'96 prostar vs '05 197

[MNshortliner]

Thinking about upgrading to a newer boat. Either a newer 190 or 197. What are the biggest differences I would notice between the older '96 and the a newer prostar. With the MCX engine is perfect pass a plug and play option and is zero off a possibility? And the obvious question is how do the wakes stack up against each other.

I would describe the '96's wake as a slight trough with a soft bump. Skiing 28' and 32' off at 34mph.

[6balls]

For one interior size the 197 is way bigger n has open bow n trunk compared to a 96. Imho 28 off n shorter on a 197 is great. Mcx is a nice power plant.

No comparison those two options for me all things considered n running 28 n shorter.

 

[MNshortliner]

That would be great to have more space and the rear locker. Is the 190 and 197 hull the exact same from the the same years. 2003-2009 I think?

[Andre]

Yes same hull.

[Jordan]

@MNshortliner the EVO hull was introduced 2002. In that year, the 190/197/X7 hulls were identical with one exception, the Tournament Team model had slightly more hook, which improved the wake over the base models. In 2003, the hook was added to all versions, making the 190/197/X7 base and Tournament Team models the same.

 

 

[dabeej20]

The way I understand it, Zero off would need to be a new motor for 05. It's the ECM that is the issue, you need what is called eControl I believe, I do not have the correct ECM for Zero Off in my 07 197 so I have decided to just wait to upgrade boats. I heard some late 07s had the eControls, but I think they came in all of the 08 tournaments teams. Don't quote me on that.

[vtjc]

These two threads on the MasterCraft forum cover the Prostar hull information well and early Zero Off years"

MasterCraft Skier/ProStar/ProStar 190: A History (1968-2009)

MC Zero Off 05-09 Thread

"The full explanation requires a little rewind to understand....

 

2005 - Indmar's MCX goes drive by wire in the 197. Perfect Pass develops a system that interfaces with the ECM/DBW system through the standard Indmar ECM.

 

2006 -The world of speed control is stable. DBW is prevalent in some more MC boats. PP 6.5ng is the norm, still with the Indmar ECM.

 

2007 - Zero Off appears on the scene - in bed with CC. A few 2007 Tournament Team 197's are out there with dual installs of PP6.5ng and Zero Off. These boats have an E-controls ECM instead of the standard Indmar ECM. ZO can only talk to the E-Controls ECM. PP finds a way to make their box talk to an E-Controls ECM for the side by side install. If both are turned on at once - ZO has priority. These few TT boats have the E-controls ECM with multiple plugs for PP and ZO. The PP master module and the ZO head unit talk directly to this ECM.

 

Early 2008 -The world of speed control and tournament skiing is about to be turned upside down by this ZO/PP deal. To make matters worse, ZO and PP are battling over the patent for the GPS differential speed control technology that makes ZO work. PP releases StarGazer. MC releases the 08' TT 197. All 100 boats will have dual installs via the same E-controls multiplug ECM. MC is not allowed to physically install the ZO head into the TT 197 dash, due to some sort of licensing or marketing agreement, probably due to the CC/ZO relationship. TT drivers must do the install themselves. No biggy, takes 5 minutes. Production MCX's still have the standard ECM that cannot talk to ZO. CC promo boats will mostly be ZO. Malibu is in the dark - without the ability to do a ZO install.

 

Summer 2008 - PP and ZO reach an agreement. ZO gets all OEM drive by wire speed control business starting with the 09' model year. Skiers are complaining about early versions of ZO. Diehard perfect pass skiers are flipped out because they can't even upgrade their boats to ZO to practice. The only time they see it is at tournaments or upgrade for 50-60K with a new DBW boat. StarGazer has it's own set of issues. The forums are alive with arguments and bad info.

 

July 2009 - MC ramps up for 2009 production. All OEM speed control installs for the 197 will be ZO in 2009. All 2009 Indmar ECM's will be E-Controls. PP works with Medallion to integrate wakeboard pro into the VDIG for the 09' model year. MC and ZO offer a huge rebate for those electing it in the 214 or 197. 

 

So this leaves us with the answer to your question John. If you wanted to put a stand alone StarGazer system in your 214, it would not be capable of talking to the new E-Controls ECM. It is a stand-alone ECM that does not have the multi-port capability that the 2007 and 2008 TT boats had. 

 

So how can PP work from within the VDIG? Simple - the wakeboard pro software that is in the VDIG resides in the Medallion MMDC. It is a 'middle-man' between the interface and the ECM. An interpreter of sorts. It is unfortunately an interpreter that will forever only know one language - wakeboard pro."

[MNshortliner]

@vtjc thanks for posting that link about prostar history. I remember reading that once but forgot about it

[Bdecker]

Great explanation. I will say that the 05-07 boats do pretty well with the zbox. Maybe this is because they react quicker than a throttle cable. My 05 Tournament Team 197 with zbox seems to be well received by ZO skiers when it stands in due to the ZO boat being away. I’m not saying it is the same, but all boats feel a little different in my opinion and the Zbox does a pretty good job in this application.

 

ZO retrofit is an expensive proposition in pre 07 due to lack of catalytic converters I think. Basically a repower project from what I have been told.

[JohnN]

Your 96 likely skis better than the 05 at those lengths with a softer wake. If it was my money I'd go to a 08 or later and get ZO (better yet a 14 and up if it's affordable). I ski regularly behind a 97, an 05 PP Classic, and an 07/Zbox and everyone seems to prefer the 97 for skiing. FWIW, the best Zbox boat I've skied behind is an Infinity.

[epnault]

If you are going to get a newer boat go for the Zero Off versions of the 197 post 2008. The newer boats handle better, have more room, and options that outweigh the very slim wake differences.

[MNshortliner]

Zero off isn't what I have to have, just asking if it was compatible with the older boat. I would love to get an '08 or newer but those are out of my budget. Just looking to upgrade to a newer boat

[ALPJr]

The '96 is hard to beat imo.