Electronics Recommendations for GW 235 Freedom

[jchip14]

Looking for feedback on what one would recommend and fit in freedom 235. Assume unlimited budget…. What electronics would you recommend and associated radar? Dual screens - what has best performance and resolution? What is largest that would fit? What radio, vhf? What is ultimate bundle? Thanks

 

[luckydude]

I went with 86xx garmin. I have a friend who is outfitting a much bigger boat and he has seen the Gramin 9000 stuff, it's much faster. If you have the budget, go there. The 9000s are 4k.

For radio, I'm standard horizon but my buddy has Garmin, Garmin is better. Less static, just better.

 

[McBobKC]

Garmin’s 9219 Chart Plotter, with the right installer, will fit in a Grady White Freedom 235, after I was told by others it would not fit

Shiptronics in Naples, Florida installed one for me

The 9219 is spectacular

 

[Hookup1]

I'm a all Garmin boat. 8612xsv/8610xsv, GMR18 Fathom radar, GPS 24xd, GT51M-TH transducer, Fusion stereo. ICom VHF.

The Garmin 9000 series would be a great choice. 4K resolution and great performance. Won't fit in my boat. Not sure if two would fit in yours. I prefer to have two screens. With the quad resolution one screen may work.

 

[Ekea]

what do you plan to do with the boat? will you use it at night? are you using radar for navigation, weather, or birds? how important is music to you? in todays market, its very possible to put $40k+ in electronics on a boat that size.

flir and ultra low light cameras are what you want for night navigation. each have their pros and cons. you will have to decide which is best for you. hell, if you have an unlimited budget, get both. if going FLIR and Black Oak, about $6k in camers alone.

regarding mfd brand, Garmin is typically considered the most user friendly. they also own fusion and you can get your audio ran through the MFD (not sure if you can mix brands and do that). ive heard that simrad is the best radar. raymarine has some very good sonar displays (realvision 3d), not sure if the others have matched it yet (havent researched this in a couple years). $10k for a 9219, and a nother $3k for radar

go to a boat show, play with the different units from different brands. if you do this, im sure one will quickly become your favorite

icom and standard horizon are considered the industry leaders for VHF, pick one with DSC and an emergency sos feature. register and input an mmsi. these will be cheap, should be under $500 with antenna and install.

if you want auto pilot, the garmin smart pump v2 will run about $4k

if you want all your components integrated with each other, get a NEMA 2000 backbone

this is getting slightly out of "normal electronics", but if you want the best ride, get a Seakeeper Ride system. it is essentially smart/active trimtab system that make a huge difference in ride quality. pricey, but owner account i have come across has been incredibly impressive. some have described it as significantly closing the gap between a mono and a v-hull. you would need to glass in your current trim tab pockets. prepare to spend maybe $15k on this alone

if music is a big deal, stuff in 3 pairs of JL M6 8.8 speakers, a couple of their M7 subs, a couple amps, a nice fusion HU, and a rgb controller. with wiring and install, that will run about $10k

so ball park, $33k no sea keeper ride, and $48k with. these are very rough estimates and the price could easily swing $5-10k depending on labor rates

 

[McBobKC]

The Garmin 9000 Series Chart Plotters start at 19 inch screens

ONLY ONE Garmin 9219 “can fit,” by a skilled installer, on a Grady White Freedom 235

The 4K Resolution and a screen that will subdivide into 4 or more screens works very well, given the 4K resolution, particularly in bright sunlight

 

[Hookup1]

The GPSMAP 9000 units do not offer a "xsv "versions so you will need to add a black box sounder depending on what your needs are. I'm using the ClearVu, SideVue and Chirp GT51M-TH transducer.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

$10k for a 9219 and then another $3k for the black box? Yikes. I'd stick with the 8600 series, like the 8610xsv/8612xsv if you're wanting something of that size and a bit nicer with more features. Another good option is the 1243xsv, or if you want 4k, perhaps wait until the 9219 comes out with an xsv version that has the sonar built into it? I've got a Garmin 943xsv on my boat and really like it, but I've also got a slightly smaller boat and have the MFD behind the steering wheel in the electronics compartment, not flushing mounted or anything like that. I also didn't want to spend a ton of money on a brand new MFD, as well as was a bit limited on what I could fit into the electronics compartment. I have no regrets with the 943xsv though. I also don't have radar, though if I did, it would likely be the Garmin Fantom 18.

 

[Hookup1]

$10k for a 9219 and then another $3k for the black box? Yikes. I'd stick with the 8600 series, like the 8610xsv/8612xsv if you're wanting something of that size and a bit nicer with more features. Another good option is the 1243xsv, or if you want 4k, perhaps wait until the 9219 comes out with an xsv version that has the sonar built into it? I've got a Garmin 943xsv on my boat and really like it, but I've also got a slightly smaller boat and have the MFD behind the steering wheel in the electronics compartment, not flushing mounted or anything like that. I also didn't want to spend a ton of money on a brand new MFD, as well as was a bit limited on what I could fit into the electronics compartment. I have no regrets with the 943xsv though. I also don't have radar, though if I did, it would likely be the Garmin Fantom 18.

Your not listening... "Assume unlimited budget…."

 

[Hookup1]

I run a 8610xsv up top and a 8612xsv at the helm. 9212 won't fit at the helm as is. I could fit a 9219 if I eliminated the old Yamaha gauges. I would have to re-sculpture the dash. Run the engines on the Garmin's. Lower panel and switch panel were replaced this summer with NewWire carbon fiber look panels.

