimal powersupply of 383L+.

obviously 13,8 V , or not ?
In specifications is 12 Volt given.
but below 12,5 V , the noise rise up , is´nt it

thanks for tips.

Gerhard

[Chris]

I'm aware of the rumours on the Internet that the 383L+ needs more than 12V but as you say the specification is that it doesn't.
My experience using a 12V Gel Cell, 12V computer power supply and a 13.8V PSU is that there's no difference.

Atik will know more about the design of the camera they designed and make so I would be more inclined to trust them.

Chris

[gljiva]

I am using something like this, which gives out 13.8 volts.

Have two of those. One for the camera 383 and one for the mount CGEM DX.

So far working fine. Camera still working  after hours and hours of photographing  .

I spend hours on the net trying to figure out if this would be good for the camera. I was afraid to connect 13.8 volts to the camera.

But so far working good.

[sazam91]

My Celestron Powertank couldn't last more than an hour with the 383 and CGEM plugged in. It would produce a noisy image or wont capture. I've since used a Deep Cycle Marine battery and have not had issues since.

-Sal

[NickK]

Yup, as I mentioned elsewhere - I have two power sources:
a) Maplins 13.8V 7A bench PSU
b) Bosch 100Ah S5 car battery. 12V and can supply 800A (the lines have fast blow fuses!)

Car batteries aren't the best idea because they're designed for short periods of high drain as the engine starts - Marine and leasure batteries are better because they're designed for long slow drain.
Although batteries indicate 12V, usually they're charged at 14-15V and will provide 11-14V dropping as the battery empties.

[sazam91]

The more I read, the more I began to think that maybe I may not be getting close to 13.8V from my 100Ah deep cycle battery. I would like to output a constant 13.8V to my 383 and I'm not sure If i have a reason to. I was looking at this 12V to 13.8V booster which I can possibly use to output 13.8V to the 383 using the marine battery. Any thoughts? Or would I be ok regardless?

http://www.powerstream.com/dc2.htm

[NickK]

Hmm I couldn't really advise.

The only experience I have is with a 12V to 240V inverter where there's two versions - square wave and pure sine wave. The cheaper square wave can cause electrical equipment to malfunction (my Apple PSU was making such a noise the inverter wasn't used again). I learnt after that the pure sine wave is the only version to go for - more expensive and takes more power to deliver the wave form.

Best thing is to get a cheap volt meter (that can measure 10-15V DC) then check the voltage at the start of your session and at the end.

I calculated that the 100Ah battery would give me 20hrs of non-stop power, however I know from star parties that if I don't charge up and run for a second night/day on the battery that things get noisier and the EQ6 can start playing up towards the end of the day. Now I do solar and night.. the bench PSU sits in the same DIY power box, all I do is switch over the crocodile clips from the batter to the PSU then attach the battery to the charger. The reason for the battery during the night is to prevent accidental tripping of the power protection by the wife.

[sazam91]

Ah. Now, I do have a Pyramid Regulated DC power supply that provides me 13.8V and you mentioned that your PSU is in the power box and you switch to it using your alligator clips. Is there a way for me to connection the Pyramid with the deep cycle, or how are you doing it?

[NickK]

Ah. Now, I do have a Pyramid Regulated DC power supply that provides me 13.8V and you mentioned that your PSU is in the power box and you switch to it using your alligator clips. Is there a way for me to connection the Pyramid with the deep cycle, or how are you doing it?

I simply disconnect one and connect the other. I don't do anything smart that connects the PSU and the battery.
My power box is a custom box that has a locking power connector that then connects to a set of car alligator clips inside - which is how I switch between battery and PSU.

[GH-ATIK]

Hi,

Original-answer from ATIK UK :  13.8 volt is the maximum voltage you can use with the 383 so anything from 12 v to 13.8 v is fine.

Gerhard

[dkordella]

I'm wondering about this since (possibly just because of the cold - but I'm not sure) my past couple times out with my 383l+ mono my results have been pretty bad.

I don't have an observatory or ability to connect to mains, so I need to be totally portable.

I'm wondering if I used a pure sine wave inverter from my 12V DC 35Ah battery, then ran that to an AC adapter for my camera (kept in a "Dri-Box"), if that would give me  stable voltage?

[sazam91]

I think I am going to invest in the 12V to 13.8V boosters. I've been told by many that I should be ok in terms of good voltage to the 383L. The camera draws more power during the initial startup and when the cooler is on. Because I want to avoid any and all noise resulting from low voltage, I'm going to purchase the booster in the link below. I can't comment on your inverter method as I am not sure.

http://www.powerstream.com/dc2.htm

-Sal

[dkordella]

Those look interesting, but it does say that running motors from them will void the warranty. The fan in the TEC cooling device is a motor, right? Could that be a problem?

[sazam91]

They might be referring to bigger motors, i.e engines and alike. Ours is just a small fan drawing less voltage than what the manufacturer had in mind. I don'y know how they'd know about voided warranty in case the Atik cooler is deemed as a fan.

-Sal