Recommendations for new electronics

jonoadams75 · 11 February 2015, 02:36

Hi I'm looking for advice please on new electronic makes and marks for a zodiac hurricane 733 what would be the best set up for radar , fish finder / chart plotting ,with a medium to high budget range .

Thanks in advance
Jono

Bigtalljv · 11 February 2015, 05:59

I put a Lowrance HDS-9 touch and 3G radar on mine. That was the biggest I could fit in the console with everything else.

Jason

Pikey Dave · 11 February 2015, 07:15

I'm currently doing the same exercise & have just about settled on the Lowrance HDS gen3 plotters. They come with just about everything built in, so fewer modules, cables etc. they are both touch & keypad so suited to a RIB console.

.....sh1t happens.......

daisyduke · 11 February 2015, 09:50

Also think about connectivity issues with various makes, if going for one make for most items may influence this or a mixture might influence another connectivity route. Think NMEA 0183 or NMEA 2000 or for example Ray Marine and their 'seatalk' stuff, that way you can think about the installation options, neatness, power consumption etc.

Ovey · 11 February 2015, 10:19

Most equipment is going over/has gone over to the NMEA2000 protocol now. Some of the older stuff only has NMEA0183, some of the top end stuff currently has both! Raymarine ditched their old Seatalk protocol and have used SeatalkNG for a while now, which is NMEA2000 compliant and just needs a NMEA to SeatalkNG cross-over cable (no more expensive than any other spur cable) if used with non-Raymarine equipment as the plug is different. Lowrance and Garmin both use standard NMEA connectors I believe.

I have a Raymarine SeatalkNG backbone, a Raymarine plotter and a Lowrance VHF which uses a NMEA2000 to SeatalkNG cross-over cable to connect to the backbone. If I add to my network I'll just need to ensure I buy a cross over cable instead of a spur cable if I use non-Raymarine equipment. I went with the Raymarine backbone as there was a deal on it at the time making it cheaper than an NMEA backbone. If I'd gone NMEA backbone I'd still need a crossover cable to allow the plotter to talk to the rest of the network.

As a general pointer, I'd plan what you might need/want and ensure it all is compliant with the same protocol (be it 0183 or 2000).

Pikey Dave · 11 February 2015, 10:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by daisyduke

Also think about connectivity issues with various makes, if going for one make for most items may influence this or a mixture might influence another connectivity route. Think NMEA 0183 or NMEA 2000 or for example Ray Marine and their 'seatalk' stuff, that way you can think about the installation options, neatness, power consumption etc.

+1, one of the factors for going down the Lowrance road is they practically invented nmea2000 & manufacture smart gauges for several engine makers. If you want to update the firmware on the gauges it has to be done via a Lowrance head unit.

.....sh1t happens.......

jonoadams75 · 12 February 2015, 03:53

Wow thanks for the info, I will have to do some research as I don't know much about nmea it's a big learning curve .
Anyone used a Furuno radar ?
Jono

Ovey · 12 February 2015, 10:04

NMEA2000 (or NMEA2K or N2K) is probably the best way ahead - most equipment nowadays has this protocol. If you look online there's a load of information about it, and it is quite simple.

Basically you need a backbone (that can be extended using backbone cable and backbone ports).
The backbone must have a terminator at each end (regardless of how long/how many extensions are in it).
The backbone must have power to it.
N2K compatible equipment is added via spur or drop cables (such as plotters, VHFs, Fusion stereos, etc).
You can get starter kits for N2K networks, then add to it as and when required.
Raymarine equipment requires a SeatalkNG to N2K adapter cable (same price as a normal spur cable).
A Raymarine backbone requires everything non-Raymarine to have SeatalkNG to N2K adapter cables.

It's as simple as the diagram attached, and can be built up! Enjoy, and good luck.

jonoadams75 · 12 February 2015, 16:11

Thanks Ovey that makes sense for sure I appreciate the info , im going to either go with a raymarine or Lowrance option do Lowrance have a radar option though ?
Jono

Ovey · 12 February 2015, 16:25

Yeah, they have a few radar systems, and most of their MFDs have the radar software to plot the information too. Just Google "Lowrance radar" and you'll get lots of hits.

I think I'm right in saying that any (main player) manufacturer of the radar antenna will work with any (main player) plotter as long as they are all N2K compliant.

Mat856 · 12 February 2015, 19:03

I have a lowrance hds 12 touch. Great and easy to use, have had lowrance for a few years now, also if they ever go wrong within 5years they offer a warranty exchange or upgrade. I once had a hds8 gen2 and upgraded to a hds10 for £300.

Bigtalljv · 13 February 2015, 02:36

I think the radars and such are all generally made by one company and just branded according to head unit manufacturer.

Doesn't airmar make most or all of the depth transducers? Same for radar I'm pretty sure.

The plugs on them vary by brand

Jason

Pikey Dave · 13 February 2015, 07:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ovey

Yeah, they have a few radar systems, and most of their MFDs have the radar software to plot the information too. Just Google "Lowrance radar" and you'll get lots of hits.

I think I'm right in saying that any (main player) manufacturer of the radar antenna will work with any (main player) plotter as long as they are all N2K compliant.

The modern radar scanners are usually Ethernet not N2k, the Ethernet connectors vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.

Ovey · 13 February 2015, 09:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

The modern radar scanners are usually Ethernet not N2k, the Ethernet connectors vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.

Ah right, I didn't know as I don't have one and don't really plan on getting one at the mo. Thanks for the clarification though.

Pikey Dave · 13 February 2015, 10:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ovey

Ah right, I didn't know as I don't have one and don't really plan on getting one at the mo. Thanks for the clarification though.

No worries

The bandwidth of n2k isn't wide enough for graphics & video, which is basically what the radar is. Similarly, if you have multiple plotters & want to share data between them like charts, sonar, radar etc. This is done over Ethernet.