Cheap fast heading sensor?

laika

laika

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I've been googling for fast heading sensors for a friend with a plotter and radar but no GPS or heading sensor. The navico gps/heading sensors (like the simrad gs25) look good doing double duty on the missing functions (magnetic heading as well as GPS/COG). They say they're not fast enough for MARPA but I *think* (non-fast) heading is good enough for chart overlay/north up display on an E120 classic (can anyone confirm?) even if 10Hz would be better.

The cheapest fast heading sensor I've come across so far seems to be the digital yacht one at £250. Anyone know of anything more cost effective (excluding the "buy a new autopilot" option)?
 
You can do north-up display and radar/chart overlay with an ordinary heading sensor, but it's not accurate enough for MARPA. If your friend isn't bothered about MARPA, a cheap GPS and a cheap fluxgate would do the job. Doesn't your friend have an autopilot with a fluxgate already? And how does your friend use the E120 if there's no GPS?
 
pvb said:
Doesn't your friend have an autopilot with a fluxgate already? And how does your friend use the E120 if there's no GPS?
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New-to-him boat, still being refitted so not used in anger yet. AP's heading sensor is analogue (40+ years old). No connected GPS. In the absence of economical fast heading sensors I'm thinking the navico gps/heading sensor via n2k or the GPS-only bargain basement 30-quid bu355 via -0183
 
pvb said:
So how did the E120 work? Those plotters weren't cheap, so I can't imagine it wouldn't have had a GPS feed.
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If there used to be a GPS it was removed before sale. You are obviously right though, expensive bit of kit to just be used as a radar screen and unlikely when there's a Navionics card installed.
 
laika said:
The cheapest fast heading sensor I've come across so far seems to be the digital yacht one at £250. Anyone know of anything more cost effective (excluding the "buy a new autopilot" option)?
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B&G did a market review (internal, not public) of heading sensors a while ago, and there is nothing that is cheap, fast and any good. The best at fast and good in the leisure boat category is the KVH Gyrotrac, but it is far from cheap. Some of the devices tested were dreadful with huge heading errors under pitching and rolling or had a large lag between actual heading and reported heading even though their update rate was high. It's one of those devices where you get what you pay for. Any kludge solution like a phone output will be way short of the mark.
 
alteredoutlook said:
if it doesn't have to link up with existing instruments how about a smart phone with an appropriate app???
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It does. Heading sensor needed to facilitate radar overlay on the chart plotter (rather than straight head up mode) which as pvb points out is an expensive bit of kit to have without a connected GPS. I've suggested phone + inavx/navionics as the backup.

AngusMcDoon said:
B&G did a market review (internal, not public) of heading sensors a while ago, and there is nothing that is cheap, fast and any good.
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Thanks for that: useful to know. KVH unit might be a little over budget though.
 
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