How reliable is the Suunto Transmitter?

[Diesel00]

I always put the watch within 5 inches of the transmitter and if you have a D9 you need to sync it up before it hits the water or it won't sync up, well mine won't

 

[Scott]

I have a few Sunnto computers (Vytek, 3-Vyper Air, HeLO2, D9tx) and have not had a transmitter fail me. Have I failed the transmitter? Yes!

What have I done wrong?

Issue: Strap on the computer, turn the gas on and walk back to my vehcile to grab something. When I return I have PSI failure and have to re-sync.
Solution: Don't leave necessary equipment in vehicle, don't turn gas on until you are ready to get in the water or leave computer attached to the BC until ready to dive.


Issue: PSI fail signal underwater when hands are extended in front and I'm diving in very limited vis condtions
Solution: Don't dive in very limited vis conditions or move hands closer to torso (praying) so signal will return.

 

[dpaustex]

I like my Suunto wireless devices (Vytec DS and Vyper Air), but I have had BOTH transmitters on these units BOTH crap out in the middle of a dive (one in a guided cavern dive, no less). No leaks in the units, flawlessly cared for, but they just quit working. The last one (two weeks ago), I took back to my LDS and they are going to speak to Suunto about it.

There is simply no reason for these things to simply quit working - unless there is some error in the design.

I LOVE the freedom of the wireless, and find it especially useful when taking pictures (my camera rig is fairly large, so I can wear it facing toward me, and see it just fine while holding the camera).

 

[vales1]

I'm the least concerned with the tx quitting during the dive as long as I'm aware how much air I got prior to failure. My only concern would be tx sending wrong psi info - is this possible or has this happened to any of you guys? My D9 / tx already went through 2 battery changes and always came within +/- 5 psi when I do my analog checks before and after the dive. Now I wonder if there has been incidents wherein the pressure difference was +/- 100 psi or more?

 

[muzikbiz22]

I'm the least concerned with the tx quitting during the dive as long as I'm aware how much air I got prior to failure. My only concern would be tx sending wrong psi info - is this possible or has this happened to any of you guys? My D9 / tx already went through 2 battery changes and always came within +/- 5 psi when I do my analog checks before and after the dive. Now I wonder if there has been incidents wherein the pressure difference was +/- 100 psi or more?

No. I've found my Suunto TX to be quite accurate, actually.

 

[Hendrik@Suunto]

dpaustex,

How long have you had your transmitters? Also, where you taking photos when the transmitters malfunctioned?

Best Regards,
Chris from Suunto

 

[muzikbiz22]

dpaustex,

How long have you had your transmitters? Also, where you taking photos when the transmitters malfunctioned?

Best Regards,
Chris from Suunto

Chris,

I occasionally hear of underwater cameras can sometimes create RF Interference with transmitters, etc. ? FWIW, I dive D4i with TX, and shoot dual strobes with a DSLR, and have NEVER had an issue with sync/interference, etc.

 

[kmarks]

I have a few Sunnto computers (Vytek, 3-Vyper Air, HeLO2, D9tx) and have not had a transmitter fail me. Have I failed the transmitter? Yes!

What have I done wrong?

Issue: Strap on the computer, turn the gas on and walk back to my vehcile to grab something. When I return I have PSI failure and have to re-sync.
Solution: Don't leave necessary equipment in vehicle, don't turn gas on until you are ready to get in the water or leave computer attached to the BC until ready to dive.


Issue: PSI fail signal underwater when hands are extended in front and I'm diving in very limited vis condtions
Solution: Don't dive in very limited vis conditions or move hands closer to torso (praying) so signal will return.

I know this thread is getting up there in age, but maybe somebody will check in and see this.

I think I had both of these issues this past weekend. Before our first dive I got all my gear set up, paired my Vyper Air and transmitter, then as we were getting ready to get in the water, I got the always fun FAIL signal. I may have moved too far away from the regulator or just taken too long getting ready - we had a pretty complicated shore entry. I tried to put the computer next to the transmitter to get it to reconnect, pulled a few breaths, inflated and deflated the BC - nothing. Went through the pairing procedure again, switched from channel 37 to 31, and had no problems from then on.

But I did notice something interesting during the dive and I'm wondering if anyone else using a Suunto AI has ever noticed this: When I would put the computer until compass mode, the tank pressure would only update every 20-30 seconds instead of instantaneously. It said FAIL for a very short time during one of our dives (I can't remember if it was the first or second), but reconnected within a minute. Visibility could be described as just short of abysmal - maybe 2-5 feet at most times, and we were less to 20 feet deep. When I would switch back from compass mode to normal dive mode, the tank pressure would very quickly drop over the next few seconds, presumably just getting the computer's reading back in line with what was really in the tank. I didn't happen to notice if the air synch indicator on the left side of the screen was blinking during compass mode or not. When I uploaded the dive information to my desktop at home, the air pressure follows a predictable, regular negative slope from start to finish, indicating that each 20 second time point it was at least keeping track of the pressure. There was one exception, which may have been related to the brief FAIL, when the pressure stayed steady for a minute and twenty seconds, then dropped sharply before returning to the normal curve.

Has anyone else noticed this when using a Suunto computer and AI? Specifically if you have a Vyper Air. It seems that it keeps updating at least at the same interval that it collects data (I changed it to 10s intervals yesterday, but I haven't done a dive with it yet), so I'm thinking that when the computer is in compass mode, it just has too much to think about for it to connect to the transmitter constantly and it just drops the rate to whatever interval you have set. I might be looking at my computer a little too often and getting nervous that it's going to fail on me because it's new, I'm new to diving (9 dives so far), and I'm not a fan of drowning. I'm just hoping for a little confirmation that this is normal for the Vyper Air and not something I need to be worried about.

Thanks.

 

[Hendrik@Suunto]

kmarks,

Adjusting the sample rate will not change the response time that your computer will relay the pressure readings from your transmitter to your display. The sample rate is strictly for recording data and how often you want the data recorded in the computers memory. If you are worried about the accuracy of your computer & transmitter, the best route would be to send it in to an authorized service center for evaluation.
If you would like to do this please locate the nearest service center from the link provided.
Suunto Dealer Locator

Best Regards,
Chris from Suunto

 

[kmarks]

kmarks,

Adjusting the sample rate will not change the response time that your computer will relay the pressure readings from your transmitter to your display. The sample rate is strictly for recording data and how often you want the data recorded in the computers memory. If you are worried about the accuracy of your computer & transmitter, the best route would be to send it in to an authorized service center for evaluation.
If you would like to do this please locate the nearest service center from the link provided.
Suunto Dealer Locator

Best Regards,
Chris from Suunto

So is it normal, then, that it updates the air pressure less frequently when it is in compass mode during a dive? The only way to replicate the issue would be for the service center to take it underwater with a transmitter, go into compass mode, and see how it no longer updates pressure instantaneously.