NO DATA SIGNAL ON RADIO

el jefe

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Ok, the Standard Horizon radio is woking fine all week. I turn it on this morning and it reads NO DATA. There is power to the radio, the secondary speaker is turning on and off. But I can't get any channels and the GPS interface is not reading. I am in south florida and we have had a lot of rain and lightning, but as I said it was working all week. Any clues?
 

Grog

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If you're not hearing any VHF channels? Assuming the antanae connection is OK, can you try to transmit to a frient to see if any power is going out? It may be a blown speaker. Do you have an old radio to install temporaryialy?

It does sound fried though.
 

Parthery

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Check all your electrical connections. Every Std Horizon radio I've had has gotten finicky if the voltage feeding it dropped to 12V or below.
 

el jefe

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Grog, I have not checked the antennae yet, but your comment about the radio makes sense because I am not getting an interface with the GPS (and that was working fine off my chart plotter).
Pathery, intersting comment, the AC main panel switch was off suggesting a power surge. I then checked the battery voltage through the engine gauge and it showed 13V, down from the ususal 14. Is there a way to reset the radio, or once you drop below 12 that's it. I have an email into Standard to see what they have to say.
Thanks.
 

Parthery

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If you had a surge, it may have toasted something in the radio.

Good thing about Std Horizon, is if its out of warranty they have a flat rate repair/replacement...I think its $65-$70 or so.
 

seasick

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el jefe said:
Grog, I have not checked the antennae yet, but your comment about the radio makes sense because I am not getting an interface with the GPS (and that was working fine off my chart plotter).
Pathery, intersting comment, the AC main panel switch was off suggesting a power surge. I then checked the battery voltage through the engine gauge and it showed 13V, down from the ususal 14. Is there a way to reset the radio, or once you drop below 12 that's it. I have an email into Standard to see what they have to say.
Thanks.
I think you are saying that you have GPS interfaced to the radio for DSC purposes. If so, the radio is not seeing the GPS data feed. That's tough to isolate but first make sure the GPS is working and that the interface signal is enabled. Then check the wires and connections. Power off the radio and GPS, start up the GPS and then power up the radio. Cross your fingers...
 

el jefe

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Seasick, you are correct. I have GPS interface for DSC. But the problem is not limited to the GPS. I am not getting any channels, 16 weather. I checked it out again last night. Tried turning on and off everything and still no reception. The radio powers on and off, but I get no service (either channels or GPS interface). I haven't tested antennae but it sure sounds like a radio problem. UGH.
 

seasick

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el jefe said:
Seasick, you are correct. I have GPS interface for DSC. But the problem is not limited to the GPS. I am not getting any channels, 16 weather. I checked it out again last night. Tried turning on and off everything and still no reception. The radio powers on and off, but I get no service (either channels or GPS interface). I haven't tested antennae but it sure sounds like a radio problem. UGH.

Does that radio have a hailer option? A friend of mine had a 'bad' radio and it turned out that is was in public adress (hailer) mode.
I don't think that is the issue but who knows. Take a look at the antenna connector and the antenna itself. Even if the antenna were bad, I don't think you would get the No Date message. the radio might be fried..
 

el jefe

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I received this response from Standard:

"Thank you for contacting Standard Horizon Marine Electronics. We
appreciate the opportunity to be of assistance to you.

'No Data' refers to the GPS coordinates. If you haven't turned on your
GPS or your GPS receiver isn't receiving then the NO DATA message will
appear. Is it possible you hadn't turned on your GPS yet? The unit is
functioning normally now?

You also referred to a pop in the speaker and the inability to switch to
the weather bands. Is this all still occurring or has the unit started
performing normally?

If the unit is still unable to switch to the WX bands and is popping
from the speaker please consider sending the unit in for repair to:

Vertex Standard
Attn: Marine Repair
10900 Walker Street
Cypress CA 90630

Please include a cover letter detailing the problem the unit is having
along with your name, telephone number, and shipping address. If the
unit was purchased under three years ago please include a copy of the
purchase receipt and the repair will be covered under warranty. If the
unit was purchased over three years ago, a $65 flat rate repair fee will
apply plus an $8 to $10 shipping fee. Once we receive the unit, you
will be contacted for billing information if necessary. We accept Visa,
MasterCard and American Express.

Our typical turn around time is between two and three weeks."


It seems like the radio is shot. So my question is, spend $65 on a rebuilt 4-5 year old radio, or buy a new one and upgrade the antenne to a digital shakespeare?
 

seasick

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I would buy a new radio. But before buying, try a different antenna. You might be able to temporarily move the unit to a friends boat and try connecting their antenna if you can't get your hands on a spare. I do suspect that since you have the No Data display AND the weather and other channels stopped working at the same time, that the radio is probably shot.
 

el jefe

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I received a follow up from Standard after clarifying the problem. The tech person said their manual did not have the display I was getting and no one had heard it. FYI it says NO DATA over 00 (the numbers). I tried a hard restart of the radio. No joy. Standard says send it in. I may send it to them just so they can become aware of problem, but I don't think its worth $65 when new ones are not much more.
 

Strikezone

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el jefe, if you do anything offshore it wouldn't be a bad idea to have a
backup radio. If I were you I'd get that one repaired for $65 and purchase another new radio. Just my two cents.
 

el jefe

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Strike, agreed and a good thought. I keep a hand held on the boat, but a second hard wired radio is not a bad idea, especially if it only costs $65. In fact, now that I think about it, I probably have two and sometimes three of everything on my boat, from electronics to anchors to safety equipment. There is comfort in redundancy. Thanks for the .02.
 

el jefe

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Update. Figuring someone might run into the problem I had, I thought I would end the story with identification of the problem and solution. I sent my radio to Standard. They checked it out, called me and advised there was a defective board that needed to be replaced. They also offered to input the MMSI if I did the work. They repaired the radio and shipped it back and it works fine. Total cost $65.00 plus $8.00 shipping. Total time from shipping to return receipt 11 days.
 

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... and upgrade the antenne to a digital shakespeare?

Some would call a Digital brand antenne an upgrade, some would not. I could be wrong, but I think there is no such animal as a 'digital' antenna ... :?
 

el jefe

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Did not change the antennae. There was an earlier thread about "digital" antennae being a name brand, but not digital as in electronic signal. Shakespeare antennae in place works fine.