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Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2013 9:05 am
by JIM K
Winchey wrote:How do people recall their dogs with the beeper? How is the dog supposed to know where you are?

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2013 9:23 am
by Winchey
I know how to use the beeper as a cue for recall. What I am saying is it is inefficient if your dog is 200 yards away in the woods. With a whistle or voice the.dog knows where you are and doesn't have to resort to backtracking and searching you out.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2013 9:40 am
by JIM K
Winchey wrote:I know how to use the beeper as a cue for recall. What I am saying is it is inefficient if your dog is 200 yards away in the woods. With a whistle or voice the.dog knows where you are and doesn't have to resort to backtracking and searching you out.
sorry winchey.
being you have a SM, setter you know better how to recall your pup.
my small munsterlander hunts out to about 50 yds max. he still pup.
works fine ,so far. he comes out to open area and looks for me.
wide ranging dog, dont know how he would react.
but yelling to a 200 yd away dog is not something i would like to do very often.
i always hunt with my pup. dont want a boot licker just dog that hunts close for grouse and looks for me .
i seen setters way out, i dont like that type of hunting.most never looked for me, THEY HUNT.
Some like that, i dont.
i want dog that hunts close like SM.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 2:40 am
by Highway Ends Kennel
So I broke down and bought the Alpha beginning of January before we left for our Idaho Chuckar hunt.

The bottom line for me is this product made a Huge improvement in hunting with my dogs and covering ground!! It also made made my hunting more productive, enjoyable, and relaxing (after I took the time to learn how to use it)

I had the Pro TT 500 and loved the simplicity and reliability of it. The Alpha collar has the same great features as the TT collars with the HUGE benefit of the GPS. I thought that the GPS would mainly just give me peace of mind if I lost my dog. The GPS feature is a TON more beneficial when hunting than I ever imagined, especially if you hunt areas one where your dog is out of eye site after it ranges out more than 50+ yards.

Knowing exactly how far away from you your dogs are and in which direction is a HUGE benefit when hunting and trying to cover ground as efficiently as possible. The biggest benefits I've found so far are

1. I can let my dogs range out of eye site alot further without hacking on them or calling them in. There's a huge difference for example knowing your dog is 300 yds out and heading back towards you VS. not knowing if the dog is 300 or 1,200 yards out and heading away or back towards you.

2. I can turn, pattern, and call my dogs back in allot further away and out of site with allot less stimulation (allot of times just with the tone). I can watch the screen after I give the command and see if the dog is turning the right direction. If it's not I can increase the stimulation and make the correction immediately, before the dog gets too far out.

If your hunting partner has an Alpha you can set them up to track one another, as well as each others dogs. You can also send text messages back and forth even when there's no cell phone coverage. You can mark the truck before you head out or any other point on your route and always find the shortest route back.

3. The transmitter will alert you if your dog stops moving and goes on point. Because of the GPS feature you can make a B-line towards you dog and reach them faster. You can also set the transmitter up to alert you if the dog ranges out past whatever distance you set. You can establish boundaries on the GPS (private property, highways etc.) and set the alerts up if you dog gets to close to one of the boundries.

So far I've only used the basic features on it. There's a hundred other features and menus on it I haven't even got into yet (and maybe never will).

Like most of you, I hunt with dogs to get away from the cell phones, computers and other gadgets that seem to take up more and more of my time and make life more hectic. The Alpha is one gadget however that after I learned how to use the basics, actually made the whole experience more relaxing and enjoyable. Heck, I don't know if I'll ever even use a beeper again.

The negative thing about the Alpha is the price. The Alpha is freakin expensive! The unit comes one collar and is $800. Each additional collar is $300/EA !!!

They do include a really nice Garmin Field bag though to carry your collars and transmitter in :)

After reading the previous posts, I think 90% of the problems people have had is just a settings issue or being unfamiliar with the product. I made allot of the same mistakes. I would recommend the following to anybody buying the product.

- Spend some time BEFORE you go hunting learning how to use the basics on the collar. Set up the stimulation levels for each dog and learn how to navigate the training menu. Even though Garmin tried to model the stimulation buttons after Tri-Tronics it still takes some getting use to.

