GPS Debate

[gottaflylee]

Lee, I thought the same thing, but with the way things are set up where the different units are all separate but connected through a black box is it still as big an issue? I would think that you are ok and just lose one function unless the black box itself craps out.

The black box does not help you if the main unit goes down and as I stated, if you lose that your dead in the water. You need seprate units if you want to stay out of safe. All the boats I run have at least 2 GPS units except the 21 Southern Skimmer and it has a GPS and a depth recorder. Had the depth recorder go out this year and had to replace it.Was a lot cheeper replacing that than a combo unit...just how I look at it...

[clt_capt]

On my current boat, I have a Furuno Chart Plotter, Raymarine DGPS, Furuno Scope, Apelco Depth gauge, and Furuno 1741 Radar - Having separate units makes it easy to deal with.

The Autopilot is tied to the chart plotter, but I can quickly cut the DGPS over if the chartplotter dies

There have been times when I've had to power cycle 1 device or another.

It works for me - To clarify my earlier statement - I would want 2 black boxes - each with Depth, GPS and Radar (Given a choice and not limited by $$$) - 2 Identical large LCD screens - then I could switch to the functions I was using at the time...

Redundancy is key.

[Sterling]

Most of these systems are integrated today and, without reading the other posts here I suspect there's a lot of conflicting recommendations. This technology is changing on a regular basis and it will be difficult to find anyone that's actually used all of the latest products. I suggest hitting a boat show and trying the top 3 out. You may also find much better prices. Another consideration is that you may want to have an authorized rep install it. With some companies, warranty work will be done on the boat if installed by a factory authorized installer, otherwise you need to ship it back which can be frustrating mid-season. If you go all in one, having a backup GPS is a good idea.

Good luck