Does anyone actually use DSC?

[rslifkin]

Originally Posted by wingssail

I have never used the DSC function on my Standard Horizon GX2000.

I wish I didn't have it because the GPS requirement means that I need to keep my GPS on 24 hours a day or the radio sets off an alarm every 4 hours.

Bad enough when I am home, I can just quickly kill the alarm. but if I forget and leave the radio on when I am gone after 4 hours it sounds the alarm and agrevates my neighbors.

And finally, I view it as a safety issue:

Since I don't want to be awakened at midnight I now turn off my VHF when I go to bed, thereby potentially missing any emergencies which might happen during the night.

I am pretty irritated that the ITU guys sitting in their offices in Switzerland have imposed this on us.

That's exactly why I bought the version with the internal GPS when I last replaced my VHFs.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

DH, I've never used any of these DSC features, and do not see how locating the home base from the dink works. Don't you get a lat/lon as the response? Do you carry a chart to then plot the coordinates, or do you transfer them into some nav app on a phone... how do you do this?

Jim,


With a modern DSC+GPS radio it does the nav for you. I've attached screenshots from the manual for mine. This is for a boat-mounted radio but there are handhelds available that will do the same thing.

[Jammer]

Here's an example from a handheld VHF that has DSC and GPS features. Since these devices have a more full-featured GPS they allow saving the DSC response as a waypoint.


It may sound crazy but there have been plenty of times I've wished I had something like this when trying to figure out where my kids are or coordinating a lunch stop with someone. Not everyone is good enough at navigation to be able to articulate their position.


I've only been on Lake of the Woods a few times. I have had people who spent years learning their way around the lake and memorizing its features watch me navigate with a paper chart as though I was practicing the Dark Arts.

[JasonS]

DSC hailing is undergoing what can be significant change. With networked integration of chartplotters, AIS, and VHF, single button calling is becoming reality.

We installed the Vesper Cortex system in August. It integrates VHF/AIS and actually a lot more. From the handset I can choose any boat transmitting an AIS signal and push CALL. And I’ve used it. Most boaters have never had a DSC call and are a bit surprised, but it allows two way communication and keeps Ch 16 free.

[BillKny]

So far, there are people who claim that they "need" DSC to contact ships they see on AIS.

I have been sailing coastal and offshore for decades. NEVER have I not had a response to a channel 16 hail to a specific vessel when I have needed to make passing arrangements. To be fair, the number of times I actually call another vessel to make passing arrangements is very small, but such is the beauty of the ColRegs. NEVER have I had a vessel of any size, shape, or description send me a DSC call of any kind. Large commercial vessels work with each other (and me) on channel 16, and do not use DSC at all, as far as I can tell. Telling me that this is a reason I should care about DSC is just a nonstarter. If you want to hail me, please call me on channel 16, and don't be all cool and nerdy and use DSC.


It might be possible that DSC is a great and awesome feature to those who travel with "buddy boats." I never do, and never will. So--another loser.

Finally there is something about making it easy to find the big boat when you are out on the dinghy. Really? First I have never "lost" my big boat, and even if it was an issue, I have a lot of WAY easier tools to use for this.

In an emergancy you are far more likely to get my immediate and undivided attention by calling "MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY" on channel 16 then you are pressing the "Distress" button on your DSC radio. From what I see, the fraction of false alarms on DSC distress calls is so large that without an actual voice contact even the USCG pretty much dismisses them.

I am coming to the conclusion that DSC is pretty worthless... for me.

[Uricanejack]

Nope never use it other than requirement to test.

As far as I am concerned, if your in distress, press the red button.
Otherwise It is just an annoying distraction.

Other than a distress, I have yet to hear a worthwhile call from CG. I hear the Nav warnings ect anyway.
I have been called directly by RCC and tasked. Which it works for.

I have never called another vessel by DSC except for a test.

[cal40john]

The group I sail with, only one has DSC. I got his number, programmed it in, when I tried a DSC call he didn't respond.
I've heard one or two distress calls.
I have the gps hooked up in case I ever have to push the distress button.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

DH, I've never used any of these DSC features, and do not see how locating the home base from the dink works. Don't you get a lat/lon as the response? Do you carry a chart to then plot the coordinates, or do you transfer them into some nav app on a phone... how do you do this?

You set the radio on the mother ship to respond automatically to position requests (you can set to respond to only one or a list of MMSI's or to anyone who calls). Otherwise position requests are answered only if someone on the mother ship confirms.



Then you ping the mother ship from the dink with a position request. You get lat, long, range and bearing. You use these are you like. Range and bearing is usually all you need; otherwise write down lat and long and plot or transfer to a nav app on whatever device you have with you.


From the mother ship, received position reports are plotted automatically on the plotter.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by BillKny

. . . To be fair, the number of times I actually call another vessel to make passing arrangements is very small, but such is the beauty of the ColRegs.

Indeed!

Originally Posted by BillKny

NEVER have I had a vessel of any size, shape, or description send me a DSC call of any kind. Large commercial vessels work with each other (and me) on channel 16, and do not use DSC at all, as far as I can tell.

I receive DSC calls from time to time. I think practice varies by region. I ALWAYS use DSC when calling any Coast Guard, and most calls I RECEIVE from Coast Guards are by DSC.



Many ships ignored DSC calls and wait for your hail on 16. But others don't. I had a somewhat hairy situation once with a ship which really needed a call, and the ship did not respond to calls on 16, but DID respond to a DSC call.



