Hydrophase in 212X... WOW!

[Cardsharp]

I installed a Hydrophase Ridesteady system in my 2012 212X last week. All I can say is... wow. I should have done this years ago (I know, it's not been around that long). This year I've upgraded the stereo, added tower speakers, a dual battery, charger, marine amp, lights... the Ridesteady is easily the best upgrade of them all.

I had no idea how much easier controlling rider speed could be. This is literally a boat (life?) changing install.

 

[Dave burke]

@Cardsharp I have a 2017 212x and it has a sort of cruise control if the RPMs are at least 3000. Would you still recommend Ridesteady?

Also, what kind of lights did you add? LED?

Thx.

 

[haknslash]

@Cardsharp I have a 2017 212x and it has a sort of cruise control if the RPMs are at least 3000. Would you still recommend Ridesteady?

Also, what kind of lights did you add? LED?

Thx.

The factory No Wake Mode/Cruise Assist is nothing compared to GPS Ridesteady or PP which are light years better. See @swatski thread on his Ridesteady install and impressions.

 

[sethman919]

Stop teasing us mechanical throttle guys. No love from hydrophase. My PP is working pretty good though.

 

[YamahaCC]

Welcome to the club, I installed it last year and LOVE it! It has been amazing for wake boarding. I have just started to teach my son (7), who got up 1st try from the wake trainer, and it is an absolute must! I set it at 10mph and just go. It keeps the boat at that exact speed without slow/fast to stress the rope and his arms. He is up to about 11.8 right now and climbing!

 

[swatski]

Yeah - what they say.

But the best part of it is - forget bout watersports for a second. That thing is really a fly-by-wire conversion, prefect for cruising at constant RPM with engines synched, making adjustments with a single knob without touching the throttles. Perfect for rough water cruising.
No servos to burn, either.

For watersports - this is the bomb. As you pull riders with different skill levels using various toys your ability to adjust the GPS speed easily and precisely makes it that.

Absolutely fantastic addition to any YJB boat that can run with it.

--

 

[2kwik4u]

Still on my mod list. You guys are making me jealous!

Anyone have some money tree seeds they can send me? I'll take plans to a time machine as well, I'm not picky!

 

[Evil Sports]

I dont do much of the watersports thing but having the ability to run with my engines synced at a steady preset speed for long runs has got me thinking. I hate when the engines are out of sync and my throttles have the dreaded slippage so they dont stay in the same place.

 

[Cardsharp]

In response to Dave Burke's question about comparing it to the RPM system, I have that on my 2012, at least an earlier version of it. I used it all the time when pulling boarders of all kinds. Basically get up to a particular speed, set the RPM and then tap up or down for speed control. I figured it was pretty close to the Hydrophase/PerfectPass stuff. I was wrong.

With the built in RPM control I was constantly tweaking the speed, would over and under set it all the time, and frequently the speed would just sort of creep up. And forget about my wife trying to use it.

The Hydrophase is massively more effective. Being able to tweak overshoot, ramp speed, and speed at a .1 interval is nothing short of amazing. When a rider tells me to slow down surfing I can reliably go from 11.2 to 10.9 with a simple twist of a knob. I used to pull wakeboarders at speeds all over the map, now I can get them to the speed I want and keep them there.

 

[swatski]

I dont do much of the watersports thing but having the ability to run with my engines synced at a steady preset speed for long runs has got me thinking. I hate when the engines are out of sync and my throttles have the dreaded slippage so they dont stay in the same place.

You would be amazed. As long as your boat has the APS (accelerator position sensor?) which it does if you have the 1.8 engines, this is one of the best basic mods. I do not see how you could possibly not like/regret getting the RS.

With a throttle drop, especially in rough conditions, I find it very difficult to keep the twins humming at constant RPM, leave alone in synch. When it gets really choppy - good luck making small throttle adjustments.
The RS makes it easy:

1. I make sure the RS is in the "RPM" mode (not "GPS" - you can not change the modes at speed)
2. throttle up to desired speed
3. adjust the "set" RPM with the knob to roughly match what the engines are doing
   
4. push the ON button to activate the system - and it takes over
5. it may ask for "more throttle" - push them up, or
   
6. push the throttles all the way up where they don't droop - if necessary
   
7. use the knob to adjust RPM/speed (in lieu of electronic "single throttle")

It is fantastic. Money well spent.

As an aside - I have found that the E-throttles are so smooth they can move forward, inadvertently, when hitting a large wake etc. Not ideal. That is not possible with RS.

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[giroux68]

Best money you'll spend. And you will get more time behind the boat at the proper speed (without arguing on throttle techniques) . Also one amazingly simple install for what it does.

 

[MNJets]

I recently installed the RideSteady system on my 2019 212X. I ran into a few snags while installing: 1) In the 2019 212X engine compartment, the ballast electronics are mounted by Yamaha exactly where a person would mount the RideSteady Starboard engine node - the first photo. My original plan was to install the Starboard node higher up in the engine compartment but the leads on the starboard node (and port node) were not long enough to accommodate. My only option was to mount the starboard node below the APS. By mounting the node lower in the engine compartment, there is a concern for water contact. I did use dielectric gel in all of the connections. Out of concern for the ballast tank, I didn't want to drill any screws into the compartment wall. I was able to find Pressure Sensitive Adhesive which was sufficient for mounting.
2) Hydrophase included 15' of wire but you are required to find the Anchor Light wire in the wiring harness under one of the seats. The wire is required as part of the install. Hydrophase explained how to find it in great detail by the color of the wire. The wire jacket wasn't labeled Anchor Light so I made an educated guess that it was the correct wire.
3) The 2019 212X has the larger display Connext System and no gauges in the dash. Therefore, an external controller is required to be mounted in the helm. Most people who shared their installation pictures drilled holes in their dash and slid the "flat" wiring connection through the new slot and into the RideSteady controller box. I believe JetBoatPilot gave me the idea in one of his videos to remove the dash and slide both the GPS wire along with the controller wire into the compartment behind the helm. It was a great idea and prevented me from damaging the interior of my boat. Removing the nuts and lock washers was not a simple task due to the location but I was able to create a large enough gap after loosening the dash only 1/2 way thus preventing a full removal and potential problems when it came time to putting it back together. Hydrophase provided 3M PSA along with a Ram Mount to professionally mount the RideSteady controller. Immediately in front of the dual throttle controls, there is an empty space with a curved convex surface which made for a great mounting location for the bottom of the Ram Mount. Hopefully you can see the details in the attached picture - the Ram Mount is horizontal.

Overall, I'm happy with my purchase and HydroPhase as a company. Thank you to the experienced members in this group for sharing your installation stories along with overall satisfaction / dissatisfaction.

 

[HangOutdoors]

I really want to put it in but they are sold out till sometime in August. Looks like an awesome mod.

 

[Levi Weatherford]

The installation of GPS throttle control is single handily the best modification I have done to our boat. Even if we never did a single water sport I still would love it just for engine sync and consistent speed while cruising down the lake. I actually have a cruise setting saved for 30mph for when we are making long runs back and forth.

 

[Chstockd]

Hi. New to the forum. I recently purchased a Yamaha 212S. It has a Ridesteady system installed. I have played around with it a bit but am struggling to understand how to get the most out of it, the different modes, and set up. Wondering if there are any good “ how to use” videos or resources out there. Thanks in advance.