The Spectra SP60 is one of many GPS receivers on the market. Spectra is the little brother of Trimble. But Trimble is very large and Spectra focuses on a different market with the same technology. And one of the products they do this with is the SP60 GNSS receiver.
The Spectra SP60 is a GPS receiver that is ideal for surveying in more difficult conditions. This is mainly due to the Z-blade technology, which means that this GPS receiver is not tied to a certain number of GPS satellite signals, because the satellite signals from BEIDOU, GLONASS and GALILEO can compensate for the lack of GPS satellite signals. The Spectra SP60 therefore performs well with trees. And although this GPS receiver is a bit more difficult to set up, it works great with the surveying app Apglos Survey Wizard.
To clarify everything about this topic, we will answer the following questions in this article:
- What is a Spectra SP60?
- What are the advantages of the Spectra SP60?
- Which variants of the Spectra SP60 are there?
- What are the specifications of the Spectra SP60?
- Where can one buy a Spectra SP60?
- Where can you find the manual for the Spectra SP60?
- What is the best software for surveying with the Spectra SP60?
Spectra SP60: the solution
You may not be able to read this entire article. That is why there is another opportunity to find out more about this GPS receiver from Spectra Geospatial.
You can try a GPS measuring system via this website. Please look directly at this page. Please indicate in the comments when ordering that you would like to try a Spectra SP60.
You can request a demonstration of one of our GPS measuring systems on the same page. During this demonstration you can ask specific questions about Spectra SP60 and of course also about other topics related to GPS surveying.
If you do not have time for a demonstration or if you just want to try the best software for this GPS receiver, that is possible. Apglos Survey Wizard is the easiest software to perform GPS measurements with this GPS receiver or any other GPS receiver. You can download it for free from the Google Play Store.
The Apglos Survey Wizard surveying app has full functionality with the GPS of your Android device. So you can fully test this app and it is free.
Of course, the accuracy of our GPS receivers, and therefore also that of this GPS receiver, is better than that of standard Android devices. So if you want to do a test with an accurate system, take a look at this page.
What is a Spectra SP60?
The Spectra SP60 is a GPS receiver. This GPS receiver determines the exact position using satellite signals. Depending on the receiver variant, the antenna receives satellite signals from the GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO and BEIDOU constellations. This GPS receiver from Spectra Geospatial converts these satellite signals into longitude, latitude and altitude.
The name of this GPS receiver already indicates that this receiver was built and developed by Spectra Geospatial. The company Spectra Geospatial falls under the well-known company Trimble. Trimble is a large company that has many products for surveying, such as GPS receivers, total stations, etc.
Spectra Geospatial also has its advantages with this. It can use Trimble’s technology. And with a Spectra SP60 you can also benefit from this.
What are the advantages of the Spectra SP60?
But then the question quickly arises. What are those advantages? What are the technologies that Spectra Geospatial can use for this GPS receiver.
There are many GPS receivers. And basically they all do the same thing. They determine the position based on satellite signals. And then it’s up to the user to do something with that position.
However, the Spectra SP60 has a number of technical features / advantages that distinguish this GPS receiver from other GPS receivers.
Many possibilities
The Spectra SP60 GPS receiver has many options. It can transmit many different signals and can therefore be used with many different software packages. Some software packages require specific signals from the GPS receiver. And this GPS receiver can deliver that.
I will write more about which surveying software package works best with this GPS receiver later in this article.
In addition, the Spectra SP60 has many communication options. This makes radio traffic possible. This allows this GPS receiver to serve both as a rover and as a base station.
But it also has a modem. This makes it possible to connect to a base station from a correction network via NTRIP. In this way, the Spectra SP60 works like a network rover.
This GPS receiver can be connected via Bluetooth or via a cable to all kinds of devices that require precise position data.
In short, the Spectra SP60 is a versatile GPS receiver with many options.
Can measure in difficult conditions: Z-blade technology
If you have a GPS receiver, you want to be able to measure in as many ways as possible. With GPS this is not always possible, because the position determination depends on the number of satellites that the GPS receiver receives.
However, the Spectra SP60 is slightly different. While other GPS receivers must always be based on GPS satellite signals, this does not apply to this GPS receiver from Spectra Geospatial.
Other GPS receivers must therefore receive a minimum number of GPS satellite signals, regardless of how many satellite signals are received from the other satellite constellations GLONASS, GALILEO and BEIDOU. Without sufficient GPS satellite signals, the GPS receivers cannot determine an exact position.
This is different for the Spectra SP60. The Z-blade technology equates the satellite signals from all satellite constellations. They are all equally important. This allows the Spectra SP60 to determine an exact position even when it is not receiving any GPS satellite signal. Of course, this GPS receiver must also receive sufficient other satellite signals.
This GPS receiver is therefore not so dependent on the GPS satellite signals.
A comparison was therefore made between the Spectra SP60 with Z-blade technology and a comparable GPS receiver from the same price range without this technology.
On the left you see the points that could be measured with the GPS receiver without Z-blade technology and on the right you see the location where measurements could be made with a Spectra SP60.
In concrete terms, as you can see above, it means that when you measure with a Spectra SP60, you can measure at more locations under more difficult conditions. And that is of course a big advantage.
Long distance Bluetooth
The Spectra SP60 also has a special Bluetooth module that is suitable for long-distance connections of about 100 m. This makes it possible to create a basic rover solution using Bluetooth.
