Knowledgeable staff

[Magic_Sailor]

I was in a certain chandlery in a marina near Chich and as I was considering a FIXED DSC radio thought I'd ask one of the staff about two they had on offer - a Cobra £100 and an ICOM £300. It went something like this

Q Why's one so much more more expensive than the other>
A Cos it's better
Q Why?
A It's better quality?
Q In what way?
A erm....it's an ICOM
Q Yes but how is it better?
A Well, I'm not sure
Q Well how can you say it's better then?
A (Surly) Well I could go through the spec's with you if you really want (nervously fingering their A4 ringbinder - hoping I wouldn't say yes)

Salesperson turns to colleague behind her who's trying to be invisible

Q How is the ICOM better than the Cobra?
A Well, its erm erm waterproof!
Me It's a fixed radio mounted below deck. If waterproofing is an issue I will have other things to think about!

Salesperson looks at me pleadingly to leave

Me OK I'll look in the press

As I turned to leave, salesperson turns and whispers to Mr Invisible

Q Well how is it better then?
A ........erm...... erm.....the Cobra is American

.
.
.
Aaahh that'll be it then!

Magic

 

[MarkG]

So very true...

I don't know if this available yet but it is worth seeing if the intended VHF purchase has adjustable DSC alert volume.
Ours is a Simrad RD68 which is not adjustable.
When peeps are asleep on passage we use the handheld up in the cockpit for Ch16 monitoring.

 

[Telstar26]

Actually the Cobra's waterproof as well!
But: it doesn't have any numeric keys so entering an MMSI is a matter of scrolling each digit
And: it only has room for 10 MMSI directory entries (I think)

But it works!

Which did you buy?

 

[ColinHuggins]

Re: Knowledgeable journals

Surely the maggies have had umpteen reviews of VHF/DSC radios in recent months. I purchased the Navman 7100 on the basis of a PBO survey and have had no reason to disagree with their recommendation. And if you don't take the maggies regularly you can obtain a reprint for a nominal sum - or ask a forumite to mail a photocopy!

 

[Tisme]

[ QUOTE ]
it is worth seeing if the intended VHF purchase has adjustable DSC alert volume.

[/ QUOTE ]

Does any sets have this? I thought that the fixed volume was a compulsory requirement for DSC sets. It's the main reason why I haven't got one yet.

 

[Dave99]

I would be interested to hear what people have to say about the cobra, especially with regards to how waterproof it is etc.

 

[MarkG]

I don't know whether its possible to purchase one with variable DSC alert...but if someones doing some investigation I'd be interested...

 

[Judders]

Insurance compannies are worse.

 

[DJE]

AFAIK the alarm volume is fixed as part of the DSC specification. ICOM get round it by having the alarm start off at low volume and gradually increase to the standard volume. At least that is what my ICOM M421 does. This allows you to get below decks and acknowledge the alarm before it gets to ear splitting level.

That, and features like it, are probably what he meant by "better quality". But you never get a chance to try these things out before you buy one.