Celestron NexStar+ Hand Control User manual

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POSSIBLE PROBLEMS
PROBLEM #1
“No Response” Errors
The hand control displays No Response errors when plugged
into the mount, and the mount is powered on.
• If the hand control displays No Response 16 OR No
Response 17 (only one of these errors and not both), the
problem is with the mount, not the hand control. Contact
Celestron Technical Support at celestron.com/pages/
technical-support for assistance.
• If the hand control displays BOTH No Response 16 and No
Response 17, the problem could be with either the mount or
the hand control.
• If your mount has an AUX port(s), try plugging the
hand control into the AUX port instead of the HC
(hand control) port. If the No Response error goes
away, there is a problem with your mount’s HC
port. You can still use the mount by plugging the
hand control into one of the AUX ports.
• There could be a problem with your power source
providing too low voltage or current. Try using a
different power source to see if the problem goes
away.
• Updating the hand control firmware with Celestron
Firmware Manager may resolve the problem. We’ll
explain how in the next section.
• If using the Celestron Focus Motor, and the hand control
displays No Response 18, then there is an issue with the
focus motor not responding or not being detected by the
hand control. If this occurs, try using CFM to update the
hand control firmware to see if this resolves the issue. We’ll
explain how to do this in the next section.
• If updating the hand control firmware does not
resolve the No Response 18 error, then there may
be a problem with the focus motor’s cable or the
focus motor itself. In this case, please contact
Celestron Technical Support for further assistance.
Celestron NexStar+ Hand Control
TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDE
This troubleshooting guide can help you resolve problems related to the Celestron NexStar+ Hand Control. Specifically, if you
have a “No Response” error, “BOOT LOADER” error, or the hand control reports the improper telescope model, follow the
instructions below to see if you can fix the problem on your own.

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PROBLEM #2:
Incorrect telescope model shown
The hand control does not display the No Response errors
described above, but it does display an incorrect telescope
model when plugged into the mount.
• For EQ mounts, the hand control displays “NexStar Ready”
instead of the model of your EQ mount. If this happens, you
will need to change the firmware using Celestron Firmware
Manager. We’ll explain how in the next section.
• For AZ mounts, the hand control displays “Advanced GT”
instead of the model of your AZ mount. If this happens, you
will need to change the firmware using Celestron Firmware
Manager. We’ll explain how in the next section.
PROBLEM #3:
BOOT LOADER Errors
Whenever the hand control is in the firmware boot loading
mode, then “BOOT LOADER” will appear on the the top line
of the LCD. The line below it will provide additional information,
common examples include “User keypad request”, “CFM
request”, “Pass Through Engine”, and “Invalid Package”.
In the case where the hand control is trapped in boot loader
mode, for any error message save for “Invalid Package”,
simply power cycle the hand control to resolve the issue.
To do this, the mount should be powered off, and if the
hand control is connected to a PC via a cable, it should be
physically disconnected from the computer. Then reconnect
the hand control to the mount and turn the mount back on.
In the case where BOOT LOADER appears on the first line
of the LCD and “Invalid Package” appears on the second line
of the LCD, you will need to reprogram the hand control with
the Celestron Firmware Manager. We’ll explain how to do this
in the next section.

