Seamouse Posted February 9, 2006 Report Share Posted February 9, 2006 Hi folks, Appreciate any input on this. I may need a new antenna soon for a Garmin GPSMap185. Currently it uses the same standard Garmin remote mount white 'mushroom' as a GPS128 but if the price in the States is anything to go by, one of these will hurt the wallet badly. On the Net, I can get little black flush mount jobs for under Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam F Posted February 9, 2006 Report Share Posted February 9, 2006 Steve, Garmin have the best customer service I have ever come across... What is wrong with the current one? Get in contact with Garmin in Romsey - tell them your situation - and they should replace FOC - they have always done with me - I have had 4 new units over the years when even small things have gone bad... Adam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob F Posted February 9, 2006 Report Share Posted February 9, 2006 Steve, Do you have some more details on the antenna's you are referring to? If they are the Gilsson make, they are supposed to have a good reputation and alegedly perform better than Garmins own. The Garmin antenna is amplified (as is the Gilsson) so one of the most important specs will be the signal gain. This will be given in dB's, and the higher the number, the better. So, check that it is at least as high as the Garmin antenna (I think the Garmins are around 16dB but don't quote me). There should be no problem sending the GPS data to both your FF and DSC VHF. Just make sure you connect the in's and out's correctly, and don't cross the polarities (eg accidently use the earth as the signal line). Give me some more info an the antenna and I will look into it. BF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seamouse Posted February 10, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2006 Get in contact with Garmin in Romsey - tell them your situation - and they should replace FOC - Hi Adam, It isn't a warranty issue, I may not own my existing aerial much longer as it will be going with the GPS128. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seamouse Posted February 10, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2006 The Garmin antenna is amplified (as is the Gilsson) so one of the most important specs will be the signal gain. This will be given in dB's, and the higher the number, the better. Hi Bob, Looking a little closer at e-bay, it seems that there are standard and marine antenna. The marine are more expensive and will need a pole mount as well, all are coming out of America so postage is high. Gilsson cost more than unbranded and all are amplified to 32dB. I'll get off my lazy butt and ring Garmin UK or JG Tech, see what the genuine article will cost. Then I can sit and watch e-bay for a while and see what happens. I've got several months before the thing is possibly needed Thanks for the advice, much appreciated and clarified things no end. While we're on.....fishfinders! The Garmin 160c and 250 cost the same. One's colour but lower resolution (160x160), the other's high res B&W (320x320). I've never used a colour FF. Which way would you go? p.s has to be Garmin as the transducer is also compatible with my plotter/sounder. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob F Posted February 10, 2006 Report Share Posted February 10, 2006 Tough one this. 160C # new model with new technoogy is a plus # colour screen, so much easier to see in daylight is a big plus # 120x120 resolution is a minus # dual beam, not bothered. # 150W power is lower but is supposed to give 900ft depth (yeah, right) # 4.5 inch screen is the same size 250 B&W # 320 x 320 screen resolution is a plus # 500w power is a plus # B&W screen is a big minus # dual beam, not bothered # 4.5 inch screen is the same If you just want to be able to see the coarse bottom contours to find your mark, or watch a wreck come up on the screen as you dirft over it, then screen resolution isn't critical. I think its more important to be able to see the damn screen in daylight, especially when you are standing away from the FF during drifts. If you're into seeing the detail of wrecks or want to be able to see individual fish, then the higher resolution is the one to go for. I'd have to go and see them both together and make sure I was happy with the lower resolution on the 160C, but in the end I would go for the colour screen because they are so much easier to see in daylight. A higher resolution screen will not catch any more fish. You'll also get more money for the 160C if you decide to upgrade later. (is your existing plotter/sounder a dual beam, also?) BF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seamouse Posted February 13, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 13, 2006 (is your existing plotter/sounder a dual beam, also?) Hi Bob, Nope, I think its single beam (185S) but seems to take the same spec transducer if the Garmin parts numbers are anything to go by. I'll double-check that but I think maybe the 250 and 160C are/can be single beam? Still hung on BW vs colour then. It'd be nice to have the 250C but that's a whopping Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob F Posted February 13, 2006 Report Share Posted February 13, 2006 Steve, Yes, I believe that both the 250 and the 160C can be used with either a single beam 200KHz transducer. The 160C has a nice feature of being able to select a narrow or wide beam. This could like wreck location a little easier. BF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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