#Raymarine Upgrade on #Leopard48 - from Eseries to #Axiom Pro

Our Raymarine Axiom upgrade from our E-series MFD on our Leopard48 Catamaran was unplanned, meaning it wasn’t even our wish list, but then, when we sent one of our units in for repair, the option to replace for a little more $$ than a repair made us take the leap. And we are glad we did.

TIMELINE:
0:00 Raymarine MFD Upgrade Project Kickoff
1:07 Unboxing Raymarine Axiom Pro
2:55 MFD cutout with template
3:30 Navigation station wires and wires and wires
4:15 Axiom Pro, Axiom Plus, Axiom 9” RV version
5:05 Nav station – putting it back together late into the night
9:36 Helm station MFD replacement
11:55 Cutting into our boat – again…
13:06 Starting up the new MFDs!
14:32 Testing and calibrating the system
17:07 One month later – what we love about our new Raymarine Axiom MFDs.
21:30 Sirius XM Weather integration on Raymarine Axiom

Our Raymarine Axiom MFD upgrade was unplanned, meaning it wasn’t even our wish list, but then, when we sent one of our units in for repair, the option to repair or replace for a little more $$ made us take the leap. And we are glad we did.

Our prior electronic chart system was made up of the E-series, which are good units, and they met our needs just fine, but the advantages of the upgrade were too sexy to pass up. The primary reasons we chose to upgrade were:

-Increased processing power to handle more detailed chart data and redraw it faster.
-Realvision 3D sonar capability (requires a hallout to fully install this feature)
-Better touchscreen (more responsive)
-CHIRP Sonar
-built-in 72 channel GPS (with optional antennae add-on)
-brighter display built to handle all lighting conditions

We ended up with

2 12” Axiom Pro units (with the rotating dial)
1 12” Axiom Plus (no dial – secondary screen on our interior nav station)
1 9” Axiom RV (upgraded from a 7”)

Here is the link to the feature detail page.
https://www.raymarine.com/multifunction-displays/axiom-pro/

Optional add-ons that integrate with the Axiom MFDs that we are considering for later.
-CHIRP Sonar (requires haulout)
-GPS external antennae
-ClearCruise thermal camera
-New Radar – ended up doing this not soon after the MFDs
-Engine Interfacing
-YachtSense Link Marine Mobile Router for 24/7 connection 4G and remote monitoring

One challenge was that we had to send our old units in before they would send us the new units. So, we installed the interior nav station unit first to make sure it would work without a major rewire. Then, with no long trips planned where we would have to have our helm station units working, we sent the other units back to Raymarine for our upgrade trades.

The entire install took about 16 hours total, but was certainly something that you can easily do DIY as long as you are prepared. They were truly plug and play. They took a little time to get used to, but as the video shows, the screens are so much easier to use that the learning curve was truly short. To accommodate moving from 12” Eseries to 12” pro, there is an extra frame piece that goes on the sides. The Axiom Plus actually had a frame that is a separate piece that was installed. Make sure you tell Raymarine or the dealer what you are replacing so they can recommend the right pieces to make them all fit well.

LINKS:
BLOG SITE: https://bluedotvoyages.com
FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/bluedotvoyages
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/bluedotvoyages.sailingpilar

CATAMARAN MAINTENANCE VIDEOS –

ALL EPISODES – https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz8Z8h1MloaPq2o05r6wnJqaqyeABUKiu

LONG VOYAGES – https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz8Z8h1MloaMVYY-0QB1x8dgRkA9laYnD

Blue Dot Voyages is a Sailing Adventure Company. On our Leopard48 Sailing Catamaran PILAR, we sail, fish, snorkel, scuba, and we offer travel advice on our blog and vlog. We offer charter trips when we can. Watch our videos and live vicariously through us!

Master Captain: Stephen Bell
First Officer: Dawn Bell

#RaymarineAxiomUpgrade #ElectronicCharts #Leopard48