- Also, get familiar with the two types of tracking screens (the compass and topo view). Same thing on this, learn how to navigate the tracking screens and change the settings.

After you try these functions out with your dogs and get the hang of it you can start playing around with all the other cool features.

The one that I got came with a swivel type belt clip that the transmitter snaps into (just like a cell phone). I bought the Garmin retractable lanyard so that even if the clip breaks or the transmitter slips out of the clip, the lanyard keeps it attached to your body. You can also transfer the transmitter to your jacket or vest pocket or clip it to your belt, depending on how often you are using it and not worry about dropping it. Definitely get a lanyard or some type of leash. At $500 a transmitter you don't want to loose the dang thing. Also get a screen protector for it before it goes out in the field to protect your touchscreen from getting scratched (just like a cell).

I don't think you would need a holster. Is seems like a holster would limit or at least make it harder to operate the stimulation buttons and the touch screen.

Anyway, those are just a few things I've learned about using the Alpha the last month or so. It's like any other technology, you have to put some time in up front learning how to use it. Otherwise, you'll definitely go through some frustration trying to make it work in the field :)

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 8:26 am
by Neil
Some other observations:

My dogs do not run nearly as fast and far as I thought.

They make me lazy, I used to be able to keep mental track of 3 - 4 dogs. Now I just walk or ride along glancing at the screen from time to time, waiting for the point alert.

I was running one of my trial dogs, riding along, checking my Garmin, knowing he was staying to the front, hanging out at about 4 -500 yards, very pleased with his application, when it dawned on me I had not seen him in over 30 minutes. If I couldn't see him neither could a judge.

I won't turn a dog lose without one.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 1:14 pm
by Gertie
I talked with a pro trainer about it and the feedback I got was that the response time from the handheld to the collar was slow (longer than 1 second). This slow reaction time made making corrections really challenging. That was the big one but the screen being too dark was also mentioned.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 3:04 pm
by JIM K
i have info over on our forum i belong too.

http://www.smallmunsterlander.org
scroll down left to SMCNA WEB FORUM,click on that.
then down to EVERYTHING ELSE.
i have post GARMIN ALPHA.

also over here there is info on astro.

http://www.coondawgs.com
go to top page and click on MESSAGE FORUM.
then scroll down to PRODUCT REVIEWS.
lot of good info on range you can expect under different conditions.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 3:17 pm
by JIM K
Gertie wrote:I talked with a pro trainer about it and the feedback I got was that the response time from the handheld to the collar was slow (longer than 1 second). This slow reaction time made making corrections really challenging. That was the big one but the screen being too dark was also mentioned.

if you read my tests above at SMCNA you will see i mentioned the darker screen outside.
but no one will believe it happens, it does.
10 people may not have problem, they said i was only one having this problem.

LIGHT affects screen outside no matter how bright a setting you have.
flat vrs hilly land affects light.
snow affects LIGHT.
clouds affect it.
time of day affects it .

way you hold the unit affects way light hits screen.

only way to correct it would be to put a sunshade device on it or brighter light inside.

but brighter light would do in batterys quicker.
you can go out and have a small problem with screen, next day its ok, next day its bad.

its LIGHT and glare affecting screen.

take a look at DLP TV VRS A LCD TV in light and glare.
i bet you will see DLP tv better.
screen on alpha /astros have same problem as the LCD tv screen.
hard glossy finish reflects light/glare.
this is why garmin sells SCREEN GLARE PROTECTORS.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jun 04, 2013 11:21 am
by 41magsnub
I got one several weeks ago and generally like it. I installed the birdseye maps and the property owner maps from http://www.huntinggpsmaps.com/

The one thing that is a problem is it frequently has a hard time syncing the collar when we start out. I sometimes have to turn the collar on and off a few times before they talk. Both the handheld and the collar have the most recent firmware update. It also has a harder time getting a good fix through trees than other plain old GPS units I've used.

It is annoying enough that I will use the alpha for hunting, but for daily walks I'll stick with a more conventional simple e-collar that just works.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 8:59 am
by gsp1985gj
I've run the alpha for several months on two gsps. Have found it simple to use and relatively intuitive. It's very convenient to have both tracking and training in one collar. Easy to set up the buttons so you can have stim levels set depending on the situation.