I really like the idea of a 4k display. It really makes the combo screens work so much better. Eventually I'll get there.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

Your not listening... "Assume unlimited budget…."

I did see that. What’s your point?

 

[Ekea]

I did see that. What’s your point?

i think his point was that your post started off with what seemed like concern for price and alternative cheaper options. if the OP actually has an unlimited budget, why would he "downgrade" for cost reasons?

either way, seems like the OP hasnt really looked at this thready anyway...

 

[Mustang65fbk]

i think his point was that your post started off with what seemed like concern for price and alternative cheaper options. if the OP actually has an unlimited budget, why would he "downgrade" for cost reasons?

either way, seems like the OP hasnt really looked at this thready anyway...

I mean the comment about the cost was more in regards to your earlier comment about the pricing of the 9219, as well as it's still applicable to the topic at hand considering that the 9219 doesn't have the sonar module included and it would need a separate black box. Of which to me, it seems kind of silly to me to pay $10k for an MFD and then have to spend another $3k on a black box just because the MFD is 4k. Also, in the OP's first comment he clearly mentions "Dual screens - what has best performance and resolution? What is largest that would fit?"... meaning that it sounds as though the OP wants to go with the largest sized dual screens that have the best performance and resolution. To where I can't imagine you'd be able to squeeze two of the 9219 Garmin units on the same panel and that you'd have to go with something smaller and that isn't 4k. Hence the reason why I mentioned alternative options like the 8610xsv's or something similar. But hey, if the OP, or even you, want to spend an extra $7,500-$10k for a 4k screen and a potentially faster processor on the MFD, that's up to you.

 

[Ekea]

I mean the comment about the cost was more in regards to your earlier comment about the pricing of the 9219, as well as it's still applicable to the topic at hand considering that the 9219 doesn't have the sonar module included and it would need a separate black box. Of which to me, it seems kind of silly to me to pay $10k for an MFD and then have to spend another $3k on a black box just because the MFD is 4k. Also, in the OP's first comment he clearly mentions "Dual screens - what has best performance and resolution? What is largest that would fit?"... meaning that it sounds as though the OP wants to go with the largest sized dual screens that have the best performance and resolution. To where I can't imagine you'd be able to squeeze two of the 9219 Garmin units on the same panel and that you'd have to go with something smaller and that isn't 4k. Hence the reason why I mentioned alternative options like the 8610xsv's or something similar. But hey, if the OP, or even you, want to spend an extra $7,500-$10k for a 4k screen and a potentially faster processor on the MFD, that's up to you.

ill do it if the op wants to spend some of his unlimited budget on my boat, haha

 

[McBobKC]

From a redundancy standpoint, two separate 8612s would be preferable

At retail 8612 is $3,600 and an 8612xsv is $4,100 = $7,700

A 9219 is $10,000 plus say a GCV 20 sonar plus transducer at $630

The 9219 costs say $3,000 more, and while only one screen, the 4K subdivides very well into 2 to 6 screens and is very readable with its 4K resolution

 

[Mustang65fbk]

ill do it if the op wants to spend some of his unlimited budget on my boat, haha

While they're at it, they can do the same for my boat... coming back down to reality though...

 

[Mustang65fbk]

From a redundancy standpoint, two separate 8612s would be preferable

At retail 8612 is $3,600 and an 8612xsv is $4,100 = $7,700

A 9219 is $10,000 plus say a GCV 20 sonar plus transducer at $630

The 9219 costs say $3,000 more, and while only one screen, the 4K subdivides very well into 2 to 6 screens and is very readable with its 4K resolution

I guess it just depends on how much you want to spend, how big of screens you'd like to have and how much space you've got. I'd personally much rather have two smaller sized screens as opposed to one big one, but that's just my preference. Also per the Garmin website, it says that the GCV 20 isn't compatible with the 9219 or any other 9000 series MFD. It says that the only black box compatible with a 9000 series MFD is the GSD 28 module, which is again priced at $3,000.

 

[Hookup1]

Put the best on the boat. The 9219 is the latest and best equipment. It's clearly better than my 8612/8610 dual display combo which wouldn't fit anyway. Go for it.

I have an unlimited budget too, relative to the size of my boat. Eventually a version of the 9219 will find it's way into my console.

Being a Garmin watcher expect big things from them over the next year or two. Particularly with the sonar. Furuno Omni sonar is amazing but at $200,000 it should be. Eventually something similar will come to the mid-range market.

 

[McBobKC]

I guess it just depends on how much you want to spend, how big of screens you'd like to have and how much space you've got. I'd personally much rather have two smaller sized screens as opposed to one big one, but that's just my preference. Also per the Garmin website, it says that the GCV 20 isn't compatible with the 9219 or any other 9000 series MFD. It says that the only black box compatible with a 9000 series MFD is the GSD 28 module, which is again priced at $3,000.

Not being argumentative, just any fyi, but my Garmin 9219 has a GCV 20 / with a Garmin GT36 UHD-TM Sideview Transducer and a GSD 25 paired to a B260 that all seem to be working - I didn’t spec it per se, but all seems to be working very well, and I can view both transducer setups at once on a 2 to 4 Split screen arrangement on the 9219

Not sure how I screwed this Reply up, but I did…… McBobKC

 

[Twist]

I'm thinking even if it fits that it's the right solution for that boat. Unlimited budget or not, no one likes just wasting money and the 8600xsv units are an excellent solution leaving money for a nice 24" Garmin radar and other toys. Here's the panel of my Freedom 275 with a Garmin 8616xsv, the Yamaha panel, Garmin VHF, and an inductive phone charger in the panel: