To Dytter or not to Dytter

[DOA 0]

Hi,
I'm wondering what experianced skygods think of audiable helmet altimeters? I guess having one tucked in your helmets saves having to constantly keep an eye on a wrist mounted alitimeter. I'm thinking experiance leans towards a wrist mounted visual one AND helmet audible, just in case?

Thx
Phil.

-------------------------------------
When I learn new stuff, it pushes the old stuff out of my brain!

[airdvr 210]

Just recently added a dytter to my equipment. I like it alot. Nice to have 3 settings. I use mine as a reminder for breakoff, and the last 2 settings are used to monitor my deployment and hard deck altitudes. But you cannot rely on them, or your altimeter. Use your eyes and your brains. Get to know what 4,000 feet looks like. Any device like an altimeter or dytter can fail.

Please don't dent the planet.

Destinations by Roxanne

[DOA 0]

Thx for the reply.

I'm doing my AFF and FS1 comencing july 8th in Sebastian florida. Planning on buying alot of my gear out there so need advice prior to me going. Thanks again oh and I dig what you're saying about learning what 4000 looks like ;-)

Phil.

-------------------------------------
When I learn new stuff, it pushes the old stuff out of my brain!

[CornishChris 5]

These are the sort of decisions you will make for yourself in time, but I really appreciate my audible. I have, very infrequently, heard it when I have not expected, i.e. when I have got out at 10k instead of 14K and been involved in the jump with my body clock expecting a few more seconds freefall.

None of these devices is to be relied entirely upon but why not arm yourself with the best equipment you can. At the Aussie DZ I used to jump at freefliers were not allowed to jump WITHOUT audibles after a couple of low pulls and a two out
situation.

So buy one, it doesn't cost much and it is very useful, but bear in mind it is NOT a replacement for a wrist mounted alti.

CJP

Gods don't kill people. People with Gods kill people

[darkwing 5]

I have a wrist mount altimeter, a Dytter at my left ear and a Pro-Track at my right ear. I want something to get my attention if I have screwed up. NOBODY is immune to losing track of altitude. Anyone who says otherwise is naive (or worse).

-- Jeff
My Skydiving History

[GravityGirl 0]

I don't advocate audible altimeters for students and new jumpers.

It's important for you to develope a "freefall clock" before you rely on an audible cue.

I'm NOT saying don't get one.

But I would advise that if you decide to purchase one, consider setting the first warning for just BELOW break off. For about the first 100 jumps or so. That way, you are developing your sense of timing and visual reference to the ground and altimeter. As you are tracking off you will hear your audible as a back up. If you hear the warning and you have yet to break off, then you know you are a couple seconds late. It's a back up device.

The other settings can be for pull time and hard deck.

I thinks it's very important to develope survival skills in the early stages of your skydiving career. And waiting to hear a beep is not a survival skill. It's a dependancy.

Disclaimer: This is just my opinion. Worth what you paid for it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peace and Blue Skies!
Bonnie ==>Gravity Gear!

[nate_1979 9]

This is much like what i do... I have audibles, however ALL alerts are set for 500 feet BELOW when I should be taking action, 500ft BELOW breakoff, 500 feet below pull altitude... Only one not set low is hard deck, figure if I hear that something is wrong and I can use all the backup I can get to say "get shit fixed now" I like this, I have never been surprised by it, and i know that if my audible ever does surprise me I need to rethink my priorities in the air.

FGF #???
I miss the sky...
There are 10 types of people in the world... those who understand binary and those who don't.

[DOA 0]

great advice everyone. Thanks again. I had assumed a dytter was to be use along with a wrist mounted alti, having not even jumped yet I wouldnt be confident waiting for a beep in my helmet!

Com'on the 8th July ! I cant wait.

P

-------------------------------------
When I learn new stuff, it pushes the old stuff out of my brain!

[Kris 0]

Quote

great advice everyone. Thanks again. I had assumed a dytter was to be use along with a wrist mounted alti, having not even jumped yet I wouldnt be confident waiting for a beep in my helmet!

To add to what GravityGirl said, when I was an instructor, I never let my students use audibles.

As for the portion of your text I bolded, you never, ever want to wait on those beeps. They should be set just a smidge lower than your actual breakoff and deployment altitudes. If you hear that beep before you've started doing them, then you've just screwed up. You should use your audible as a backup device, not something you depend on. It can fail like anything else.

Sky, Muff Bro, Rodriguez Bro, and
Bastion of Purity and Innocence!™

[Kris 0]

Quote

Disclaimer: This is just my opinion. Worth what you paid for it.

Cheap and good at 5x the price, Bonnie.

Sky, Muff Bro, Rodriguez Bro, and
Bastion of Purity and Innocence!™

[tbrown 26]

I've never jumped with an audible, but am thinking of getting a Pro-Dytter this year, especially if I want to try freefly. Freefly would be all new to me, has faster fall speeds and would require more of my attention as I learn it.

I've known a couple people who've pulled low waiting for their beeper to beep. One of them even had a two out because his Cypres fired as his main was opening. Same thing can happen with a visible altimeter though. Another friend once waited and waited on an altimeter with a stuck needle, ignoring the ground, which was getting HUGE. She opened below a grand and was grounded for 30 days (this was in the old days, before the Cypres came along). They're ALL backups, your eyes and your brain are the best altimeters you'll ever have.

Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

[hookncrater 0]

I love my Pro-Dytter, I want to get another one for my other ear actually. I definately consider them a "must-have" for freeflying.

