AIS Transponder option for Raymarine e7

[picardy]

I have searched before asking this but wonder whether there is any reason why I would be advised against installing a non Raymarine AIS transponder to my e7.

I am sure the Raymarine AIS 650 one will be easier to integrate (?) but its nearly £700.

Would either of these 2 options be easy to install?

http://www.force4.co.uk/mcmurdo-mcm...TM11qlvOBB_7LkshNCZD8aTUaAiv_8P8HAQ#.VJ6WrAAI
http://www.seamarknunn.com/acatalog...uGSUfz6mJFxFrKpxnkoaSuxcaAqwv8P8HAQ#.VJ6WuAAI
http://www.piratescave.co.uk/digita...JIHuIbh2jvQMsThuStQlzRPaw46lsBFW4gaAoeD8P8HAQ

Any others you might suggest and any tips on integration?

I understand my e7 has 2 NMEA ports.

Thanks

 

[pvb]

I personally think Class B transponders are a waste of money - you'll be far safer spending the money on an active radar reflector.

However, if you must buy one, there's no real reason to buy Raymarine. There are much cheaper ones - the McMurdo Smartfind M10 you linked to at £440 is only £399 at JGTech. http://www.jgtech.com/shop10.htm

 

[richardbrennan]

We have a Digital Yacht AIT2000 linked via NMEA2000 to a Garmin Plotter; they seem to be about £480. It works well and if your e7 has a NMEA2000 port, it will be literally "plug and play".

 

[neil1967]

I have just installed an AIT2000 linked by NMEA2000 to my Lawrence chart plotter and it worked straight from the box. We're still ashore in Port Solent, but we seem to be getting good range on vessels in the solent.

Neil

 

[laika]

Any others you might suggest and any tips on integration?

I'd be surprised if most transponders didn't "work" with the e7, the most likely thing to be missing is the ability to control some features of the AIS unit from the plotter and the only example of that which springs to mind is the ability to switch "silent mode" on and off from the plotter (any think of others?). Having said that, a lot of transponders tend to be based on the same boards. The older AIS 500 (which I have) is based an SRT board which seems to respond to the same proprietary commands as other SRT boards (including silent mode on/off and, yes folks, persuading it to give up its GPS data which Raymarine had previously told me it wouldn't do). I've read that the AIS 650 is based on an emtrac. So "silent mode" toggling *may* work from the plotter with other boards.

 

[pvb]

I've read that the AIS 650 is based on an emtrac.

It's an SRT product.

http://www.srt-marine.com/products/oem/neon-2-ais-class-b-tranceiver/

 

[Lucky Duck]

It's an SRT product.

http://www.srt-marine.com/products/oem/neon-2-ais-class-b-tranceiver/

That says it has an internal GPS while the Raymarine unit requires a separate receiver to be connected?

 

[pvb]

That says it has an internal GPS while the Raymarine unit requires a separate receiver to be connected?

SRT tailor the products to the OEM's specifications. But if you look at the picture, you can see it's the same basic product as the AIS650.

SRT also sell it to ComNav, as the Mariner - http://www.p2marine.com/marine-electronics/comnav/comnav-mariner-x2-ais-transceiver.shtml

And they sell it to Si-Tex too, as the Metadata - http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|344|2028691|2028908&id=1849984

And Digital Yacht transponders are based on SRT products.

 

[moonshine]

Part of the reason fo the high price of the AIS650 is the included RAY GPS ��

 

[pvb]

Part of the reason fo the high price of the AIS650 is the included RAY GPS ��

All transponders have their own GPS receivers! It's part of the standard requirements.

 

[Lucky Duck]

Part of the reason fo the high price of the AIS650 is the included RAY GPS ��

I had the Raymarine receive only unit fitted a couple of years back, had the transceiver model come with an integral GPS (and so save the effort of installing a second GPS on the pulpit I may well have gone with that

 

[Lucky Duck]

All transponders have their own GPS receivers! It's part of the standard requirements.

Yeah, but...the products linked to all have internal GPS units rather than an separate external one being required.

 

[Cardo]

I have an e7, there's certainly no reason it won't take an nmea-0183 AIS input. The manual states third party AIS should be connected by nmea-0183, there's no mention of nmea-2000 support for AIS connections. Though, you could always try your luck.

Personally, I have the AIS-650, as it's easy to integrate and also shows up on other instruments on the STng network.

 

[DipperToo]

Yeah, but...the products linked to all have internal GPS units rather than an separate external one being required.

I was looking at the McMurdo M10 as well - great price from JG. However, the description is a little misleading? The manual states ..

Built in high-sensitivity GPS receiver with GPS antenna included

As far as I can see, this unit does not have an internal GPS receiver as such - it still requires the external GPS antenna (included with the unit).

 

[Lucky Duck]

Agreed, but the product linked to in post #6 says an "Internal GPS antenna" rather than one being included when you buy the unit.

 

[pvb]

I was looking at the McMurdo M10 as well - great price from JG. However, the description is a little misleading? The manual states ..

Built in high-sensitivity GPS receiver with GPS antenna included

As far as I can see, this unit does not have an internal GPS receiver as such - it still requires the external GPS antenna (included with the unit).

It has an internal GPS receiver, which requires an external GPS antenna for it to work reliably. If you think the GPS reception is OK below decks, you could mount the antenna internally.

 

[knuterikt]

I installed an em-trak AIS B-100 some years ago.
It has
NMEA 2000 connection
NMEA 0183 38.4k baud bi-directional
NMEA 0183 4.8k baud bi-directional (intended for connection to other NMEA0183 compatible sensors for multiplexing of data to the chart plotter)

It is connected to my Furuno plotter using the NMEA 0183 38.4k baud and to my seatalk NG / NMEA 2000 network.
This way I can get AIS data on my Raymarine i70 displays and on the plotter, no problems in installation or operation.

Silent mode can be turned on/off using an external switch.

An AIS transponder with both NMEA 2000 and NMEA 0183 can be an investment if you need to replace the plotter in the future.

 

[picardy]

Thanks for all the comments. Is gps reception below decks in a cupboard behind chart table likely to be acceptable or do I need to look for an external gps to be safe. If external if recommended which models can people suggest that have external gps included for circa £450?

Thanks

 

[knuterikt]

Thanks for all the comments. Is gps reception below decks in a cupboard behind chart table likely to be acceptable or do I need to look for an external gps to be safe. If external if recommended which models can people suggest that have external gps included for circa £450?

Thanks

A quick google search Emtrak b100 @£375 http://www.omnimarine.co.uk/epages/es780657.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/es780657/Products/"AIS B100"

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=emtrak+ais+b100+price+uk

 

[pvb]

Thanks for all the comments. Is gps reception below decks in a cupboard behind chart table likely to be acceptable or do I need to look for an external gps to be safe. If external if recommended which models can people suggest that have external gps included for circa £450?

Why not go with the £399 McMurdo Smartfind M10, which was on your original list? Try it below decks, with the GPS antenna also below decks, if the GPS reception isn't great, pop the antenna above decks.