As someone who is strictly a visual observer, and has tried multiple goto mount systems, what matters to me is the ease of setup and use of the AP system. The combination of the RAPAS and not having to build a model with a lot of points, yet getting accurate pointing, means having more time to observe, and getting to visit many faint objects in one session. Having a powerful hand controller that works in deep cold means I can observe year round and never need another device or full computer. The strength of the mount and power of its motors means I don’t have to fuss with balance as I move from massive wide field eyepieces to featherweight orthos. 

I haven’t found anything else that works so well and makes my observing as enjoyable.  But the 900 is overkill for some of my use cases, and the Mach 1 seems like it might be too. I’m reasonably happy with my 600EQMD in terms of size, but could even go as light as a 400. It’s crossed my mind to look for a 600 or 400 servo and upgrade it to a CP4, but even with a right angle viewer on the PASIL to reduce the neck pain, it’s not as accurate as the RAPAS, and that accuracy is part of what makes the goto so effective. 

So even though I’m not an imager sweating over arcsecond tracking, I’m very much in the camp that would like to see the AP system applied to a more portable mount size. It just does everything right and makes all of the issues that plague other systems disappear. 

Chip