VHF second Mic/handset + AIS

[Scrimma]

Hi all!

I have a 40' monohull sloop with act cockpit. My CBC radio is downsdownstairs in the saloon and impossible to hear from the stern even when at anchor. I'm wanting to get a Mic in the cockpit next to the helm so I can easily communicate etc. Is it possible to get a Mic splitter that I can run to the back and punch out at the helm to plug a speaker/Mic into? My current VHF is quite and old GME. Still works fine, but I'm wanting to get AIS installed sooner than later too, so I'm thinking is it time to upgrade VHF to one that's AIS comparable at the same time? Perhaps the modern VHF units allow for 2 mics off the one head unit?

I apologise if that is all confusing. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Scrimma.

[alctel]

Yeah a lot of the modern handsets either have an option for a second remote mic, or an option for a wireless handset.

When you said AIS do you mean transmit and receive, or just receive?

[Scrimma]

Originally Posted by alctel

Yeah a lot of the modern handsets either have an option for a second remote mic, or an option for a wireless handset.

When you said AIS do you mean transmit and receive, or just receive?

Hi! Thanks for the reply. That's good news that most have provisions for it! I'm finding it difficult to find out which ones do exactly...do you recommend a particular model?

As for AIS, I'm wanting the right setup, but not necessarily wanting to over do it. Transceiver would be ideal, but man they charge a premium for it. A receiver would be ideal if everyone else has a transceiver. So let's shoot for the moon and go with send and receive.

My biggest concern is getting VHF to my cockpit so I can communicate when underway safely and conveniently. If it makes financial sense to go ahead and get a radio capable of AIS now, then that'll be the plan. Otherwise I'll deal with AIS in a couple of years before going offshore.

[Scrimma]

I'd be very keen for one that allows for a wireless mic/speaker combo at the helm, but corded down in the saloon...i can't seem to find any when searching the internet.
Thanks for your help!

[Jammer]

Your best move would be to get an external (wired) speaker installed in the cockpit. That would be a good idea whatever configuration you end up with.


If you're determined to have a wireless handset/mic, look at the Lowrance/B&G/Simrad radios.

[Tsuru]

I’m far from an expert with these things but we have a Standard Horizon remote station hand set wired near the helm on our boat. I understand they also offer a wireless unit. It’s handy and acts a speaker as well as a full function remote. It even has a small screen to show AIS targets although very small.
We currently use a stand alone AIS (DAisy-2 and Glomex splitter) that’s wired to the chart plotter.

If I were going to replace the unit today I’d go with a Standard Horizon VHF with AIS and keep the remote mic. I suspect that the AIS signal could be shared with the chart plotter. The VHF is less than $200

[Greg Mason]

Scrimma, my Horizon GS 2200? has a wired remote that echoes the main unit including GPS, AIS, DSC and all channels. The GPS has waypoints also.

[OS2Dude]

We had a Standard Horizon GX2100 with AIS (rcv). It has an optional wired remote mic that we had in the cockpit. It connects to the GPS via NMEA0183. We upgraded to a B&G V50 with AIS (rcv). It has optional H50 wireless remote mics. We got two remotes so we can use them to talk from bow to cockpit while anchoring. It connects to the GPS via NMEA2000. (The remotes can be used over VHF via the base station or as walkie-talkies to talk to each other and/or the base station.)

[Cpt Mark]

Ais. I bought my transceiver from west marine for $500 vs 200 or whatever for a receiver only. For me, money well invested in safety.

I will be putting in a 2nd VHF at the helm station for redundancy. The basic one is all I need and it is so cheap. Buddy has the B&G Cordless handsets. very cool but I don't like the sound quality.

[hooligan6a]

My Simard VHF has two handsets one wireless for the cockpit and AIS great radio.

[Mikado]

+1 for the Standard Horizon GX2200 with AIS. Awesome unit for $300. I also purchased the optional Ram3 ($110) remote microphone. The nice feature on the Ram3 is it also has a small screen that allows me to be able to view the AIS target area from down below.

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by Scrimma

>>>>>>>>>>>>
I'm finding it difficult to find out which ones do exactly...>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

What I recommend you do is go to individual vendors' websites, like Standard Horizon, B&G, etc.


And just read through what models they have, only way i know of to learn what they offer.


Good luck.

[Dr. D]

My boat has the B&G V50 with AIS receive only and a wireless remote mic. Works great. The AIS uses an antenna inside the unit, so no need to mess with VHF splitter.

[CaptTom]

I'm not a big fan of receive-only AIS. If you think you're going to join the big boys and get an AIS transceiver at some point anyway, you may find that you have to turn off the AIS receiver in your VHF at that point. On some radios, like the V50 mentioned above, it'll see your AIS transceiver signal and alarm because you're about to collide with yourself. I think some MFD's might have this problem, too.

In other words, you might want to just save your money and get a non-AIS radio.

[Scrimma]

Originally Posted by CaptTom

I'm not a big fan of receive-only AIS. If you think you're going to join the big boys and get an AIS transceiver at some point anyway, you may find that you have to turn off the AIS receiver in your VHF at that point. On some radios, like the V50 mentioned above, it'll see your AIS transceiver signal and alarm because you're about to collide with yourself. I think some MFD's might have this problem, too.

In other words, you might want to just save your money and get a non-AIS radio.

Thanks for that info mate. I'm inclined to agree. I've been looking more into the radios with it included, but can't seem to find one that acts as a transceiver, only a receiver. So if I went the route you're talking about, id still need a radio with a wired and a remote hand unit, which I should be able to find from the few people have listed above. Then for AIS, I will need a VHF splitter and a transceiver plus associated cabling of course. Is that all that is required? I realize that's still quite expensive, but at least install should be DIY right? Can you recommend a good decent priced way of going about that? I currently have a relatively new (within the last 5yrs) raymarine chartplotter that's AIS ready, so as far as I can tell, that's all I'll need...?