I picked up a Standard Horizon Galaxy VHF over the winter and got to hacking away at my dash. I picked the galaxy since it has a large screen and is a class D radio. I had intended to get a chart plotter/gps for the DSC, but after seeing prices on these, I figured I could go a different route. I already had a Garmin eTrex Summit from back in the day and knew there had to be a way to make them talk. I also already had the charging/data cable for the eTrex.
I cut off the serial connector and stripped back an inch of the wire sheath. I pulled out my handy dandy DMM and got to probing. This site also helped, and could be a standin if you don't already have the cable.
http://www.nomad.ee/micros/etrex.shtml
I don't recall what the wires were except that green is ground. I didn't bother connecting the Data In, i'm not sure if the eTrex can display received coordinates in a useful manner or at all. The connection to the radio only required two wires to be soldered: Data Out and Ground. The ground is shared by the data wires and the power circuitry. Data out connects to the VHF NMEA+ and ground connects to the VHF NMEA-.
Since my cable included the cigarette lighter power, I disassembled the plug and soldered in a black and red wire to the 12v inputs of the board. These were connected on the same circuit as the radio.
The eTrex was already set up, some years ago to the correct NMEA output settings required by the VHF. Namely: NMEA standard and 4800 Baud. Even sitting inside my garage, the eTrex was able to get enough signal to lock the location and synced up with the VHF without problem.
I have not had the boat on the water yet to test the radio/antenna nor the DSC, but hope to as soon as I get a free weekend with good weather. For those who are curious, I paired the radio with a Shakespear 5225-xt( i think) on a stainless ratcheting mount on the aft port side. It lays down out of the way and should provide ample coverage for the distances I am willing to go out from shore.
I'm hoping to report back here after I've had a chance to take the boat out and get some pictures and positive feedback on the functionality of the system.
I cut off the serial connector and stripped back an inch of the wire sheath. I pulled out my handy dandy DMM and got to probing. This site also helped, and could be a standin if you don't already have the cable.
http://www.nomad.ee/micros/etrex.shtml
I don't recall what the wires were except that green is ground. I didn't bother connecting the Data In, i'm not sure if the eTrex can display received coordinates in a useful manner or at all. The connection to the radio only required two wires to be soldered: Data Out and Ground. The ground is shared by the data wires and the power circuitry. Data out connects to the VHF NMEA+ and ground connects to the VHF NMEA-.
Since my cable included the cigarette lighter power, I disassembled the plug and soldered in a black and red wire to the 12v inputs of the board. These were connected on the same circuit as the radio.
The eTrex was already set up, some years ago to the correct NMEA output settings required by the VHF. Namely: NMEA standard and 4800 Baud. Even sitting inside my garage, the eTrex was able to get enough signal to lock the location and synced up with the VHF without problem.
I have not had the boat on the water yet to test the radio/antenna nor the DSC, but hope to as soon as I get a free weekend with good weather. For those who are curious, I paired the radio with a Shakespear 5225-xt( i think) on a stainless ratcheting mount on the aft port side. It lays down out of the way and should provide ample coverage for the distances I am willing to go out from shore.
I'm hoping to report back here after I've had a chance to take the boat out and get some pictures and positive feedback on the functionality of the system.
