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Celestron CGEM 800 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope

Item# CELE309
 
4.5

(2 Ratings)

Customer Q & A

Price:

$2,199.00

List Price: $2199.00
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  • 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope
  • CGEM Computerized Equatorial Mount
  • Celestron's premium StarBright XLT Coatings
  • Ultra Sturdy 2" steel tripod with Accessory Tray
  • Includes NexRemote telescope control software
Details & Dimensions
Guarantee & Returns

Description

Celestron's CGEM-800 features our high-end 8" Schmidt Cassegrian OTA with XLT coatings mounted on our brand new CGEM™ mount.

 

The Celestron CGEM™ mount has a fresh, attractive, bold appearance and is capable of carrying Celestron’s higher-end SCT optical tubes (up to 11") securely and vibration free which is ideal for both imaging and visual observing. 

 

Ergonomic Design - CGEM was designed to be ergonomically friendly with large Altitude and Azimuth adjustment knobs for quick and easy polar alignment adjustment.  The internal RA and DEC motor wiring provides a clean look and an easy and trouble free set up.

 

Innovation - The CGEM series has a new innovative Polar alignment procedure called All-Star™ (patent pending). All-Star allows users to choose any bright star, while the software calculates and assists with polar alignment.  Another great feature of the CGEM, sure to please astroimagers, is the Permanent Periodic Error Correction (PEC) which will allow users to train out the worm gears periodic errors, while the mount retains the PEC recordings.

 

Performance - For objects near the Meridian (imaginary line passing from North to South), the CGEM will track well past the Meridian for uninterrupted imaging through the most ideal part of the sky. The CGEM mount has a robust database with over 40,000 objects, 400 user defined programmable objects and enhanced information on over 200 objects.

 

Celestron's CGEM mount is the perfect fit between the Advanced Series and CGE Series.  Offering the portability of the Advanced Series and the precision of the CGE.

 

Features:

  • CGEM Computerized Equatorial Mount
  • Ultra sturdy 2" steel tripod with Accessory Tray
  • 40,000 object database with 400 user-definable objects and expanded information on over 200 objects
  • Proven NexStar computer control technology
  • Flash upgradeable hand control software and motor control units for downloading product updates over the Internet
  • New "All-star" Polar alignment uses any bright star for a quick and accurate Polar alignment
  • 6x30 Finderscope for easy centering of objects
  • Software Features include: Mount Calibration, Database Filter Limits, Hibernate, five Alignment Procedures, and user-defined slew limits
  • Custom database lists of all the most famous deep-sky objects by name and catalog number; the most beautiful double, triple and quadruple stars; variable star; solar systems; objects and asterisms
  • Permanent programmable periodic error correction (PEC) - corrects for periodic tracking errors inherent to all worm drives
  • Flash upgradeable hand control software and motor control units for downloading product updates over the Internet
  • Custom database lists of all the most famous deep-sky objects by name and catalog number; the most beautiful double, triple and quadruple stars; variable star; solar systems; objects and asterisms
  • Steel worm gear and 90mm pitch diameter brass worm wheel
  • Drive Motors - Low Cog DC Servo motor with integrated optical encoders offer smooth, quiet operation and long life. The motor armatures are skewed to minimize cogging which is required fro low speed tracking.
  • Internal Cable wiring for trouble-free setup and transportation
  • Designated six-pin RJ-12 modular jack, ST-4 compatible guide port
  • Double line, 16-character Liquid Crystal Display Hand Control with backlit LED buttons for easy operation of goto features
  • Autoguide port and auxiliary ports located on the electronic pier for long exposure astrophotography
  • RS-232 communication port on hand control to control the telescope via a personal computer
  • Includes NexRemote telescope control software, for advanced control of your telescope via computer
  • GPS-compatible with optional CN16 GPS Accessory

 

Specifications

 

