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Satellite in the Bedroom

Reply #25 –
Yahoo Message Number: 19228
It seems to me that I have to use the VCR input to the rear TV to get satellite. Select "SAT" for the VCR input. Put channel "L1" into the VCR channel select, and select channel 3 in the bedroom. Changing satellite channels must be done at the front of the coach.
(This is all with a DirecTV high definition receiver and MotoSat HD antenna.)

It is convoluted as all get out, but works.

Jay

05 Inspire DaVinci 51457

Re: In Motion Satellite

Reply #26 –
Yahoo Message Number: 19231
Both of the previous answers may be right. It depends on how your sat receiver is connected to the distribution box. In our case I have the composite video outputs of the Sat receiver connected to the DVD recorder to get the best signal when recording from the Sat receiver.
I have the RF video signal from the Sat Receiver connected to the SAT input of the distribution box. To get Sat in the bedroom I just have to select SAT on the TV2 on the distribution box and set the bedroom TV to channel 3. My alternate approach is to set the TV2 distribution box to VCR, set the VCR (DVDR) to IN 1, and set the bedroom TV to channel 3. I know this sounds convuluted but it does depend a lot on how you are hooked up.
Bob

'05 Intrigue Ovation #11872

Re: In Motion Satellite

Reply #27 –
Yahoo Message Number: 19255
I have the King Dome (not in-motion) and can get satellite on both TV's. I have a switchbox in a front cabinet to change from satellite to antenna.
While on satellite with bedroom TV, you have to be watching the same channel as the living room.

Ree

2003 Allure 30852

which will be for sale within a month or so

GPS

Reply #28 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21778
OK, after being on the road for about 3 months and having survived 35 years of "assistance" from my co-pilot reading maps while out and about, I have decided to get a GPS and try to make our 41st wedding anniversary. You guys know what I am saying. So I thought I would get some feed back from current users of GPS'S. I am very familliar with the basics, but want to have the following capabillities.
1. Portable, for use in other vehicles
2. Large color screen, don't want to use my glasses
3. voice prompts
4. Ease of operation

Any info and suggestions would be appreciated.

Re: GPS

Reply #29 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21782
jake nancy,

We have a garmin streetpilot 2720 and love it. It is easy to use and your copilot will have a remote for it as well. We like our so much we call her "Petunia". She is quite bossy though.
We been on quite a few trips in California with it and she was only wrong once. The restaurant was closed. The price has dropped and there are many online places that are reputable with great prices.

Good luck in the hunt!!
Kathy

'06 Inspire #51782

Re: GPS

Reply #30 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21783
Hate to tell you this, but even a GPS device cannot be intuitive or perfect. I drive solo and use a Streetpilot 2720. I love it and couldn't be without it, however I always have a backup cheat sheet/card on hand because it can take you places you don't want to go. I look over the route the night before and put bullet points on a card on my dash. The mapping info is always about 2 years behind. It can be very wrong in rural areas where mapping is weak. Garbage in Garbage out.

That being said, I totally recommend the Garmin Streetpilot products.
The 2720 is easy to use and portable. I use it in my tow vehicle as well. Couldn't live without it now...

Rosemary

2000 Magna 5798

Re: GPS

Reply #31 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21784
We also have the Garmin 2720 and like it very much. We use it in our Saturn Vue toad and in the MH. She talks to you well ahead of the turns and even thought the screen seems small I haven't had any trouble reading it. We like the remote control and the "find the nearest fuel station" capabilities. Generally a great little device.
Allen

'02 Allure 30694

Re: GPS

Reply #32 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21785
Garmin will do the trick for you, my copilot is not a navigator and I've always had to do the driving and the navigating. The Garmin has made it so much easier....definitely better than stopping now and then to check out the map when in a new area. I use mine in the motor home and in the towed vehicle.
Ray

2000 Intrigue

Re: GPS

Reply #33 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21790
We have a Garmin 2620 that's really great. Has the ability for you to tell it that you "are" a bus, truck, car etc and it'll route accordingly. Ours is named "Sally Mae". We use it in the toad as well, but don't like to leave it on the dash when we leave the vehicle, so we ordered a travel bag that allows us to carry the unit with us. The 2720 is the upgraded, voice unit of the 2620.

For reference we also have the Pioneer that came in the coach. Nice unit with big screen and extras, but it's not portable. Also the navigation software is not very good. I've talked with Pioneer several times but their attitude seems to be "oh well"...The fact is that the Pioneer WILL get you lost and WILL take you places that a motorhome should not go.

And it's not user friendly.

Regards

Ray and Rue
05 Allure 31176

Re: GPS

Reply #34 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21791
I use a laptop with Delorme StreetAtlas USA and a Microsoft GPS USB receiver. I have used it for 4 years and been very happy with it. It will provide turn directions (visually and with voice prompts) and can even be controlled via voice commands. Easy to update the software and program routes (the entire USA map can be installed on the hard drive).
Using a laptop with a 14" or 15" screen gives you a very large screen to view the routing - when in GPS mode you can have a split screen which shows 2 different resolutions. You can do some really neat things like put markers for all the rest stops and Wal-Marts along your route. Even put it in 'radar' mode to alert you when gas stations are coming up ahead of you. If you get off the route, it will calculate and show the route to get you back on track. I can take the laptop with me in the toad if I want it for navigation while tooling around. And with a Wi-Fi card in the laptop, you even have a ready-made e- mail/communication set-up.

