Which DSC ?

Ruffles

Ruffles

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26 Feb 2004
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Boat: Portsmouth, Us: Stewkley
www.soulbury.demon.co.uk
Its time to replace my old Swiftech VHF. SWMBO is letting me go shopping at the boat show to buy a new DSC jobby.

I'm looking at the ICOM421, the NAVMAN 7100/7200 and the RAYMARINE 54E. I know none of them have the ability to control the loudness of the alarm but I notice from the manuals I've downloaded that on the Raymarine you can stop it automatically switching channels when an alert comes in. Anyone else know of any pros or cons for these models?

Looking at threads from a year or so back it seems that there were a lot of problems with inappropriate levels of alerts on DSC in the Solent area. Is this still happening?

Also, I need to get an MMSI number. Is it possible to get one at the show?
 
Cannot comment on the sets themselves, but I got a MMSI number at the show a couple of years ago. The people on the Radio Communications Agency stand were very helpful - its now Ofcom I think
 
No, they had a PC database with them with all the info they needed. They even printed out a new license disk for me at the show. It was very impressive.
 
I changed mine last year when the existing one failed, I looked at the models you have mentioned and the chap in the shop insisted that the Icom was the best by far even tho he had all the models available. He showed me the back of the raymarine and the NavMan which showed they were more or less the same unit repackaged. He also told me to steer clear of Silva 10's and 15's. I did buy the Icom although I liked the rotary channel selecter on the Raymarine. I've been very pleased with the Icom and would recommend it. I got my mmsi No. by filling out the form on the offcom web site, can't find the url at the moment but it only took a couple of days to arrive.
 
I looked around a year ago when the Icom was not available. I went for the Raymarine 54E & it's performed well to date. The only problem was the cover over the disress button. This has detached itself from the spring & now sometimes hangs down. It's not a major problem as far as I'm concerned so I haven't bothered to get it fixed. I liked the large rotary knobs rather than buttons. Channel, volume & squelch are all different sizes. It's easy to operate in the dark & the menus are easy.

Others I looked at either had all buttons or seemed to have flimsy construction.

I would have looked very seriously at the the Icom 421 if it had been around. The only ones available from Icom were out of the price range. The only real down side I can for this radio is that it's keypad based rather than rotary. That's just personal preference though.

Do look around far and wide for the best prices. Some people say they have great prices when they are actually way off the mark. I think I got my radio from somewhere near Weymouth adviertising mail order on the web. Can't remember the name though.
 
I got an Icom 601 and that has the rotary channel select wheel. What I don't like on the 601 is that turning it off and on doesn't reset the radio to channel 16 and turn off any dual watch or scan mode that was last used. I really hate that feature. If that might irritate you then you might want to check that out before buying.

What is really nice is the remote command mike in the cockpit, this is one of my best ever buys
 
As far as I can see (from the manuals I've downloaded) the only functional advantage of the ICOM is that it can store 100 MMSIs rather than 20 for the raymarine. I'm sure you're right in that it will be better built though.

But from what I can see (and this may be incorrect) the raymarine is the only unit to allow you to stop it from changing channels when it picks up a call. But this is only an issue if alerts are a frequent problem. How many do you get on a Summer weekend in the Solent?

I like the idea of a rotary control though. Not just for channels but for navigating the menu as well. And the ICOM looks more complex which will put SWMBO off using it.

I guess having a play at LIBS should settle it.

BTW according to the ICOM manual it is NOT protected against reverse polarity. Surprising?
 
I would seriously have a look at the Standard Horizon VM3500E with the added RAM+ microphone. The latter plugs in a waterproof socket near the helm and gives full control inc DSC at the helm inc a built in volume controllable speaker in the Mic. You will never go down below to use the radio unless you want to and you will never use a handheld in the cockpit again. It has ICOm type quality but is a full size set, not a compact one.
 
Looks brill. But a bit over my budget

Thanks.

Perhaps I should explain. I'm alowed to buy a new radio 'cos I said it would cost a hundredish quid. Ok, 190 might not be construed as a hundredish but this is debatable. 299.99 might be pushing it a little far....
 
At the risk of being controversial.

Beware of all the Doom Merchants who claim that you'll rue the day you bought DSC. The excessive alarms will drive you mad etc.

