Pieps avalance beacons
 

Hey, has anyone heard of these Checker things this guy is talking about at the end of the article I found here on the Pieps Dsp Curious to know your opinion on them, if they work well or not with other beacons like the Pieps 457 or the SOS F1-ND

Pieps avalance beacons
 

On Thu, 11 Nov 2010 23:38:01 +0000, jakemosterio
wrote:


Hey, has anyone heard of these Checker things this guy is talking about
at the end of the article I found here on the ' Pieps Dsp '
(http://www.piepsdsp.com) Curious to know your opinion on them, if they
work well or not with other beacons like the Pieps 457 or the SOS F1-ND

Only very briefly tried the DSP, and it seemed simple enough, but
we've plumped instead for the Barryvox Pulse, a couple of years ago.

As for compatibility, all beacons (for the last 20-odd years, at
least) use the 457MHz frequency, so there should be no issues
whatsoever with searching for older models or vice versa.

As for the checker - well, unless you're skiing on your own, your
buddy should check you anyway, so I don't see the point. Then again, I
don't often ski on my own, and if I do I'll generally check mine
against a spare before I leave the house, so I guess if you don't have
a spare and you ski backcountry solo then it's not a bad idea.

Pieps avalance beacons
 

On Fri, 12 Nov 2010 22:00:55 +0100, Ace
wrote:

Hey, has anyone heard of these Checker things this guy is talking about
at the end of the article I found here on the ' Pieps Dsp '
(http://www.piepsdsp.com) Curious to know your opinion on them, if they
work well or not with other beacons like the Pieps 457 or the SOS F1-ND

Only very briefly tried the DSP, and it seemed simple enough, but
we've plumped instead for the Barryvox Pulse, a couple of years ago.

As for compatibility, all beacons (for the last 20-odd years, at
least) use the 457MHz frequency, so there should be no issues
whatsoever with searching for older models or vice versa.

As for the checker - well, unless you're skiing on your own, your
buddy should check you anyway, so I don't see the point. Then again, I
don't often ski on my own, and if I do I'll generally check mine
against a spare before I leave the house, so I guess if you don't have
a spare and you ski backcountry solo then it's not a bad idea.

Surely, if you ski backcountry by yourself, then a transciever isn't
going to do you a lot of good unless someone else happens to be around
when you get avalanched. We all know the way the survival curve drops
off dramatically with time.
--
Champ
neal at champ dot org dot uk

Pieps avalance beacons
 

On Sat, 13 Nov 2010 09:34:36 +0000, Champ wrote:

On Fri, 12 Nov 2010 22:00:55 +0100, Ace
wrote:

Hey, has anyone heard of these Checker things this guy is talking about
at the end of the article I found here on the ' Pieps Dsp '
(http://www.piepsdsp.com) Curious to know your opinion on them, if they
work well or not with other beacons like the Pieps 457 or the SOS F1-ND

Only very briefly tried the DSP, and it seemed simple enough, but
we've plumped instead for the Barryvox Pulse, a couple of years ago.

As for compatibility, all beacons (for the last 20-odd years, at
least) use the 457MHz frequency, so there should be no issues
whatsoever with searching for older models or vice versa.

As for the checker - well, unless you're skiing on your own, your
buddy should check you anyway, so I don't see the point. Then again, I
don't often ski on my own, and if I do I'll generally check mine
against a spare before I leave the house, so I guess if you don't have
a spare and you ski backcountry solo then it's not a bad idea.

Surely, if you ski backcountry by yourself, then a transciever isn't
going to do you a lot of good unless someone else happens to be around
when you get avalanched. We all know the way the survival curve drops
off dramatically with time.

Sure. But depending on just how 'back' the backcountry is, you may be
in view of other people and/or lifts. For example, thinking about the
sorts of stuff we do in Engelberg, a large proportion of it is well
enough populated that there's be a good chance of being spotted if you
were caught in an avalanche.

Pieps avalance beacons
 

Champ wrote:

Surely, if you ski backcountry by yourself, then a transciever isn't
going to do you a lot of good unless someone else happens to be around
when you get avalanched. We all know the way the survival curve drops
off dramatically with time.

So, your choice: a teensy wee chance, or none at all...

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

Pieps avalance beacons
 

Peter Clinch writes:

Champ wrote:

Surely, if you ski backcountry by yourself, then a transciever isn't
going to do you a lot of good unless someone else happens to be around
when you get avalanched. We all know the way the survival curve drops
off dramatically with time.

So, your choice: a teensy wee chance, or none at all...

Worst case: they find your body now, instead of waiting for spring.

--
Jim Janney

Pieps avalance beacons
 

On 11/12/2010 22:00, Ace wrote:
On Thu, 11 Nov 2010 23:38:01 +0000, jakemosterio

As for compatibility, all beacons (for the last 20-odd years, at
least) use the 457MHz frequency, so there should be no issues
whatsoever with searching for older models or vice versa.

Just a small correction, the frequency that is widely used is 457 kHz
not MHz. This is important for the units to work actually as with this
low frequency you are actually probing the near field of the dipolar
transmitter antenna. The most advanced search strategies and also the
fancy new 2 or 3 antenna devices rely on that fact. There are new
developments for beacons that also take advantage of the multiples
antennas present in transmit mode as they can basically detect the
orientation of the device by means of a gravitational sensor and switch
to an antenna that allows for effective searching (a dipolar antenna
pointing perpendicular to the surface leads to the worst coupling and
should be avoided.)

Bernd

Pieps avalance beacons
 

On Tue, 16 Nov 2010 18:22:43 +0100, Bernd Nebendahl
wrote:

On 11/12/2010 22:00, Ace wrote:
On Thu, 11 Nov 2010 23:38:01 +0000, jakemosterio

As for compatibility, all beacons (for the last 20-odd years, at
least) use the 457MHz frequency, so there should be no issues
whatsoever with searching for older models or vice versa.

Just a small correction, the frequency that is widely used is 457 kHz
not MHz.

I just _knew_ I'd get it wrong. Could have spent the extra 30 seconds
to google it, but CBA.