I use DSC exclusively when sailing in company and I need to call my companions. Or else we agree to monitor some working channel (usually 69) and call directly on that. I don't like to overuse 16.



Same thing with comms between handheld and mother ship. We used VHF a LOT in Greenland where there is no mobile phone service. We never left the mother ship without someone on board because of the risk of icebergs drifting over the anchor, or some crisis on land. Handheld and main VHF were kept on dual watch on 16 and 69. There was almost no traffic because there was no one there -- extremely remote place. So we just called each other on 69.

Originally Posted by BillKny

Telling me that this is a reason I should care about DSC is just a nonstarter. If you want to hail me, please call me on channel 16, and don't be all cool and nerdy and use DSC.

You have plenty of company in this attitude; I guess this is a majority view on all kinds of vessels. So yes, I will likely clutter up 16 trying to get your attention rather than using the elegant system of calling you by DSC.

Originally Posted by BillKny

. . . In an emergancy you are far more likely to get my immediate and undivided attention by calling "MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY" on channel 16 then you are pressing the "Distress" button on your DSC radio. From what see, the fraction of false alarms on DSC distress calls is so large that without an actual voice contact even the USCG pretty much dismisses them.

Here I will have to disagree with you, and I think if you will talk to any Coastguardsman you will be disabused of this notion. A DSC distress call sets off a loud alarm on all VHF sets within range and, crucially, gives your lat, long, name of vessel, MMSI, and nature of emergency to the Coastguard and everyone else, instantly. In a real emergency this can be crucially better than trying to read all that information off, possibly not being heard well, or something mistranscribed of misunderstood -- all while you're in some kind of disaster. And the DSC part of a Mayday call is not INSTEAD OF a the voice part, but in addition to. Please do use the red button, if you get into such a situation. Any SAR worker or Coastguardsman will tell you the same.

[Tupaia]

As I said earlier having someone in the dink with a portable DSC radio allows someone on the mother-ship to ping it to record and plot their safe progress through a coral reef without the person in the dink having to do anything apart from concentrate on piloting the dink. Not everyone sails where their are electronic charts or any charts at all sometimes.


I would also agree that hailing another vessel, especially a known boat, by name on Ch16 is much easier than DSC. However, many big ships no longer monitor Ch16 and sometimes knowing what a ship is intending to do, when beating into a foreign port, in a channel or in thick fog, direct contact using DSC is a useful tool.

[muttnik]

A lot of the negativity around DSC seems to be based on ignorance. Many sailors aren't very technically minded, don't read the manual, have no clue how to operate DSC functions other than "press the red button" and regard the beeping from all stations messages as an annoyance. Having said that...I confess I haven't found it as useful as I had anticipated. I rarely sail in company with other boats and if I am, dual watch on the VHF and a pre-agreed working channel avoids calling on 16. UK/French marinas, harbour masters and water taxis all advertise working channels (but not MMSIs). Using callsign gleaned from AIS on 16 or 13 largely solves the lack of response from "freighter in approximate position...". Moreover despite having an IC-603 with push buttons, DSC calling from the remote commander mic in the cockpit is impractical compared with a voice call. Obviously calling from an AIS-connected plotter would be a game changer there.

Originally Posted by Dockhead

I use it exclusively when calling coast guard.

First time I called the UK coastguard using my shiny new DSC set it occurred to me that knowing the coastguard's working channel, the DSC step was largely redundant. Individual call. Wait for set to change to working channel. Voice call. Is this better than "voice call on the working channel you already know"? I recognise that if everyone used DSC this might make the coastguard's job of ordering responses easier but DSC callers still seem to be a minority. Note to self: it's been so long since I called the coastguard I've just remembered I still have the solent/portland MMSIs programmed rather than Fareham MRCC. Must fix that when I'm allowed back to the boat.

So much as I *want* to love DSC, I don't evangelise it to others in the same way that maybe I did a decade ago.

[bgallinger]

I received a DSC call once and have made one DSC call. It's so long ago I can't remember how to do it. Neat idea.

[Mike OReilly]

Interesting commentary so far. It parallels my real-world experience as well, where none of my fellow cruisers use it. It reinforces my sense that DSC is a solution in search of a problem.

Maybe it's the particular implementation, but it seems to have left most cruisers shrugging in indifference.

I do think the DSC Distress function is gold (although I've never used it, thankfully). I've certainly been the recipient of a number of DSC Distress calls. It's definitely an attention-grabber. And having the location digitally stored, so I don't have to scribble down the coordinates, is great.

And I'd not thought about the utility of location polling to check on the status of your own boat as has been mentioned here by a few. I can see the use of this, but it's obviously not necessary.

But for basic ship-to-ship or ship-to-CG communication, it just seems largely ... unnecessary. Unless you're a cruiser who travels in a pack, it's not much of a burden to jump on the mic and call verbally. And even here, as someone has already mentioned, it's easier to just designate a working channel and set dual-watch, which is usually just a one-button setting on a standard VHF.

[rslifkin]

I think it's mostly down to implementation. DSC is useful at times, but most of the time doesn't have a big advantage over a voice call. And most implementations are clunky to use, so that leads to people just ignoring it.

[Dr. D]

OK, I see the many sides of the topic. Personally, I like DSC, but I haven't used it much.

One thing I greatly appreciate is the red Distress button. Before I go for a sail with someone who is unfamiliar with boats, I tell them about the button. I tell them if I trip and become unconscious, press the button. That is far easier than, "Say MAYDAY three times, then the names of the boat, then the position (Oh, get that off the chartplotter )....."