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About this product
Model: zwo_asi2600mc-pro
Part Number: ZWO ASI2600MC-P
Features Sony's highly sensitive 26MP IMX571 APS-C sensor, 2-stage TEC cooling and no Amp Glow!
The ASI 2600MC Pro uses Sony’s latest back-illuminated IMX571 APS-C format native 16-bit ADC sensor.
Features include ultra-high 14 stops dynamic range, very low 1.0e readout noise and zero amp-glow!
APS-C format:
The Sony 26 MP APS-C format sensor with 3.76um pixels provides a large well depth of 50ke.
The sensor length and width are 23.5mm x 15.7mm, and the diagonal is 28.3mm.
Beautifully made:
ZWO has worked hard to reduce weight (only 0.7kg) and improve performance.
All ZWO cameras include a 2-year warranty.
FEATURES
- Sony IMX571 Sensor
- 6248x4176 3.76 μm Pixels
- 256MB DDR3 Memory Buffer
- Zero Amp Glow!
- Regulated two-stage Tec-Cooling: 35 degrees below ambient temperature
- Extremely low read noise - 1.0-3.3e
- 16Bit ADC - provides real 16bit dynamic range
- Electronic shutter - no issues with vibrations sometimes found in mechanical shutters
- USB3.0 Port (back compatible with USB2.0)
- IR Cut protective window
- Compatible with Windows / Mac OS / Linux
Native 16bit ADC
ASI2600MC Pro is our first batch of CMOS astronomy cameras with 16-bit ADC. This 16-bit ADC is not a CCD 16-bit ADC and can achieve a dynamic range output of 14 stops. This significantly improves the image's sharpness and contrast, making the colour changes smoother and more natural.
IMX571 backlit sensor
Sony’s back-illuminated CMOS image sensor improves sensitivity and noise reduction – the key factors to enhancing image quality, while radically realigning their fundamental pixel structure from front-illumination to back-illumination. It has retained the advantages of CMOS image sensors, such as low power consumption and high-speed operation.
With a conventional front-illumination structure, the metal wiring and transistors on the silicon substrate surface that form the sensor’s light-sensitive area (photo-diode) impede photon gathering carried out by the on-chip lens. A back-illuminated structure minimises the degradation of sensitivity to optical angle response while also increasing the amount of light that enters each pixel due to the lack of obstacles, such as metal wiring and transistors that have been moved to the reverse of the silicon substrate.
Sony has newly developed a unique photo-diode structure and on-chip lens optimised for back-illuminated structures, that achieves a higher sensitivity and a lower random noise without light by reducing noise, dark current and defect pixels compared to the conventional front-illuminated structure.
DDR Memory Buffer
ZWO Pro cameras feature a 256MB DDR3 memory buffer to enable data transfer stability and reduced amp-glow caused by the slow data transfer speed when using a USB 2.0 port.
Camera Field of View Simulator
Camera Performance
The ASI2600MC Pro has excellent performance with a dynamic range of up to 14 stops. When the gain value is 100, the magical HCG high gain mode is turned on, the readout noise is significantly reduced, and the dynamic range is basically unchanged. It is recommended to set the gain to 0 or gain 100 in deep space.
QE Curve
The QE peak value of the ASI2600MC Pro is above 80%.
Zero Amp Glow
Traditional CMOS sensors produce a weak infrared light source during operation, often seen in the corner of uncalibrated images as the telltale signs of ‘amp glow’. As the ASI2600MC Pro uses zero amp glow circuitry, you won’t have to worry about amp glow even when using high gain, long exposure imaging.
With amp glow – exposure 300-second exposure:
ASI2600 frame with no amp glow – Exposure 300 seconds:
Anti-dew
ASI2600MC Pro comes with a polyimide heater that can avoid any dew problems. The heater can be turned off in software if you want to save power.
Two-stage TEC cooling, ultra-low dark current
Like the ASI6200, the ASI2600MC Pro also uses two-stage TEC cooling. It can lower the CMOS sensor temperature to more than 35c below ambient, significantly reducing dark current generation and sensor noise even with extended exposure times.
The unique dark current suppression technology can even further reduce dark current noise.
At a cooling temperature of 0 °, the dark current noise is only 0.0024e/s/pix. This means 300s exposure can only cause 0.7e dark current noise, which is negligible!