I run my dogs in very thick cover and mountainous terrain and have had few issues finding or keeping track of them so just my two cents.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Wed Oct 16, 2013 4:59 pm
by dvmhunter
For the most part I like my Alpha except for one annoying "little issue". When I lock the screen on the tracking compass and tracking my dog, if the screen is inadvertently bumped like a branch ,bush or something in my hunting vest, the fricking "alarm" stating that the screen is locked and to unlock hit the power button keeps appearing. If I'm hiking up a steep sagebrush hill- I'm a chukar hunter, that annoying "alarm" may go off 5 or 6 times, then I think what's the use of locking the screen if I constantly have to hit "OK" to get it back on the compass screen. I have it attached to a lanyard and then clipped on the belt clip Garmin provided on my hunting vest belt. Any ideas?? Seems a little trivial but it can be "bleep" annoying. I've also had the issue of calibrating the compass a lot so thank you for that bit of advice on how to resolve that problem.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Oct 25, 2013 12:42 pm
by 41magsnub
dvmhunter wrote:For the most part I like my Alpha except for one annoying "little issue". When I lock the screen on the tracking compass and tracking my dog, if the screen is inadvertently bumped like a branch ,bush or something in my hunting vest, the fricking "alarm" stating that the screen is locked and to unlock hit the power button keeps appearing. .
I've been annoyed by that too. I wish there was a lock function that would leave it on the compass page and still let the correction buttons work. Basically an Aastro with correction functionality. Those are the only functions I use a lot while walking around.

If I don't lock the screen I keep bumping it and when I go to look at the thing it is on some crazy page. I even managed to reprogram my correction buttons that way once.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Oct 25, 2013 4:59 pm
by dvmhunter
EXACTLY 41magsnub!!! I've done the same thing, taken off the lock, hike about 1/4 mile, then to my amazement I've actually added a dog and his name is MMMMMMMMMMM. :x :x

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Nov 01, 2013 12:32 pm
by 41magsnub
It seems like it is something that could be corrected easily in the software, just add an option to turn off the audio locked screen alert. Ideally, make it not react at all if the screen is locked so when I bump the screen while unclipping the unit to look at the dog pointer I don't have to wait for the locked screen warning to go away or press ok.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Fri Nov 01, 2013 12:36 pm
by 41magsnub
41magsnub wrote:It seems like it is something that could be corrected easily in the software, just add an option to turn off the audio locked screen alert. Ideally, make it not react at all if the screen is locked so when I bump the screen while unclipping the unit to look at the dog pointer I don't have to wait for the locked screen warning to go away or press ok.
To re-emphasis what was said earlier by another poster, the first thing I did with my Alpha was rig it up with a lanyard. In addition to the belt clip, it is always dummy corded to my belt. That has already saved it at least twice I can think of <-clumsy

I also bought another brass name plate from gun dog supply and put it on the collar. There is a guide on a cool way to do it around here somewhere I followed.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Sun Nov 17, 2013 8:01 pm
by SetterNut
I have had the 220, 320 and now the Alpha. The Alpha is one heck of a unit.

One thing I would like to be able to do with my Alpha is be able to hit the tone button and not have the screen go to the training screen.

I use tone while hunting and all I want to do is turn my dog, and I want to be able to see that he has turned without having to hit the back arrow to see it.

Is there a way to do this? A custom screen? I am hunting two dogs at the same time.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Sun Nov 17, 2013 11:14 pm
by Tooling
JIM K wrote:
Winchey wrote:How do people recall their dogs with the beeper? How is the dog supposed to know where you are?
I use the tone for a check in/recall and some how or another my dog nearly always finds me even if I've moved on across a field or something and he's out 150 yds beating the other side of a hedgerow or other cover...I figure it's the nose as every now and again I'll see him come in and stand there looking for me until I give him a whistle...seems the wind is in my face when this happens.

