ASI2600MC Pro Restarts

[StarzSkies]

Hi Robin,
Not sure if this is a bug candidate.
I am experiencing some odd behavior every now and then.
I have been getting camera restarts on my asi2600mc pro. Last night they happened multiple times during the session.
I have been seeing this off and on. I still get a good session but am probably losing quite a few frames.
To attempt corrections myself based on what's happening I have toggled down the USB setting to 40, think that's the lowest.
I replaced my cable from the camera to the pc with a much better quality cable.
Laptop is fully capable with 32gb memory and I7-8650u processor. Connecting to USB 3 port. I am thinking of connecting an adapter and connecting to the USB-C port (your thoughts on this)
Conditions last night were getting cool so i had a dew heater on the camera since dew starts building at around 10:00 PM
Latest SC version, see the first line in the log.
I trimmed down the log since there was a lot of repetition. I looked at the log myself as a former .net programmer and did not see anything that would alert me to a specific problem but you'll understand the messaging better than me anyway.
Other than this, i did manage 300+ frames of 45sec 125gain on a dim image i have been working on for a number of sessions (vdb 141 Ghost)
Any input and feedback would be greatly appreciated.
Frank

[StarzSkies]

Correction to my post, Dew heater on the scope, not the camera.

[admin]

Hi Frank,

it's a tricky one as whatever is going wrong is happening at the SDK or camera level - below anything that SharpCap is properly aware of.

SharpCap itself is responding to the camera dropping frames - that is the application asks for a frame and the camera ends up not delivering it. Once the time lost to dropped frames passes a 60s threshold, SharpCap tries to recover by shutting down the connection to the camera SDK and then re-initialising it, which leads to entries in the log like

Code: Select all

Warning	18:25:07.670863	#26	Fetching still frame from ZWO camera failed with ExpFailed, exposure is 45000, timeout is 67250							in bool SharpCap.Cameras.ASI.ASICameraProxy.GetFrameData(int timeout, double startingExposure, BufferFrame frame, CancellationToken cancellationToken)
Warning	18:25:07.670941	#26	More than 60s lost due to camera failing to send frames, attempting camera reset										in bool SharpCap.Cameras.ASI.ASICameraProxy.GetFrameData(int timeout, double startingExposure, BufferFrame frame, CancellationToken cancellationToken)
Warning	18:25:07.670998	#26	Attempting to reset ZWO camera																							in void SharpCap.Cameras.ASI.ASICameraProxy.TryResetCamera()
Debug  	18:25:07.671091	#26	Finished ZWO Exposure of 45000ms, gotFrame = False

and some following entries that track the re-initialization process.

Now, the idea behind SharpCap trying to recover is that experience has shown that once the camera gets into the 'no frame delivered' state, it tends to continue indefinitely if left alone, so even if the recovery attempt fails, it doesn't make things worse. In your case it seems to be succeeding, but then the problem arises again soon afterwards.

I think you are probably on the right track by trying various USB connection options, but some more things I might suggest include

* Check that your 12V supply to the camera is solid - well connected and not having issues providing the cooling power. You could test without cooling switched on - if that improves things then 12V power might be implicated as part of the cause

* If your USB cable is long, replace with a shorter one (try to keep below 2m). If that makes it hard to reach from the telescope then try testing with the shorter cable to see if the problem goes away. Often a 2m cable => decent hub => 2m cable is more robust than a 4m cable.

* Try using a USB2 cable or port - I've seen cases where that works reliably in a 'slow and steady' way.

* Try a different PC if you can - basically you are trying to change one thing at a time, replacing out things that could cause the problem until you find a change that goes from 'bad' to 'good.

cheers,

Robin

[StarzSkies]

Hi Robin,
Thanks for the quick reply.
The cable i replaced is the same length as the zwo cable, just a better quality.
Since it's pretty cool these nights I'll give the cooling off a try, hopefully it will not impact anything.
As far as power, i have dedicated power supplies to all major equipment, mount, camera, extras like dew heater so I'm thinking they are ok but always smart to check.
I do have my guide camera (ASI662MC) connected to the back of the ASI2600MC, can't imagine it is drawing much power.
Another thing I was thinking of is the real time virus scanning I have active on my PC. I doubt this would be a problem but I am going to disable it during sessions as there is no risk, the wifi is coming from the zwo mount so there is no internet access.

Any thoughts on using USB-C as an alternative?

Going out tonight an tomorrow so I'll let you know of any improvements.
It's interesting about this behavior, it either starts and continues intermittently or is not an issue that i notice.
It does also seem to settle down later in the session.

Frank