Garmin 665/GXM40 issue

[Doug_Baliko]

Two weeks ago I bought a new Garmin 665 to use on my RT. I hard wired the power to my Centech fuse panel and the Garmin unit always works and charges without issue. The problem that I'm having is with the GXM40 antenna. From the start 25% or so of the time I would get "Check XM Antenna" when I pushed the music button after startup. After fiddling with the connection under the seat most, but not all of the time I could turn the unit off and then back on and I would get XM music and weather alerts as normal. I was trying to figure out what would cause such an intermittent problem?

At first I thought that it could be a power related issue. I tried turning off my auxiliary lights and making sure everything was off when I first started the bike. But I still got the random message "check XM antenna" about the same 25% of the time. Sometimes when riding I could turn off the unit and turn it back on and it would work. Finally on my way home from Colorado yesterday, after using XM for 3-4 hours without issue I stopped for lunch. After that I could not get it to work at all. For 400 miles I tried turning the unit off and on and it would always say "check XM antenna". I finally gave up.

I'm thinking that the GXM 40 antenna must be bad? Or wiring it through the Centech fuse panel is the problem? Any ideas?

 

Doug

 

[bobbybob]

I would bet on the antenna. Its under warranty, right? get Garmin to swap it for another one and see if that fixes it.

[johnlt]

I would bet on the antenna. Its under warranty, right? get Garmin to swap it for another one and see if that fixes it.

If it's like the GXM30, it is more than an antenna. It is the complete satellite radio receiver. The GPS unit is onl the MMI. I agree with bobbybob, get them to replace it. It gets it's power through the GPS unit so it also could be the power circuit in th GPS that is routed to the XM.

[Doug_Baliko]

It is like the GXM30 antenna. And it is still under warranty. I guess that I need to get on the phone with Garmin.

 

Doug

[bobbybob]

You can also try this before you call Garmin. Get the Garmin updater installed on your computer, plug the GXM into your GPS and the GPS into your computer (turned on), and run the updater. May be some firmware glitches that need fixing. This happens a lot with Garmin on new roll-outs.

[Doug_Baliko]

You can also try this before you call Garmin. Get the Garmin updater installed on your computer, plug the GXM into your GPS and the GPS into your computer (turned on), and run the updater. May be some firmware glitches that need fixing. This happens a lot with Garmin on new roll-outs.

 

There is no way to attach the GXM40 to the 665 and the computer at the same time. There is only one port on the unit.

[bobbybob]

You can also try this before you call Garmin. Get the Garmin updater installed on your computer, plug the GXM into your GPS and the GPS into your computer (turned on), and run the updater. May be some firmware glitches that need fixing. This happens a lot with Garmin on new roll-outs.

 

There is no way to attach the GXM40 to the 665 and the computer at the same time. There is only one port on the unit.

 

You are right, I stand corrected. When you update the GPS, there will be a list of other updates at some point that you can choose. I would choose everything to update--one of them may be for the radio firmware. Then, it will instruct you when to connect the radio to the GPS so it will be updated by the GPS.

[markgoodrich]

Round trip for a product to/from Garmin is usually not too bad, but if you need it 'right now,' they'll probably send you one, charging your credit card, and reverse the charge when they get the defective unit. Done it for me a couple times over the years with different things.

[markgoodrich]

So, otherwise, how do you like the 665?

[randy]

i have a 2730 which I love. I was also wondering how do you like the 665? any feature stand out, any feature missing where you are scatching your head.

 

probably the feature I missed most from the old 26XX unit to the 2730 was the "next exit listing". you could click on next exit and it would tell you gas, shopping food all features for one exit. never could replicate that on the 2730.

 

anything like that on the 665?

[Doug_Baliko]

I replaced my 2730 with the 665. The 665 is a very nice unit. The screen is very large and bright. Much, much larger than my 2730. It's also much faster. My problems with the XM aside I think the 665 works very well as a GPS unit. Though there are a few little annoyances.

 

For one there is no map button that always takes you directly back to the map screen. Sometimes it's a multi-step process to get back to the map screen. And with gloves, sometimes the touch screen is hard to activate. This is why I debated buying a 550 vs. the 665 since the 550 still has hard buttons for certain functions. And some of the functions on the 665 are several layers of pushing buttons deep to get to. Sometimes 5 or 6 layers. I found on more than one occasion taking my attention off riding while messing with the GPS. This can be dangerous! The 665 probably has more functions then I will probably ever use. But it does what it's designed to do very well. And I love the new weather radar. That's when the XM antenna works.....Ugh!

 

If I had it to do all over again I may have went for the 550. It's proven technology that's still several generations ahead of my 2730. But I may just be saying that now because of my issues with the XM.

 

Doug

[Doug_Baliko]

i have a 2730 which I love. I was also wondering how do you like the 665? any feature stand out, any feature missing where you are scatching your head.

 

probably the feature I missed most from the old 26XX unit to the 2730 was the "next exit listing". you could click on next exit and it would tell you gas, shopping food all features for one exit. never could replicate that on the 2730.

 

anything like that on the 665?

 

Randy,

 

There is a fuel funcion that gives you the distance to gas stations in a list. You can then click on any one of them and the GPS will take you there. But this function is again sevral layers deep in the programming.

Doug

[johnlt]

Keep in mind when it gives you distance to fuel or food etc., it is "as the crow flys, not as the road goes. It is not until you click on "take me there" that i calculates the route. I once clicked on a diner that was only 4 miles away and once calculated, it was 90 miles via road. It was on the other side of the Columbia river.

[Doug_Baliko]

The new GXM 40 antenna that Garmin sent me seems to be working fine (so far!). So far no need to use the new wiring harness. We'll see how it goes. Hopefully the problem is resolved.

 

Doug

[tonyla]

set up:Zumo and starcom1 with DroidX

 

Starcom works great as intercom and music from droid

 

Zumo works great directions interupt music or I can listen to music that is on the zumo with out droid.

 

Problem: connect via bluetooth zumo and droid. receive call,zumo tells me incoming call I select answer . I can hear the person on the other end of the phone but they can not hear me through the headset mike. Has anybody ever run into this before

[bubbamoore]

I have the same Garmin units and have had no trouble wiring thru the Centech unit. There have been reports of some defective garmin motorcycle mounts interfering with the communication between the 2 units. I have had none of these issues and am very happy with the GPS after over 10k miles using it.