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PerfectPass 6.5ng VS StarGazer


Hydrogasm

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I have PP 6.5ng in my Response and I am thinking very seriously about upgrading to the StarGazer control unit. From what I understand, it does not need to be calibrated for each speed and of course it is GPS speed based, so the speeds are very accurate. I would like to get feedback from anyone that has made the switch, both pros and cons. I put in the newest PP gauge with the larger LCD screen and it is alot easier to read. Let me know what you think.

Thanks

Gary

Edited by Hydrogasm
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The only Con I can think of right now is that it takes a little longer for the speed to settle in when running slalom, so if you have a short setup it might not be the best for you.

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As you have already upgraded to the multi line gauge, you have saved $200 of the upgrade expense. If you do a search, I believe EZ Ed (Obermeier) has a good thread on this (posted w/in the past year).

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I would stick with 6.5ng. If you ski the course a lot, get a switch.

I upgraded from 6.3 to 6.5ng with a switch last fall at the same time my neighbor ('04 MasterCraft) updated to Stargazer. My upgrade was a definite upgrade; it is an excellent pull now. The Stargazer upgrade never did work quite right; hot times, slow times, surging at the 3 ball, stalling just before the end gates, etc. And I have another neighbor ('96 MB 190) who also 'upgraded' to Stargazer and he had the same issues. Both ended up going back to Classic.

But, I also have a another neighbor who installed Stargazer in his '99 Gecko. He has a version of SG that is one rev back from the current, the other 2 guys had the latest version.

I can't tell the diff between my 6.5ng/switch and the Gekko SG. Each gets me close to a PB each set.

Edited by LakeOneSkier
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You do still have to set baselines for each speed with Stargazer, but can do so without the course.

I've been quite happy with SG, but am mostly freeskiing/boarding.

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I have a switch and magnets on the gates already, so that should help. I'll do a search for Ed's post and have read.

Anyone else feel freee to give their experience?

Thanks

Gary

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Once I got the system for SG calibrated it runs times +- .02 seconds.

You still need to put in crew and skiier weights.

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I don't understand the folks who went back to Classic after installing SG. SG is night and day easier to use than Classic ONCE YOU GET IT SET UP AND CALIBRATED CORRECTLY. You have to read the manual and take the time to calibrate SG properly. On pull up as long as you don't overshoot your baseline rpm it settles in quickly and times are always within .02 as zad0030 stated. No head/tail wind issues, crew weight inputs are much simpler, the pull is smooth and user friendly, you don't have to screw with it. I've never gone back to Classic and don't ever intend to, SG is so much better and easier to use. But you gotta take the time to learn it.

The issues LakeOneSkier discussed are a direct result of not having the settings dialed in and over reving on pullup in my experience. Learn to not over shoot the baseline on pullup and you should have minimal issues with it. Once in awhile it will freak out for no apparent reason (most likely it momentarily loses sattelite signal) but that's fairly rare.

If you decide to stay with Clasic and you want a slalom switch I've got one for sale complete with wiring harness.

Ed

Edited by ed obermeier
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I don't understand the folks who went back to Classic after installing SG. SG is night and day easier to use than Classic ONCE YOU GET IT SET UP AND CALIBRATED CORRECTLY. You have to read the manual and take the time to calibrate SG properly. On pull up as long as you don't overshoot your baseline rpm it settles in quickly and times are always within .02 as zad0030 stated. No head/tail wind issues, crew weight inputs are much simpler, the pull is smooth and user friendly, you don't have to screw with it. I've never gone back to Classic and don't ever intend to, SG is so much better and easier to use. But you gotta take the time to learn it.

The issues LakeOneSkier discussed are a direct result of not having the settings dialed in and over reving on pullup in my experience. Learn to not over shoot the baseline on pullup and you should have minimal issues with it. Once in awhile it will freak out for no apparent reason (most likely it momentarily loses sattelite signal) but that's fairly rare.

If you decide to stay with Clasic and you want a slalom switch I've got one for sale complete with wiring harness.

Ed

I completely agree with Ed here. the bad press that SG got was a result of PP not properly getting the message out about set up on this. They tried to seel it as being as easy as ZO to set up and that was a receipe for a disasterous ride. Once set properly it's easier to use then PPC and still not as friendly for the driver as ZO but I think the pull is better.

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I completely agree with Ed here. the bad press that SG got was a result of PP not properly getting the message out about set up on this. They tried to seel it as being as easy as ZO to set up and that was a receipe for a disasterous ride. Once set properly it's easier to use then PPC and still not as friendly for the driver as ZO but I think the pull is better.

I don't disagree with you guys but... all 3 neighbors spent considerable time on the phone with Perfect Pass Tech Support. The first (Gekko) worked through the issues early last summer and ended up at one version prior to the latest, I do not know the rev #. The latest version was surging at various points in the course and they could not get rid of it no matter how much they adjusted the settings. The version he has now is excellent; it's pull is as good as any I've ever had.

The other two just couldn't get it to work. They tried. They wanted it to work. They made the investment in both time and money. And both came to the conclusion that PPC was the better option.

Edited by LakeOneSkier
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  • 3 months later...

Ok, I did the upgrade about 3 weeks ago and did a hasty calibration so we could get skiing early one Satuday morning and was not impressed. We had the issues that LakeOneSkier mentioned- surging, slow and speeding up, times way off etc. I talked to Randy at PP on Monday morning and he told me to go out, drive the boat at the different slalom speeds, record the engines rpms at each speed to get a baseline rpm. Which I did however over the winter I removed my speedo and installed an anolg tach instead. I noticed that there was 200-250 rpm higher reading on the PP gauge than the tach but the speed was correct as confirmed by my portable GPS. I remembered reading in the manual about some engines needed to use the inverted tach signal instead of the standard setting. Once I did that rpm readings fell right in line. I redid my speed tests to determine my correct baseline rpms, then proceeded to the course to do the calibrations for each speed. Once I did that everything worked perfectly. Speeds and times were consistent and It is easier to use than the 6.5ng but the Classic slalom mode is still built in that you can go back to if you want to compare them. One thing I noticed is if you mash the throttle it does take a little longer for it to settle in than if you roll the throttle forward gradually. The inverted tach signal made all the difference. Maybe that was the problem with your friends' boat. Thanks Gary.

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  • 2 years later...

Question for the SG users: with more time under your belt, have you resolved the issues with SG? I have a very short setup for our course and am wondering which version would be more appropriate, particularly since at least one of the drivers has a heavy throttle hand. Also, it appears you can simply run Classic if one is not happy with the SG performance, is that correct and does anybody know if it is the same control scheme as 6.5NG? What are people's experience doing it that way?

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It seems it is skiers having the problem? We only wakeboard, tube & wake surf. I have the original PP wakeboard pro. Is it worth spending the upgrade money? Would ballast upgrades be better since this is our first Vdrive? I am also under the impression after reading this I am going to need the owners manual on hand to learn how to use the system?

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  • 1 month later...

When I installed it I had some issues in slalom mode and Cbf dealing with it at the time. I switched to normal wake mode and upped the speed and it's flawless... I never take it out of wake mode now

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