Garmin 545 - help please!

KeithD

New Member
Jul 16, 2007
149
Lindenhurst, NY
Boat Info
310 Sundancer 2000
Engines
350 Mag Bravo III (2)
Hi,
I'm pretty sure I've checked all the 545 threads before posting this littany of questions. If I missed the previously posted answers, please point me in the right direction.

I have the 545 since last year. One feature I like is the tracks in the chart screens, but is there any way to edit / selectively delete these tracks? In my most often used routes, there are so many breadcrumbs it becomes very distracting and almost useless.

I've added the G2 chip, which is nice, but not really anything miraculous.
I tried downloading the upgrade, loading it onto an SD card, but the 5454 won't read it. Possibly the upgraded did not load correctly because I use a Mac? Sometimes I still run into software that is still PC-only.

Any tips / hints / opinions are welcome.
Thanks in advance,
Keith
 
You can download all the user data onto a card.

Then you would upload the card to your PC, and use Mapsource (garmin freeware) to delete the tracks you don't want. . .while preserving the tracks you do want.

You can then upload the data back into the 545.

You can also work on your waypoints this way.
 
Keith,
Nice boat. I haven't done this yet as my 545s is new to me, but I was told you can take a blank SD card and transfer the routes and waypoints. I assume through the Mapsource software(which I have yet to buy) you can edit and/or delete the tracks you don't want and then transfer them back into the GPS

I'll be watching this thread to see how you make out.

Best of Luck
 
Possibly the reason your 545 won't read the blank SD card is that your suposed to first put it into the 545 before putting it into your computer. I just read this in the manual for the 430 I just got. Possibly the 545 is the same???
 
..... I assume through the Mapsource software(which I have yet to buy) you can edit and/or delete the tracks you don't want and then transfer them back into the GPS.....

MAPSOURCE software is free. Do a Google search on MAPSOURCE Software and select the Garmin link that Google provides. Only the latest versions are compatable with the Garmin 4xx and 5xx GPSMAP units. I just bought the 440 and the G2 Vision Card. I, too wasn't really impressed with the Vision card.

I replaced a GPSMAP 492, and the 440 as better resolution, but the 492 having a larger display is easier for my 68 year old eyes (with scars from several eye operations) to focus on than the 440 is, even with its better resolution.

We are going to compare both GPSs side-by-side this week on the boat and sell the one we don't want to keep.

I sure am glad the new 08 310DA also has the Raymarine C80, nice large display with great resolution!!
 
MAPSOURCE software is free. Do a Google search on MAPSOURCE Software and select the Garmin link that Google provides. Only the latest versions are compatable with the Garmin 4xx and 5xx GPSMAP units. I just bought the 440 and the G2 Vision Card. I, too wasn't really impressed with the Vision card.

I replaced a GPSMAP 492, and the 440 as better resolution, but the 492 having a larger display is easier for my 68 year old eyes (with scars from several eye operations) to focus on than the 440 is, even with its better resolution.

We are going to compare both GPSs side-by-side this week on the boat and sell the one we don't want to keep.

I sure am glad the new 08 310DA also has the Raymarine C80, nice large display with great resolution!!

Thanks, I'll check that out. I'm very impressed with the vision card so far, but I'm comparing that with the eMap I used previously. Seriously, I think the detail, info and features are great. I like the screen on the 545s and glad I got this one over what was a slightly dimmer 540
 
So... I've downloaded Mapsource from Garmin, but it's an .exe file which my Mac thinks is Mandarin.
I've also downloaded MapInstall and Mapmanager, but they keep looking for a device.
I've cleared off my SD card, and at some point, when I get down to my boat, I'll drop it into the 545, and hopefully it will automatically download all my info from the unit to the card. Then maybe one of these pieces I've downloaded will accept the SD card as some kind of kindred spirit.
They couldn't put a frackin usb port on the side of the gps unit and let me plus the thing in?
I'm still not confident this is going to work...
 
