Conference vicki::boats

    Most of the 'Marine AM/FM' radios I have seen advertised have started
    around $199 and gone up from there. Even then, I don't expect you
    would get more than 4-5 years out of the radio due to constant exposure
    to salt air. I have installed inexpensive ($99) AM/FM radios in
    my last 2 boats and have had no problems for 3-4 years in each one.
    At that point I sold the boats, so I do not know how much longer
    they lasted. Both were installed in the cabin. I am installing the
    same thing on my new boat this year (found a deal at $89) and when/if
    it goes, I will replace it with the same thing, ie. low cost.
    
    I do recommend that you use marine speakers however. These are made
    with plastics and should last longer than the radio. Be sure to
    do a good wiring job and seal all connections with shrink-wrap.
    
    Fred Smith
    

    
    excellent approach above...
    
    one way to make it better is not to shrink wrap the wiring (this
    can actually hasten the corrosion) but seal the connection with
    a silicone/rubber gasketin cement.
    
    

    Hey Mark.
    I was wondering who was on the VHF Sunday. It was you! Well we went out
    fishing, Too bad you were afraid of the wind and had to stay at the
    dock.
    
    I liked the stereo set up on "Steddy". Got me to thinking about putting
    one on "Rainbow Chaser". 
    
    I am going to go with a AM/FM Casette player and hook it up to
    waterproof speakers. I was looking into 3 way Alum Cased waterproof
    ones WHOLESALE at $69.95 a pair. I think thats the way I'll go, Not
    sure what type of stereo I want yet. Might even get a BOOM BOX and have
    it plug into the speakers. That way I can take it to the beach, camping
    or wherever and use it in the winter also. Just unplug from the
    speakers! Also it can operate off 120 VAC and save the boat batterys.
    
                                                Walt
    

    I went thru this process several years ago, i looked at the marine
    grade of stereos, and for what they were asking, i decided against
    it. Soooooooo i wound up at Radio Shack, and bought 2 speakers
    and the am/fm w/cassette and equalizer for aaprox. $169. Of course
    the speakers had no cases. So i made some from 1/4" luan plywood,
    and put a couple coats of varnish, to keep the moisture off them.
    This will be there 3rd season, so far no problem. There inside
    out of the weather. If the stereo belly's up in 5 yrs. i'll
    repeat the process. For the price, divided by 5 yrs. on a yearly
    basis, my guess is that this is the most the most cost effective.
    
    Jim.
    
    

    
    I looked at marineized AM/FM/cass radios and  didn't see how
    they were better, for the price they were asking.  Since I was
    concerned only with fresh water use I went with a car stereo.
    
    What I did was  that I bought one of the REMOVABLE models
    from Kenwood (I believe Alpine makes them also),  I can keep
    it in my car or in the boat and I am never in both places at the
    same time.  I mounted it under the passenger-side dash to keep
    it away from spray or rain.  I have seen radios mounted in glove
    boxes quite frequently, this also helps to keep it away from the
    elements.  This is NOT a $150 radio,  but I justify it to myself
    because I can put it in the car and get double the use out of it
    and use it year round.  Just put one mounting sleeve in the car
    and one in the boat.  It can also be a plus if you worry about
    theft since you can take it with you. 
    
    For speakers  I bought the BOSE outdoor box speakers.
    These are made for areas like decks and such.  They are not exactly
    cheap (about $200 for the pair) but they sound great and they have
    done well for me for going on three seasons now.
    Again the box speakers are easily removable and get used indoors
    during the winter months.  I could not bring myself to cut holes
    in my new boat to mount regular car speakers. 
    The key with speakers is if you want them to last, try to find ones 
    WITHOUT paper cones.
    
    
    My $.02 worth,
    Mike Smith
                                                      

    
       Ditto what .5 said
    
       Last summer I installed a removable automobile radio (JVC) in my
    boat as well. Compared to some "marine" stereos, the JVC was well
    priced, looks better, had the features I wanted, and was removable so
    I don't have to worry about any corrosion problems. Mine is installed
    in the cabin, away from splashing water.
    
       As for speakers, I installed a pair of 3" Clarions in the cabin
    and a pair of 6" Maxima water-proofs out in the cockpit. I haven't
    had any problems (that I've noticed) with the Maximas getting doused
    by sea water or rain water. The Clarions were also rated water-proof,
    but I seem to remember the salesman stating that they were not intended
    for "direct-exposure" to the elements. (I chose a water-proof pair
    for inside the cabin to guard against humidity, and also "just-in-case"
    they get wet somehow -- this is a boat ya know).
    
