Adding different brand instruments to an existing system

[Boat Boy]

Hello All, Needing some advise on how to link in a GME AIS (nmea 2000) to an existing Raymarine nmea 2000 cabling system.
I have a Raymarine auto pilot system and a raymarine MFU (chart plotter) in my yacht all interfacing with each other via a raymarine backbone cable and a number of spur cables. This is a great system however unfortunately each manufacturer is permitted to determine their own system of locking the cable joints together under the nmea guidelines. Raymarine has a system where a plastic ring with tiny lugs rotates and locks into the cable. GME however has a conventional male female thread system.
Now the problem arises of how to connect an AIS with a metal male thread via a nmea2000 cable to a plastic female raymarine fitting with the plastic locking ring. Numerous phonecalls have failed to find an adaptor, apparently there itn't one.
The GME AIS system is $600 and the raymarine AIS system is $1200 or the same thing.
Any electronic experts out there who can offer any suggestions of how to solve this installation problem. any end the monopoly of being stuck with the one brand of electronics.
Thanks in advance, Ian

[smac999]

the only difference between the seatalk ng (raymarine) and the nmea2000 cable is the end plug. the both have 5 wires, same color, and do the same thing. you can buy nmea2000- seatalk ng adapter cables. or you just buy a seatalkng spur cable. cut the end off. and add a nmea2000 end like the maretron mirco field end. and add another seatalk ng tee to your back bone. just make sure you buy the correct sex n2k end for the ais box. female I think

[roetter]

Raymarine makes a converter cable to NMEA2000. I hooked up my Vesper AIS that way. No cutting cables.



Rolf

[LonelyBird]

Raymarine SeaTalk Next Generation Cables and Components

[Boat Boy]

OK thanks for your ideas. It is reassuring that others had similar thoughts to mine on how to solve the problem. One of my pet hates is how manufacturers try to lock you in to "their system" so as to restrict you from buying other competing manufacturers goods. I'll repost the results in due course. Regards to all Ian

[MarkSF]

What happened is that Raymarine, and Simrad, both thought they could do much better than the NMEA 2000 standard, in terms of convenience.

I only have experience of Simnet, but I can tell you it is a much, much better design than NMEA 2000. The plugs on the cables are thinner and easier, and the way the system interconnects is better.

How have Raymarine "locked" you out? All you need is a simple adapter.

[Boat Boy]

Hello Mark SF, The Raymarine system is easy to assemble although for what the cabling and cable connectors are I feel the components are a bit expensive.
From what I have read the NMEA standard only covers the number of wire and wire colour in the cable.
The method of locking the cables to the instrument, T pieces and connectors within a system is not to a standard but left to each company to devise their own method. As a result there is a variety of ways to connect such as male cable / female instrument and vice versa, some use threads to join, some use a lugged ring that locks into a corresponding groove on the male cable end etc. I am sure you get the idea. So it makes it difficult to join an instrument which has say a male thread into a system that uses cables with a male lock ring end.
As you said , "get an adapter" and that's where the problem lies. Who makes an adaptor for say a raymarine cable (male lock ring end) to join to a male thread Garmin instrument. No one that I can find yet.
The only solution I can see is to get a raymarine cable and a garmin cable and with a bit of cutting and joining join both cables together, possible thanks to the wiring standard

[Reefmagnet]

Can't speak specific for Raymarine, as I have the SIMNet system on my boat. What I've done to protest outrageous cable pricing is to use the cheap "generic" NMEA connectors and cables wherever possible for runs and just purchased the cheap (relatively speaking) simnet patch leads which when cut in half give two shut and cut SIMNet connections. Probably not everyone's solution, but works for me.