NASA Supernova vs Aqua Signal S34

SolentSnowgoose

SolentSnowgoose

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Hi

About 5 years ago I replaced the incandescent bulb in my tricolour with a 3 coloured LED ...it worked well and was very bright until this seaon when it stopped working due to a loose connection in the lamp fitting.

Now I have a dilemma .... replace the fitting and put the old LED bulb in or replace the whole unit with a modern sealed LED unit

Top of my list is either the NASA supernova ( very bright, cheap but the mounting looks a bit fragile ) or the Aqua Signal S34 ( more expensive)

I have read several accounts of failures of the early Supernova ..... but also that these were old problems and the more recent units have been reliable.

Can anyone comment on the robustness and reliability of the NASA unit.

Thanks
 
The 34 seems to have a larger vertical angle where the light is strong, so was my choice when the time came for an upgrade. Seems bright enough when looking at it in the marina.
 
Thanks for quick response....

How long have you had the Aqua Signal unit ?

I should perhaps have mentioned that I sail a Prout Snowgoose Cat ...so heeling is potentially less of a problem than for a mono.
 
I have replaced my NASA Supernova tri and anchor with Aqua Signal fitted with LED bulbs.

My NASA tri failed 4 times, I replaced the failed LED's each time.

My anchor failed and I sent it back to NASA for then to determine the cause and they did not give me a real cause.

NASA wished to charge me to retrofit the mods that solved the problem but that cost and the shipping cost was more than the original cost so I went back to the original Aqua signal.

Not happy with NASA as I think the original NASA design was not fit for purpose and should have been repaired FOC.
 
I'm interested in comparisons based on practical experience, 'cos I'm looking to fit one soon. I really don't want to be climbing masts over and again.

There's NASA, and there's Aquasignal, then there's Optolamp Miram III.... and there's a cheaper version of the Aquasignal style stocked by Force 4.
 
Fitted the NASA Combie Supernova at the beginning of 2012, so it is now on it's 3rd season. I've not touched it as the mast hasn't been down since, and it's still working well. We commented as we dinghyed back to the boat when anchored at Studland a few weeks ago that it was the brightest anchor light in the bay.

My main complaint would be that it comes with about 12" of cable, so needs a waterproof cable join at the top of the mast. I seem to have achieved this using glue filled heat shrink, but would have happily paid a few quid more if it had come with a mast length (say 12 - 15 m) cable.
 
SolentSnowgoose said:
Top of my list is either the NASA supernova ( very bright, cheap but the mounting looks a bit fragile ) or the Aqua Signal S34 ( more expensive)
Click to expand...

I don't think the AS series 34 tri-colour LED has been around for very long, so might be difficult to get long term evaluation.
I installed the AS series 32 tri-colour LED four or five years ago – no problems so far. That model is probably discontinued now.
 
Another satisfied Aquasignal S32 user. Got mine cheap (a bit under half price) after the S34 series came out. Fitted 3 years ago and used for about 50 over night passages so far. Have checked with nearby vessels to see how visible we are to relieve the boredom of a quiet watch. At least 3 miles in good visibility. Also a good time to ask how good your radar visibility is. I've also fitted LED bicolour and stern lights from Osculati. Cheap, shiny stainless cases and very bright.
 
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