Discovery 10" f/6 Premium

Ratings:Top:Astronomy:Equipment Reviews:Telescope Reviews:Discovery 10" f/6 Premium

 Info  Votes  Messages  More Stats  Up One Level
Vote
Page 1 of 2 Next

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
Hello everyone! The telescope arrived in good shape and went together easily.
I was able to get some quick peeks at Jupiter, Saturn, and the Moon. Seeing was horrible and intermitant at best, but I'm still impressed with what I've seen so far.

As soon as I can do a fair and detailed evaluation, I'll put a numbered vote on this 'scope. So far, so good!

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40660

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
WELL THIS IS A GREAT SCOPE FOR THE MONEY. MAKE SURE THIS 10" PREMIUM IS COLLIMATED PLANITARY VIEWS ARE REALLY QUITE BEAUTIFUL, ENCKE DIVISION @ 500X
THE NORM. HEY AND GET THIS NO LESS THAN SIX STREET LAMPS TO MUCK THINGS UP...
DARK SKY BECKONS ... I LIKE IT ! A LOT

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40661

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
I received my 10" about January 3, 2001. With shipping and packing, the total cost was about $1000. Two plossels, a 7X50 finder, and end cap were included in my package.

The telescope is large...much larger than my sold/old Celestron 8" starhopper dob. The Discovery tube is 12" by at least 60", and with the mirror and other accessories, it weighs in somewhere over 50#. The mirror cell is an open design and has three wingnut style nuts to adjust collimation. The secondary is held by a 4 vane spider, and adjusted by 4 thumbscrews. It holds collimation well. I would have preferred a three screw adjustment, but secondary collimation is an infrequent event, so it is not much of an issue. The tube handles are thickly padded and do not cut into your hand when you are carrying the tube. The slide balance feature is simple and quick to use as well. I opted for the 7 X 50 finder over a telrad. This finder is sharp and bright, and several deep sky objects are easily visible. Adjusting/alignment is fair. The finder bracket has only one bolt attachment hole, which may lead to misalignment through an occasional bump, so I may be considering a removeable dovetail bracket later...not enough of a nusiance to deduct any points.

The base is very nice, especially when compared to the fiberboard construction of the other manfacturers. It weighs less than 20# and is easier to carry than the base of my old Celestron. Movement is very slick in both alt and az. and high power (250x and up) tracking is easy.

Cool down is fast, especially with a house fan setup behind the tube.

The optics are excellent. Views of Saturn at 380X showed the crepe coloration in the inner ring, as well as mellowing color in the planet bands. The detail bested the views given by my 90mm fluorite refractor.

With the f/6 focal ratio, there is no sign of coma, and the views of larger targets, are flat to the edge.

Rather than give a wave error estimate, I would say that the system is just about on par with my refractor, I will need to make some more bright star observations before giving a final value comment.

Overall, I think the telescope is an excellent value.

Reid Williams

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 6 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40662

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
I have had this telescope since 12/29/00. Finally got some clear skies on 1/3/01 and had my first looks through it. (See first comment in thread). Now that I have had a chance to really use the 'scope for awhile, I am really REALLY
impressed! Star tests are very good. When this telescope is collimated, stars appear as very tight, almost refractor like. The images this 'scope delivers up on the planets is nothing short of breath taking. I stared at Jupiter for an hour and still kept seeing more festoons and cloud detail. Saturn details rivaled anything I have ever looked through, and with 27 years in this hobby, I've looked through a few! The images actually rival very good large refractors. The only other reflector I've seen that comes close (without being masked down) is an 8 inch f/7 Cave that our club owns.

I have not had a chance to chase down many galaxies with it yet, but all the "M" ones around Ursa Major were easy pickings with great amounts of detail.
To sum up the way I feel about the optics of this 'scope takes only one word.... WOW.

I do have one little nit to pick. The telescope moves very easy in altitude, so the sliding balance system will need to be adjusted if your are going to use any large two inch eyepieces, or even just a big 1.25 with a barlow. Having had experience with a couple of 'scopes from a large well known mail order house
(my daughter has one, as does our club) I'm kind of spoiled in that regard. Four "s" hooks and a couple of door springs should take care of this problem.

To the guys at Discovery.... WELL DONE!!! I believe that this will be one of those 'scopes that people will hold in high regard for years to come.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 6 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40663

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
My telescope arrived in late december, all but 1 of the boxes
had holes poked
through the sides I was worried till I opened them up and saw
that the way everything was packaged so well that even major
abuse from drivers in the xmas rush couldn`t damage the thing.
the scope went together well only a missing azimuth pivot nut
which Discovery sent out to me two days later with an extra
dust cover for the bottom of the tube that I asked them about
was also sent free of
charge, their customer service is first rate and appreciated.
the parts quality is excellent, I ordered the Telrad finder it`s
illuminated target can place the object you are targeting in
the middle if the 10mm eyepiece.
the base is all wood and moves smoothly as dose the focuser.
I have a tip if you plan on buying heavier 2" eye pieces, taking
the tube out of the base
and adjusting the counter balance is a pill, if you
go the the hardware store and get a heavy magnet and put it on
back of the metal mirror cell you can add heavier eyepieces on fly.
and the views?
the planets are beautiful, the 10" mirror yields bright, sharp
views, try using a Takahashi 5mm LE eyepiece to get the best views
my second scope choice was a 4" refractor it`s upside are light
weight and clock drive but when you seen how much brighter a high
magnification 10" mirror is over a 4" scope!!
ty