       Something else I opted for was a Shakespeare AM/FM antenna. This
    is 3' long and looks like a fiberglass VHF or LORAN whip. It's rated
    at a higher gain than a standard automotive antenna, and looks more
    appropriate than most of the other AM/FM antennas I've seen in marine
    applications.
    
       And, just to top it all of, I installed an FM signal booster
    which is turned on and off by the stereo. Why? One of the stations
    I like to listen to has a relatively low-power transmitter and I
    sometime have problems receiving it even in my car. Out in the middle
    of Long Island Sound I figured I would need every possible bit of
    boost imaginable in order to receive the station at all.
    
       I don't remember the exact total (I bought these things at
    different stores), but I believe I spent somewhere around $300 for
    the whole set-up (installation was free -- I did it myself). In
    my opinion it was money well spent as the performance of the system
    has been terrific.
    
    
    Frank
    

I am also using the Maxxima weatherproof speakers (5.25" dia, 20 oz magnets,
50 watt, coax, flushmount) in a skiboat, which is usually more wet than dry.
They sound great! I have two installed so far, the other two are in the box 
and should be installed soon. (probably)  Due to serious lack of in-dash/
under-dash space I had a problem of where to put the tape deck & equalizer?!
(no-name tapedeck/Clarion kick-a$$ eq/booster) The solution was to put them,
bolted together, into a 'Lil Playmate cooler, which sits on the floor next to 
me. I've used multi-connection quick disconnects for power and speakers. If
we're skiin' in the rain or I'm drippin' all over myself, I just close the lid
and voila, dry tunes. The other advantage is that it's *very* easily removed
for mid-week storage when the boat is at the mooring.
Doug.

    One thing to keep in mind when using a Boom Box or portable speakers,
    Is to keep them far away from your compass! Some people tend to
    through a radio or speakers on the dash. Speakers and compasses
    don't mix well, especially ones with 20oz magnets.
                                 
                                       Jeff

    I was checking out my neighbors 24' Grady Offshore last week as
    he was doing the teak......, Flipped on the windshield wiper and
    the compass moved 8-10 degrees!!! He never noticed this before!
    Perhaps the motor for the wiper was located to close.
    
    /MArk
    

The magnetic field doesn't have to come from the motor; with DC flowing through
a conductor, there's a magnetic field formed around the condutor. More 
current produces a stronger magnetic field. Wipers draw a considerable current.

On a fiberglass boat you have one advantage, because you have to run both the
hot wire and the ground wire to everything. If you twist these wires throughout
their length you can minimize (not eliminate) the effects of this magnetic
field, because every twist essentially reverses the direction of the magnetic
field

I think there's a "right-hand rule" that applies. If you wrap your right hand
around a wire that's carrying a direct current from the positive terminal of 
a battery, your thumb will point in the direction of current flow, and your
fingers will wrap in the direction of the magnetic field. 

The wires are probably too close to the compass. 

Art

    
    
     You can eliminate just about all of the magnetic field effect on the
    compass by using shielded twisted pairs wire.
    
     The twisted groud wire/power wire cancel out most of the stary field
    that will effect a compass. the braided shield ( tied to ground at one
    end) will effectively eliminate the rest.
    
    
     I had a friend who put a dash mounted compass in his car- right in
    front of the main wioring harness- we always went north as soon as we
    started the engine!
    
    
    
    

    I've been thinking of a source of music for my boat too. I think
    that it is too loud to have music at any speed above 5 - 10 MPH,
    but it would be nice to have when anchored for a picnic lunch or
    the like.
    
    Like most of you I have looked at the usual alternatives, permanent
    mount and portable. I have decided against portable because my boat is
    moored and it would add one more item to the list that must be carried
    and rowed out to the boat, and the chance, with every transfer to and
    from the boat, for me to drop it into the deep. And if you knew me
    you'd know that it wasn't a remote chance. Also a boombox would have to
    be put away everytime you moved the boat.
    
    So I started to look at the various in-dash models. Like most of you
    the "marine grade" stuff looked pretty cheap compared to automotive
    units of the same price. I figure either that extra cost is due to more
    durable internal construction and/or the lower volume of marine stereo
    drives the per unit cost up, that and the limited outlets mean less
    competition. Also dealer and manufacturer prices are outrageous, if
    what I've seen at the boat shows is any indication. I saw a stereo in a
    boat that was listed on the option sheet for $450 that I had seen at a
    stereo discount place for $59, and I thought it was overpriced at that
    cost! Ok, so there are speakers, and wire, and antenna, and
    installation, but still quite a markup! Probably a false markup so they
    can discount it and claim to be giving you a deal. Now if that is the
    case with the stereo, what about the rest of the equipment, like that
    $119 microwave for $750... 
    