Spent the last few days hunting in unfamiliar BIG territory and my Alpha went stupid..one morning the handheld wouldn't power up...removed and reinstalled the battery and it was fine after that. Next day deep in the brush my dogs tracks and distance/location just disappeared altogether but the collar was still working. His tone was working and his tracking light was functional as well but he totally disappeared which was really not cool. I had no idea what direction or how far he was from me at any given moment...it was a bad time to lose track. It then just suddenly appeared again after about an hour...really really not cool at all. It's an awesome $800.00 unit but me thinks I will be investing five bucks into a bell :?

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Thu Nov 28, 2013 4:02 pm
by Ed Wahl
I've been using an Alpha here in the Sierra's and foothill canyons for 2 seasons. So far all of my 'glitches" have been caused by operator error. It takes a while to understand the unit but all in all it's been worth way more than 800 bucks to me. Never lost a dog for any length of time, just a second here and there when it really steep rocky cover. I was just looking on ebay and I see there is a holster out there for it. Made by Gizmowest. Looks promising, I'm going to buy one and try it out.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Wed Jan 01, 2014 8:25 pm
by Ed Wahl
Okay, after several training trips and some bird hunting the holster is doing a bang up job. The screen jumping all over the place when it gets bumped is almost a thing of the past. The way the holster is set up the screen is recessed a bit. On and Off is done through the holster and you still have access to the training buttons. Easy to put the unit in and take it out. I'm pretty happy with this set up. Here's a link to Gismovest.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Garmin-Alpha-10 ... 3a7b5eb38f

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Mon Jun 02, 2014 5:48 pm
by JIM K
you cant view my info on ALPHA on smcna anymore.
thats sad but you have to be member.

alpha is just great and worth 800 dollars to me.
other than all things mentioned i can sit in my home and watch Whiskers hunting riverbank.
i use it ALL the time around my home.
i dont use wireless dog fence now.
on walks at home its great.

only thing that happened is orange cap on anteena fell off.
got to find something to put on end.

i will never go in woods or for walk around my home/camp unless the ALPHA is on Whiskers.
the most important function is[ Whiskers location and able to beep him to come]
if you train your pup to come on beep of collar, boy your life is easy...........

i spent HOURS when he was pup on only 1 command....COME..

now its paying off bigtime.
i have dog at 2 yrs old that comes when beeped.
it has saved his life from cars and other things in woods like 600 pd bear i saw with deer and i called whiskers off him that quick. :D

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2014 11:45 am
by skyehunter
Here is one of my early holders I made. I have since made an actual holster lanyard that protects the unit better, i'll take a pic and post.

I have been really happy with my Alpha. Hunted almost every weekend last Quail season and train every weekend for the last 8 months or so with this unit with no problems. I am a bit techy, and have also realized any issues I have had were due to me being unfamiliar with a particular setting. I use the beeper for recall and have hunted heavy deep canyons with no GPS signal loss. Screen brightness is addressed by selecting a brighter screen setting and turning screen so sun does not reflect upon it, i.e. shade it with your hat brim. Birds eye is nice, but not necessary.

I wouldn't want to imagine hunting without it. Fellow hunting partners are regularly asking "have you seen my dog lately" and hollering as I walk about silently, with the occasional glance at the screen. No need to even speak to my pup when hunting....just enjoy the scenery and moment together...Well worth the $800 price for me.

My only suggested change would be to make it a single action to unlock screen (maybe a long press of a button or on screen option perhaps).

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2014 10:38 pm
by JIM K
skyehunter wrote:Here is one of my early holders I made. I have since made an actual holster lanyard that protects the unit better, i'll take a pic and post.

I have been really happy with my Alpha. Hunted almost every weekend last Quail season and train every weekend for the last 8 months or so with this unit with no problems. I am a bit techy, and have also realized any issues I have had were due to me being unfamiliar with a particular setting. I use the beeper for recall and have hunted heavy deep canyons with no GPS signal loss. Screen brightness is addressed by selecting a brighter screen setting and turning screen so sun does not reflect upon it, i.e. shade it with your hat brim. Birds eye is nice, but not necessary.

