Which Mount Should I Buy for My Telescope under 300?

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Many amateur astronomers may need an equatorial mount because of the failure to compensate for the night sky’s movement. Well, it may let you see celestial images. Considering astrophotography will show you the slightest tracking accuracy error in the shots.

In this post, we will discuss the top-rated mounts for a telescope under 300. They will give you more time to observe instead of adjusting. Keep reading to discover our top choices.

Top 5 Best Mounts for Telescopes

Orion 10010 Atlas GoTo Telescope Mount

In comparison to the general original mounts from Atlas, this mount is more lightweight. It comes with an advanced belt-driven motor drive. This allows you to get more than 42 thousand celestial objects.

Moreover, the mount comes with the visual encoders, so you can align your telescope in other directions. Furthermore, is also knows where the mount is essential to adjust.

Pros

  • Let you control from a well-lighted handset
  • It may operate like AZ mount
  • May be adjusted for polar alignment

Cons

  • Not as economical as many different products

Celestron CGX Mount and Tripod

If you are finding a strong mount with a stable tripod, you can choose this mount and tripod. It comes with a belt drive motor system. There is a database of 40,000 objects. Moreover, it also comes with the Polar alignment software. Especially, it consists of alignment knobs that are simple to use.

Pros

  • Features a payload capacity of 55 pounds
  • Quiet performance
  • The wider latitude range compared to other EQ models
  • Includes polar alignment

Cons

  • Expensive
  • Heavy

Orion AstroView EQ Motor Drive Kit

This mount has a 7-pound payload capacity. It doesn’t come with a motor as the standard. However, the device may give you a payload of about 12 pounds. It is a good choice for small refractors. It comes with a tracking motor that is to keep your scope concentrate on the objects.

Pros

  • Affordable and lightweight
  • Ideal for those who want to move from their cars
  • Great for most refractors of 80mm
  • Ease of attaching without any tool requirements
  • Ease of use

Cons

  • Without GoTo software that leads to long exposure
  • Just be an elementary one

Celestron Advanced VX Computerized Mount

This mount features a payload of 30 pounds. It’s also a good choice for your money. It’s affordable. It’s a good option for beginners who want to advance to one heavier.

It has a weight of 47 pounds. Therefore, it seems to be heavier compared to same-priced products. However, the model is able to support the heavier payload. Moreover, this mount also comes with a polar scope. It ensures to give you more stability.

Pros

  • The capacity of 30 pounds
  • Great for beginners as well as intermediate astronomers
  • Less tracking errors due to the error correction program
  • Comes with the polar scope

Cons

  • Seems to be hard to assemble

Orion 9055 Min-EQ Tabletop Equatorial

Although this mount can support only about seven pounds for your telescope, this one is a good choice to keep in your backpack. It comes with a rugged metal model. It’s a good option for astrophotography in a wide field.

Pros

  • Affordable price
  • Compact and lightweight design
  • Features manual tracking
  • Great for camping

Cons

  • Requires a firm surface
  • You need to turn manual tracking knob each 30 seconds

Plan for the Next When Choosing a Mount

When looking for the first model for astrophotography, it’s essential to make your plan for the next purchase. Cheap equatorial mounts can keep your telescope as well as other equipment stables. However, how is your next telescope?

More expensive mounts will come with be accompanied by a better payload capacity. It’s a good idea to always look for ones that weigh double that of your equipment.

Conclusion

Actually, Celestron and Orion are two major players of astronomy equipment. You can get the best mounts for astrophotography from these two brands. Al the five products above are great products you can choose when shopping for the best mounts for your telescopes.

However, our top pick is the Orion 10010 Atlas. This model is stable as well as accurate. Moreover, this mount comes with Orion’s EQMod software. It also can perform as an AZ mount.

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