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Model: Trius-SX-694-PRO-MonoPart Number: 100-0055
The TRIUS range of cameras was introduced in 2014. These were the first cameras on the market to incorporate a powered USB 2.0 hub in the rear of the camera to enable the user to connect their USB filter wheel and guide camera directly to the camera rather than multiple cables back to the computer - simplicity and convenience.
The new Blue Edition TRIUS PRO series follows on from that success. We have redesigned the electronics to give even lower read-noise figures and faster downloads. With the Sony CCD cameras, we are now getting read-noise figures that are better than CMOS cameras (when used at unity gain), along with 16bit data and significantly better dark-noise figure thanks to the impressive cooling. Dark frames really are a thing of the past, making calibration frames optional rather than compulsory, giving you more time to capture data and process your images.
I have the SX Trius 694 combo with 7 position filter wheel. I have had it long enough to produce my first HaLRBG image of M101 which I was pleased with. I had some issues in getting things up and running. The power supply is fussy. The supplied mains to 12V works as intended but I had problems with 12V supplies from other sources. I had RF interference on some subs which was solved with adequate separation of power and data cables and the addition of Ferrite clamps. Warming the camera in SGPro is problematic in that it will not warm to ambient. I tried longer warming time and this works to a degree. This is to do with the Ascom camera driver. I found solutions to these issues by contacting Terry at Starlight Xpress. He has been absolutely fantastic. He gets back to you quick and knows the answer. I cannot overstate what a difference this sort of customer service makes. I am now waiting for clear weather to finish LRGB M13.In conclusion, once you are set up this gear looks good. The resolution of the Lodestar OAG is impressive. The customer service is rare and is like gold dust. Try contacting ZWO in China..
I decided to upgrade to this camera after years of using the Kodak8300 and trials with ASI1600MMC. Service from FLO was as good as ever and well boxed with quick deliver direct from SX.I have only given it 4 stars as the drivers are a right pain to install and will not work on a USB3 port. Painful as many modern PC's don;t have USB2 any more so I have to buy a USB2 card for my master PC.. Yes this is a USB2 camera but surely the drivers should be designed to run on a USB3 port as well!!Anyway after it installs the camera is a real treat to use. Very low (almost non existent) noise and no saturated hot pixels after 15 seconds at minus 20CNarrow band sensitivity is great especially Sii - exceeds everything else I have ever tried.The master advantage is that you do not need dark frames as the noise is so low that darks would only add to the overall noise. A single bad pixel map; flats and BIAS do the job just fine.I am using this on Edge HD800 with 0.7 reducer and can get full narrowband image of the Wizard Nebula in 2hrs15mins (could easily shorten that as this was equivalent to about 4hrs of data with the ASI1600Clusters are even easier with a single 10 minute exposure in each channel being more than enough for a quality image of C16 (BTW even at 10 mins there are very few hot pixels and only 2 saturatedIf you are looking to upgrade this is definitely the camera to haveUpdate October 2019: I have now used this camera for some months and found that On a usb3 port the camera body carries 600mA which causes the instability mentioned in the review.Earthing the case overcomes this and makes the camera very stable and reduces the noise still further. 5stars once earthed