Does sensor affect scanners?

[Faded Glory]

As for which is better Range or Speed: I think it depends very much on which kind of targets you are going after. Travel time is the biggest time element of Exploration so range is probably superior since it can cut your travel time by 50% (or more!) in some cases. Scanning usually takes up the last 5-30% of travelling around a system, so even doubling your scan speed will only speed up your earnings by a marginal amount at the end of hop between object. Scan speed is only really superior in systems where the rich targets are lumped up close together near the star and already in range of the normal DSS, like M class red dwarf systems with a clutch of terrestrials/terraformables that are all within 7Ls of the star.

Of course, if you're the kind of person that likes to get close up to each object you scan, then the Fast Scan is probably the way to go.

That was my thought process, to a point.

I only DSS full systems, don't cherry pick (just for RP reasons), and as you say, travel time is a big element, but bodies do tend to get bunched together, either as twin planets orbiting each other or gas giants with a bunch of satellites. Most of the time these days though I don't bother with systems with a ton of rocky / icy bodies, so as I said, next trip I will try out the range mod.

I did like the fact that the actual scanning didn't feel interminable, but I'll be interested to see how much further out I can be before it starts to scan. The fast mod sacrifices a bit of range, so in some cases I needed to be within 6 to 9 Ly of the target for the scan to begin, I'm assuming that the long range mod should start to scan around 20 Ly out.

 

[Lily from anim.o.v.e]

The point being you have to go to combat areas or be involved in some way with combat areas, and I never do, I go nowhere near combat or areas where I might get involved in combat. And I am not going to traipse all over the place hoping to find the right stuff. A person who regularly takes part in combat and those sorts of missions will probably find plenty of them, I don't do "those sorts of missions." If they are engineer mods designed for explorers there should be an exploration mechanic for acquiring them, therefore they are not designed for explorers.

if you are allied with both youc an enter a CZ and just play the slavage scanner guys and let them pew pew each other.

 

[disorganise]

I believe in the distance DSS myself. But....for DECE, the mass hit of G5 roll was too much. So I went G2 speed.....something like 20% improvement for a few kilos. Figured it'd help with the scan the star on entry.

In reality, I still prefer barreling at full speed and the scan speed isn't *that* noticeable. There have been many times when a body turned out to be much smaller than I expected and thus requiring to get real close (sub 10ls) where I think a G2 long range would have been the better choice.......only a year to live with that regret

 

[khaos526]

I believe in the distance DSS myself.

See I've tested both the long distance and fast scanners for long hauls and found the fast ones to be much better for me. The long distance ones actually seemed to add more time in my system scans than the time it took to get closer to the object and fast scanning it...

 

[Jackie Silver]

At the moment, I'm leaning towards Grade 1 scanners as providing the best improvement-to-mass ratio. I prefer fast scanners over long range as a consequence of the way I scan.

But for DECE where mass is critical I'm tempted to use unmodified DSS.

 

[disorganise]

At the moment, I'm leaning towards Grade 1 scanners as providing the best improvement-to-mass ratio. I prefer fast scanners over long range as a consequence of the way I scan.

But for DECE where mass is critical I'm tempted to use unmodified DSS.

I checked..... it's G1 I have
I was prepared to ditch the DSS TBH...... but it's needed for materials discovery

 

[Orvidius]

Yeah, the mass penalty on the scanner mods can sting a bit. I have usually used a G5 fast scanner mod, and optimized for as high of a speed as I could get. More recently I rolled a G5 fast scanner where I tried to get the speed up, and a low mass penalty at the same time, for a balance of both. This has left me with a scanner that's not great in either stat, but "good enough". Hopefully I can get a good "god roll" one that someday.

As to which scanner mods to use, fast or long range, personally I prefer the fast scanner mods rather than long range, but there are many who prefer the range. I did some testing with both a while back. I found that the fast scanner was better for scanning entry stars, and lots of small targets where you don't need to move much (scanning several moons around the same planet, for instance). Fast scanner is generally good for nearby targets (bodies that are already in range, or close to being in range), and small to medium sized targets. Whereas the long range scanner really shines when chasing down large distant objects, like gas giants, and distant secondary stars. For most "terrestrial" planets, I found them to be about the same. That is, I would go full throttle until 7 seconds to target, then pull back to around 60-70% throttle. The scans would complete with me closing to about the same distance.

So it can really come down to your scanning habits. If you scan entry stars and nearby planets, fast scanner tends to be better. If you chase down larger, more distant objects, the long range scanner can complete a scan before a fast scanner would even begin.

Something to keep in mind is that the scan speed varies with distance. It's faster when closer, scaled over the distance from zero to its maximum range (which also varies with target size). This is why the fast scanner will always win at "point blank" range, since its speed bonus applies across the entire range of distances. For the long range scanner to win, it needs to take advantage of distance that you can't travel through within the scan time.

 

[Aura Lorell]

Yeah, the mass penalty on the scanner mods can sting a bit. I have usually used a G5 fast scanner mod, and optimized for as high of a speed as I could get. More recently I rolled a G5 fast scanner where I tried to get the speed up, and a low mass penalty at the same time, for a balance of both. This has left me with a scanner that's not great in either stat, but "good enough". Hopefully I can get a good "god roll" one that someday.

As to which scanner mods to use, fast or long range, personally I prefer the fast scanner mods rather than long range, but there are many who prefer the range. I did some testing with both a while back. I found that the fast scanner was better for scanning entry stars, and lots of small targets where you don't need to move much (scanning several moons around the same planet, for instance). Fast scanner is generally good for nearby targets (bodies that are already in range, or close to being in range), and small to medium sized targets. Whereas the long range scanner really shines when chasing down large distant objects, like gas giants, and distant secondary stars. For most "terrestrial" planets, I found them to be about the same. That is, I would go full throttle until 7 seconds to target, then pull back to around 60-70% throttle. The scans would complete with me closing to about the same distance.

So it can really come down to your scanning habits. If you scan entry stars and nearby planets, fast scanner tends to be better. If you chase down larger, more distant objects, the long range scanner can complete a scan before a fast scanner would even begin.

Something to keep in mind is that the scan speed varies with distance. It's faster when closer, scaled over the distance from zero to its maximum range (which also varies with target size). This is why the fast scanner will always win at "point blank" range, since its speed bonus applies across the entire range of distances. For the long range scanner to win, it needs to take advantage of distance that you can't travel through within the scan time.

Even though I don't disagree with what you say, I think you also need to take into account two more variables: how much you scan and whether your ship can turn fast enough in supercruise.

For example the best fast scanner is useless when you are with an Anaconda in the middle of 12 moons near to a gas giant. If you are in an AspX or DBX for example, turning is fast, but in an Anaconda what you win in fast scanning you lose tenfold in turn times.

The other thing you need to take into account is how much you're willing to scan in a system. Are you a cherry picker? Scan everything? Scan the entry star only? Together with the ship it makes a huge difference.

I fly an Annie with a G5 long range scanner and I scan a lot. Not necessarily everything but a lot depending on what takes my fancy. I'm able to scan stars that depending on their mass can be up to 80,000 Ls away. Approaching, a gas giant and staying at a distance without entering its gravity well is invaluable because it allows me to scan the moons, without having to turn much. Large planets scan from large distances (over 10 sec away). Yes, for smaller HMCs I have to get close but again it's not always that close. In all, I'm happy with the long range scanner, happier than the fast scan (and I've tried both). Mind you, if I was in a different ship that is more nimble in SC I'd probably consider a fast scan.