Mechanical Diagram
Connecting Diagram
1. Nikon-T2 adapter
2. EOS-T2 adapter
3. 2” filter (optional)
4. Nikon lens
5. Canon lens
What's in the box
- ASI2600MC-Pro Camera
- Soft Padded Case
- 2-metre USB 3.0 Cable
- USB 2.0 Short Cable x2
- T2 Extender 21mm
- T2-M48 16.5mm Extender
- M42-M48 Adapter
- 2" Cover
- Allen Key
Specifications
| Sensor | SONY IMX571 CMOS |
| Diagonal | 28.3mm |
| Image area | 23.5*17.5mm |
| Resolution | 26 Mega Pixel 6248*4176 |
| Pixel Size | 3.76μm |
| Shutter | Rolling shutter |
| Exposure Range | 32μs-2000s |
| ROI | Supported |
| Read Noise | 1.0-3.3e |
| QE peak | 91% |
| Full well | 50000e |
| ADC | 16bit |
| DDRIII Buffer | 256MB |
| Non-volatile memory/On camera storage | Build-in total 192K byte user-accessible space(image size up to 480X320) |
| Interface | USB3.0/USB2.0 |
| Interface | USB3.0/USB2.0 |
| Adaptor | M42X0.75 |
| Protect window | D60-2 IR Cut |
| Dimensions | 90mm Diameter |
| Weight | 700g |
| Back Focus Distance | 17.5mm |
| Cooling | Regulated Two-Stage TEC |
| Delta T | 35°C below ambient |
| Camera Power consumption | 1.15A at 5V |
| Cooler Power consumption | 12V at 3A Max |
| Working Temperature | -5°C—50°C |
| Storage Temperature | -10°C—60°C |
| Working Relative Humidity | 0%—80% |
Max FPS at full resolution:
- 16Bit ADC
- 6248×4176 3.51fps
- 4096×3072 4.75fps
- 4096×2160 6.71fps
- 3840×2160 6.71fps
- 1920×1080 13.13fps
- 1280×720 19.29fps
- 640×480 28.06fps
- 320×240 51.44fps
More resolutions can be seen in software. Customised resolution is also supported.
Downloads / Manuals
The following manuals and downloads are available for this product:
Software
ZWO Software and Drivers
Customer reviews
| Average Rating (8 Reviews): | |
04 October 2024 | Mark
Took the plunge on the ZWO Asi2600MC pro and actually got some clear nights after delivery! A great step up from my mirrorless setup and like all ZWO products, easy to setup and use, first results are very promising.
FLO service was, as ever, exemplary! Many thanks.
25 April 2024 | Ashley
Quick delivery as always from FLO ,but as any astro imaging enthusiast knows, purchases comes with clouds 🥴😅, will be worth that wait for clear skies I'm sure tho!
22 December 2022 | Andrew
Unfortunately I cannot give a review of the performance of the camera just yet as it was a Christmas present from my wife, and so is wrapped securely until I can get my hands on it on Christmas Day!
However I did unbox it to check it over and it certainly looks good, quite a lot heavier than my ASI533 and much larger, as you might expect from a camera with a huge sensor.
Build quality is as expected from ZWO and it comes with quite a few adapters to assist in reaching the necessary back focus.
Service and delivery from FLO was spot on as usual.
I will add an update as soon as Santa has been - and hopefully leaves a few clear nights as well!
05 October 2022 | Greg
I have been imaging for the past 18-years, and for 16 of those years I have used CCD cameras in the mistaken belief that they were far superior to CMOS for deep-sky imaging. That was a BIG mistake. For the past 2 years I have been using the ASI 2600MC Pro CMOS camera and I'm sorry to say it blows my CCDs out of the water. The first thing that is obvious on downloading your first sub is that it is MUCH lower noise than the comparable (same size sensor) CCD, and that is running the CMOS at only -5C when the CCD is operating at -15C to -20C! As the advert states - there is no amp glow - and I have taken 30-minute subs with the camera with no sign of amp glow. The download is extremely fast! My ASI 2600MC Pro is also much more sensitive (higher quantum efficiency) than all my previous CCD cameras. In fact, it's a really bad thing that I bought this CMOS camera as it means I am going to have to redo all the work I carried out using the CCDs - the image quality improvement really is that good. Oh - and compared to the CCDs - there's virtually no hot pixels!
Absolutely brilliant Camera 10 March 2022 | Iain
Superb quality camera from FLO and has proven itself time after time. When Shooting Galaxies, there’s no need for expensive filters - the camera provides great images without them. As for Nebulae, again this can be done without filters if you’re in Bortle 4 territory or better. When I have used something like the Optolong L-Extreme, the colours in Nebulae really pop ! I haven’t used the anti-dew on the camera as I’ve not had the need. The general consesus of setting the gain (on ASIAIR) to 100 and cooling set to -10Deg is about right in my experience. I’ve even managed to get great images from this without the need for darks and flats… great camera and worth the price IMO
26 May 2021 | Karl
Took the plunge from DSLR to this. Finally managed to use it last night and I am blown away by the quality. The whole ordering experience was a delight with FLO who gave me guidance as to what was best and cannot recommend this enough
06 January 2021 | Darren
Big sensor, No Amp glow, very High Q.E.
Given it a few minutes on the horsehead with a RASA (before the clouds rolled in)
Gets some nice Subs with short exposure times.
Much Much faster to get Plate-solved and focused than my CCD sensor with the short image transfer times
18 December 2020 | Andrew
Chose a bright easy target for first light. Horsehead nebula with L extreme filter. going to have fun with these two items. Thanks guys for the quick delivery in these testing times. But had another fight with DHL in Vietnam. They are useless!
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