Try this link below for Project Bobcat. It says for Garmin USB devices only, but it's possible the software will recognize a properly formatted card as a Garmin device.
Insert the blank SD card and transfer your data. Access the card on your Mac. The card should have two folders; the Garmin 545 device folder and a user data folder. If you see these two folders, the card is properly formatted. Now try the beta software from Garmin. Good luck, hope it works.

http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=3885
 
I have a 540 which is the cheap version of the 545.

There are several upgrades you need from Garmin. To get them you must format the card as one of the above posters stated by placing the card in the Garmin first. Next down load the updates to your card. Next step place the card in the Garmin 540 with the power off. Power up and the Garmin will recognize the updates and ask you to install them. Mission accomplished.

As for removing indiviual tracks. You hve me on that one. Mapsource seems like a good idea. What I am doing is saving each track and then deleting them. I can upload the track as I want. Low tech solution to a high tech problem.

Still can't make it work call Garmin. They provide great customer support.
 
I'm not finding a free version of the software that allows you to install it without a previous version.
 
Mapsource in various versions has been around for 10 years.

It (the most recent version) is compatible with all three of my Garmin units.

Don't get hung up on formatting. If it works in a PC. . .it will work in the Garmin.

The update works as described. Stick the card in the 545. . and it gets updated!

One hint which stymied me for a long time: Once you have the card with your USER DATA in hand, you have to get the data into the PC. You DO NOT open a file. From MAPSOURCE, you actually "recieve from device" under the "transfer" menu.
 
I think we're talking about two different issues now. In Keith's original post he says he can't get mapsource to work on a Mac. From what I've read Garmin hasn't released a Mac version. I know some have gotten it to work using Virtual PC, but it seems way too complicated. I would try the software I mentioned below first. As for the update, it should work as comsnark described.
 
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I read up a little more about it. It seems that software is only if you already have Mapsource unlocked on another Windows pc and you want to move the data to a Mac. Jeez you'd think Garmin would could have worked on a Mac version in ten freakin years. Keith, you might have to try Virtual PC software.
 
I'll get to the boat this weekend and try to download the info from the 545 onto a blank card. If that doesn't help anything on the Mac, I just may have to buy a cheapo PC laptop. Should cost less than a tank of gas, right?
 
I run Parallels on my MacBook Pro along with a copy of Windows XP. You should be able to do anything on that instead of buying a separate laptop. All the USB thingies work the same as a dedicated laptop. If you have an Intel based Mac, you can also boot it up directly as a Windows machine.
 
This is boating Todd nothing is free.

Yeah, I got that, I'm just trying to find Mapsource to downlowd, buy or otherwise so I can utilize these features and plan from home.

I've heard twice it's a FREE download, and I can download it states:
"no previous installed version of Mapsource installed"
 
Yeah, I got that, I'm just trying to find Mapsource to downlowd, buy or otherwise so I can utilize these features and plan from home.

I've heard twice it's a FREE download, and I can download it states:
"no previous installed version of Mapsource installed"

Like others have stated, I don't believe Mapsource is free. I bought the DVD disk version from Jim here at BOE for a good price. Software is great. Makes it very convenient for routing a complex trip on the PC.

I have a 535S and here are a couple of things I've found:

1. If you use the latest version (6.13.7), then you should not have trouble writing to a clean SD card (clean means it has not been in the GPS yet). Install the software from the DVD first and then download and run the update from the Garmin site.

2. If you give a route a long name, which is allowed in the Mapsource software, then it will not transfer to the GPS properly. When I first plugged my card into my GPS and did the transfer it only showed 2 of 4 routes that I had planned. When I shortened the names, they all transferred. I think the GPS wants 15 characters or less.

Scott
 
I have a Garmin 440S, which has been installed into the dash of my 240 sundancer. I have it wired to an external antenna, the small dome type from garmin. The unit has worked very well for three months. We took the boat out one day and the unit was working. We anchored for about two hours. When we took off the unit stated that we had lost satellite. It was cloudy that day. After about an hour later and the unit still not working, the clouds had left and the sky was clear. I shut down the unit and restarted it. The unit still showed no satillate. Anybody have an answer and a solution to my problem?
 

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