Upgrading electronics

[panda-trintella]

Evening all,

I'm looking to upgrade my electronics this summer as the lovely old man who had her before for the last 20 years didn't quite do it and everything is every dated or not working.

I have 2 nasa instruments thou that do seem to be in good order (depth & speed) so going to stick with them for a minute while I focus on the rest. After doing alot of reading and researching online and having to do my normal 2+2 = 4 as it seems information is key here. So I'm trying to build a complete system using a nmea 2000 backbone and I've come up with two options below..

Garmin
65sv uhd2 touch - ais 800 - vhf 1151- gwind on the mast .. plus a garmin inreach for weather while I'm out at sea.

Or

B&G
Vulcan 7 or 9 - v60-b with the ais - ws310 wind .. again plus a garmin inreach

So my question is really am I barking up the right tree or am I totally missing something? I've gone with ais over radar on this as funds can be stretched only so far.

Any input would be amazing.. stay safe

 

[PaulRainbow]

I would go with all Garmin, although i'd double check the price of the AIS against an equivalent Emtrak model.

 

[Supertramp]

I had a similar situation but chose a different path compounded by internal and external steering positions. I have managed to rejuvenate my old Stowe instruments by buying old items and stripping for the bits I want. I added a standalone AIS with display which will integrate via WiFi. I wanted an external plotter and chose a Galaxy tablet (£100 ebay) which sits in a stand under the spray hood when needed. The internal plotter is standalone and has radar.

It would be nice to have all new integrated large display etc but the cost would be £000's plus I really only want wind info, speed and depth at the helm except when near obstacles when the Navionics display works fine. If a unit fails, it is relatively simple and cheap to replace. And I would rather save up for a hydrovane!

I agree that in theory joining everything on a NMEA backbone should be simple and effective but joining up different bits of kit often seems to create rather than solve issues for me. I do see that it could be the best or only answer for a display of everything at the cockpit wheel.

 

[PaulRainbow]

I would suggest that when installing a plotter/tablet combo the plotter goes outside and the tablet below. Tablets are hard to see in bright Sun light, don't like rain and have to be charged, so better below deck. The plotter/radar suffers none of those drawbacks.

 

[panda-trintella]

I had a similar situation but chose a different path compounded by internal and external steering positions. I have managed to rejuvenate my old Stowe instruments by buying old items and stripping for the bits I want. I added a standalone AIS with display which will integrate via WiFi. I wanted an external plotter and chose a Galaxy tablet (£100 ebay) which sits in a stand under the spray hood when needed. The internal plotter is standalone and has radar.

It would be nice to have all new integrated large display etc but the cost would be £000's plus I really only want wind info, speed and depth at the helm except when near obstacles when the Navionics display works fine. If a unit fails, it is relatively simple and cheap to replace. And I would rather save up for a hydrovane!

I agree that in theory joining everything on a NMEA backbone should be simple and effective but joining up different bits of kit often seems to create rather than solve issues for me. I do see that it could be the best or only answer for a display of everything at the cockpit wheel.

I definitely hear you with the hydrovane, nearly cried when I saw the price of them.
With the nmea that's why I'm scared to mix and match brands, read alot of people on forums with the same .. why doesn't it work its nmea 2000
And definitely food for thought with the tablet, thank you

 

[Buck Turgidson]

I was in a similar situation with a Stowe towed log and a seafarer whizz wheel depth.
I went with B&G Triton2 depth and wireless wind, V50, AMEC camino 108s AIS and a wifi dongle to get the lot onto my iPad. No plotter and still don't feel the need to have one but that's personal and many disagree.

I think the key is, as you are doing, plan ahead and stick to one brand if you can. A perfect example of why is that I can initiate a DSC call to an AIS contact from my Triton display. I couldn't do this if I had used a different VHF radio.

Can't comment on Garmin except that I use an in reach and it's faultless (but the weather function isn't great) and I have a Garmin watch which is also great.

 

[PaulRainbow]

I was in a similar situation with a Stowe towed log and a seafarer whizz wheel depth.
I went with B&G Triton2 depth and wireless wind, V50, AMEC camino 108s AIS and a wifi dongle to get the lot onto my iPad. No plotter and still don't feel the need to have one but that's personal and many disagree.

I think the key is, as you are doing, plan ahead and stick to one brand if you can. A perfect example of why is that I can initiate a DSC call to an AIS contact from my Triton display. I couldn't do this if I had used a different VHF radio.

Can't comment on Garmin except that I use an in reach and it's faultless (but the weather function isn't great) and I have a Garmin watch which is also great.

If the plotter and VHF are both Garmin, you can initiate the DSC call as you do with your B7G equipment. The AIS can be any brand, it's just the VHF and plotter that need to be the same. As far as i'm aware, that feature is only available with B7G or Garmin combos.

 

[PaulRainbow]

I definitely hear you with the hydrovane, nearly cried when I saw the price of them.
With the nmea that's why I'm scared to mix and match brands, read alot of people on forums with the same .. why doesn't it work its nmea 2000
And definitely food for thought with the tablet, thank you

Most N2K devices will interconnect, irrespective of brands, although in some cases some functionality is lost due to proprietary PGNs. One example is auto pilots, most autopilots would work with your Garmin plotter, but unless it's Garmin you don't get full control, same applies with mixing and matching autopilots from any manufacturer with anothers plotter.

