ICOM MX-5000 AIS Receiver Pricing
Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2015 10:57 am
I suspect the ICOM AIS receiver model MXA-500 is nearing end-of-life as a product for ICOM, although it continues to be listed on their website. It is being offered at an attractive price by sellers via AMAZON. For example, see
http://www.amazon.com/Icom-MXA5000-Marine-Class-Receiver/dp/B001QWZQS2/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1451313032&sr=8-8&keywords=Marine+VHF+AIS+radios
The price is down to $253. While a price of $253 is not remarkable for an older AIS receiver, the value of the MXA-5000 is enhanced by two additional features of the unit. The MXA-5000 has:
--an antenna splitter which allows the AIS receiver to share the same antenna as your VHF Marine Band transmitter; this would be useful for fitting to a small boat with an existing radio that lacked AIS; you would not need to add an antenna for the AIS receiver; the splitter inserts a 3-dB loss on receive; power loss on transmit is not specified but is assumed to be minimal;
--a NMEA-0183 data multiplexer; the MXA-5000 can take in NMEA-0183 data at 4800-Bps, up-convert it to 38400-Bps, and multiplex it with the data from the AIS receiver; this is useful for connecting to a chart plotter that has only one NMEA-0183 input.
The ICOM MXA-5000 AIS receiver dates from c.2008, so it is about five or six years old, which is a bit ancient in marine electronics. The AIS receiver does have two dedicated receivers, one for each channel, which is significant when compared to many older AIS receivers. The antenna splitter and NMEA-0183 multiplexers may be very useful in some installations.
According to the data on my AIS Receiver Round-Up, the MXA-500 was selling for about $450 in c.2008.
http://www.amazon.com/Icom-MXA5000-Marine-Class-Receiver/dp/B001QWZQS2/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1451313032&sr=8-8&keywords=Marine+VHF+AIS+radios
The price is down to $253. While a price of $253 is not remarkable for an older AIS receiver, the value of the MXA-5000 is enhanced by two additional features of the unit. The MXA-5000 has:
--an antenna splitter which allows the AIS receiver to share the same antenna as your VHF Marine Band transmitter; this would be useful for fitting to a small boat with an existing radio that lacked AIS; you would not need to add an antenna for the AIS receiver; the splitter inserts a 3-dB loss on receive; power loss on transmit is not specified but is assumed to be minimal;
--a NMEA-0183 data multiplexer; the MXA-5000 can take in NMEA-0183 data at 4800-Bps, up-convert it to 38400-Bps, and multiplex it with the data from the AIS receiver; this is useful for connecting to a chart plotter that has only one NMEA-0183 input.
The ICOM MXA-5000 AIS receiver dates from c.2008, so it is about five or six years old, which is a bit ancient in marine electronics. The AIS receiver does have two dedicated receivers, one for each channel, which is significant when compared to many older AIS receivers. The antenna splitter and NMEA-0183 multiplexers may be very useful in some installations.
According to the data on my AIS Receiver Round-Up, the MXA-500 was selling for about $450 in c.2008.