Sandaysoft

Hi,

I currently own a fine offset WH1091, and looking to the next step in weather monitoring. Down anyone own a Davis Wireless Weather Station Vantage Pro2 Plus 6163, I'm looking for all the gadgets eg UV, Solar Index, and Solar powered transmitter, quicker updates to base station and better accurate rain ect.. and it seems this weather station is the cream of the crop. just simple questions about it..

Do you like it?
Does it work well with Cumulus?
and does it come standard with usb connectivity so i can use Cumulus.

I know now Fine offset do solar and uv index.. but honestly what else have they improved? nothing same specs.. I'm a gadget guy I like all the gizmos.. and I know its $1600.. but is this the best you can get.. with out all the soil temp and soil hardness sensors ect ect..


oh btw this is the one I like

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... 3446wt_901

Cheers
Lyle

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Davis stations don't come with PC connectivity as standard (though some retailers may do 'bundles'); you have to buy the Weatherlink Logger/PC interface/software package. These come in Serial/USB/IP flavours.

I would recommend the serial version: more reliable and easier to set up (with the USB version, you have to run a Virtual Serial Port driver and make sure you don't put the interface into 'USB Express' mode, or it won't work with Cumulus or other third party software).

As for the IP logger, that just seems broken by design to me.

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Steve
Sanday Weather
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Thanks Steve,

Oh, so Serial.. thats a bugger cos I run a laptop USB only..that package makes me think there is a lot more money that will need to be spent.

oh deary me I don't know what to do now..

Thanks

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Hi Lyle,

I upgraded to a VP2 with daytime FARS (couldn't afford all the extras) a couple of months ago. I'm running it on a laptop via USB as I have no serial port. It was easy to set up and I've been running it with Cumulus without a hitch. No drop outs, no loss of data, no lost sensor contact since. I had it set up and running in about an hour. A good price now the $AU is on par with the $US.

Go for it.

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Dan

http://www.brisbaneliveweather.com



A man with a thermometer always knows the temperature. A man with two thermometers, not so sure.

Many people do have the USB logger... I would just recommend the serial one if you had the choice.

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Steve
Sanday Weather
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Like Cumulus and want to support it? Please donate!

Thanks for the reply, did you also get the weatherlink package eg software/data logger/usb ect.. if so what did that cost you.. when you say all the extras meaning you didnt get solar/radiation sensors?
where did you buy yours from?

cheers

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I got mine from Pacific Data here in Brisbane with Weatherlink and data logger. All together, I think it was around $1200. No UV or Solar unfortunately.

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Dan

http://www.brisbaneliveweather.com



A man with a thermometer always knows the temperature. A man with two thermometers, not so sure.

Lyle, I looked at the eBay page the link pointed to - the seller is asking for US $1,075.00 (approximately AU $1,058.59).

And then I looked at my newly discovered (Florida, USA) online retailer Archer Trading Post at their prices for the Davis Wireless Vantage Pro2 Plus with 24Hr Fan Aspirated Shield (that package includes both the UV and solar sensors): US $799.00 (approximately AU $993.78) and Davis Weatherlink and Datalogger - Serial or USB Port Versions: US $118.00 (approximately AU $146.77) - their customer service is EXCELLENT and very friendly and they fully support all the products they sell...

I purchased my Davis Vantage Pro2 Plus with 24Hr Fan Aspirated Shield about 5 years ago and I have been completely satisfied with its reliability and its accuracy - an excellent weather station at an affordable although high price (well I am not a government employee with unlimited financial ressources expecting super high accuracy of a super expensive weather station). It is money well spent - you will get what you pay for...

Hey, Thanks for the reply... wow nice work I just had a look I might just send them and email see what that can do for me, eg postage to Australia ect.

are you running cumulus with your station and is it usb?

Cheers

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Lyle, their shipping costs are also quite reasonable. If you are not in any rush to get the station, you might inquired about the international mail shipping option - it is a lot less cheaper than what is usually charged by both FedEx and UPS north american main courriers and not really that much slower than the courrier ground shipping options (at least not between the USA and Canada).

