The 'MX5' is the latest exciting introduction to the Starlight Xpress range. It is an extremely
compact cooled camera, with ideal characteristics for the smaller telescope, or telephoto
lens. It exhibits by far the best price/ performance ratio to be found in CCD cameras costing
up to at least £1000, and gives you 500 x 290 pixel images from a (larger than average) 4.9 x
3.6mm chip. In addition to this excellent CCD specification the camera also provides a 12 bit
data output as standard, with the option to have a 16 bit converter fitted for a moderate extra
cost! The system consists of a 50 x 100mm cylindrical camera head, weighing only 200
grams (7 oz), a 5 metre lightweight cable, and a small power module for mains, or battery
use. The camera head is complete with a 1.25" drawtube adaptor and has a M42 Pentax
thread barrel to allow you to screw on various standard camera lenses. A tripod bracket is
also supplied To operate the MX5, you will need a PC computer with a standard 25 pin printer
port socket. The computer must be running Windows 3.1, or higher, and should be at least a
40MHz 486DX for best results. A 'Port Accelerator' module is available to speed up image
download by about 2.5 - 3x, if desired. The MX5 comes complete with a versatile Windows
based control and processing program, Pix_M5, which gives you an extensive range of
features, without the need to buy additional software.

Further technical details of the MX5 are given below:

The MX5 camera specification:

CCD type: Sony ICX055AL HyperHAD CCD with ultra low dark current and vertical
anti-blooming
CCD pixel data: Pixel size: 9.8 x 12.6uM, Image format: 500 x 290 pixels, Pixel size: 9.8uM x
12.6uM
CCD size: Imaging area: 4.9mm (horizontal) x 3.6mm (vertical).
Spectral response Peak response at 520nM (Green), 50% at 400nM (Violet) and 670nM (Near
infra-red) (Note the very good blue light performance, excellent for Tri-colour work.)
Readout noise: Approx. 25 electrons RMS.
Full-well capacity: Approx. 120,000 e-.
Anti-blooming: Overload margin greater than 800x
Dark current: Dark frame saturation time greater than 5 hours
Computer interface: 8 bit unidirectional parallel port with bidirectional status lines (Standard
Centronics interface). 25 pin ADS style plug for LPT1, 2 or 3, via a 5 metre x 6mm diameter
cable.
Image download time Typically: 20 seconds with a 66MHz 486 PC, 8 seconds when using a
port accelerator module.
Power requirements: 115VAC / 240VAC @ 12VA, or 12VDC @ 700 milliamps max.
Cooling system: Regulated constant-current cooling supply built-in. Single-stage
thermoelectric cooler to give a CCD temperature of approximately -30C below ambient.
Size: 50 x 100mm black anodised aluminium barrel with M42 thread at CCD window end and
15 way 'D' style input plug at rear.
Weight: 200g.

Price:
MX5 - £495.00 + £10.00 p&p
MX516 - £595.00 + £10.00 p&p
MX5-C - £620.00 + £10.00 p&p
MX5 USB- £595.00 + £10.00 p&p
MX516 USB - £695.00 + £10.00 p&p
MX5-C USB - £720.00 + £10.00 p&p
Port Accellerator - £55.00




OVERVIEW OF STARLIGHT XPRESS MX5 CCD CAMERA
by Maurice Gavin C/serve 100772,47.

Interest has been expressed on the Forum about this new CCD camera
which I collected for test at the European Astrofest - London where
it was it was previewed for the first time. Instantly dubbed the
'eyepiece' camera (at 300grams, it's lighter than some 2"eyepieces!)
and has a number of innovative features not least in its low cost.
Add a fast 486 or Pentium laptop and the whole imaging system is
virtually pocketable for those field trips. The camera is the
brain-child of Starlight Xpress' designer and electro-optical engineer
- Terry Platt and the third camera in their range to use proven Sony
interline chip technology. Much misinformation abounds about camcorder
chips. Most CCDs in this field are adapted from industrial
applications quite unrelated to astronomy and in practice the camcorder
chip competes remarkably well - often better!

The complete camera and circuitry, using the "latest surface mount
technology", is contained within a black anodised tubular body 2"
diameter and 4" long. Neat. A small 12VDC power-pack plus 15ft of
cable connects direct to PC parallel printer port, completes the
hardware. Like an eyepiece - the camera fits direct into a 2"
focuser (reaching focal planes sometimes inaccessible) or 1-1/4"
eyepiece with supplied adaptor. The faceplate is threaded for M42/
Pentax screw so cameras lens can be coupled direct to the MX5 for
wide-angle views.

Shipped versions will have a standard 1/4" tripod bush. The chip is
sealed by a bloomed, clear filter window held in place by a threaded
ring which can be removed for CCD cleaning. The chip is bonded to the
single stage Peltier cooler via a large circular aluminium disk in
contact with the inner tube wall. The cooler is constant-current
regulated and automatically invoked on power-up. The camera however
remained remarkable cool even when left connected for many hours.

The MX5 uses the Sony ICX055 monochrome chip with 500 x 290 pixels
(size ~9.8 x 12.6 microns) in an area of 4.9mm x 3.6mm or about twice
the size of the popular TC244 chip. The Sony chip has very low 'noise'
characteristics producing clean images so that darkframe exposure/
subtraction can be omitted for casual observation. It has a good
spectral response from near UV to near IR but peaks in green like the
human eye.

Pix_MX5 software, running under Windows, controls camera operation and
comprehensive image processing. Virtually identical to the proven
PixWin (larger Sony chip), I found it more than adequate for all my
processing needs prior to conversion to TIF (or FITS) for resampling
under PaintShop Pro for non-square pixels, tweaking and titleing.

The camera control 'page' is clearly laid out and intuitive with all
the options mouse activated. Focus Mode (not saveable) displays and
rapidly refreshes the central 150 x150 pixel area with the maximum
pixel value listed. The 'Take Photo' mode allows for exposures from
0.01sec to 90min (1-1/2hrs). Download and display speed is PC
dependent and on my 486-66 PC this was ~20s or ~8s with 'port
accelerator' (see below). A 'fuel-gauge' shows exposure and download
progress. Up to 20 'snapshots' in 'Slew & Sum' mode counters small
tracking errors and can be either 'averaged' (to smooth image) or
'summed' for a longer effective exposure. Poor weather has not allowed
me to test this option yet. Auto darkframe subtraction and autosave
to HD are optional. Images can be time/date stamped automatically
from the computer clock and manually titled.

The Astronomy Shop

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