FA-50 no transmit

[vawaterman]

So i updated my fa-50 I’ve got a brand new ais antenna I tested it on the vhf it picks up the weather channel good , the gps antenna I hooked to my gp-31 and was registering satellites. My transponder flashes orange for RX I see ships on the map , my TX light is off once in a blue moon I’ll see it flash blue but I don’t show up on my ais on my phone , no error light, mmsi entered all settings look ok I’m thinkin weak gps antenna it’s an older gpa-017

 

[TheReaper]

If you are seeing a blue TX light every so often, then it's operating as expected. RX light will blink org more frequently as you receive targets. The TX light blinks once every 2-3 minutes if not moving, but interval increases with speed when you're moving. The best way to check if the FA50 is actually transmitting your boat info is to contact another boat. The online services aren't as reliable as one might think.

 

[vawaterman]

If you are seeing a blue TX light every so often, then it's operating as expected. RX light will blink org more frequently as you receive targets. The TX light blinks once every 2-3 minutes if not moving, but interval increases with speed when you're moving. The best way to check if the FA50 is actually transmitting your boat info is to contact another boat. The online services aren't as reliable as one might think.

I’m not seeing it any more I’m gonna try plugging a different gpa-017 into it maybe the one hooked up is getting a weak signal

 

[vawaterman]

If you are seeing a blue TX light every so often, then it's operating as expected. RX light will blink org more frequently as you receive targets. The TX light blinks once every 2-3 minutes if not moving, but interval increases with speed when you're moving. The best way to check if the FA50 is actually transmitting your boat info is to contact another boat. The online services aren't as reliable as one might think.

Should I try to update it again ?

 

[Johnny Electron]

If the TX is blinking BLUE, then it is transmitting and working fine.

 

[TheReaper]

There are a few things that are important with the FA50 to transmit. First, must have 12 or 24Vdc power connected to red (+) and black (-) wires. Second, please ensure that you're ship static edit page still has MMSI, ship name and int/ext antenna positions entered. Third, a good GPA017 must be connected and recognized by the FA50. Forth, ensure the purple and gray wires are not touching or that a switch connected to them is not set to enable silent mode. In your case, you have an original FA50 without those wires, so that statement doesn't apply to your install specifically. Lastly, an actual AIS antenna must be used instead of a regular VHF antenna. If all of those things are done and a blue TX light appears intermittently based on your speed, the FA50 is working.
*Of course, the FA50 would also need to be interfaced to something to display the information either via Ethernet to our NAVnet systems or NMEA0183 via the white (TX+) and blue (TX-) wires.
**I don't think updating the software again will help, but if you have a way to verify the software version installed on your FA50 (i.e. TZ Touch display), that would be optimal. If so, please ensure that it ends in 02.02.