I have 3 WeatherLink adaptors (data loggers):

- I have the serial adaptor connected to a Vantage Pro2 Weather Envoy (this unit is connected to a dedicated computer which is running Weather Display);
- I have the USB adaptor connected to a Vantage Pro2 console (this unit is connected to my development computer which is running Cumulus as well as Weather Display and, at times, Virtual Weather Station and WeatherLink;
- I have the IP (Internet) adaptor connected to a Vantage Vue console (this unit is accessible mostly from my development computer).

As Steve indicated, I too, recommend the WeatherLink serial adaptor (even if a serial-to-USB adaptor is needed for computers without a serial port). The USB adaptor is also good as long as you install it to simulate a serial adaptor (through the use of a driver supplied with the adaptor). I do not recommend the IP adaptor as it does not offer any flexibility - the IP adaptor has been designed to send the data from a weather station to the Davis weather website!

[quote="gemini06720] I do not recommend the IP adaptor as it does not offer any flexibility - the IP adaptor has been designed to send the data from a weather station to the Davis weather website![/quote]

May I just clarify this latter comment because it isn't strictly true. The IP logger is perfectly capable of passing data across a LAN to a compatible program on a local PC (and at the (pseudo) same time that it uploads to weatherlink.com).

There are certainly pros and cons to choosing the IP logger, not least its extra cost, but there is no problem about using it in conjunction with a local PC, providing a program is in use that it fully compatible with the IP data stream.

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John Dann
Prodata Weather Systems
www.weatherstations.co.uk

Obviously, you have not tried to get data out of the darn thing...

The IP logger is so dedicated in sending its data to the Davis weather pages that it is next to impossible to get the data out of it - one must first create loops to determine when the IP logger is not uploading to the Davis pages and then, during one of those intervals, download the data - there is no way to stop or modify the programmed upload.

Indeed, not only is the IP logger an overpriced piece of electronics but it offers no flexibility whatsoever - it is unfortunate that the engineers at Davis could not think 'out-of-the-box' and create an Internet logger that could have been controlled by its buyer!

I will continue to strongly to discourage the purchase of the IP logger - it is not worth what it is selling for ... and the WeatherLink software that come with any of the logger is by itself another piece of garbage...

Oh, by the way, I have three WeatherLink adaptors (data logger), one serial, one USB and one IP - it is my third IP logger ... the two first ones just died a few weeks before the end of their warranties! I guess I forgot to mention something about the IP logger reliability...

I suspect context is quite important here. I realise and respect that this is a Cumulus forum, but anyone using the WL program for example should not have any problem at all running the WLIP in both local and wl.com upload modes simultaneously. So I know for sure that it's possible in principle. The trick is to request no more than a small number of LOOPs and then effectively release the logger to perform its wl.com upload. Whether Cumulus does this or not I don't know I'm afraid. (And of course you can always turn off the wl.com uploads if you wish and just use the Ethernet interface, but it's probably more cost-effective to use a 6510SER and a device server.)

And as to general logger reliability, well, I'd have to say that you have been extraordinarily unlucky. Speaking as someone who supports maybe around 1500+ Vantage (VP1+VP2+Vue) systems, I'd have to say that it's extremely rare for the logger ever to give any (hardware) problems. On original VP2 systems we could talk about supercaps, the first .166 T/H sensors and - after a few years - anemometer speed switches as of more questionable reliability but dubious logger reliability...not in my experience.

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John Dann
Prodata Weather Systems
www.weatherstations.co.uk

1). Yes, love it.
2). Brilliantly!
3) As previously advised you have to buy the data logger + WeatherLink software for it to be able to link to Cumulus or any other weather software.

I bought the USB version and it is permanently connected to a Samsung NC10 netbook which uploads data to my website. I know others recommend the serial connection but what modern PC includes a serial port? There may have been early problems with USB but for this user it's never been a problem.

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Cheers,
Ray, Cheshire.

Hi guys, Thanks for all your replys... some of it just went straight over my head.. So I'm super interested in one now but ive hit another brick wall

They come in three versions UK US and EURO.... for the Price I want to pay I can only find US version... and no one can answer if the US version has the metric adapter for the rain gauge cos I want to use it on the metric system..

anyone own the US version?

UK and EURO seem the same....

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