B&G for Cruisers: Is Zeus3 worth the cost vs Vulcan?

[RKsailsolo]

B&G tech service is A1 as far as my personal experience is concerned on my US based 2015 Jeanneau Sun ODYSSEY. So far, exceeding my expectations.

[Jules_M]

When I searched for Vulcan vs. Zeus I found this thread. Pretty informative! We purchased the Triton2 D/S/W package from Defender for the new boat and were wondering which way to go with the MFD.


Thanks to all who contributed!

[Polaris43]

Originally Posted by sailjumanji

OK, I wouldn't buy a b&g Zeus 3. Mine installed last night brand new. We had a 90 Mike trip today and it shut off and restarted at least a dozen times. I updated software afterwards and it shutdown on its own again, while we were sitting at anchor. Brand new unit. Who would trust this on a trip?

I just installed a Zeus2 9" MFD and have the exact same shutdown / reboot problem along with it only reading the C-Map for about 5 seconds before going to a yellow screen. The boat icon is still there but no chart.

What was the solution to your shut down / reboot problem? I have been calling them for two days - on hold for hours waiting for them to pick up and when I left my number for them to call back, they did twice but there was no on on the other end of the line and after about 30 seconds of silence it went to their 'after call' survey - like they hit the button to clear the call and just ditched me.

I also sent an email through their website several days ago and have not received a response.

I love the instruments and the MFD - I bought this system because my friend has the same thing on her boat but I am starting to regret it already. Any help you can provide is appreciated. Thanks!

[Polaris43]

Originally Posted by RKsailsolo

B&G tech service is A1 as far as my personal experience is concerned on my US based 2015 Jeanneau Sun ODYSSEY. So far, exceeding my expectations.

How to you get in contact with them? They will not answer their service number, the call back process yields silence on the other end for 30 seconds then it goes to the 'after call' survey and they do not respond to their website based email system after several days.

Thanks for your help and advice.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by RKsailsolo

B&G tech service is A1 as far as my personal experience is concerned on my US based 2015 Jeanneau Sun ODYSSEY. So far, exceeding my expectations.

My experience as well, also in the US. Have a mixed Simrad and B&G autopilot computer/controller/compass/etc. Called tech support several times pre and post purchase and 4 times out of 5 went straight to an engineer with at most a few minutes hold, usually no wait at all.

[sailjumanji]

Originally Posted by Polaris43

I just installed a Zeus2 9" MFD and have the exact same shutdown / reboot problem along with it only reading the C-Map for about 5 seconds before going to a yellow screen. The boat icon is still there but no chart.



What was the solution to your shut down / reboot problem? I have been calling them for two days - on hold for hours waiting for them to pick up and when I left my number for them to call back, they did twice but there was no on on the other end of the line and after about 30 seconds of silence it went to their 'after call' survey - like they hit the button to clear the call and just ditched me.



I also sent an email through their website several days ago and have not received a response.



I love the instruments and the MFD - I bought this system because my friend has the same thing on her boat but I am starting to regret it already. Any help you can provide is appreciated. Thanks!

Dang, I completely forgot that I posted here. Our issues with new Zeus 3 were back in February. I hate to admit it, but we went thru the original and two replacement units all doing the same thing. Then found we had a wire connection issue thst was not allowing necessary amps to plotter. Replaced wiring to harness, and all problems went away. Cruised all thru the Bahamas for almost three months and then back across Gulf of Mexico without any more problems.

[Jules_M]

We have the Zeus3 9" MFD. We'll be out on the water and next thing we know it has turned itself off. Turn it back on and everything is fine. This has happened several times but we've never had it happen two or more times in the same outing.


As for customer service, I've only once called them. It took over 20 minutes before I spoke to a human but once on the line he was surprisingly helpful.


But I should add at the time I was looking for info to buy - Vulcan vs Zeus. Maybe present yourself as a buyer?

[CaptainCrayfish]

FabioC - would you care to qualify as to why you are un-impressed please

[CaptTom]

Originally Posted by Jetx

Navionics can't display AIS data from your network...

It can now. There was a fairly recent update.

However, I found I had to turn off the cellular network connection to get it to work. Apparently the app chooses the "best" network to use based on whether or not it has internet connectivity. So if your on-board network (in my case, Vesper) doesn't, and your cell phone does, then no AIS data in Navionics. I call that a pretty serious design flaw, but this is a new feature. Maybe they'll fix it in a future release.