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40664

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
I GOT A CHANCE TO LOOK THROUGH SOMEONE ELSES NEW SCOPE LAST NIGHT AND
THE OPTICS ARE EXCELLENT.SCOPE LOOKS GREAT,MOVEMENT TO DIFFERENT OBJECTS
IS SMOOTH AS BUTTER.USEING MY 35MMPANOPTIC NO NEED TO AJUST BALANCE.
THE ONLY THING THAT I DID NOT LIKE ABOUT SCOPE IS THAT LOOKING THROUGH
THE OPTICAL FINDER AND FOCUSER IS THAT THEY ARE ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE TUBE
FOR ME WHICH MAKES YOU HAVE TO LOOK THROUGH YOUR LEFT EYE WHEN LOOKING
THROUGH THE 50MM FINDER.FOR SOME ONE WANTING A VERY NICE DOB I HIGHLY
RECCOMEND THIS SCOPE. IF YOU ORDER ONE AND YOUR LIKE ME TELL THEM TO MOUNT
FOCUSER AND FINDER ON LEFT SIDE OF TUBE AND YOU'LL BE A HAPPY STARGAZER.
NOTE I HAVE A NEW C9.25 AND THE OPTICS IN THE DISCOVERY ARE SHARPER
ON ALL OBJECTS.

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40666

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
When given the opportunity to use one last Fall my first thought was: "oh, just another DOB". Visually, the scope struck me as "oh just another DOB" but at the eyepiece I was immediately struck by "good optics" and by the end of the viewing session I thought: "This is a very good scope with great potential, for the money"! (If you have room for a house trailer or a DOB). Fact is however, this is the scope a binary addict I know uses to split Antares. At the ep the scope
reminded me of our superb Cave 8" f/8 newt or our John Hall 8" f/7 newt ... scopes I would never sell because theyare superb scopes optically and will do
just about everyone one expects (optically) from an amateur telescope. Star
images were superb, planetary detail deep and sharp ... I confrim everything
said above about this scope's optical performance. Its a real winner! If I
were going to buy a DOB over 8 inches and less than 16, this would be it.
The scopes I used had at least 1/6th - 1/8th wave optics, at the least.
It was a pleasure to use this scope!
jw

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40667

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
first impression is very good 'just got scope used it for a couple hours'and every thing is pretty much perfect.discovery service to me was very good.scope arrived in perfect shape except for one of the 3 mirror clips was bent it was easy to fix.i am not going to rate scope yet. will do more observing then rate . but so far the scope is fantastic. bob hart

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40668

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
first reveiw. just received my 10 in pdhq last week arrived UPS in perfect condition. easy to put togeather. i have now had 2 killer clear nights to test the scope. movement rates a 10. balance a 10. focuser JMI of course a 10. optics 10. for this amount of money discovery has become the best value in scope's. now you can spend more money on the starmasters obssession and they are very good. but you can acheive 95% of these scope with a discovery. i like the 10 in so much that i ordered a 15 in .thanks bob

Overall Rating: 10
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40669

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
Got my scope in February and since I'm pretty much a beginner I'm very pleased with it so far. Mine was actually shipped ahead of time(only took 4 weeks) and from what I've been reading I can consider myself lucky. Since I don't have a lot of experience with other scopes I'm going to hold off on a rating. One thing I just discovered is that standard filters don't fit the supplied eyepieces. The guy at Discovery said these were basically beginner eyepieces and it's the best they could do and keep the price competitive. He said the quality of the supplied eyepieces doesn't begin to match the quality of the primary so I will probably later upgrade the eyepieces. For now I have a lot to see without worrying about filters.

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40670

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
Supplied eyepieces are junk. Bearing system is poor at best. Base seems too narrow for bearings. Optics are "good".
You can probably do better for the price

Overall Rating: 7
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40671

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
Excellent scope for the money - closest you can get to a Starmaster at half the price. Optics are outstandingly sharp and contrasty, mechanical parts are first rate.

Altitude motion can be a bit stiff, though some people like it. Included accessories are not on par with the quality of the scope itself. Do not count on using the included eyepieces. Opt for the Telrad. I ordered the cooling fan, but I haven't had to use it yet.

For any price, these are great optics. Zambuto-like? If not, pretty damn close. For a $1000 system, the components are a very, very good value. Highly recommended if you're looking for something with more quality than an XT10 or Discovery standard DHQ, but can't afford a Starmaster -- or just want a scope that you don't need to start modifying right out of the box before you can really enjoy the excellent optics.

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40672

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
This is a large (62.5in tube) and heavy scope (57lbs tube and bearings) which has superb optics: The closer pair (2.5") in the triple star iota Cassiopeia were widely separated at X484 with tiny airy discs and a dim first diffracion ring around the brighter one. The 7X50 finder has good sharp optics (adjustable by unscrewing the objective and then taping), but is attached by only one screw - not ideal. Saturn was great, easily showing the Crepe ring and the Enke minima. The altitude motion is a bit too stiff for high power tracking. Overall, great value for $949.

