Axiom vs Axiom pro

Capricous

Capricous

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Oct 23, 2010
3
C&C 27 mark 3 Marblehead Ma
I'm thinking about an instrument upgrade. I like Raymarine ,and have heard good things about Axiom. Does anyone know the difference between the pro. Big upcharge,wondering why.
I would like to(in the future) add wind instruments and maybe auto pilot.
Thanks in advance
Dana
 
LeslieTroyer

LeslieTroyer

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May 20, 2016
3,014
Catalina 36 MK1 94 Everett, WA
Buttons and knobs. The nonpro is all glass with no physical controls. You can add a button and knob panel as a separate device. Personally I like physical buttons at times.
 
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capta

capta

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Jun 4, 2009
4,773
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
Just a head's up from someone who has been messing about with boats for over half a century, most of it professionally.
It wouldn't be worth my time to install any Raymarine product, even if it was given to me free.
 
Meriachee

Meriachee

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Aug 1, 2011
3,972
Catalina 270 255 Wabamun. Welcome to the marina
Your boat, your choice. As with most manufacturers, it's the evolution. First comes the widget, then the widget+ followed by the widget pro. In between that there are constant software upgrades that add (and take away) features. Whatever you buy will be "old" within a coupe of years, however, the networks are stable enough that you can likely add stuff if you desire. The key word being "likely".

Like Les alluded to, some things may not be obvious at first glance, a touch screen may seem nice while you're poking it at the boat show in a nice warm booth. It's possibly (likely) a much different scenario when you're out on the water and your gloves are poking it and it's not responding.
 
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P

Pizzazz

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Sep 11, 2015
147
Hunter 31 Marina del Rey
The Axiom has nice graphics and is Android based. The issue is, it does not support older protocols such as NMEA 0183 and Seatalk. This is a big deal as it requires a total upgrade. The Seatalk system was excellent for its time and even today, it is perfectly sufficient for instrument data such as GPS, waypoints, routes, autopilot, sensors (wind, depth, speed). If you have these sensors, then you need to upgrade all of them.

One option is to use a Seatalk to Seatalk(ng) converter and it converts some but not all data. If you have nmea 0183 then make sure you get an MFD that supports those inputs.

Then there is the radar. If you have analog radar, then anything above the Classic E80 requires you to move to digital radar. The new displays use LCD lighting which is more efficient than CCFL lighting used in the older displays but you lose that efficiency with the more powerful radar (i.e. the lowest digital radar is 40 watts vs. 28 watts for the analog Raymarine radar, the difference is 1 amp which is not insignificant).

Let me give you a example:
Typical boat with ST4000+ autopilot, ST60+ instruments and classic E80 displays + analog radar. You upgrade to any new Raymarine display. Connect the autopilot via Seatalk to Seatalk(ng) converter, you lose some functions. Next, the new displays are 16:9, so you need to get at least a 12" display to get the same picture as the E80 - expensive. You need to upgrade the radar - higher power consumption. Need to run new cables, need to get new charts. Either you do a total system upgrade or you forget about it.


Good luck.

SV Pizzazz
 
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Meriachee

Meriachee

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Aug 1, 2011
3,972
Catalina 270 255 Wabamun. Welcome to the marina
There’s always going to be upgrades and changes. The Axiom does not support the older network streams, but integrating the older sensors is not a lost cause, any more than using older instruments on SeaTalkNG. You simply need the appropriate protocol converter (or plural).
 
D

dave_and_dd

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Apr 13, 2015
156
Catalina 309 Port Charlotte
In Feb I was at the Miami boat show and talked a long time with the reps at their booth. They told me that at present the Lighthouse III software (of the axioms) does not yet have as many sailing features as the Lighthouse II software of the es97. They said it would in the future...

just what i was told by Raymarine...Dave
 
P

Pizzazz

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Sep 11, 2015
147
Hunter 31 Marina del Rey
While it is true that Lighthouse 2 has more features than Lighthouse 3 at the moment, Raymarine has indicated that going forward they will focus only on the Axiom and the eS series. Everything else is considered end of life. Kind of pity to have such a short lifecycle (c.f. to the Classic E80 which is still going strong, 15 years later, although no longer supported. On the other hand, most plotter manufacturers went through a period of figuring out what OS to use and they finally realized that Linux/WinCE/custom development is too expensive to do in small volume. So they are standardizing on Android which is not bad for us since the hardware will be faster and the plotter will be more like tablets with many useful apps. Therefore, if upgrading, my recommendation is to go for the Axiom with converters or instrument changes but if happy with the current equipment I would wait for a few years.
 
J

JohnShannon

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Jan 4, 2010
1,037
Farr 30 San Francisco
touch screens don't seem to work if they are wet, at least my Raymarine didn't. Lucky it had also buttons. So I touchscreen should be OK inside a pilot house but maybe not so good at the helm
 
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