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Archive for 12. March 2010

Voice and Internet Systems for Yachts: Cellular 3G, Satellite, WiFi - and General Computer / Networking Services

12. March 2010 by admin.

Alan Spicer Marine Telecom - Sales, Installation, Services - for Sail and Motor Yachts.

I posted my business card and flyer earlier here on this blog, you can page down at the bottom of the mail blog page until you find it. It should be on: http://blog.marinetelecom.net/page/2

Alan Spicer works with Voice Telephony and Internet Systems for Sailing and Motor Yachts (and other Marine Vessels) using Cellular 3G, Satellite, WiFi technologies as well as Onboard Networking and General Computer Services.

—
Alan Spicer

DBA Alan Spicer Telcom / Alan Spicer Marine Telecom
Computer Services, Wired/Wireless Networking,
Cell/Sat/Landline Communications, General Consulting…
Marine, Business, Small Office and Home Office (SOHO)

* Cost Savings and Integration of Multiple Internet Technologies
on board Sail and Motor Yachts * Documentation, Operating
Instructions, and Support after the Sale *

* http://www.marinetelecom.net/
* http://www.internetforyachts.net/
* http://www.wifiyacht.net/
* 954-683-3426

Mobile Internet! Step up to the HSPA 3G Fast Internet!

Ericsson W35 released in the USA. This you’ve gotta SEE!!
Better looking presentation than W25 (you might not want to
hide this one in the Doghouse!) + High Speed Upload which
the W25 did not have.
http://www.marinetelecom.net/Ericsson_W35/

Livewire: Access Controller (Service Selector):
http://www.marinetelecom.net/Livewire_Service_Selector/

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Listening to the Waterway Radio Cruising Club, and the Friday WRCC Computer Net and interesting info re: Icom IC-M802 Marine Radio

12. March 2010 by admin.

This morning I checked into both nets on 7268 Lower Side Band (LSB) - The Waterway Cruising Club http://www.waterwayradio.net and the (Fridays only) WRCC Computer Net.

I also happened to find the following on their web site:

http://www.waterwayradio.net/sbfall07.htm

* There was a section on that page with Gordon West talking about issues with the Icom IC-M802 Marine SSB/HF Radio. (Remember: I posted on here earlier that I have the programming cable and software to program IC-M802 Radios - if anyone on boats needs changes made

Icom SSB Cut-Out Cure: Gordon West

For about $1995, the ICOM M-802 marine single sideband transceiver includes full Digital Selective Calling (DSC) emergency, red button capability, with a simple tie-in to an on board GPS data stream, and a digital signal processor chip designed for operating email.

Email providers like marine SailMail and ham radio AirMail require an additional external $999 modem, allowing the equipment to run Pactor III signaling to send and receive emails all over the world. For ham radio buffs, we were delighted to see a straight forward, three button maneuver to engage ham radio transmit capability.

From the beginning, I detected the M-802 as feeble on average voice transmit output. Close talking the noise canceling mike and raising your voice would help. Also, a peculiar cut out problem was associated with running the radio on certain bands. This clipping problem was at first attributed to a likely intermittent antenna connection to the backstay, or a ground fault somewhere in the bilge ground foil run.

SailMail expert Shea Weston and I conducted bench tests with our own ICOM high frequency base station systems, and the fault would regularly occur on the equipment we tested when the standing wave ratio (reflected power from the tuner) exceeded 1.8:1 – a modest “backwash” of RF energy, not resolved by the ICOM AT-140 antenna tuner input circuitry.

The automatic antenna tuner will snap in various amounts of coils and fixed capacitors in an L match network to present the radio with the lowest SWR possible. Most radio experts agree that modern relay switching automatic tuners are miraculous in all they can do, but cannot necessarily achieve the absolute lowest SWR if the internal coils and capacitors don’t add up to the right combination. Anything BELOW 1.8:1 would be ideal, and readings of 2:1 only resulting in a 12% return of reflected power well within reason for a broad band radio.

The ICOM M-802 has a built-in SWR protection circuit that will activate instantly at around 1.8:1, resulting in clipping out the transmitter for VSWR protection, then instantly coming back at the higher power level. This makes the cut out extremely noticeable and aggravating to the receiving stations. Because every vessel installation has unknown sea water grounding potentials and unknown backstay and lead in lengths, the automatic tuner, with thousands of relay combinations of inductance (L) and capacitance (C), won’t necessarily bring every single frequency on any one band down to a perfect 1:1. If it could, there would be no “ICOM clipper” problems! Here is your cure:
Step 1: Many mariners report NO problems with clipping. Run some radio tests with fellow sailors, and see if you are loud and clear. If you are, on all of the ship to ship channels, and ham channels if you are licensed, do nothing. Your system is probably fine.

Step 2: Oh, they say you are cutting out on a specific band? If your installation is older, start replacing antenna lead in wires and upgrade your ground system. If the clipping stops, you obviously fixed an intermittent antenna or ground conductor.

Step 3: If your installation is prime and everybody screams at you that you are breaking up on 4 MHz or 8MHz, or ham 7 MHZ or ham 14 MHz, resign yourself to getting a quick factory fix. All they need is the black box. When you get your radio back from this free modification, courtesy of ICOM America, you should be impressed with the terrific signal reports you will be receiving over the SSB airwaves.

(Alan’s Note: Yah, terrific signal reports *if* you get the Voice Compression turned back on in your ICOM IC-M802 Radio. It is now disabled by default.)

—
Alan Spicer DBA Alan Spicer Telcom / Alan Spicer Marine Telecom
Computer Services, Wired/Wireless Networking, Cell/Sat/Landline Communications, General Consulting…
Marine, Business, Small Office and Home Office (SOHO)

* Cost Savings and Integration of Multiple Internet Technologies on board Sail and Motor Yachts

* Documentation, Operating Instructions, and Support after the Sale