ZWO ASI2600MM Duo APS-C Cooled Monochrome Astronomy Camera with Built-In Guide Sensor

The ASI2600MM Duo combines imaging and guiding sensors in one compact body. The main sensor is the Sony IMX571 coming with a native 16-bit ADC,14stops dynamic range, and a 3.76um square pixel array. The readout noise is as low as 1.0e, and the full well capacity reaches an incredible level of 73ke. And it has no amp glow!

The guide sensor is the Type 1/1.8 SC2210 with excellent NIR sensitivity. The sensor size is 7.68mm x 4.32mm. It has 4umx4um pixels with an array of 1920×1080 and a full depth of 8780e.

The stars on the corner of the guide images affected by reducers back focus distance might not be very round. It is not due to the sensor tilt and will not affect normal use.

Two-in-one design

Thanks to the compact design, the ASI2600MM Duo only needs one USB cable for control. It reduces potential cabling issues and improves setup speeds. You don’t need a separate OAG and guide camera.

Tilt Adjustment from Rear (Optional）

The 3 points from the rear make tilt adjustment much easier without the trouble of removing the tilt plate from the camera.

Built-in Guide Sensor

The SC2210 sensor taken from the ASI220MM Mini camera features very high sensitivity. The QE peak value reaches 92% at 500nm. The readout noise is as low as 0.6e. As the new generation of guide sensor, it has achieved great results in guiding, proved by hundreds of astrophotographers.

Here are a few benefits of having a guide camera in the main camera body:

• Eliminates the need for a guide scope or off-axis guider (OAG)
• Allows more accurate guiding at your telescope's full focal length
• No OAG allows for extra room in your image train for rotators & more
• Similar cost to guide camera and guide scope/OAG purchased separately

Main sensor

The main sensor IMX571 features an APS-C format and 26MP total pixels. The size is 23.5mm in width x 15.7mm in height, and the diagonal is 28.3mm. The 3.76um x 3.76um small pixel size accommodates an impressive full depth of 50ke. With the new hardware technology, it is even extended to 73ke.

STARVIS technology

ASI2600MM DUO is based on Sony STARVIS technology. Sony’s back-illuminated CMOS image sensor improves sensitivity and noise reduction – the key factors to enhancing image quality.

Native 16bit ADC

This 16-bit ADC is not a CCD 16-bit ADC. It can really achieve a dynamic range output of 14stops, which will significantly improve the image sharpness and contrast, and also create smoother and more natural color transitions.

FPS

ASI2600MM Duo’s max FPS in RAW 8 mode at full resolution is 15FPS, which is even quicker compared to ASI2600MM Pro.

Extended full well mode

The full well capacity of ASI2600MM Duo is extended to 73ke when the gain value is set to -25.

USB 3.0 & 512MB DDR3 buffer

Traditional CMOS sensors produce a weak infrared light source during operation quite often seen in the corner of uncalibrated images. It is the tell-tale sign of amp glow. As the ASI2600MM Duo uses zero-amp glow circuitry, you won’t have to worry about amp glow even when using high gain, long exposure imaging.

QE (Quantum efficiency)

Based on ZWO's testing results, the QE peak value of ASI2600MC Duo is over 80%, the QE peak value of ASI2600MM Duo is over 91%.

Two-stage TEC cooling

Thanks to the two-stage TEC cooling, ASI2600MM Duo can lower the CMOS sensor temperature to more than 30-35 degrees Celsius below ambient temperature, which can greatly reduce dark current generation and sensor noise even during extended exposure times.

*The Delta T 30-35℃ is tested at 30℃ ambient temperature. It might get down when the cooling system is working for a long time. Also, as the ambient temperature falls, the Delta T would decrease.

Anti-Dew Heater

There is a polyimide heater completely fitting the protective window in the ASI2600MM Duo camera. It can help avoid any potential annoying dew or icing issues depending on the environment in which you capture images.

The power of the heater is around 5W. If you want to save battery, you can always turn it off in your photography software.

Full Specifications

Main Camera:

• Sony IMX571 APS-C size Back-illuminated CMOS sensor (monochrome)
• Resolution: 6248×4176
• Pixel Size: 3.76μm
• Sensor Size: 23.5mm x 15.7mm (28.3mm diagonal)
• Max FPS at full resolution: 15FPS in RAW 8 mode
• Read Noise: 0.9e-4.2e
• QE peak: >80%
• Full well: 50Ke - Over 73Ke - at extended full well mode
• ADC: 16 bit (14-stop dynamic range)
• USB: 3.0
• Telescope Connection: M54x0.75
• Back Focus: 17.5mm (standard) or 12.5mm (without tilt plate)

Guide Camera:

• SC2210 1/1.8" size CMOS sensor (monochrome, same as ASI220MM Mini)
• Resolution: 1920x1080
• Sensor Size: 7.68 x 4.32mm
• Quantum Efficiency: 92%
• Read Noise: As low as 0.6e
• FPS: 14
• USB: 2.0
• ADC: 12bit