VHF DSC Standards

[Lobby Lobster]

For newcomers like myself, who are about to buy a VHF radio. I am am sure all now know that radios need to have DSC capability.
It is also important to be aware of the standard of DSC radio you buy.
From: http://www.vhf-dsc.info/tech.html
>Class D equipment, which is specifically designed for recreational vessels. It provides VHF DSC distress, urgency and safety as well as routine calling and position polling. Class D equipment includes a dedicated channel 70 DSC receiver, so you will never miss a DSC call.


SC101 equipment. The SC101 standard was developed in the US some time ago, and was intended to be used in the US domestic market only.

It provides a very limited feature set and omits some very useful options, such as polling. It has been replaced by the Class D standard.

It is strongly recommended that equipment operating with the SC101 standard not be purchased.

If you are in the market for a new VHF DSC radio, check very carefully that it is NOT an SC101 model.