- In this video, we take a look at the Protrac II,
which is the premium audible altimeter
from Larsen & Brusgaard.
Let's go.
(upbeat music)
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Before we start, make sure to check down in the descriptions
for the links and notes we're gonna talk about
in this video.
So today, we're talking about the Protrac II
from Larsen & Brusgaard, which is an audible altimeter
which has a logbook feature, so it's very interesting
whenever you wanna track the data of your jump,
so to start off, of course, we're gonna un-box this baby.
(funky music)
So there it is, the Protract II from LB Altimeters,
so first off, let's talk about its design.
Of course, the first element that we notice
is its large LCD screen, which gives an easy and quick
access to a lot of information.
It has a micro-USB port right there, which is used
to transfer the data of the logbook to a software.
Another element about their design is that
I wanted to compare it to other audible altimeters
from LB Altimeters, so I have here with me
the Quatro Audible Altimeter.
Even though we see that their design is pretty similar
in terms of the line and form,
but the size of the Protrac II
is a little bit bigger.
I did try it in my Cookie G3 helmet, and I can say that
it fits well, and even while I had the helmet on,
I didn't feel it, actually, so even though it's bigger,
it's quite comfortable in a Cookie G3 helmet.
Now, let's talk about the warnings that you can set
in the Protrac II.
When you receive it, it's turned off,
but once you turn it on, it's gonna stay like this
as long as you want, so this is useful to make sure
that your audible altimeter is always ready
whenever you go for a jump, but remember, if you wanna
store it for a certain period of time, well,
you can turn it off.
Now, let's talk about the different warnings
that you can set on the Protrac II.
It's very interesting because you have
three types of alarms that you can set,
and in each of those types, you can set up to four alarms,
so the first set of alarms that you can set
are the Climb to Altitude Alarms, so as I said,
you can set four of them, and out of the box,
it comes with one warning at 1,000 feet.
What would you use the climbing alarms for?
Well, for me, as an example, I set it at 1,500 feet,
so that I can unlock my belt.
Then, I have another one at 9,000 feet to start to get ready
and do my gear checks.
I also like to be warned at 11,000 feet to make sure
that I'm ready to jump, and so that I don't forget
to turn on my camera.
The next set of alarms are the high-speed alarms,
which is for free-fall.
It's with that type of alarm that you'll set
your break-off altitude, and your opening altitude.
Next, you can set four low-speed alarms,
which can be used for under a canopy, but also,
if you're doing wing-suiting.
They can be, also, very useful to improve the precision
of your landings by setting the alarms
to your landing patterns points, and it can also
be of great guidance if you wanna do
high-performance landings.
Another very interesting feature is that it has
guide tones, which is actually a series of beeps
between the third and the fourth alarm.
Like I said, you can set up to four alarms per type,
but if you don't need those,
you don't actually need to use all four.
The main advantage of going with the Protrac II
instead of the other audible altimeter
is its logbook feature.
It continuously stores detailed information
about your last 200 or 300 jobs.
I don't know if you're like me, but at the end of the day,
when I've done a lot of jumps, well, I don't always
remember what I did, and how it went, so for that matter,
having something like that where I could track the data
of my jumps, and then put it back in my logbook,
that could be very useful.
Now, let's say you want to export the data.
Then, you can go to the website Paralog.net,
and get access to a software
that is made for the Protrac II.
Next, the Protrac II can also be personalized
to your own, personal settings, so if you go into
the set-up menu, you can set things like
the units of the speed and altitude, and you can also select
different types of dive.
It usually comes out of the box with the normal
type of dive, but if you're doing wing-suiting,
XRW, or something like that, the other modes
can be useful.
The other modes are much more sensitive,
and can log more precise information.
The Protrac II also has two power modes, so whether
it runs on automatic, which means that it's always ready
to jump, always on, so that is useful if you're jumping
frequently, and by doing that, the battery will last
around two years, or 300 jumps, but there's also
the Echo Mode, which allows the unit to run continuously,
and then if there wasn't any jump, or any button pressed
after 14 hours, it will then turn off,
so that's the best mode if you're a weekend jumper,
so this way, during the week, it turns itself off,
even though you didn't think about it,
and to turn it on, when you're ready to go for a jump,
you simply need to press the center button,
and it will turn on.
This mode also helps in saving the battery,
and, of course, you can always manually turn it off,
so here's how you can do it.
You basically go to the screen of the set-up,
and then you simply increase the number
until it reaches 10, so this way, the unit will turn off.
So now, let's set some alarms together
using the Protrac II.
So let's turn it on by pressing the middle key
until we hear the beep.
(alarm beeps)
So now, here's the climbing alarms.
Out of the factory, it's set at 1,000 feet,
so let's change it.
So now, I need to perform the access code,
which is using this small lock right there,
so I press once, wait for a second one, press and hold,
and release when I see the third one.
So now, here, we see I'm working on the first memory
of those four units, so that's another thing.
You can set four alarms per type.
You have three types, and then, you have four
memory banks per type, so that means a lot of alarms,
so let's see.
I'm good with number one, and now,
I'm setting the first one.
I can use the arrows, and I can press and hold
to go faster.
So that's just an example.
Then, I press the middle key, and then I'm gonna go
to the next one, next one, and next one.
Let's see, and then with that, in here,
you see that I can set the sound, or the pitch
of the alarms that I'm setting, so that would be for
the climbing alarms.
(alarm beeps)
And then I can test.
(alarm beeps)
And that's it, so that's pretty easy.
If I wanna go to the next screen, so that would be
the high-speed alarms, then I can set them, as well
by doing the access.
(alarm beeps)
So now, I can go through, that would be
the different memory banks, but then, I can press
in the middle to set the alarms.
(alarm beeps)
And here, again, the sound and the pitch.
(alarm beeps)
As an example, so then, if I go into the low-speed alarms,
which are the canopy alarms, I can also set
the guide tones that I talked about,
so again, let's perform the access,
and here, I can set the four different alarms.
(alarm beeps)
When I come down here, I have off, or on.
By clicking on, we see the G here,
which is for the guide tones.
The sound at three, the pitch at seven.
(alarm beeps)
Let's test it out.
(alarm beeps)
The first, the second, the third, and the fourth.
(alarm beeps)
That's the guide tone.
(alarm beeps)
Whoa, that was a lot of information about the Protrac II.
I'd like to ask you a question.
Let me know in the comment section below,
what is the audible altimeter
that you're jumping right now?
Next, if you wanna have more information
about the Protrac II, the roadmap to use it,
but also, its price, you can find everything
in the description below.
Now, if you wanna watch other videos from SkydiveVibes,
simply click here, and on that, keep jumping,
stay safe, and blue skies.
(funky music)