John and Linda

Lollipop (6 lb. poodle that is firmly convinced she is just a very fuzzy person)

2006 Inspire DaVinci #TBD (on order for May delivery) 2002 Saturn toad

GPS

Reply #35 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21794
We have a Garmin 2720 as well. Seems like they are very popular with our group. I agree with everything the others have said. Ours, affectionately named Abby (as in ask Dear Abby) can do incredible things, but she is quite bossy as someone mentioned. Try going your on route when she wants to go hers and she will not quit nagging you to turn around, take a left, take a right, etc. Finally she gives up and recalculates, usually the way you want to go. As Rosemary said, don't think for a minute that any GPS will be without error. Abby and Gertrude (the Magellan we had before in our old coach) will sometimes do strange things and put you in places you don't want to be. They are just doing what the mapping source says is correct, but the map may be wrong or the streets may not be in place yet. Some neat features of the Garmin are that it will tell you what lane to be in before a major split in the highway. This really helps when you are in the big cities and need to make lane changes way ahead of time due to your size and the cars not wanting to let you over. It also tells you the street names instead of just "take the next left" . When streets are close together this really helps. The "home" feature is really cool. When we get to a place we are going to be for a while I just make it "home". Then when we are out away from the RV park, I just push "home" and it takes us right back. At the East Coast Rally in Florida I made our RV slot "home". When we went to downtown Ft. Meyers one night for dinner, I just pushed the button for home and it took us right to front door of the coach. Ft. Meyers was hard to get around in, especially at night. Not having to look at the street signs and a map at night is fantastic. Abby never failed. She also works great in the toad. I had a built in Magellan in my old coach that was not up datable. The Garmin, in my case, is much better due to the portability and being able to update the data. If you don't mind buying on line, you can save a ton of money.

R. D. Vanderslice
Rockwall, Texas
06 Allure 31294
06 Honda Odyssey

Re: GPS

Reply #36 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21796
John what Delorme version are you using? I am using 2003 and have used an earlier version before but Delorme seems awfully buggy to me but maybe there is a later version that works better. I have used Microsoft Streets and Trips and it seems to work well too.
Ron 98 allure 30185

John Walton wrote:

Re: GPS

Reply #37 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21797
No one has mentioned Garmin service, unless I missed a message.

I have been using Garmin units since my GPS40 ... a long time.
Twice I have sent it a unit for repair substantially past the warrenty period. Both times (latest, my 2620) Garmin took care of me no charge.
They actually sent me a brand new 2620 when my hard drive card failed.

I plan on rewarding this level customer service by both remaining a loyal customer, and spreading the word whenever possible ... like now.

John and Terry
2005 Affinity

Re: GPS

Reply #38 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21807
John and Terry

We agree - Garmin service is outstanding! We also have sent a GPS in for repair, an in return got a brand new one.

Bo and Kathy Lee
2000 Magna

2006 Jeep Unlimited

Re: GPS

Reply #39 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21813
I am using StreetAtlas USA 2006 but I have 2003 (used it extensively in 2003 then went to 2004 when it came out). In what regard is yours buggy? If you would like to contact me off-list, I will be happy to talk with you more extensively either my e-mail or phone (send me an e-mail with your phone number if you would like for me to call you).

The only 'bugginess' I recall had to do with using a Magellan Gold GPS as the receiver for the laptop. In my case, the Magellan Gold had an RS-232 interface and my laptop only had USB so I had to use an RS-232 to USB converter. If you didn't start things up in the proper sequence or you let the laptop go into hibernate, then the interface got confused and locked up - but that is the only problem I recall.
If anyone is interested in the sequence that I used for reliable start-up, just let me know.

The other thing that I have seen some folks be 'not happy' about is they don't like the routing that the program selects when they enter just a start and stop. I usually enter a start and stop, let the program calculate a route, and then start adding whatever Via's I need to force the route to be where I want it to be.

John and Linda and Lollipop (a very fuzzy person) 2006 Inspire DaVinci #TBD (on order for May delivery) 2002 Saturn

Re: GPS

Reply #40 –
Yahoo Message Number: 21831
No doubt Garmin is the best out there. I have two units, one for my motorcycle and one to use in my car and RV.

GPS

Reply #41 –
Yahoo Message Number: 27480
I have had a Garmin StreetPilot 2610 for a while. I liked it, but had two issues with it: Even with an upgrade to a 1.0 GB flash card, it still won't hold all the map info for the US, so as you travel you have to be downloading new map information. Second, and even worse, it would occasionally lose satellite reception, usually at a crucial time when I was depending on it for guidance. In my toad it would work fine, but in the coach, even with an external antenna, it would lose reception.

Anway, I went and got a StreetPilot 7200. Comes preloaded with the entire US and Canada. HUGE 7" diagonal measure screen, and 3D map display (which is cool), voice description of street names before turn, and (without an external antenna) NEVER loses reception. Plus you can get optional traffic warnings. You can configure it to put the audio output to your FM radio, and you can download music and audible books to it to listen to and watch video on it! My 2610 now stays in my toad.

I got it, brand new, on the internet for $900.

Al Colby

2000 Intrigue 10979
 

Re: GPS

Reply #42 –
Yahoo Message Number: 27483
Please let me know abourt the 7200 you bought I have some interest in same or the 7500 Thanks again

Charlie & Lorraine Zecman
2002 Magna # 6162
Florida