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40673

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
WOW! I was afraid I would lose planetary performance when I went to a Dob (from a refractor) - not with this 'scope! Superb star test and great brightness. First look at the trapezium broke out A thru F (and this was right above my roof). Saturn shows incredible detail - Cassini is easy and Encke is (nearly) obvious. I've owned lots (I mean LOTS) of scopes, and I feel this is the best compromise between resolution, light gathering, and portability I have yet seen.

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40674

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
Received my Discovery 10" PDHQ in August. Excellent 'scope! Mechanical construction is very solid. High quality components throughout. Packaging was excellent. Incredible views, even with the lesser-quality eyepieces that come with it. Cassini division of Saturn easily visible as well as subtle banding on the planet itself, even with the planet barely above the light-polluted (from my backyard) horizon and the full moon just a few degrees away! Festoons and swirls of Jupiter visible. M13 looked like a snowball made of diamonds! Couldn't quite see a star in the middle of M57 (Ring Nebula), but I bet better eyepieces will help.
The views are quite bright but not very contrasty at lower mgnifications, though that could be the eyepieces.
The mount is nicely finished and sturdy enough. As noted by others, while the azimuth motion is butter-smooth, the altitude motion is stiff.
A couple of caveats: The instruction manual is a bit weak. I had to email Discovery for some clarification of the locations of some assembly parts, such as washers. They responded with a telephone call. That's great service!
Also, the primary mirror, as nicely figured as it is, seems to have some kind of film or deposit on it. I think it is mineral deposits from the cleaning process. It is only visible when I shine a flashlight down the tube at an angle, but it's there. I've tried rinsing it off with a tap water/90% isopropyl mix and blow-drying, but it remains.
The biggest caveat: It took three months for the 'scope to arrive! When I placed the order, Discovery told me it would take 30 days. Thirty days later, they told me two more weeks. They kept telling me "two more weeks" for the next month and a half!
Dear Discovery, Tell the truth up front! We all know you make each 'scope by hand, and those of us who appreciate high quality craftsmanship do not mind waiting; just PLEASE BE HONEST ABOUT THE LEAD-TIME!

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40675

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
Completing my review from 10/6. Compared with my 120mm refractor (a decent scope), the PDHQ goes a full 2 magnitudes deeper on deep sky, which is about half a magnitude more than it should; and is much better on double stars going down to the atmospheric seeing limit of about 1 arcsec. M15 was resolved to a myriad of pinpoint stars at a medium magnification and I've seen many Messier objects for the first time with this scope in my light-polluted skies.

My rating is:
Optics: 10
Mechanics: 9
Finder: 8 (due to bracket attachment)
Aesthetic appeal: 10
Overall: 10

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: <none>
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40676

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
I've had the scope 3/4 of a year now and feel I can make an educated rating. Optics are excelent and this has been confirmed at a couple of star parties by people more experienced than I. Suplied eyepieces aren't the best but are usable. Got a chance to use some premium eyepieces at a star party. 35mm panoptic is a great match for this scope. Double cluster is amazing and Pleadies almost fits. 5mm radian showed amazing detail on saturn, clear Cassini, hint of enke and 6 moons. The mount isn't perfect as it is fairly stiff in altitude. I have to be careful that I don't pull the scope over, but it makes using heavy eyepieces no problem. I will probably soon buy some eyepieces, but I've done a lot with the supplied eyepieces so they're not "junk" as some would have you believe. Deducting one point for too stiff altitude movement. Overall great scope for the money. Thanks Discovery. Dave G

Overall Rating: 9
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=40677

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
Just a coment to add to my review. I fixed the sticky altitude problem. Use an ArmorAll wipe(the pre-moistened ones) and wipe down the teflon bushings and the bearings. Let it dry good a few minutes then put the scope back on the bearings and it moves like a dream. Don't know how long it will last, but it will be no problem to do this every time I observe if needed.

Overall Rating: No Vote
Weight: 1 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=52550

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
This is one great scope. The optics are figured almost perfect the views are outstanding. The mount is of very high quality like the rest of the scope. It's movement is very smooth in both directions the smoothest i have seen in a tube dob. This has to be the best value out there in a high quality telescope. I had trouble installing the digital setting circles and called discovery and their customer service was excellent to deal with. I highly reccommend this scope.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Mount:10 Ease of Use:10 Value:10
Weight: 6 (Veritable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=85429

Discovery 10" f/6 Premium
superb optics and a graeat scope deal!

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:8 Mount:8 Ease of Use:7 Value:9
Weight: 3 (Unreliable Vote)
Date:
By:
Link to this vote: http://www.excelsis.com/1.0/displayvote.php?voteid=94352

Page 1 of 2 Next

[Click Here to Login]
Don't have a login? Register!

Checking Your Telescope
Starting out in Amateur Astronomy
 
How to use This Site
Why Register?
[Get rid of the ads!]
Voting Guide