Lowrance connection trouble

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mweiglein
Posts: 120
Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2010 10:50 am

Lowrance connection trouble

Post by mweiglein »

Hello, I recently switched units and am now unable to connect to GPS puck. I previously ran a LMS332, (all blue connectors). Just switched to LCX37C. Unit has blue connectors, and 1 red connector for network. I purchased aftermarket Lowrance cable to connect Blue cable to Red network on unit. unit says No Detectable GPS... I am currently running a LGC 2000 Puck.

Any help would be appreciated.
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philip garcia
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Joined: Sun Jul 13, 2008 3:03 pm
Location: yuba city,ca

Re: Lowrance connection trouble

Post by philip garcia »

I believe the red connector needs its own power source the blue ones did not you need another T and the power cord that goes into the T the nmea starter kit has what you need
Ken Sauret
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Re: Lowrance connection trouble

Post by Ken Sauret »

The GPS antenna get their power through the LCX head units. If you notice, the power cable has three wires. The fat one is the power to the head unit. Take the small red wire, put in an inline fuse and connect it to the power source. Find the black wire and connect it to the ground source. Find the other two wires in the three wire power cable. One will have the small chrome tag that says NMEA 2000. Wire the red and black wires in this cable the same as above. This is how the GPS antenna gets power. If you used the old power cable you will probable need to remove it and use the power cable that came with the LCX unit.

The red connector plug on the back of the LCX unit is the same NMEA network as the black NMEA network cables available at any Lowrance dealer. They just changed the color a few years back. The LGC 2000 used to connect to the older Blue NMEA Network that is now obsolete. You will need to find a converter cable that the LGC 2000 can plug into and the other end will have a black end that will plug into the red connector on the back of the LCX unit. Be sure to mount any LGC 2000 (2K) or LGC 3000 (3K) GPS antenna at least 3 feet away from any Lowrance head unit. These GPS antennas are not sheilded and you can blow out the filters and the antenna is useless.

In fact, that may be what is wrong if you have your current LGC 2000 hooked up properly. If you need to look for a different 2K or 3K antenna, either one will work with the LCX units. The 3K is just a little faster that the 2K.

In comparison, all HDS units have built in GPS antennas that are 5 to 10 times faster than the LGC 2000 or 3000. Also if you have HDS units, any external GPS antennas used do not get power through the head unit as with the LCX units. In a NMEA Network, you will need a power node which is a tee in line in the Network with red and black wires coming out of the top of the tee. These go to power and ground sources, (always use an inline fuse on all red or positive connections), so the external GPS antennas on HDS units are powered through the NMEA Network.

Hope this helps and is not too confusing, you can also go to www.lowrance.com and read through the FAQ's and find most of this information.
Ken Sauret
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mweiglein
Posts: 120
Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2010 10:50 am

Re: Lowrance connection trouble

Post by mweiglein »

Tank you Phil and Ken, I appreciate your knowledge and pointing me in the correct direction.
mweiglein
Posts: 120
Joined: Tue Sep 21, 2010 10:50 am

Re: Another ? Lowrance connection trouble

Post by mweiglein »

Another question... I checked the current power cable that ran my LMS332... The fattest of the 3 wires has an in-line fuse and red and black are hooked up properly.. one of the smaller wires has silver tag that reads NMEA 2000. The red wire from that cable has an in-line fuse and both the red and black wires are hooked up properly.. The 2nd smaller cable and last of the 3 total from power plug has a yellow, blue, and orange wire in it. There is a silver tag that reads RS-232 COMM. This cable is currently not hooked up to anything. Apparently my LMS332 did not have a need for this 3rd wire.

With what I have listed, do I still need a new power cable to run the LCX37C?? I ensured my Puck is greater than 3 feet away.. Puck works for the LMS332 so I know it is not bad.. the LCX37C still reads "GPS module not responding".

Looking for Philip or Ken to help me out..Thanks
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