Raymarine Open Array vs. Radome

boughtabouy

boughtabouy

New Member
Jun 6, 2008
434
San Diego
Boat Info
Sea Ray 36 SD/Caribe DL12
Engines
Twin 496, 8.1 Horizon/Yamaha 40HP
Hi All,

MarineMax is trying to put an HD Radome on my boat, instead of the non-HD open array that's listed as an option. Both are 4KW. I noticed that the retail price of the open array is about twice that of the dome. How hard should I push for the "right" action from them? How much of a performance difference will I see?

Thanks for the advice, in advance.

Kevin
 
RM does not offer a HD radome- digital, yes- but not HD Digital.
If you opted for- and paid for- the 4kw, 4' open array, I'd insist on they install just that.
The 4kw, 24" dome has a 3.9 degree horizontal beamwidth.
The 4kw, 5S 4' open array has a 1.8 degree beamwidth.

There's a reason the open array costs twice as much. If you've "paid" for that, insist on it. There's no comparison in performance between an open array and a dome. Sounds to me like you've paid for a Lexus and they're trying to tell you a plain Toyota is just as good.

It ain't...
 
tobnpr said:
RM does not offer a HD radome- digital, yes- but not HD Digital.
If you opted for- and paid for- the 4kw, 4' open array, I'd insist on they install just that.
The 4kw, 24" dome has a 3.9 degree horizontal beamwidth.
The 4kw, 5S 4' open array has a 1.8 degree beamwidth.

There's a reason the open array costs twice as much. If you've "paid" for that, insist on it. There's no comparison in performance between an open array and a dome. Sounds to me like you've paid for a Lexus and they're trying to tell you a plain Toyota is just as good.

It ain't...
Click to expand...

Yes Raymarine will offer the HD digital radomes in the US later this year. They are available in the European markets. I would still want the open array over the radome anyway for the improved resolution.
 
tobnpr said:
RM does not offer a HD radome- digital, yes- but not HD Digital.
If you opted for- and paid for- the 4kw, 4' open array, I'd insist on they install just that.
The 4kw, 24" dome has a 3.9 degree horizontal beamwidth.
The 4kw, 5S 4' open array has a 1.8 degree beamwidth.

There's a reason the open array costs twice as much. If you've "paid" for that, insist on it. There's no comparison in performance between an open array and a dome. Sounds to me like you've paid for a Lexus and they're trying to tell you a plain Toyota is just as good.

It ain't...
Click to expand...

The significance of the beam width specification is that the smaller beamwidth will provide greater resolution in the returned image.

Because the transmited beam is smaller, a smaller reflection is returned. The reflected energy tends to average into a single value. The rotation of the beam corrects this affect with each successive sweep. So a smaller beam will return smaller patches of averaged data that when composed provide a more accurate representation of the actual reflected object. Think of it this way, if you were blindfolded and put on a putting green and told to find the cup by tapping the green with the head of the club, what type of club would you choose? A putter, or a croquet mallet?

In practical terms coastline will be more accurately shown with the smaller beam width antenna.

Henry
 
bluebelly said:
Yes Raymarine will offer the HD digital radomes in the US later this year. They are available in the European markets. I would still want the open array over the radome anyway for the improved resolution.
Click to expand...


Do you have any info on the new RM HD domes?
 
The RM open arrays generally give excellent performance. Ours very clearly paints geese in the water from a quarter of a mile. Large ships and sailboats are visible before you see them on a clear day. The radomes I've seen generally don't have the same level of performance.
 
I agree with all the above. I had a 4KW radome installed when I purchased the boat, and always regret that I didn't spend the extra money for the open array.

Ditto, if you paid for it, that's what you should get.
 
I put on the Raymarine 4W open array HD scanner last season. It gives excellent performance with the E120 and Platinum and Plus charts. I no longer run a split screen for radar on the second (E80) display, instead the radar paints over the chart on the large display. Very accurate superimposition on navigational aids.

My previous boats had radomes but the new screen technology has a lot to do with the improvement along with the open array antenna. I wonder how much better the Super HD open array is??
 
HZO is about toes up. You are being courted to be part of their bailout.

HZO charges $600 for a "service" to document your boat. It costs <$100 to DIY online.

