I bought this as a factory closeout - the price was about 60% of the what it sold for new. What a great deal!

The mount is silky smooth. The tube is actually overmounted - no shake or vibration. Optics are very nice - perfectly concentric diffraction rings on both sides of focus. Resolution and contrast is what you would expect from a good quality APO. The computer drive system, while using older technology, is very good. GOTO's and tracking are excellent.

My only complaint is the weight of this thing. At 70lbs all set up, it's pretty massive for a 4" refractor. You have to carry it in pieces to avoid starining yourself.

It's too bad Meade has stopped making these. They are an exceptional telescope.

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:10 Mount:10 Ease of Use:9 Value:10
Weight: 7
Date: 07/15/2005 11:27:20 pm PST

Replies: 0

I previously voted, but forgot to log in, so my vote was recorded as 'unreliable' I'm voting again, the same way, hoping that logging in makes a differencve.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Mount:10 Ease of Use:10 Value:10
Weight: 7
Date: 01/24/2005 09:17:42 pm PST

Replies: 0

After buying several different scopes (some of which I have kept, and others of which I have sold), I finally settled on the 5" GOTO Mak as the ideal for my tastes. I like refractor-like images in a portable package, and a 5" is about the largest size I can handle for quick setup and protability.

And so while the ETX-125 is the only 5" GOTO Mak on the market, it would probably be my first choice even if there were competition. I have had mine for nearly two months as I write these comments, and I have to tell you I like this scope better than anything else I have owned.

The optics are outstanding! I love seeing pinpoint stars with well-defined diffraction rings, and the 125 delivers that type of image. Planets, open clusters, globular clusters, and even nebulae look very nice thanks to the sharp, contrasty views.

The ETX's GOTO capabilities are excellent. Properly aligned, it will flawlessly point to the objects you select from Autostar. Tracking is also excellent - I can leave an object in the scope, walk away for an hour or so, then come back and find minimal drift. The mount is rock solid with the included tripod - absolutely no vibration!

Autostar is a joy to use, with the ability to upgrade it and to download tours, object lists, etc. If you know nothing about astronomy, Autostar is a wonderful teacher, with it's extensive help system.

Naturally, there are some negatives that need to be mentioned. The clutches on the mount are not the best - I had to dig into them and roughen up the surfaces so the scope would stay in position - the tube is front heavy, and there was a tendency for it to slowly fall forward. The focuser is also marginal - it is hard to achieve a fine focus because the movement is quite coarse. Like many other owners, I invested in an electrical focuser, and that solved the problem.

In spite of these negatives, my overall experience with the ETX-125 is overwhelmingly positive, and I have to give it a '10' overall.

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Mount:9 Ease of Use:10 Value:10
Weight: 7
Date: 11/27/2003 10:46:56 pm PST

Replies: 0

(Note - I previously voted when I had forgotten to log in, which did not much weight to my vote, hence the reason I am doing this again).

I bought my NexStar 4 in May 2003. I needed a portable GOTO scope because my 6" refractor and 11" SCT were too large and heavy to easily transport.

From a standpoint of appearance and design, this is one of the best on the market. The size proportion of the OTA and the fork mount is just right - on some of the other NexStars, the OTA looks either too big or too small. Plus, unlike the Meade ETX series, you can actually grab the focus knob with fat fingers, and the finder is useable.

Portability and setup is very easy. At a bit over 20lbs with tripod, it's very easy to carry. Setting up for GOTO is also easy - getting the OTA level, and pointing rerasonably close to north results in getting the alignment stars quite close to the center of the star pointer finder. Once aligned, GOTO's are remarkably accurate and consistent, even after hours of use.

Optically, this is a very good instrument. It delivers refractor-quality views, with high contrast and sharp definition. And, unlike an achromat refractor, fasle color is absent. Focusing is precise and smooth. The mount is rock solid - less than 1 second damping time when you strike the OTA.

If this little scope has a weakness, it's in tracking objects in alt-az. First, the motors are a bit noisy when tracking, and it's not a pleasant noise (but eventually you accept it). More troubling is the accuracy - in the 25mm eyepiece, objects will drift out of the FOV in about 10 minutes. I find myself constantly hitting the direction buttons on the hand controller to compensate. I haven't tried tracking in equatorial mode yet - I'm hopeful it will be better. At any rate, I had to give less than a perfect ease of use rating based on the tracking problems.

Otherwise, I am well please with my NexStar 4, and based on it's portability and optical quality, I suspect I may end up using it more than my other scopes.

Overall Rating: 9
Optics:9 Mount:9 Ease of Use:9 Value:9
Weight: 7
Date: 05/27/2003 07:45:17 pm PST

Replies: 0

This is my 'last telescope' (well, at least that's what I promised my wife). It's the largest aperture I can haul around without destroying my back. And what an instrument!

The optics are superb, The GOTO excellent, and the tracking virtually perfect. It's also very easy to use. With GPS, setup is fast and easy. I'm strictly a visual observer, and find the mount and tripod more than adequate - damping time after hitting the OTA is less than one second. Similarly, focusing produces no vibration. The drive motors are very quiet, and when tracking, they are nearly silent.

One of the more amazing things (to me) is the accuracy of it's GOTO's. One night, at around 9 pm, I had it slew to Mars, which was well below the horizon. Later, around 3am, I went out ot look, and there was Mars, dead center in the field of view! Doesn't get any better than this.

Gotta give this baby a 10!

Overall Rating: 10
Optics:10 Mount:10 Ease of Use:10 Value:10
Weight: 7
Date: 05/27/2003 07:40:34 pm PST

Replies: 0