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To update your hand control’s firmware, you’ll need to use
Celestron Firmware Manager (CFM).
Visit www.celestron.com/pages/drivers-and-software to
download CFM.
System Requirements:
• Java Runtime Engine (JRE) version 6 (or higher)
• Windows XP or higher
• Mac OS X (10.5) or higher
• Other operating systems should work but are untested
CFM is delivered in a compressed archive (.ZIP) file. CFM
will not run from inside a compressed archive. You must
extract (unzip) the archive to create an uncompressed folder
before running CFM. For convenience, you can create a
folder on your Desktop called “CFM” and then extract the
files to that folder location. In Windows, right-click on the file
and choose Extract. If you double click on the archive, you are
not unpacking the archive, just looking inside it.
Using Celestron Firmware Manager (CFM)
TO UPDATE THE NEXSTAR+ HAND CONTROL’S FIRMWARE
Alternatively, you can use the “Extract all” from the
Compressed Folder Tools menu at the top of the screen.
Next, plug your hand control into your Celestron mount as
you usually would and power on the mount. The hand control
may report errors as described above. Connect your hand
control to your computer.
• For most hand controls, there is a USB port on the bottom
of the hand control for computer connection. You will
need a USB cable (Type-A to Mini-B, USB 2.0 or greater).
• For older hand controls, there is a 4-pin modular jack on
the bottom of the hand control for computer connection.
This requires the Celestron #93920 NexStar RS-232
cable, which connects to the hand control and a serial
port on your computer. If your computer does not have
a serial port, then you will additionally need to purchase
a USB-to-serial (RS-232) converter, available from many
electronics retailers.
Once connected, the computer should recognize the hand
control. If it does not, check your cable connections and
try again.
If the hand control is still not recognized, you will need to
manually install the required Prolific USB-Serial driver on
your computer. In most cases, this driver will be automatically
installed, but if using a Mac or an older PC operating system,
manual installation may be required. To manually install the
driver, click on the appropriate link below, download the
.zip archive, extract the files from the .zip, then follow the
directions found in the files. Once the driver is installed, the
hand control should now be recognized by the computer.
Windows – www.prolific.com.tw/us/showproduct.aspx?p_
id=225&pcid=41
Mac OS – www.prolific.com.tw/us/showproduct.aspx?p_
id=229&pcid=41

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Open the folder that contains the extracted CFM files and
double click the file called CFM.jar (Windows hides the .jar
file extension by default).
If the “Can’t Find Main Class” error appears, you are using an
outdated version of Java, or you are running from inside the
compressed archive. If you don’t see anything when you start
CFM, or you see the splash screen for just a moment before
it quits, you have an outdated version of Java.
CFM will open and automatically seek any devices connected
to the computer. Wait a few seconds, and CFM should
discover the hand control.
If CFM does not discover the hand control automatically,
check your cable connections and press “Seek Devices” in
CFM. When CFM finds the hand control, the hand control will
display “BOOT LOADER Serial Pass Through OFF.”
If the incorrect telescope model is displayed on the hand
control (Problem #2 above), you can fix this from the
NexStar+ menu in the top left of CFM. If the hand control
displays No Response 16/17 errors (Problem #1 above), you
can skip this step.
Select “Mount Types” from the menu, and the “Select your
telescope type” window appears.
Find your mount and click on the corresponding “Alt Az
(NXS)” box or “Equatorial (GEM)” box. Then, click on the
“Always do what I selected this time” selection at the bottom
of this window. Next, click the Select box at the bottom of the
window to confirm your selections, and the window will close.

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Now, click the “Update” button to begin updating your
hand control.
WARNING:Do not disconnect the hand control or power off the
computer or mount while the update is in progress!
The hand control will display “BOOT LOADER Serial CFM
Request” during the update.
When completed, CFM will report “All your devices are up to
date,” and a green circle with a checkmark will appear.
©2021 Celestron • All rights reserved • celestron.com
2835 Columbia Street • Torrance, CA 90503 U.S.A.
1021
Your hand control is now updated.
NOTE: If there were problems during the firmware update, you would
need to go through the process again. To do this, first, disconnect the
hand control from the computer. Power cycle the mount and reconnect
the hand control to the computer. Then click “Seek Devices” in CFM.
Once your hand control’s firmware has been updated, you
can disconnect the computer cable. Ensure the hand control
is still connected to the mount, and power cycle the mount to
see if the No Response 16/17 error or incorrect model error
goes away. If it does, have fun using your telescope! If it does
not, please contact Celestron Technical Support at celestron.
com/pages/technical-support for further assistance.