Do the math. Where HZO is concerned, you don't always get what you pay for. Hold their feet to the fire. They will bludgeon you to accept less.
 
Hi Guys,

They are claiming it's an HD Radome, but it doesn't look like they are even available here. In that case, we're talking about a Digital Radome vs. a open array. No comparison, I believe.

Since they're talking HD, maybe I can get them to put an HD open array on, eh?

Right!
 
An HD open array would be a good thing...

If you have a KVH sat dish (or other brand), make sure the radar is NOT mounted in the same plane as the other antennas... They'll get all pissy about it but you'll be very sorry if they do.
 
Thanks! Not likely on the HD open array. I do have a KVH, and I think they ordered a mount so that they could mount the dome above the radar. That was the plan anyways.
 
Well, now that's where it gets interesting...

The boat was ordered for the AZ market (shipped from AZ to San Diego) without the radar. The entry on the option list was as vague as all of the other lines. It just said "GPS/Chartplotter Raymarine". However, the only option available in all the literature had the E120 with the open array, so I thought it had the entire option. Never heard of them ordering a half option.

When the boat was delivered, the salesman (who was unaware that the boat was originally ordered without the radar) told me that they agreed to have the radar installed anyways.

I find out later that they planned on putting the radome on. Lessen learned...I guess we need to get everything spelled out.
 
boughtabouy said:
Well, now that's where it gets interesting...

The boat was ordered for the AZ market (shipped from AZ to San Diego) without the radar. The entry on the option list was as vague as all of the other lines. It just said "GPS/Chartplotter Raymarine". However, the only option available in all the literature had the E120 with the open array, so I thought it had the entire option. Never heard of them ordering a half option.

When the boat was delivered, the salesman (who was unaware that the boat was originally ordered without the radar) told me that they agreed to have the radar installed anyways.

I find out later that they planned on putting the radome on. Lessen learned...I guess we need to get everything spelled out.
Click to expand...


If the original entry on the option list was gps/chartplotter raymarine as you describe then that boat did NOT come with radar at all when it was new. The word radar would have been included in the description. It is possible to order the e120 without the radar option. That radome will cost them about $1200. Maybe you could kick in the extra $2000 and have them change it to the open array before it is too late.
 
Our boat came with the E120 chartplotter without radar. The optional radar was another 7K +, this was the 4' analog open array I believe. For your use maybe consider the 24" Digital Dome RD424D, especially if the open array is going to cost you more. Also you want to consider the heading sensor, the KVH Autocomp 1000 is much better than the Raymarine sensor. This allows you to overlay the radar and chart and have the correct alignment at standstill. I am in the process of adding sonar/fishfinder (DSM30), radar & sat TV (Intellian) and just found out about the new Raymarine High Defination dome radar that should be available soon (it is available in Europe now). This might be worth waiting for.
 
boughtabouy said:
Well, now that's where it gets interesting...

The boat was ordered for the AZ market (shipped from AZ to San Diego) without the radar. The entry on the option list was as vague as all of the other lines. It just said "GPS/Chartplotter Raymarine". However, the only option available in all the literature had the E120 with the open array, so I thought it had the entire option. Never heard of them ordering a half option.

When the boat was delivered, the salesman (who was unaware that the boat was originally ordered without the radar) told me that they agreed to have the radar installed anyways.

I find out later that they planned on putting the radome on. Lessen learned...I guess we need to get everything spelled out.
Click to expand...

OK. So, perhaps you're getting a "freebie" then?

There are two, 4kw dome models- 18", and 24". If it's the 18" dome they're going to install, I'd pay the diff (if necessary) to upgrade to the 24". I own an 18" dome and am sorry I didn't install at least the 24" initially. If budget allows, I'd still go with the open array.

As Gary mentioned, be aware of where/how they're going to mount it. I had a discussion with KVH about the mounting of my M3 and they told me that radars above 2kw need to be mounted below the plane of the sat antenna. This would likely mean you need a dual-mount tower setup and re-mount your sat dome above the dome. I have a 2kw dome so I was able to mount mine next to it...
If they mount it in the same plane and the microwaves burn up the internals in the sat antenna, you're going to be out four grand...
 
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