Topcon HiPer II

We bought a pair about 2 months ago. They work really well. We bought them with built in low power radios and an external TRL35 radio, which is a 35 watt radio. The range with the external radio is great. We had a original set of Hiper GD's that were some of the first ones made with an external Pac Crest 35 watt radio. It seems like the range with the new radio, even though its the same wattage, is 2 to 3 times greater. 10 miles wasn't a problem.

Our old system didn't have Glonass, and that works well and allows the system to fix very quickly and topo in places you couldn't before. We have a local permanent base run by the university that we often hook up to with just our rover. We may not use that anymore since it doesn't have Glonass on it. It works that much better with Glonass that we are thinking its worth the time to set up our own base.

The only problem we had was we didn't buy a new data collector but upgraded the software on our Ranger to work with the new Hiper II's. That part was a nightmare. We had trouble getting the upgrade, and then it was a bit of a struggle to get it working with the Hiper II's. Its working now and it works well, although the new version of Survey Pro is a little bit buggy at times. I'd recomend getting a new data collector.

As far as the software goes, its O.K. Nothing we really use. We don't post process very often, and when we do, its still a very old version of Javads software that Topcon bought into, called Pinnacle. We got it with our original Hipers about 10 years ago. By now its really outdated. The software that came with the system is really just for uploading firmware, downloading static files, and its simple to use. The system uses memory cards, and a cheap card will hold a lot of static data compared to the built in memory of our old Hipers.

Thanks for the input, Dodge Man!

I have a couple of old Trimble units. I need to get narrow-band compliant; sounds like a great excuse to upgrade. The price of a TRMR8 is upwards of $20,000 each and it's newest sibling is weighing in at $26,000. No way can I afford to stick with Trimble.

I like to use the raw data from the receivers. I will use the RTK as a navigation tool and run a fast-static session on what ever I find after "Stake Out". I then switch over to "Data Collection (Survey Pro)" and collect at 5 sec intervals, all the while never powering the rover off or creating a new file in the internal memory. The file out of the rover imports into TBC and since we are speaking Trimblese, the "stop and go" dynamic of the file imports as it should, culling out the "roving" data. Station name, description and rod height come along for the ride as well. I would like to continue to use TBC, but I'm afraid converting a Topcon file to RINEX will strip out the "stop and go" aspect of the raw file and it will not import or process properly. The functionality of the Topcon software is going to make or break my decision. This will all come out in the wash soon. A local Topcon dealer is going to let me demo the equipment/software in conjunction with my DC, laptop and adjustment software. Can't wait to see what happens!

Is anyone exporting from the Topcon processor (Magnet?) to Star*Net?

I suspect it will work with your softwarek, you just might have to make a new file for the new shot. Its not a big deal, its just a matter of hitting one button on the side of the receiver.

I initially liked the Hiper II ... as a base anyway... but over this past year of being a base in Alaska's environmental conditions it couldn't hold up and started failing. It's always the last two receivers left in our equipment pool when crews go out. Much preferring the GR-5, GR-3, and Hiper family. Batteries seem to last 4 hours before changing out or as we do plug in an external...lots of led flashing lights...beeps...and a digital voice in English that lets you know status of receiver prob contribute to more energy consumption then needed. feels a little clumsy on the stick as a rover and the inverted antenna (trimble R8 rip off) is awkward to remove from the bayonet mount in its tight placement between the plastic shell design of the body especially with someone with bigger hands ...

> of the body especially with someone with bigger hands ...

You know what they say about a guy with big hands......:-S

Got a pair month ago . all i can say is they are fantastic . nothing bad to say . They will fix in places you would not suspect. great value .Carlson software plays nice with them. You can shut off voice commands and sounds with the comm software.

Thanks for the feedback Daryl.

I don't think I will be putting them through the rigors you have, but I do plan on having these for a while. What exactly failed on the units? Do you use the Topcon processing software? I'm installing a trial version right now.

What did you pay for the TRLl-35??

Fixing in places that you would not expect isn't always a good thing. I've had an Altus fix in my office. Who wants to bet it was right?

> What did you pay for the TRLl-35??

X 2

I bought a pair last spring, using just the internal 1 watt radios have been
very impressed with how far they will go. This is SE Ohio .. hilly but have had
no problems with range on small 200+/- ac farms. They fix under the trees and now
with the leaves off .. just about anywhere. By "fixed" I mean post processed vectors
from multiple base locations adjusted in StarNet. I post process in Topcon Tools
then export .tvf files to StarNet and mix it up with TS files if needed. I have
never used Topcons collector and opted for MS FieldGenius with the Nautiz X7.

I love them when they work. I had to send back the rover after the first month
when it quit receiving Glonoss sats. Hayes replaced it overnight. Now the same
thing going on with the Base... just got it back and seems to be working now.

> I post process in Topcon Tools then export .tvf files to StarNet and mix it up with
> TS files if needed.

I downloaded the latest version of Office Tools to run in DEMO mode. The first thing I did was to try and import 4 *.12o RINEX files from CGPS. For some reason it wouldn't recognize the file format. What gives? I read somewhere that this could be done automatically "in the cloud" where it would find the appropriate obs for the date and time and based on pre-set parameters, select the available CORS data and import. I dunno bout that, sounds a little to automated for me to trust it to do the right thing.

Which version of Star*Net are you running?

I am using the new version 7 from MicroSurvey.