A rover basic solution is easier to set up with Bluetooth than with radios, for example. This will also make setting up a basic rover solution faster.
Anti-theft technology
The Spectra SP60 represents significant value. Spectra has therefore built in anti-theft technology.
This technology ensures that fewer Spectra SP60s are stolen.
When it is turned on as a base and the Spectra SP60 notices that it is being moved, this GPS receiver will sound an audio alarm. It also ensures that the GPS receiver no longer functions.
Stealing this GPS receiver is therefore of no use and this is now also known to thieves and the like.
Which variants of the Spectra SP60 are there?
This GPS receiver has many advantages. But like many manufacturers, Spectra Geospatial also offers a number of variants of the Spectra SP60.
There are actually two variables that distinguish between the variants of this GPS receiver.
The first variable is the type of satellite signals that this GPS receiver receives. One variant only receives GPS satellite signals and the other variant receives GLONASS, GALILEO and BEIDOU in addition to GPS.
In addition, the satellite constellations contain different types of satellites. Here too, you can choose whether the GPS receiver only receives the basic satellites or whether it also receives the signals from the newer satellites.
The second variable is whether or not it has a radio in it. A radio is only needed to set up a rover base setup. This is therefore not often necessary in the Netherlands.
What are the specifications of the Spectra SP60?
One of the most important specifications concerns which satellites the Spectra SP60 can receive. Depending on the variant, this GPS receiver can receive GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO and BEIDOU. So it works with all satellite constellations.
But each satellite constellation also has its own type of satellites. For example, GPS has the types of satellites L1, L2 and L5. Depending on the variant, this GPS receiver can only receive L1 and L2. For GLONASS this applies to types L1 and L2.
This receiver can receive a maximum of types E1, E5a, E5b from the GALILEO satellite constellation.
And for BEIDOU, this GPS receiver can receive a maximum of types B1 and B2.
The more satellite signals the GPS receiver can receive, the easier it becomes to measure under more difficult conditions. The Spectra SP60 can receive a fairly large number of satellite signals. Moreover, as explained above, it works with the Z-blade technology.
Ultimately, the type of satellite signals the Spectra SP60 can receive is just one specification. There are of course many more specifications for this GPS receiver. All these specifications have been collected by Spectra Geospatial in a clear specification sheet.
You can download that specification sheet here .
Where can one buy a Spectra SP60?
The best place to buy the GPS receiver from Spectra Geospatial is at Apglos BV, of which GPS-systeem.nl is part. Apglos BV is an official dealer of Spectra Geospatial.
If you are interested in this receiver, please contact us.
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This website currently does not contain a complete GPS measuring system with the Spectra SP60. This has a number of reasons.
The price of this GPS receiver is higher than the GPS receiver that we have on our buy and try page. The price is between €4000 and €9500 for the GPS receiver alone. The price of course depends on the variant you choose.
The explanation that there is a large price difference between the Emlid Reach RS2 and the Spectra SP60 is quite simple. Both basically do the same thing. But of course there are differences. Spectra Geospatial has further developed this GPS receiver. They have existed longer than Emlid. You can also read this in the advantages of the Spectra SP60 that I mentioned.
In addition, there are different variants of this GPS receiver. There is only one variant for the Emlid Reach RS2.
Both reasons ensure that if you are interested, we will be happy to give you personal advice. We want to ensure that when you choose a high-quality GPS receiver, you choose the right one that you can use. And so you can measure how you want.
It is therefore wise to contact us if you are interested in this GPS receiver from Spectra Geospatial.
Where can you find the manual for the Spectra SP60?
The Spectra SP60 is easy to operate once it has been properly set up. There is one button to turn it on and off. This is located on the bottom of the GPS receiver.
There are two LEDs on either side of this. These LEDs provide indications about data storage in the receiver, the Bluetooth connection, the radio connection and position accuracy.
So the use is quite simple. Setting it up is a bit more difficult. To do this, see the video below to see how to set up the Spectra SP60.
Fortunately, there is also a manual for this GPS receiver. The manual explains more about how to set up this GPS receiver and how to use it. You can download this manual here .
What is the best software for surveying with the Spectra SP60?
You can’t do much with just a GPS receiver. This also applies to the Spectra SP60. To survey you also need surveying software. But there are several surveying software packages.
For everyone I recommend using Apglos Survey Wizard. This is a simple surveying app that can be used by anyone, without requiring much study. Apglos Survey Wizard is intuitive.
And this surveying app works great with this GPS receiver. Many people use this combination without any problems. You can also download this app yourself from the Google Play Store.
Final conclusion about Spectra SP60
This was a whole article about this GPS receiver. There is a lot to report on this topic of GPS surveying. We hope that you have learned at least a few things from it and that you can benefit from them.
However, everything written in this article is theory. If you want to put this theory into practice, you can.
You can try a GPS measuring system with a Spectra SP60 via this website. Please indicate when ordering that you would like to try a Spectra SP60 from Spectra Geospatial. If you do that, you can immediately put into practice what you learned by reading this article. And you can see whether working with this GPS receiver from Spectra Geospatial is something for you.
Of course, when you try or buy one of our GPS measuring systems, you will receive a short and clear explanation, so that you can get started right away.
If you would like a demonstration first, you can also request one via the pages mentioned above. During a demonstration or a brief explanation you can also ask specific questions about Spectra SP60.
Demo inplannen? Dat kan via whats!