I have sailed the Central English Channel/Solent to Cherbourg etc. for years & the number of alarms is minimal but you know what its like, a bit of new technology & the Doom Merchants will whinge until the cows come home.

DSC is a positive safety device!

Thats all you really need to consider.

Martin
 
The pros and cons of each model are mainly a matter of personal preferences. For what its worth, this is the process I used to select a new radio:

1. Make a short list (as you have already done). Mine was based on the models available from a dealer in France, where I live. I eliminated the very cheap models. They may be OK, but I decided to spend a bit more in the hope it would be reflected in the quality.

2. Consider the conditions in which you may have to use the radio. There is a lot of difference between twiddling the knobs at a boat show and having to use it in the dark in rough conditions. Personally, I could not imagine having to change channels using a keypad. The old radio had rotary controls for Channel Select, Volume and Squelch and they were always easy to use. I therefore reduced the short list to those with rotary controls. This left the ICOM 601, Rayamarine 54E and the Navman 7200.

3. Download the manuals and decide if any of the radios have features which you find particularly desirable, or alternatively, unacceptable.

4. You now have to make the choice. I would have liked to select the ICOM, but I could not justify the extra cost over the other two. The Navman was on special offer, so that was the one I chose, but I am sure the Raymarine would have been a good choice also.

Hope this helps.
 
Navman 7200

To be fair with the three you have chosen you can't go wrong. I believe that leaves you a choice on functionality and whistles rather than will it work.

I bought a Navman 7200 after much searching during the time my antiquated Aquastar 5600 died a death.

Before I bought my criteria were chunky rotaries and 3 separate controls, no half squelch half volume that some sets got away with. The radio should be usable while wearing gloves and maybe a little shaking!

Important features should be available through panel buttons and not menus.


All of which the 7200 has.

On my desirables, I wanted a full numeric keypad. This is a boon, seriously, scrolling up and down 0-9 to enter each MMSI number, you might as well just call them on 16.

Also, did you know that if you type in 7 - 2 you will go to channel 72, this makes channel selection immediate and compliments the channel select rotary well.

I think they all have similar scans and other functions, but do check, 3 channel + 16 is a great scan if you want to listen to port ops, marina, another + 16. Though you can select up to 3 so 2 ch + 16 is also available. Full channel scans.

You can rename channels, so ship to ship can become race control if that floats your boat. Also, to stop a channel being selected when a DSC call comes in, you press ESC which cancels the call.

The barometer is a nice to have, it works, it gives a 24hr trend of pressure and will continue to display this when the radio is turned off. The temperature is also handy. The happy fisher is a novelty toy and I see no use for it.

I would not buy the Icom as it has up - down channel select, this is a serious design flaw in my opinion.

I nearly bought the Raymarine, but only because delivery times were leaving me without a VHF. Though in hindsight I would now never buy one without a numeric keypad.

EDIT>> The numeric keypad is like a mobile telephone, so when naming your friends and family on your stored MMSI numbers, it is very easy to add a text name rather than scrolling through 0-26 A-Z and the characters they give you. Do not under estimate this functionality.

There is an option on the 7200 to turn off the internal speaker when you are feeding to a cockpit speaker. This means you will not disturb off watch crew. I can not confirm if this also includes alarms as I have never had an alarm through when on speaker only, but still worth considering.

If I was to make one complaint about the 7200, the light on - dimmer is via menu selection, which is a bit painful if you turn off the light during the day and want to turn it back on in the dark. I can now do it by remembering the procedure, but a separate switch would be nice. But looking at other sets, this is not just a Navman issue.

EDIT>> Also, the mike has a ch up dn toggle, if like me you have the radio near the hatchway it means you can fully control a conversation from the mic. Basically the navman has everything and more that the other sets have. Do not dismiss it, it is a fab unit!

I stake my reputation on the 7200, though that might put you off it completely /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 
Re: Navman 7200

I hadn't realised that the NAVMAN uses the same rotary/push control. I'll try them out at LIBS. I may take my 2 year old son along as well - should be a good test of how robust they are!

Its interesting to compare the manuals. The Raymarine is by far the best written yet functionally the product is pretty well identical to the NAVMAN.
 
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