Interfacing GPS and DSC Radio

[davis]

Hi I would be grateful if anyone can point me in the right direction on how to interface a GPS and DSC radio. The wires from the radio are orange ,yellow, green, brown, black , black heavy covering and the GPS are blue ,white , green ,yellow , browne. I havent got a manual for either, thanks in advance of any help.

[jwalker]

Firstly, go the manufacurer's web sites and see whether there is a manual or installation instuctions available to download. Remember, if all else fails, read the manual.

Without knowing the make and model of your equipment, how do you expect us to help?

[BruceB]

I would take a guess and say your GPS is a garmin as that looks like there colour codes for twin NMEA?

[davis]

Mr iwalker it is advice I am looking for not an ignorant
( without knowing the make and model of your equipment, how do you expect us to help ?) . I have found this Forum very helpful for novices like myself, whose questions sometimes may seem stupid to experts like yourself, so if you havent any positive advice maybe its better you dont reply to such stupid questions. If you read my post again you will see I dont have the manuals.If anyone else can help the radio is Uniden and the GPS is Garmin, the radio has 6 wires and the GPS has 5 wires, so maybe they are not compatible , that is why I am asking the question , so please dont reply if you are about to give me a lecture, thanks again for any help.

[jwalker]

It was not 'an ignorant', whatever that may be. There is a number of VHF radios and GP Systems on the market. Expecting us to be clairvoyant is maybe asking too much.

Now, if you'd been coureous enough to mention the make and model of both your pieces of equipment you may have received better advise.

Since we now know the make of your GPS I can tell you that either the green or the blue is to be connected to your VHF.

..so if you havent any positive advice maybe its better you dont reply..

So you consider suggesting you visit the equipment manufacturer's web site to get manuals is unhelpful? Well I'll be just as unhelpful again and give you a link to Garmins web site. Since you still haven't mentioned the model name or number I'm unable to link you directly to the exact manual. Link to Garmin Manuals

Alternatively, I could have been really unhelpful and told you to fekk off for being an arse. But I'm too nice to do that.

[BruceB]

JW, you should remember real mean don't RTFM until they get stuck and then only to go back and figure out why it went "bang"

garmin have downloadable sheets for NMEA connections but offhand Brown/Blue is one output and green/yellow is the other with white an alarm wire you can ignore.
Can't help with the radio but uniden is a bug US make so manuals should be available on the net across the pond.

[jwalker]

I think you are referring to brown and blue for one channel in/out, white and green for in/out on the other channel and the yellow is a connection which sinks current for use as an alarm. But there are also other colours used by Garmin.

[Poly]

Originally Posted by davis

I have found this Forum very helpful for novices like myself,

good - most people here have courtesy to keep it polite - especially when they are asking for help.

whose questions sometimes may seem stupid to experts like yourself,

I expect it did; I ain't no expert in electrickery and it seemed like a stupid question to me

so if you havent any positive advice maybe its better you dont reply to such stupid questions.

I think you'll find his positive advice was to help you refine your question so that it wasn't stupid anymore.

If you read my post again you will see I dont have the manuals.

if you read JW's reply again you will see it told you to find them on the web!

If anyone else can help the radio is Uniden and the GPS is Garmin, the radio has 6 wires and the GPS has 5 wires, so maybe they are not compatible , that is why I am asking the question ,

You only need two wires to connect the GPS output to the Radio. You take the NMEA Data output wires from the garmin and connect them to the NMEA input on the radio. A very quick google suggested that you want to connect the GPS data out cable to the green wire on the radio, and the GPS ground cable to to the brown cable on the radio.

You may need to tell the GPS to output in NMEA format (its not always the default setting).

If the radio and gps are fancy enough you can move data the otherway too (e.g. to show the location of your friends) - I am guessing this is not important to you, and you would need probably the manuals to set up the software settings too.

so please dont reply if you are about to give me a lecture,

oops

[BruceB]

You are right enough, should have checked the manual instead of trying memory.
Yellow is the alarm wire but I did realise they were in/out pairs. It was just an offhand comment from memory.

[jyasaki]

Davis:

The short answer is that the NMEA OUT from one unit goes to the NMEA IN on the other, and vice versa. You may also need a ground connection between the two. Set both for the same communication speed and parameters (usually 2400 baud, no parity), and you should be good to go.

Other than that, color codes and pinouts are manufacturer and sometimes model specific; that's why a general question for a specific problem doesn't generate a lot of useful information.

Your Garmin manual should be available here:

http://www8.garmin.com/support/userManual.jsp

Your Uniden manual *may* be available here:

http://www.uniden.com/index/manuals_results.cfm?cat=7

Since you still haven't bothered to post exactly what models you have, that's as far as I can go. Hope it helps.

jky

[davis]

Thanks to anyone who has had a positive imput, I dont know about electrics so having seen a bunch of wires coming out the back of each unit ,I was wondering if it just was a case of connecting the same colours, so before I tried it I wanted to make sure I wouldnt damage the units. When I asked the question I didnt realise I needed the make and model numbers so didnt include them. The radio is Uniden solara dsc and the GPS is Garmin 152

[davis]

Ok I have searched on the net and have come up with,
Radio thick black = DC GND
Orange = external speaker (+)
Black = external speaker (-) GND
Green = GPS Data in
Brown = GPS GND
YELLOW = N.C

GPS RED = 10-40VDC +
BLACK = GROUND (POWERAND DATA)-
BLUE = NMEA OUT (COM 1 TX)
BROWN = NMEA IN (COM 1 RX)
WHITE = NMEA IN (COM 2 RX)
GREEN = NO CONNECTION
YELLOW = ALARM LOW

Any help with above appreciated, thank you.

[Poly]

Originally Posted by davis

Ok I have searched on the net and have come up with,
Radio thick black = DC GND
Orange = external speaker (+)
Black = external speaker (-) GND
Green = GPS Data in
Brown = GPS GND
YELLOW = N.C

GPS RED = 10-40VDC +
BLACK = GROUND (POWERAND DATA)-
BLUE = NMEA OUT (COM 1 TX)
BROWN = NMEA IN (COM 1 RX)
WHITE = NMEA IN (COM 2 RX)
GREEN = NO CONNECTION
YELLOW = ALARM LOW

Any help with above appreciated, thank you.

OK you need to connect the Blue wire on the GPS to the Green wire on the Radio. You should also link the black wire on the GPS to the Brown wire on the radio.

As I said yesterday you may need to change some setting on the GPS menus.