[JamesPNW]

Hi,

Do you connect your Vulcan 9 and Vulcan 12 through a NEP 2 for your shared B&G MFD configuration? I saw a configuration where 2 device connect together with Ethernet port and connect to the the N2K bus.
I am interested in the setup to have a Vulcan 9 at the helm and Vulcan 12 at the Nav station.

Thanks

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by funjohnson

. . . But, I have a hard time recommending anything from B&G due to their horrible customer service and quality control.Matt

I have been using Navico gear for 7 years by now (2x Zeuses, 6x Tritons, autopilot, GoFree WiFi1, 4G radar).


There are some good things about this gear, but people considering buying into this system should keep in mind that Navico do not support long term use of this expensive stuff. Updates and support end in just a few years. They treat this gear as if it were mobile phone, disposable consumer electronics.



Quality is so so -- basically consumer electronics level, not at all the military grade like the old Raymarine stuff. The 4G radar has great target discrimination (which is great; giving great guard zones) but poor bearing discrimination and utterly useless, non-functional MARPA. I don't think it's the best radar on the market.



I've managed to keep the system working more or less OK, but I would probably not do it again. I would probably go Furuno next time. This stuff is expensive enough that I just do not accept the consumer electronics ethos -- I will not be replacing all this gear every two years like a mobile phone, even though I spend nearly half the year on board and sail thousands of miles. If I spend €20 000 on electronics I would like to amortize that cost over the better part of a decade -- otherwise it just doesn't make any sense.

[jackrabbit59]

I have both the Zeus and Vulcan at the helm. I wanted to view the larger sail steer screen on the Vulcan rather than another Triton. Plus the Vulcan 9" was cheaper than another Triton. You can't get the maps from the Zeus to the Vulcan or vise versa using NEMA 2K, at least according to B&G support. I have not found away around it either. 2 cards are your only choice according to B&G.
I got rid of everything at my chart table. I use a Samsung tablet at the chart table or wherever I am. I can control everything except the autopilot just like I was at the helm. Still working on the connection between the Iridium Go and Zeus. I helped another guy get his working but haven't taken the time to do mine yet. You can download the waypoints from the suggested routes on Predictwind direct into the Zeus through Iridium Go. Saves a lot of typing.
The only thing I don't like about my B&G setup so far is the NAC3 autopilot. Very little info on how to set it for different sea conditions. Very frustrating after buying a new Octopus hydraulic arm and not being able to get it to work in 3 ft following seas. Everytime the boat tops the wave crest, the autopilot just shuts off. Been in lock down here in San Diego so hopefully get to go try some more settings in a week or two.

[sailjumanji]

I have a 12 inch Zeus 3 at the helm. Viewing angle is much improved vs my prior sailboat Zeus 2. We have it on a pivot mount and can see the data well from the saloon, cockpit or other steering station. Don't need a repeater.

[CaptTom]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

...people considering buying into this system should keep in mind that Navico do not support long term use of this expensive stuff. Updates and support end in just a few years. They treat this gear as if it were mobile phone, disposable consumer electronics.

For the record, Garmin is no better. You'd be lucky if your equipment is not declared "legacy" the same year you buy it. No more updates after that.

[NickL]

Originally Posted by FlyingScot

From this link, it appears the Zeus does the windplot over time graphs and the vulcan does not. https://ww2.bandg.com/downloads/zeus-3-software-update/

Personally I like to use both the touch screen and the buttons/knob depending on the situation. Same as on my laptop. Also, if something freezes up, sometimes the other input type will get it moving again. Personally I haven't experienced this on the Z3, but I suspect I will at some point.

Details on the screens and processors seem hard to find, but they do describe the Zeus models with terms like "all weather", "ultra wide viewing angles", "super bright" and "high performance". They don't use these terms for the Vulcan. Maybe they think these are important for 'bluewater'?

Obviously it would be best if you could spend a few minutes in full direct sun with each of them. Also a quick test with wet hands.

Edit:
Vulcan 9" screen: 800 x 480 Pixels: 384000
Zeus3 9" screen: 720 x 1280 Pixels: 921600
That's a lot more detail on the same size screen.

The 7" Z3 has 600 x 1024 Pixels: 614400
I'd probably buy the 7" Zeus3 over the 9" Vulcan.

I've been looking at those as well. Its a hard choice. Vulcan 7 and Vulcan 9 essentially have identical resolution (800x480). You just get a bigger screen but no extra real estate. From the resolution standpoint, Zeus 7 seems a better choice compared to Vulcan 9.