    Recently I have seen two products that actually look like they might be
    different. One was at Bliss Marine, it isn't shaped like a conventional
    stereo, but rather like a small portable. It appears that it was
    designed to allow suface mounting. The radio section actually appears
    nice, and seems to work well. It has weather bands. The cassette
    portion however has that cheap machanical look and feel to it. It is in
    the catalog for $279. The other in Popular Mechanics is a line of
    Pioneer marine stereos, including a special sealing cover. Pioneer
    claims that these aren't just car stereos installed in boats, but that
    they special corrision protection and splash measures built into them.
    I like Pioneer and might believe them so might be willing to spend the
    additional $$ for their marine stereo rather then some other "brand". 
    
    Bliss also sells waterproof speakers. I found out that these have a
    styrofoam cone. That explains the marginal frequency response, and I
    have to wonder about long term durability since styrofoam seems to self
    destruct, and it doesn't seem like the ideal material for speaker cones
    to me. 
    
    jlg

    One other place that might have water resistant sound gear would
    be a well endowed motorcycle place that caters to the touring bike
    crowd.  
    
    Carl

    Moved by moderator...
    (see also note 846)
    
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Note 904.0                        boat stereos                           1 reply
BOSDAG::DAGOSTINO                                    24 lines   9-SEP-1991 14:56
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Hi,

I need to replace my boat stereo with an impressive system that will
be able to take the abuse I put it thru (ie cranking tunes), as well
as being able to handle the salty air and occasion splash (referring to the 
speakers).

I had a couple of vendors come down and scope it out. Some even used
a sound meter to measure how strong an amp I would need to hear (really
hear) the stereo over the engines. The same vendor was hot on Pioneer
stuff as well. Apparently Pionner makes gold plated speaker connections
to avoid corrosion.

The tuner, deck, and amp would be in the cabin. It's the speakers I'm
concerned with (I want a bass accentuator as well).

Anyone have a clue where I can continue to look? Who has impressive
stereos in their boats they would like to brag about??

Any info will help.

Thanks

Joe D.

    Moved by moderator...
    
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Note 904.1                        boat stereos                            1 of 1
TOOK::SWIST "Jim Swist LKG2-2/T2 DTN 226-7102"       11 lines   9-SEP-1991 15:15
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    Oh no another boombox so-called mariner intent on destroying the
    tranquility of the seas by making it sound like Mattapan Square on
    a hot Summer night.
    
    (Hi Joe :-)
    
    Seriously, it ought to be a law that boat stereos cannot be used at
    such volume as to obscure the hearing of signals, horns, and VHF ch 16
    calls (in particular when the boat is underway).
    
    I suggest you replace it with a set of gentle windchimes.

I don't really want to imply that my viewpoint is the only correct one, but I
have wrestled with the same question and have come up with a typical solution:
inaction.

I don't know if it is the state of 1977 technology, or engineering particular
to my boat, but it is load when under way at anything much above idle. (1977
Sea Ray 22' cuddy cruiser, Mercruiser (Ford) 302 V8 I/O). I have determined
that any stereo capable of making itself heard while driving the boat would be
so loud as to cover the sound of the VHF, the depth finder, loran, and possibly
the warning signs of impending problems. Deciding I didn't want to do that I
decided I didn't need a powerful system, but just a normal one that could be
heard at rest, or at no-wake speeds. But at those speeds and at rest I seldom
would want the stereo, enjoying the environment, or the calm and quiet. So a
portable would do just fine. But then why bother?  Well that is me.

To answer a question in .14, yes, the Pionner Nautica speakers have gold-plated
leadwire and terminal connection terminals. They seem to be truely designed for
the Marine environment polypropylene woofers, stainless steel mounting hardware,
special ABS grilles, and rugged construction. And can make some claim to sound-
ing good. However, like other "marine" speakers I've seen, they are capable of 
only limited power handling abilities, the two-way taking 35 watts nominally, 
120 watts maximum music power. So, you may be able to get good marine speakers,
and high powered amps, but whether the two will go together, I don't know.

Pioneer doesn't make a specific "marine" head unit like other companies do. 
They make a waterproof stereo cover that any of their (and I suspect others)
head units would fit under. So if you were willing to go that route you could 
have some pretty serious stuff that would normally not be able to be mounted on
a boat.