I was surprised by my first alarm once, a result of an odd exit altitude, and while I didn't go low at all, it was a clue I needed to pull my head out of my ass at 5k.

I wouldn't advocate the use of them for students though. I didn't buy one until I started freeflying somewhere around 100 jumps.

________________________________________________________________________________
when in doubt... hook it!

[Orange1 0]

Quote

I don't advocate audible altimeters for students and new jumpers.

Seems to be instructor-dependent? I asked my instructors about this recently and they said to go for it - "any aid that may help save your life!"- but also with the caveat you and others have expressed re setting it for a couple seconds after breakoff, etc so that you don't become dependent on 'waiting for the beep'. My main motivation is reading one too many incident reports where experienced jumpers have lost altitude awareness trying to fix mals.

Skydiving: wasting fossil fuels just for fun.

[hookncrater 0]

Once you have deployed a canopy, your audible ceases to give warnings. While I don't know if this is true for every model out there, or what the cutoff speed is, I have snivelled and spun through warning altitudes in a partial mal. Nothing can replace your visual altimeter, whether it is looking down once in a while or at your wrist.

________________________________________________________________________________
when in doubt... hook it!

[Kris 0]

Quote

Once you have deployed a canopy, your audible ceases to give warnings. While I don't know if this is true for every model out there, or what the cutoff speed is, I have snivelled and spun through warning altitudes in a partial mal. Nothing can replace your visual altimeter, whether it is looking down once in a while or at your wrist.

Depends on the model, or that specific unit, I'd say. I can set off my Protrack by front-risering my Stiletto. And it's a 190.

I swapped Protracks with a friend and I couldn't set his off, but he could set mine off with his Samurai.

Sky, Muff Bro, Rodriguez Bro, and
Bastion of Purity and Innocence!™

[GravityGirl 0]

Maybe I should be more specific.

I advocate them as a back-up device set slightly below break for new/er jumpers.

Again. I think it's more important to develope that clock. Otherwise, without that instinct, you have no backup if your battery or little electronic device should fail.

Skydivers should remember to develop their human skills as rapidly as the gear is develping. If this balance is thrown off, the incident statistics will reflect it!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peace and Blue Skies!
Bonnie ==>Gravity Gear!

[EvilLurker 2]

I made many jumps with a Dytter and I never heard the thing go off unless I was under canopy. You might want to borrow one and see if you can even hear it before you lay out hard-earned cash like I did. I guess my ears REALLY plug up. I have normal hearing on the ground, after I do a Valsalva (squeeze nose shut and blow to clear my ears). I never heard anyone else say they couldn't hear their Dytter, so maybe I'm some kind of mutant.

[nate_1979 9]

My protrack also gives alerts after I have pulled if I'm going fast enough... , I've been under canopy just flying and the thing goes off, but then again sometimes it does not.. Have yet to figure out what it's thinking.. THen you also have the neptune which has canopy alarms too..

FGF #???
I miss the sky...
There are 10 types of people in the world... those who understand binary and those who don't.

[Fast 0]

The only thing that I don't like about them is the dependancy. I think most people who jump with one on every jump and think they aren't at all dependent on them are only telling a half truth. I had one from about jump 50-350 and when I stopped having one I noticed it right away. I didn't really realize it till I was w/o one for awhile (Still am) but I had become somewhat dependent on it. Even though I thought I mostly wasn't.

Cause a few issues, mostly early breakoffs. As of now its stitting in my gearbag broken because I haven't sent it in to be fixed. I should really do that.

~D
Where troubles melt like lemon drops Away above the chimney tops That's where you'll find me.
Swooping is taking one last poke at the bear before escaping it's cave - davelepka

[windcatcher 0]

Quote

I have a wrist mount altimeter, a Dytter at my left ear and a Pro-Track at my right ear

Me too. I NEVER depend on my audible altimeters, I always look at my visual altimeter and use the audible ones for an extra awareness device.

Mother to the cutest little thing in the world...

• Quote

[Malta_Dog 0]

I use one since 6 jumps. The first WE I set it up for break-off, opening and hard deck alts. Then I thought about it and decided it would be better for a newbie like me to have only one setting at my hard deck (2K) as a reminder if I screw up royally. Like many said, it much more important to develop the internal clock and the ability to eyeball the opening altitude.

IMHO and instructors please correct me if I'm wrong, I don't think that an audible is a good thing for an AFF student. Heck, I even don't think it's wise to buy gear before the end of student status...

All your dropzone are belong to us!!!!111!

[Erroll 80]

Quote

IMHO and instructors please correct me if I'm wrong, I don't think that an audible is a good thing for an AFF student.

I am not an instructor, but as I recall from my own AFF training, altitude awareness practice is an integral part of every AFF jump. I doubt that Dytters are even allowed. In my opinion they would also defeat the whole object of the C o A.

[Dumpster 0]

Fast - Give me your broken dytter this weekend and I'll have it taken care of for you -

I'll admit I've become a little dependent on mine - When I jump without one I am constantly checking my wrist. They're a nice little device to have, but not a gotta-have, particularly for a belly-flyer.

Easy Does It

[hymandd732 0]

Two thousand jumps and never had an audible device. Here is what I have done since my first jump in 1965. Assuming an exit altitude above 7K. I jump and in about 15 seconds check my altimeter. After that it is all eyeball. I usually get open above 1K which gives me time to deploy a reserve because my first look at the open canopy is decision time for me. When in doubt, get it out!! I am still kicking at 78 years.

[rehmwa 2]

Quote

I usually get open above 1K

meters, yards, feet, cubits, furlongs, miles, inches?

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants