Gear Database

iOptron HEM44EC with iPolar

iOptron

iOptron HEM44EC Hybrid Strain Wave Drive Mount Head is a strain-wave GoTo mount for guided astrophotography rigs.

mount premium
iOptron HEM44EC with iPolar

Best Current Offer

Mile High Astronomy logo
Mile High Astronomy
In stock
$39.95

Other retailers

Specifications

Mount

Mount type
Hybrid strain-wave equatorial GoTo mount
Drive system
Strain-wave RA drive with belt-driven DEC
Payload capacity
44 lb (20 kg) without counterweight; 55 lb (25 kg) with counterweight
Mount weight
13.65 lb (6.2 kg)
Counterweight
SS Φ20X200mm, M16 thread (Optional)
Latitude range
15º ~ 65º

Capacity

Payload-to-weight ratio
4:1

Motion

Slew rate
4.5º/sec
Encoder
High-precision RA encoder variant

Specifications

Power
DC12V-5A (5.5/2.5mm DC plug)

Electronics

Controller
Go2Nova® 8409 with ~212,000 objects database

Mechanical

Tripod / pier
Optional

Astrophotography Fit

A portable strain-wave mount that should be chosen by realistic imaging payload, not headline capacity alone.

iOptron HEM44EC Hybrid Strain Wave Drive Mount Head is a premium strain-wave GoTo mount for computerized tracking and guiding.

For long-exposure astrophotography, use a conservative imaging payload. The telescope, camera, guide hardware, dew heaters, dovetails, and cables all count, and guiding performance matters more than the catalog payload number.

Strain-wave mounts are wonderfully compact, but they still need stiffness, cable discipline, and sometimes counterweighting to keep long tubes calm.

Best paired with

  • Compact refractors, cooled cameras, and tidy cable-managed power
  • Guiding from a guide scope or OAG for long exposures
  • Tripod or pier with enough stiffness for the full imaging load

Not recommended for

  • Ignoring counterweights on long or heavy optical tubes
  • Tall, flexible tripods with high wind exposure
  • Payloads near the marketing limit for long-exposure imaging

Where To Buy

Some links on this page are affiliate links. Prices and availability are pulled automatically from each retailer and updated daily.

Retailer Price Availability View Offer
Mile High Astronomy logo
Mile High Astronomy
Mile High Astronomy
$39.95
In stock
Updated 11/4/2026
View Offer - $39.95
Cloud Break Optics logo
Cloud Break Optics
Cloud Break Optics
$4,148.00
In stock
Updated 11/4/2026
View Offer - $4,148.00
Astronomics logo
Astronomics
Astronomics
$4,559.00
In stock
Updated 11/4/2026
View Offer - $4,559.00
High Point Scientific logo
High Point Scientific
High Point Scientific
$4,559.00
In stock
Updated 11/4/2026
View Offer - $4,559.00

Price History

Chronological retailer pricing with out-of-stock points shown at reduced opacity.

Astronomics Cloud Break Optics High Point Scientific Mile High Astronomy
$5,101.29 $3,400.86 $1,700.43 $0.00 Oct 10, 2026 Oct 23, 2026 Nov 4, 2026 Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 10, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 11, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 12, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 13, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 15, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 16, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 17, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 18, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 19, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 20, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 21, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 22, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 23, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 24, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 25, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 26, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 27, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 28, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 29, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 30, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Oct 31, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Nov 1, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Nov 2, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Nov 3, 2026 - In stock Astronomics - $4,559.00 - Nov 4, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 10, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 11, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 12, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 13, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 14, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 15, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 16, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 17, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 18, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 19, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 20, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 21, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 22, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 23, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 24, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 25, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 26, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 27, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 28, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 29, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 30, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Oct 31, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Nov 1, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Nov 2, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Nov 3, 2026 - In stock Cloud Break Optics - $4,148.00 - Nov 4, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 11, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 12, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 13, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 14, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 15, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 16, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 17, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 18, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 19, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 20, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 21, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 22, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 23, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 24, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 25, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 26, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 27, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 28, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 30, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Oct 31, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Nov 1, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Nov 2, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Nov 3, 2026 - In stock High Point Scientific - $4,559.00 - Nov 4, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 10, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 11, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 12, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 14, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 15, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 16, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 17, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 18, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 19, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 20, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 21, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 22, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 23, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 24, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 25, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 26, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 27, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 28, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 29, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 30, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Oct 31, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Nov 1, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Nov 2, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Nov 3, 2026 - In stock Mile High Astronomy - $39.95 - Nov 4, 2026 - In stock