Confirm FA50 diagnosis please

[danderer]

Late night I was asked to help a friend troubleshoot their FA50 - receives fine but it has stopped transmitting.

- Flashing orange light
- FA50 internal GPS test runs fine
- No GPS data show up under the FA50 SERVICE menu

My initial thought was the GPS had failed, but I see there is a 2.02 update to address the rollover. I'm sure he has never installed any updates on this equipment.

Is the behavior I saw consistent with his not having installed 2.02 update, and is that update likely to restore his ability to transmit his AIS data?

Thanks as always.

 

[Johnny Electron]

The rollover will cause that, so the first step is to get the unit up to date on software.

 

[Grimreefer]

Hi, I have downloaded the rollover update and instructions and noticed the instructions require the PC to be connected to a hub. I don't have a hub in my setup. Can I connect the PC direct to the FA50?
Be gentle first time user and limited pc experience. Thanks :lol:

 

[Johnny Electron]

It is possible but very difficult to do without a hub. The hub keeps the PC software aware of a good connection as the FA50 starts from a power down state. The HUB keeps the connection with the PC active so when the FA50 starts up the software is already sitting there ready to roll. While I have people claim to done it without a hub, it is much like the new Top Gun movie, a lot of things must go exactly right for it to work out. I would recommend a $9 TPlink hub from Amazon and save yourself a world of grief.

 

[Magnetron]

Can I connect the PC direct to the FA50?

You will need to make an ethernet cable (Cat5e/6) pinned out in cross-cable format. For all intensive purposes, this method is advanced and for dealers or users who understand electrically what is happening. Your NIC will not get the carrier signal until the FA50 powers up, you have a brief window for it to detect an update - so the PC better be setup and ready to go.

FWIW, the update for this product is very unique, requires technical experience with PCs, and is for a date-sensitive issue only (not performance). Therefore, I really recommend customers take this product into a dealer or send it into us for a software update for the simplest solution.

Hope this helps, :sail

- Maggy

 

[Grimreefer]

Cheers, Thankyou for your advice.

 

[gordon]

It is possible but very difficult to do without a hub. The hub keeps the PC software aware of a good connection as the FA50 starts from a power down state. The HUB keeps the connection with the PC active so when the FA50 starts up the software is already sitting there ready to roll. While I have people claim to done it without a hub, it is much like the new Top Gun movie, a lot of things must go exactly right for it to work out. I would recommend a $9 TPlink hub from Amazon and save yourself a world of grief.

can i use the bbwx2 as my hub?

 

[Bayhouse]

can i use the bbwx2 as my hub?

No. $9 TPLink as Johnny suggested.

 

[Sparky Wire]

If you use the HUB101, you must ensure that the power sync settings are all turned off for the ports.