  • MOUNT:  Computerized Equatorial
  • TRIPOD:  Adjustable, Stainless Steel
  • CD ROM:  NexRemote control software with RS232 cable 
  • POWER SUPPLY:  Car battery adapter
  • TRIPOD WEIGHT:  17 lb (7.71 kg)
  • MOUNT WEIGHT:  41 lb (18.6 kg)
  • COUNTERWEIGHTS:  1 x 17 lb
  • MOTOR DRIVE:  Low cog DC Servo motors with encoders, both axes 
  • COMPUTER HAND CONTROL:  Double line, 16 character Liquid Crystal Display; 19 fiber optic backlit LED buttons 
  • SLEW SPEEDS:  Nine slew speeds: 4 °/sec, 2 °/sec, .5 °/sec, 64x, 16x, 8x, 4x, 1x, .5x
  • TRACKING RATES:  Sidereal, Solar and Lunar
  • TRACKING MODES:  EQ North and EQ South
  • ALIGNMENT PROCEDURES:  AutoAlign, 2-Star Align, Quick Align, 1-Star Align, Last Alignment, Solar System Align
  • SOFTWARE PRECISION:  24bit, 0.08 calculation
  • DATABASE:  40,000+ objects, 400 user defined programmable objects. Enhanced information on over 200 objects
  • POWER REQUIREMENTS:  12 VDC 1.5 Amp
  • GPS:  Optional CN-16 GPS Accessory

Supplier Sku:
11097
Shipping Restrictions:
Available for shipment to the USA and Canada only.

Dimensions & Specifications

Weight

88 lbs.

Recommended Usage

Astrophotography , Viewing Galaxies/Star Clusters , Viewing Nebulae , Viewing the Moon , Viewing the Planets

Warranty

2-Year Limited

Features

Equatorial Mount , GoTo

Brand

Celestron

Finderscope

6x30

Telescopes Series

Celestron CGEM Telescopes

Optical Design

Schmidt-Cassegrain

Aperture

203mm

Focal Length

2032mm

Focal Ratio

f/10

Mount Design

Equatorial

Eyepiece 1

25mm (81x)

Highest Useful Magnification

480x

Limiting Magnitude

14

Star Diagonal

1.25 diagonal prism

User Level

For the Expert

Optical Coating

StarBright XLT

Object Database

40000 objects

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The Perfect Accessories

Customer Reviews

REVIEW SNAPSHOT®

by PowerReviews
Celestron CGEM 800 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope
 
4.5

(based on 2 reviews)

Ratings Distribution

  • 5 Stars

     

    (1)

  • 4 Stars

     

    (1)

  • 3 Stars

     

    (0)

  • 2 Stars

     

    (0)

  • 1 Stars

     

    (0)

Reviewed by 2 customers

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Displaying reviews 1-2

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4.0

CGEM 800 - At first...

By Jason

from Montague, TX

Verified Buyer

Pros

  • ease of use after setup
  • Sturdy mount

Cons

  • Hand control unintuitive
  • Poor manual

Best Uses

  • Visual observing

Comments about Celestron CGEM 800 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope:

So far I only use the CGEM 800 for astronomical viewing (no astrophotography yet).

The good:
The telescope creates good views of objects after setting up. The mount has decent customization and is nice to use a computer connected via the RS-232 remote port. The collimation (per the instruction booklet) was quick and easy but was very close after the unboxing.

The bad:
The first few alignment tries were taxing. Most of the problems are user incurred but could be avoided had the hand control been more intuitive (arrow keys only slew the telescope and do not navigate the menus).

Now if the weather will only warm up! All the steel in the mount and the cold air make controlling it difficult with numb fingers.

Service and delivery comments:

Delivery was within a few days and had no defects. Note that a hayneedle.com representative will call you the day of or the day after for anti-fraud issues.

(15 of 15 customers found this review helpful)

 
5.0

Excellent Scope

By Uppie

from Murrieta, CA

About Me Casual/ Recreational

Verified Buyer

Pros

  • Accurate
  • Strong Construction

Cons

  • Heavy

Best Uses

  • Astronomy

Comments about Celestron CGEM 800 Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope:

After years of dreaming about getting a nice scope I finally decided on the Celestron CGEM 800 and couldn't be happier with my decision. It is extremely easy to set up and align. After a couple of nights I perfected the two star alingment as well as the polar alignment of the scope. Add a couple of clibration stars and the scope is aligned perfectly. Always placing objects in the center of the eypiece with no need to adjust.

The mount is solid and is completely silent while tracking. This scope is perfect for astrophotgraphy. I have spent several nights taking CCD images and the scope perfectly tracks for great images. I plan on using an autoguider in the future which the mount already has a jack to support this feature.

All in all I am extremely pleased with the performance and quality of the scope/mount and look forward to several nights observing the skies with my new scope.

Displaying reviews 1-2

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Customer Q & A

Q1: Can you tell me the weight of the tube of a Celestron CGEM 800 SCT?

A: The weight of the C8 Optical tube on the SCT is 12.5lbs.

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