I wouldn't want to imagine hunting without it. Fellow hunting partners are regularly asking "have you seen my dog lately" and hollering as I walk about silently, with the occasional glance at the screen. No need to even speak to my pup when hunting....just enjoy the scenery and moment together...Well worth the $800 price for me.

My only suggested change would be to make it a single action to unlock screen (maybe a long press of a button or on screen option perhaps).
your info is correct.
i had about 12 page write up on the ALPHA on SMCNA .
but now you cant read my info .

you are right.
i had problem seeing screen and it was adjustments and colors you display on it.
after i played with it for year i got it way i want .

Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 7:00 pm
by Quailtail
What's everyone using for a holster or how are you carrying the transmitter?

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 9:05 pm
by JIM K
a holster comes with alpha but i only use it in summer walking my dog with t-shirt on.
in woods hunting i use my coat pocket.
i put a lanyard on it too that is bright orange and clip that to my pocket zipper tab in case it falls out on ground in leaves.
it has fallen out of my pocket too at times but having it clip to my coat zipper tab it never hits ground.
make sure you lay the transmitter/collar together until they are working BEFORE putting it on your dog.
if not it may take a while to work and that is not great when your dog is loose in woods.
over 2 yrs now with alpha and its great for me. :D

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Mon Jan 05, 2015 5:20 am
by evilstepdad
Reading the thread I see that someone posted that they had at least a 1 second lag between applying the stimulation and it actually reaching the collar, is this a problem that a lot of you are having or is it about the same speed as the pro 550 etc.?

Looking at the Alpha tt15 so doing some research.

Thanks

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Sat Jan 10, 2015 10:51 pm
by JIM K
cant comment on 1 second lag on collar never noticed it .
the alpha with t10 collar is on sale for 637 on ebay.
that is good deal with t15 costing 800.
i have t10 and its great... :D

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 11:34 pm
by shaneroyce
No lag time on my Alpha/TT15 combo...works great!

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 1:35 am
by evilstepdad
Thanks

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 4:18 pm
by skyehunter
Running a TT10 and TT15 simultaneously and independently..no lag.

For those having lag time...perhaps connect collar and Handheld to a PC and update both. Avoid a Mac, couple friends with Mac had issues after updating, had to hook up to my PC to update and fix.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 6:10 pm
by jfwhit
No lag time. The Alpha is nice to have. I hunt with comfort of knowing where my dog is. He responds to the tone & vibrate well. On one hunt early this year, something spooked him. He took off out of sight. I stimulated him after no tone/vibrate reaction. He stopped and just stood there. I knew right where he was. Went right to him. I would have been wondering where he was. Went right back to hunting with no delays. Basecamp said he went 357 yards in 48 seconds topping 22mph. The park ranger thinks it was wild hogs. Point is. The Alpha kept me in control of him and knowledge of where he was. My hunting partner called it priceless.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2015 2:24 pm
by JIM K
my alpha is going on 2 years or so of daily use 7 days a week.
really no problems with it other than if i forget my reading glasses that is problem.
my collar bright orange is losing its color so i bought that orange duct tape for 4 dollars a roll at wal-mart and put it on collar.
its great and no need to buy a new bright collar.
i put that tape on front of the collar too and boy does Whiskers stick out now and also on the handheld on back in case i drop it..

landyard is must.
screen savers are must
i did blow fuse inside the truck charger plug ,it takes a 2a/250v fast fuse.
you can them at radio shack for 3 bucks for 4 .

only thing i wish it had was way to beep your dog out of sight.but that would hurt you if you use the light tone now to recall your dog.
Whiskers coming running on that tone recall that is great. :D

i read the batterys last from 3/5 years.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2015 7:29 pm
by Ed Wahl
I've learned to always lock the screen before the hunt, had many a weird screen prior to that. I'm using a holster I found on ebay, Gizmovest is the name. It comes with a lanyard also. And yes, screensaver is a must if you're hunting in brush, and I think we all are.

Re: Garmin Alpha?

Posted: Tue Feb 03, 2015 7:57 pm
by JIM K
ED,
leaving collar/unit on table until programmed is big one for me also. i dont put collar on my dog until they are both working.its scary if it does not work after dog is gone to hunt. :o