Garmin eTrex 32x not working with Viking or GPSBabel

[PeakPete]

Hi All

For a while I've been using an old Garmin eTrex Legend very successfully.  I transfer all my tracks into Viking and sometimes create routes in Viking and transfer these to the GPS.

Recently I bought an eTrex 32x.  I can get this working with BaseCamp but not with Viking. When I do an 'Acquire from GPS' in Viking, Viking tells me 'Acquisition Failed.  The GPS USB is in Garmin mode.  My old eTrex Legend works immediately.

To help diagnose, I then tried GPSBabel directly.  This does not work (not a surprise, as Viking uses GPSBabel).  GPSBabel seems unable to connect to the GPS.  Again, GPSBabel works immediately with my old eTrex Legend.

I can transfer files to/from the eTrex 32x if I put it into USB Mass Storage mode, so it's not a USB hardware issue.  Mass Storage mode is OK, but it's not as convenient as Garmin mode working seamlessly in programs like Viking.

Versions in use are:
eTrex 32x version 2.70
Viking version 1.9
GPSBabel version 1.7.0
Windows 10 Home (20H2)

Anyone got any tips on how to get the eTrex 32x working with Viking / GPSBabel?

Thank you in advance.

Pete

[ninthace]

Welcome,  I use 32x and before that I had a 30 and before that a Summit but I have never met Viking.  I have planned on Memory Map, ViewRanger, the OS site, GoogleEarth and Outdoor Active,  What does Viking do that BaseCamp doesn't.  Or to put it another way, what are you actually trying to do that requires Viking?

[sussamb]

I've never come across Viking before, and never heard it mentioned in this forum, but a quick look shows you can raise tickets direct with them so that may be your best way forward.

[vghikers]

I've never heard of Viking either and I don't use GPS devices, but their SourceForge page says:-

File -- Acquire from GPS:- A way of getting information from GPS Devices using GPSBabel to perform the transfer, typically via serial link connections.

 ::: {.note}

 Only a limited number of devices are supported this way (e.g. Garmin Etrex Legend devices first available ~2003).


For the majority of current (circa 2010-2020) Garmin handheld devices and many other consumer handheld GPS devices (including SatNav style devices sush as the Garmin Nuvi 255) only support a native file system and write information to a current .gpx file or similar. You will have to browse the file system on the device, opening it directly via File -- Open.

[ninthace]

Now I think about it, I had to buy a serial/parallel adapter to connect my old Etrex Summit cable to my laptop and there was some arcane software around in those days to manipulate gpx data in a way that one does not normally do these days.  Digging deep in the recesses of my memory, conversions such as .gpx to .mmo and gpx to kml  and back come to mind.


I am hoping the OP will come back and tell us what they are trying to do.  The Viking software may not be necessary at all for a 32x.

[PeakPete]

Thank you everyone, for the comments and suggestions.

I suppose Viking is 'just another' GPS mapping / route planner / track manager / etc application.  I don't know how it compares to other packages but a) it's free, b) it's standalone (no internet needed) and runs on Linux and c) it just happens to be what I've used over the last 10 years or so.

Viking also supports the 'garmin' protocol.   This allows exchange of routes and tracks with a Garmin GPS without ever seeing a GPX file.  Behind the scenes I'm sure Viking and the GPS are exchanging GPX files.  To import tracks into Viking, you just select Acquire -> From GPS.  This will then use the correct protocol for whatever GPS you're using ('garmin' protocol for Garmin GPSes, for example) and will bring the tracks into Viking.  There's no explorer windows and no copying GPX files from one folder to another.

I don't know whether the other mapping apps mentioned in this thread do this?  Perhaps they do.

All this works nicely with my eTrex Legend but does not work with the eTrex 32x.  But I think I have found a smoking gun.  The GPSBabel help for Garmin receivers says (sorry, this site is not letting me post a link):

The following Garmin GPS receivers are supported, but they do not support Garmin communication protocol and don't work with the garmin option. To use these receivers, read or write GPX files from the mass storage device as mounted on your computer. ... eTrex 30...

I'm pretty sure the eTrex 32x is a newer model of the eTrex 30.  But the odd thing is that in the menus on the eTrex 32x I get to choose whether the USB interface operates in Garmin mode or USB Mass Storage mode.

So I'm still a little bit puzzled, and a support ticket on Viking may be the best way forward.  Copying GPX files between computer and GPS works perfectly - it's just not quite as easy as using the Garmin protocol route.

[ninthace]

To be honest, any of the apps mentioned will do what you appear to want to do.  Garmin's Basecamp is free and is designed to work with Garmin.  You can move the route you have planned to the device by simple drag and drop.  Any track on your device can be moved into BaseCamp the same way.  You can export gpx files from BaseCamp to a folder in your PC.  BaseCamp will also convert a track to a route and vice versa.  Useful if your planned route has more waypoints than your gpx can contain (max 250 per route for a 32x IIRC)


ViewRanger and its successor OutdoorActive are both free in their basic forms and will let also let you plan a route and export it to a gpx device or import a track from a gpx device.  Gpx files can also be exported to a folder in your PC.


The OS app and associated website has similar functionality but requires a subscription as it uses OS mapping,  The previous apps can use different map sources such as OSM.  It is not as versatile in use but as a planning tool it is as good.


One other tool you can use is GoogleEarth.  You can plot a route on the imagery to produce a kml file.  Basecamp can read a kml file and will convert it to a gpx file to export it to your gpx device.


Sorry no practical help on Viking but as you see, there are alternatives.


All the above, with the exception of BaseCamp, I believe, require an internet connect as you have to log in to get access to the planning tools but unless you are sitting in a tent planning with a laptop, that should not be an issue.


The final advantage of tools such as the OS app, ViewRanger and OutdoorActive, is they will also run on a mobile phone as navigation apps without a data signal, so they can act as a back up to, or replacement for, your gps.