raystar 120 question

Xplicitlnck

Xplicitlnck

Well-Known Member
Jan 2, 2012
4,030
Long island ny
Boat Info
330ec
Engines
Twin 7.4 straight drive
I currently have a raystar 112lp that decided it was time to stop working. I hear the 120 is a direct plug and play replacement. Does anybody know if this is true? Same plug? Also. I found one that I would like to buy my question is they have a battery in them and im assuming that it was manufactured years ago abd the life expectancy of the battery is 10 years. The one I'm looking to buy it's brand new in the box, never used but is it possible the battery is already dead? Don't want to throw away 200$ and be stuck with my same issue. .
 
I thought mine had died, as I kept getting the dreaded "No Fix" on the display. So I went and bought a new 125, cut and spliced it all together. Still, "No Fix" :smt013 So after a little more digging, one friggin wire behind the display was hanging down, so I plugged it in to it's spot and voila!!! It worked. :smt021
 
Call Raymarine in NH I don't think it does. They will tell you the way to hook it up. They did for me. Just tell them what MFD you have to hook it to.

1-800-539-5539
 
Don't be too concerned about the plug and play. If you can get Raystar 125, it should be a simple swap. If I recall, it's a regular SeaTalk wire (red/ylw/wht). Cut the old antenna, reconnect the wires matching the colors and you're done.

The latest and greatest Raystar 135 is different. You'll need to run 12VDC power to it.
 
Just ordered a 125 I sHould receive it abd have it installed by the end of next week. Then hopefully ill have a extra end and be able to get it out to you!
 
Alex F said:
Don't be too concerned about the plug and play. If you can get Raystar 125, it should be a simple swap. If I recall, it's a regular SeaTalk wire (red/ylw/wht). Cut the old antenna, reconnect the wires matching the colors and you're done.
Click to expand...

I'm in the middle of replacing my 120 with a 125. I, too, was led to believe it was "cut and splice/plug and play". Not so on mine. The 120's White cable had a single black wire and shield, and the 125 has 4 wires as you stated (red/yellow/blk/wht SeaTalk). I've pulled the new cable from the arch to the instrument panel last weekend, so hooking it up is for next weekend...
 
Carter,

I replaced both. On one occasion I replaced older 120 with 125. I just cut the wire off old 120, re-used the actual older wire run between radar arch and the helm, spliced the wire from 125 and everything worked as expected. Going form memory here, the wiring for SeaTalk is very simple. Red=Power(+), Yellow=DATA, BLK=(-), don't remember what white is used for.

My last upgrade was swapping older 120 with newest 135. I also re-used the older wire, but needed to add extra 12vdc for the back bone block (this is part of the 135 antenna). The connections were also simple and I didn't have a need to re-run the wire between radar arch and the helm.

The main point is, don't be too concerned with the "plug and play" connections. The wiring is pretty simple, cut and splice 3-4 wires and you're done.

If you unsure about connection, give RM support a call and they'll assist on the fly.
 
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Ok just got the raystar 125 in the mail. All the wires are exactly the same. So cut and splice as Alex described is the method i will use. Now my question to Alex is how do/did you connect the shield? Did you connect the shield?
 
X, I pulled this off the Raymarine tech support site awhile ago when I was thinking of doing the same replacement:

------------------------------
Was the Raystar 120 connected to the RL70C via Seatalk or NMEA?

If Seatalk, you will find the same wires inside the white jacket of the RS120 but with the RS125, what you are going to do is take the RED and GREEN wires from the RS125 cable and spin them together then connect with the RED on the RS120 side, YELLOW from the RS125 will connect directly to YELLOW on the RS120 side, and lastly the BROWN and SHIELD(Black) get spun together and go to SHIELD(bare) on the RS120 side.

If NMEA then it would be color for color.

Here is a link for more description: http://www.raymarine.com/knowledgebase/index.cfm?view=4759
 
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Well I installed my new rs125 today to my old ray lofran/gps. Raystar was reading a fix (blinking green) but ray unit was still reading sensor Ng... so it was a waste. I guess the ray unit from 98 is ng?? Any other ideas?
 
carterchapman said:
I'm in the middle of replacing my 120 with a 125. I, too, was led to believe it was "cut and splice/plug and play". Not so on mine. The 120's White cable had a single black wire and shield, and the 125 has 4 wires as you stated (red/yellow/blk/wht SeaTalk). I've pulled the new cable from the arch to the instrument panel last weekend, so hooking it up is for next weekend...
Click to expand...

I seem to recall the 120 was hardwired either NMEA0183, or SeaTalk, but not both. The 125 has the dual functionality. Carter it sounds like yours the NMEA version; one wire for data the other ground.

Henry
 
I love CSR and the internet. Raystar 125 - No fix warning so thought that maybe the GPS was dead. Google searched and found the posting on good ol' CSR.

This is the easiest repair I have ever done. The C2032 memory battery was dead in the Raystar. Repair is dead simple.


  1. The top of the antenna has all the electronics. Two screws from under and the top "puck" separates from the base (don't have to take the antenna off the boat, just don't drop the screws)
  2. Once they are removed the GPS puck separates from the base. You then disconnect the wiring connecter under the puck.
  3. Take the antenna puck to somewhere where you can work
  4. Remove the 6 screws on the bottom and separate the cover from the base.
  5. THe C2032 battery is in a simple holder. Slide out and replace
  6. re-assemble.
  7. Watch out for the seal in the unit when you reassemble. The circuit board is not attached to the base and the sealis supposed to be beside the circuit board, not under it. So the board has a tendency to lift when you put the top and bottom together. Then the seal slips under the board and wont seal the unit (when you have it apart this will be obvious. Other posts have cautioned about this, but its hard to visualize, but when you have it apart, its obvious.
  8. I made sure that the board was held down, placed the seal around it, and carefully pushed the top down. If the seal comes out or goes under, the cover wont sit down properly so try again until it does. You need to have the seal in the right spot. Don't screw it down if its not aligned right.
  9. Reinstall.

Problem solved for me. GPS now gets a fix on startup as before. Should get another 5 years out of the battery.
 
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