Based on feedback from multiple sources I attempted another mono run with my new QHY294M Pro of NGC 2264 Cone Nebula. Much better results all around.

The integrated light is posted here unprocessed - the master light was created using WBPP in PI then stretched, histogram transformed then saved straight out of PI as a PNG.

On this go round I upped the gain to 1800 and, through trial and error came up with an offset of 25 based on the histogram for this target.

While there are still horizontal bands in the lights, darks and dark flat subs, the integrated result was significantly better. While I am not ready to call the issue gone (the final product could look so much better if the subs were cleaner) there are workarounds to address the issue (Canon Banding script in PI, higher gain with shallower full well, etc.) until the issue is fixed.

IMHO the Gaussian noise in this image is from incomplete amount of data and lack of competent post-processing, not the camera.

One major change I did this time was based on CN feedback I disregarded doing bias frames and went to dark flats instead. When I ran everything in PI WBPP script I substituted the Dark Flat subs for the bias in the script.

To try to address suggestions that maybe USB cords or power was the culprit for the banding, I ran a power cable from my Pegasus Pocket Power Box to the camera. Then I ran a USB 3 cord from the camera to an Amazon 7-port Hub - all 7 ports were in use. I then ran the single USB 3 cord to my laptop. My previous issues with camera disconnects disappeared. I believe the disconnects between the camera, APT and the laptop were caused by larger files sizes and possibly lower power on my laptop's USB ports. The external powered hub resolved the issues - no interrupts during the run. I did attempt to increase the QHY294's TrafficUSB setting from 0 to 250 (it allows from 0-255) but again, lower power means drive is overwhelmed with the camera's download speed (my laptop's fault not the camera's.) I highly recommend 4-5 second pauses between downloads in APT.

I also modified my dithering settings for this session. Previously I was at 10 pixels, this time I went with 5 pixels.

I also used APT's Auto Focus routine to tighten up focus much better than previous Cone Neb with this camera. While fiddling with making dark frames I apparently accidentally loosened my Starizona filter tray. When I screwed the camera back on the entire train spun in an additional 1/8th of a turn. That 1/8th resulted in my focus being ~500 steps off! The autofocus fixed it in less than 5 minutes.

Kudos to bigeastro for his assistance in working though the teething issues expected of a new camera. Can't wait for more clear and dark skies.

CS & GB!