AIS, which one?

[6227]

Thinking of putting AIS on the boat. Already have receive via my VHF radio but I want to transmit. Not sure if I want/need a full transceiver or just a transmitter. Considering the McMurdo10W with WiFi so I can see it on the tablet. Also thinking about one of the Vesper units. Either the 850 or 8000

So what are the pros/cons of these?

[Jim Cate]

There have been several threads about this very issue, so try some searching for previous opinions.

From my point of view, the Vesper units win out. I believe they are technologically the equal or better of any on the market,and the customer service is outstanding. Jeff Robins, a principal in the firm, is a regular participant in CF, and has been outstandingly responsive to queries and problems.

I voted my dollars that way, BTW, and have not regretted the decision.

Jim

[downunder]

Originally Posted by 6227

Thinking of putting AIS on the boat. Already have receive via my VHF radio but I want to transmit. Not sure if I want/need a full transceiver or just a transmitter. Considering the McMurdo10W with WiFi so I can see it on the tablet. Also thinking about one of the Vesper units. Either the 850 or 8000

So what are the pros/cons of these?

Have seen or praise for Vesper units from owners.

[Pelagic]

My vote also for Vesper as they have been fantastic with after sales support..I chose the modular 850 kit.

[Cotemar]

Originally Posted by 6227

Thinking of putting AIS on the boat. Already have receive via my VHF radio but I want to transmit. Not sure if I want/need a full transceiver or just a transmitter. Considering the McMurdo10W with WiFi so I can see it on the tablet. Also thinking about one of the Vesper units. Either the 850 or 8000

So what are the pros/cons of these?

Or get the black box that plugs into your chart plotter.
Garmin and Raymarine both have a black box add on.

[chuckr]

We have an ACER ais that is integrated with our RayMarine chartplotter and have it for the last 6 years I think. We put up a separate antenna for it as we want our radio to do one thing and our ais antenna to it's own thing.
We love our ACER.

[Snore]

Another vesper vote

The Vesper 8000 is a "black box", actually aqua, that ties NMEA 0183 and 2000 (Seatalkng) data into a common stream. It has outputs via NMEA 0183 & 2000, wifi and USB. Love the product and the support.

The hidden advantage of the Vesper is it extends the life of your 0183 instruments by letting them talk to the newer 2000 equipment.

[AedanC]

We have a vesper 6000 which is very similar to the 8000 except it doesn't have WiFi. Highly recommended.

[CaptTom]

+1 to all that others have said about Vesper and Jeff's support.

[6227]

Guess a Vesper 8000 is it. Rarely "need" AIS but singlehanding I want to be seen. Being able to WiFi it to a tablet is just a convenience. Didn't really want to mount a viewable module somewhere as I didn't really have a good place to put it. The 8000 I can mount out of sight somewhere.

THANKS!

[sapient sue]

I support the Vesper. We have had it installed for some years now and would not sail without it.

[alctel]

I have a Digital Yachts AIT2000 which works great but I am kicking myself for not getting a Vesper XB-8000 model - as it would have given me wi-fi throughout the boat AND a nmea2000 gateway AND a standalone anchor alarm. For around the same price as my unit.

UGH

[Pelagic]

I also got the Vesper XB-8000 not the 850....my mistake

[chouliha]

Another vote for Vesper. Great unit (850). Great customer service. Terrific anchor watch. heaps of various filters. I would vote this one of the top 10 best choices we made in boat gear

Good Luck

Chuck
Jacaranda
Tahiti

[CarlF]

+1 for Vesper although I think the OP's primary interest in transmit and I'm not sure the Vesper's transmit is materially better than others.

For receive, the Vesper system stands out for the flexibility of its filters. I don't know of another unit that comes close. It's not uncommon these days in coastal waters for my Vesper to show over 100 AIS targets. I set the Vesper's to filter out:

any boat moving at less than 1 knot
any boat with a CPA (closest point of approach) of more than 1 miles (2 miles offshore)

There's rarely more than 2-3 targets on the screen with these settings.