 

[lustyd]

I can’t speak for the Garmin mentioned but the B&G Vulcan is quite slow at this point being late in the cycle and probably due for replacement. I have the Vulcan 9 inside and wouldn’t recommend it. I have the Zeus 3s outside and it’s excellent. The v60b I also have and would not recommend. They don’t support remote mic other than wireless and the wireless unit is not loud and the cradle is not as robust as you’d hope. It’s all good kit and works as intended but if I were to do it again I would make different choices. The B&G definitely looks smarter than the Garmin which I have to say did sway my decision.

 

[panda-trintella]

I can’t speak for the Garmin mentioned but the B&G Vulcan is quite slow at this point being late in the cycle and probably due for replacement. I have the Vulcan 9 inside and wouldn’t recommend it. I have the Zeus 3s outside and it’s excellent. The v60b I also have and would not recommend. They don’t support remote mic other than wireless and the wireless unit is not loud and the cradle is not as robust as you’d hope. It’s all good kit and works as intended but if I were to do it again I would make different choices. The B&G definitely looks smarter than the Garmin which I have to say did sway my decision.

I was thinking the vulcan must be due a upgrade by b&g as the 7 is about 599 some places. Also interesting that you don't like v60b I was wondering if all that kit in a vhf might be alittle to much

Thank you so much for everyone's replies

 

[KompetentKrew]

I was thinking the vulcan must be due a upgrade by b&g as the 7 is about 599 some places.

Same price as I paid in 2019.

EDIT: I see B&G are boasting the "new reduced price" on their main website, so I think you may be right although I wouldn't expect a new model to be introduced at this point in the season. Maybe within a year though.

I initially loved my Vulcan, and I believe some of the sailing features (sailsteer and laylines?) are particularly good but I can't in good conscience recommend them as the remote viewer app for Android has been broken for literally years.

 

[Buck Turgidson]

I guess the Zeus S range are designed to replace the Vulcan. Bit more pricy though as the 7 inch is £850 rrp

 

[KompetentKrew]

I guess the Zeus S range are designed to replace the Vulcan. Bit more pricy though as the 7 inch is £850 rrp

No, the two ranges are contemporaries - I'd describe the Vulcan as the standard model and the Zeus as the premium range with extra features.

The most apparent difference is that the Zeus has ethernet and can share chart data with other Zeuses on the network. (Possibly also radar?) A bit of googling suggests the Zeus's screen is higher resolution, maybe brighter too.

 

[steveeasy]

I had a Vulcan 7 in my last boat and it had some very useful features at hand, most of which were beyond my needs. access to all current tide times was extremely handy. Did not like the touch screen function though. On reflection I guess i might now buy another one given the latest model has added functions.

Steveeasy

 

[RunAgroundHard]

Raymarine are offering 25% off their RRP on new plotters if you trade in any old plotter (with power lead for some reason). Understand that the does not fit with your requirements, but maybe food for thought.

 

[Ceirwan]

I can’t speak for the Garmin mentioned but the B&G Vulcan is quite slow at this point being late in the cycle and probably due for replacement. I have the Vulcan 9 inside and wouldn’t recommend it. I have the Zeus 3s outside and it’s excellent. The v60b I also have and would not recommend. They don’t support remote mic other than wireless and the wireless unit is not loud and the cradle is not as robust as you’d hope. It’s all good kit and works as intended but if I were to do it again I would make different choices. The B&G definitely looks smarter than the Garmin which I have to say did sway my decision.

I would second this.
My Vulcan has given good service since 2017, but realistically it was always a bit slow and tech has moved on. Probably not worth replacing, but I wouldn't get it new anymore.

I've seen B&G advertising their new 'Zeus S' on their website, which is touchscreen only, so I wonder if that's intended to be the eventual replacement for the Vulcan.
Then you will just have Zeus 3 for the one with the controls & Zeus S for the touchscreen only version.

 

[Cariadco]

For your AIS, I would defiantly recommend Em-Trak.
I was impressed with the quality, ease of use and the installation was easy peasy.

 

[lustyd]

No, the two ranges are contemporaries - I'd describe the Vulcan as the standard model and the Zeus as the premium range with extra features.

The most apparent difference is that the Zeus has ethernet and can share chart data with other Zeuses on the network. (Possibly also radar?) A bit of googling suggests the Zeus's screen is higher resolution, maybe brighter too.

It also shares charts with the Vulcan, which also has Ethernet for radar purposes. The radar is on the network so the Zeus doesn’t share it. The main differences are physical controls (these can be bought separately) and processor speed from what I can tell. The software seems to be identical these days. The Zeus is definitely a premium range so I assume at some point they’ll update the Vulcan processor. The Vulcan does do what it’s supposed to and works well, it’s just noticeably slow compared to other units.

 

[jwilson]

I had a Vulcan 7 and a 7R: both died after just over two years. First time B&G offered a bit of a discount against a new one: last year after second one died replaced it with a Raymarine Axiom 7+. I quite liked the Vulcans when they were working, though the screen refresh was a bit slow.

 

[KompetentKrew]

For your AIS, I would defiantly recommend Em-Trak.
I was impressed with the quality, ease of use and the installation was easy peasy.

Their support is also very good - same day or next day replies, they share undocumented codes with you if you need them and Hakeem had the patience of a saint with one of my questions recently.

Also, you can't get B+ AIS the VHF-AIS combo units.