Lowrance Point-1

gotchiguy · 26 June 2014, 09:47

Fitted this yesterday - all of 30 seconds to plug in

Quite impressed really, the built in compass is a fantastic feature as it means the chart will always relate to your surroundings as it will always know the direction you're going in!

Lowrance Point-1 GPS Antenna - LOWRANCE | Marine Electronics

jyasaki · 26 June 2014, 14:09

Just had one arrive yesterday. It will go on this weekend (was waiting for an NMEA 2000 power tap and a cable, ordered separately - only to find that the Point 1 comes with a cable.)

Good to hear it works well. Hoping it's a little more bulletproof than the LGC's were.

jky

Pikey Dave · 26 June 2014, 14:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by gotchiguy

Fitted this yesterday - all of 30 seconds to plug in

Quite impressed really, the built in compass is a fantastic feature as it means the chart will always relate to your surroundings as it will always know the direction you're going in!

Lowrance Point-1 GPS Antenna - LOWRANCE | Marine Electronics

Tut tut! Don't you know that charts should always be north up.

.....sh1t happens.......

jambo · 26 June 2014, 15:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

Tut tut! Don't you know that charts should always be north up.

.....sh1t happens.......

Thought it was south down or is that only in Australia ??👍😃

Sent from my iPhone using RIB Net

jyasaki · 26 June 2014, 16:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

Tut tut! Don't you know that charts should always be north up.

Settings allow for either North up or Bow up (i.e. forward up on the display.)

The electronic compass will help when at rest; normally a GPS needs movement to give any sort of directional orientation. If you're stopped, it can't tell which direction you're facing. Begin moving, and the GPS figures the direction you're headed is forward. With the compass (assuming the GPS can read the signal), the orientation will be transmitted even at rest.

jky

Pikey Dave · 26 June 2014, 17:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by jyasaki

Settings allow for either North up or Bow up (i.e. forward up on the display.)

The electronic compass will help when at rest; normally a GPS needs movement to give any sort of directional orientation. If you're stopped, it can't tell which direction you're facing. Begin moving, and the GPS figures the direction you're headed is forward. With the compass (assuming the GPS can read the signal), the orientation will be transmitted even at rest.

jky

I have a fluxgate compass & gyro heading sensor on BP & my instruments give me the option of showing the charts north or head up. Switching to head up keeps the boat icon always pointing upwards on the chart & the chart revolves around the boat. I found this confusing, especially in open water without physical reference points, without looking at the chart and the magnetic compass, you've no idea which way the boat is pointing. Switch to north up, & the boat icon on the chart, is always pointing in the correct direction in relation to the chart, so you only have to look at one instrument. It gets more confusing when zoomed in on the chart & wreck hunting as you soon lose your bearings due to the chart continually moving about the boat. Just my findings, I prefer "North up" it's what you get used to, I suppose.

gotchiguy · 02 July 2014, 09:32

Well when I fitted the sensor and configured the instruments to use its feed in preference to the other puck, I also set the chart head up. When out and about on the round IOW Sunday, I realised that we've always had the chart head up, and having it spinning around like crazy was doing my head in!

So I've put it back to north up. The heading feature is fantastic though, on a small, fast boat there is no way you can steer to a swinging compass, driving off the digital heading is a lot easier. Unfortunately the iCommand(LMF400) instruments don't have a filter for speed or position like the garmin, so even at rest on land the numbers on screen are constantly changing, so you can't use them for position readouts any more. The Garmins are fine though, but you have to manually configure the instruments to use the Lowrance puck since they can only read accuracy data from the 17x, and 5m is better than nothing apparently. The point-1 picks up a lot more satellites though.

Now to find a friendly plotter owner who will let me use it to update the icommands and puck!

Pikey Dave · 02 July 2014, 12:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by gotchiguy

and having it spinning around like crazy was doing my head in!

So I've put it back to north up.

Ahem! Cough cough,

.....sh1t happens.......

gotchiguy · 02 July 2014, 12:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

Ahem! Cough cough,

.....sh1t happens.......

Sorry, I meant we'd always had it north up before, not head up. So yes, you were right!

SteveHall · 26 March 2015, 10:39

Anyone had any problems with the Point-1?

I am thinking of ordering one for the compass & heading to my HDS units...

Pikey Dave · 26 March 2015, 10:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteveHall

Anyone had any problems with the Point-1?

I am thinking of ordering one for the compass & heading to my HDS units...

Not used one, but I think that a new version is due out.

.....sh1t happens.......

SteveHall · 26 March 2015, 10:49

Do you know the model?

And I cant see the real difference between Point-1 and LGC-4000

Pikey Dave · 26 March 2015, 13:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteveHall

Do you know the model?

And I cant see the real difference between Point-1 and LGC-4000

Sorry don't know the model number. Lowrance have launched their new autopilot which..A new version of the Point-1 GPS Antenna will be shipped with Outboard Pilot packs. The Point-1AP features an enhanced heading response enabling better autopilot steering.

The lcg4000 is just a GPS , whereas the point 1 also is a heading sensor.

.....sh1t happens.......

jyasaki · 26 March 2015, 14:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteveHall

Do you know the model?

And I cant see the real difference between Point-1 and LGC-4000

LGC-4000 is a GPS receiver only. The Point-1 is GPS and compass.

jky

SteveHall · 26 March 2015, 16:18

perfect thanks! Looks like its the Point-1 i require.

Bigtalljv · 26 March 2015, 17:25

I believe the Point-1 is what I got for my HDS because I was told that's what I needed to do the radar/chart overlay but I believe the Lowrance documentation said it was not suitable for autopilot. Perhaps that explains the new model.

i haven't used mine enough to say much about it.

Jason

gotchiguy · 28 March 2015, 01:21

The point 1 also does GLONASS and Galileo if that's any sway for you, depending on how you feel about the likelihood of Putin invading, and the Americans cutting us off...

It worked perfectly well for us last year, the heading is really neat, it's basically a fluxgate compass when you put it on a display in front of the helm.