AIS Transponder - Anyone have one?

Skybolt

Skybolt

Well-Known Member
Nov 11, 2014
6,429
Kent Narrows, MD
Boat Info
Reel Nauti
460 EC
Engines
Detroit 6v92TA
(Low profile's)
Alison Gears
Westerbeke
12.5kw Genset
I have had an AIS receiver for a few years now. Both on the Long Island sound and the Chesapeake bay. It is built in to my VHF Garmin 210-AIS, but only a receiver.

Boating on the Long Island sound it was more of a novelty then a useful piece of equipment. It wasn't until I moved to the Chesapeake Bay area (Annapolis) that I realized how useful this is. So much so I am considering a transceiver. There is so much night time boat traffic not to mention the day traffic and most of it close quarters. Stepping away from the helm for a minute can be a very bad thing.

Curious if anyone here is using one and what type they are using.
 
There's a good thread on this here: AIS transponders W/WIFI for IPAD and Navionics

I installed one this summer, you can read my experience in that thread. Nutshell: It's very useful, especially in bad weather.

I see your location is Kent Narrows, I bought my boat a few years ago, it was located in Castle Harbor Marina on Kent Narrows, and listed with Knot 10. We flew back to do the survey/sea trial, loved the area back there!

Kevin
 
We have the Raymarine AIS-650. Having been caught in fog in the middle of Massachusetts Bay more than a couple times the ability to be seen at least by some of the other boats (most large commercial and all passenger vessels by law) is comforting.
 
GnrlPatton said:
... I see your location is Kent Narrows, I bought my boat a few years ago, it was located in Castle Harbor Marina on Kent Narrows, and listed with Knot 10. We flew back to do the survey/sea trial, loved the area back there! ... Kevin
Click to expand...

Very familiar with knot 10 and Castle Harbor. I keep my boat at Mears, now a safe harbor marina. Unbelievable boating from this area.
 
extremely valuable tool, especially in high commercial traffic.

Not perfect, you have to always keep in mind that not everyone is transmitting or receiving.

Previous boat had FLIR, but not AIS. This boat has AIS, not FLIR. For our use - I would not trade AIS for FLIR.

Garmin electronics.
 
I have the Vesper XB-8000 Transponder. I am a huge fan. They should pay me! It can share duty with your existing VHF antenna (requires a splitter) or if you want to look really cool, add a second antenna. Tech support is wonderful. I did all of the installation myself.

It is nice to know that if a big boy is in the area, he can call you out BY NAME! Also, last month at the beginning of the ICW in Portsmouth, VA, we were in a line to go through a bridge. There was a sharp turn at the bridge...Glimmerton Bridge for those familiar.....and the radar shows nothing, but because of AIS, I see a tug pushing a barge coming the opposite direction. A quick radio call, he tells me to go first, all good.

In short, I am a big believer in AIS Transponders.

Jaybeaux
 
Year or so ago got caught in a heavy fog bank in a busy (commercial) area. As glad as I was that I knew where the container ships were - I was even happier that they knew where I was.
 
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Great input guys thank all of you! Great input, you guys sold me, I was on the fence but not anymore.

It looks like the Vesper is a really cool device. Works with Navionics to boot. There dedicated GPS antenna is perfect since they have an anchor watch app as well (https://www.panbo.com/vesper-marine-anchor-watch-merry-christmas/). I almost like that better then the AIS features.

The Vesper sounds like the way to go for sure, especially with the anchor watch app as well.
 
I have Raymarine AIS700 and would not run too far without it. Each and every time I am in fog it is very handy. I have had many boats hail me by name and I have hailed
Many boats to discuss how we were going to pass each other. It is so much easier to hail a boat by name rather than called out on 16 “boat off my port bow”. Without AIS You spend much valuable time trying to figure out if that person is talking to you or not.
One time I was in broad daylight heading back from Nantucket and a high speed ferry was about 2 miles out and coming at us head on set to pass Port to port and all of a sudden he veered to starboard and then went back on course. About 20sec later he hailed me by name and let me know he saw what he thought was a floating log to his port which would have been directly ahead of me. It gave me valuable time to change course to avoid the area he was talking about.
 
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Henry Boyd said:
Do the Vespers have their own dedicated gps, or can they use anything on the nmea2k net?
Click to expand...

They need their own GPS. The 6000 has an internal antenna but can use an external. The 8000 does not have an internal antenna. They can put out GPS over N2K for other electronics.
 
Henry Boyd said:
Do the Vespers have their own dedicated gps, or can they use anything on the nmea2k net?
Click to expand...
As @my3sons said, they require their own GPS. But the beauty of it is that the dedicated GPS goes to the Vesper, and then it shares the data on the NEMA 2000 Network. So, it effect, it is an external antenna for your Chartplotter, etc. The above was for the 8000 model, which is what I have.

Jaybeaux
 
Do you guys also have a "call sign" as well? or just the mmsi.
 
When you registered your vhf for MMSI the name of your boat is included in the process as well as type of boat: pleasure craft, sailing vessel, fishing, etc. all of this data appears on the AIS display, or at least it does on our new Axioms. Again, not sure if this displays on all, but AIS targets will also generate a vector showing direction and rate of motion so you can see possible intersections along your point of sail.

Other advantages include web applications your boat will show up on such as marine traffic that can produce a track for your boat. Here’s a copy of the track from a trip home from Portland ME. The marine traffic data is not only available from their website but also their phone iPad app. This photo below was downloaded from the app on our boat iPad after the trip. Since the track can be available to anyone it makes it easier for family to follow your progress.

And it’s also why a lot of the more competitive tuna fisherman run with their AIS in silent mode.

8905D284-56BB-43C4-AB97-26EC84656822.jpeg
 
I too have Raymarine AIS650 and I love it. Being able to see commercial traffic and mega yachts is invaluable around here.
 
Thanks Guys, I'm now $900 poorer....lol. I have a Standard VHF that has AIS receive, but no transmit. I've been thinking about adding a transponder. I've been hearing a lot of good comments on it lately, and this post put me over the edge and decided to buy today. I got a Garmin as all my other stuff is Garmin. thanks for info, I'll report back on it's performance.
 
This thread has also helped point me in this direction as well. Now I only need to decide on the Vesper 8000 or the Gamin unit. I am not sure if there are any benefits to getting the Garmin one or not. But the Vesper has many advantages as far as I can see and looks like the one to get.
 
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