Try the full study dashboard free, no signup: practice, flashcards and your Exam Readiness Score. Open it →
ABYCExamPrep
Start free
Home / Practice tests / NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI)
NMEA · Last updated November 2026

Advanced Marine Electronics Installer (AMEI): free practice test

NMEA's advanced installer credential for complex electronics on larger vessels, earned by passing a 50-question open-book exam at the end of an in-person class. Topics are marine computers, data and Ethernet, DSC, radar, autopilots, NMEA 0183, heading sensors, satellite communications and TVRO, AIS and cybersecurity. NMEA warns the exam is very hard without field experience on this equipment and reports an average pass rate of 75% since 2019.

Start the free 15-question testRead the study guide

Watch the free 4:18 video lesson: the key NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) concepts →

Premium: 3,000 practice questions, 6 full mock exams, 800 flashcards and 60 comprehensive key notes, topic by topic. See the study path ·

Or open the free NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) study dashboard: flashcards, notes and your Readiness Score, no signup →

About the NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) exam

NMEA's advanced installer credential for complex electronics on larger vessels, earned by passing a 50-question open-book exam at the end of an in-person class. Topics are marine computers, data and Ethernet, DSC, radar, autopilots, NMEA 0183, heading sensors, satellite communications and TVRO, AIS and cybersecurity. NMEA warns the exam is very hard without field experience on this equipment and reports an average pass rate of 75% since 2019.

What's on the exam

NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI)
Radar Installations
7 key facts
Autopilot and Heading Sensor Installations
7 key facts
NMEA 0183 Installations
7 key facts
DSC and AIS Installations
7 key facts
Data, Ethernet and Marine Computer Installations
7 key facts
Satellite Communications and TVRO Installations
6 key facts
Cybersecurity for Vessel Networks
6 key facts

Each branch is a topic in the official outline. Members see every key fact on the full mind map. Read the free study guide →

How to pass the NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) exam

  • Open book does not mean easy: with 80% to pass you can miss only 10 of 50, and NMEA reports about a quarter of candidates fail. Tab the NMEA 0400 sections for radar, autopilot, AIS and 0183 so you can find a figure in seconds.
  • Questions assume you have installed the equipment. If you have never set up an autopilot rudder feedback unit or a Class A AIS, read the manufacturer's installation manual for one before the class.
  • For NMEA 0183, know the wiring (A to A, B to B), baud rates (4800 standard, 38,400 high speed) and sentence structure, including the checksum.
  • Commissioning is a theme across topics: radar bearing alignment, autopilot dockside setup and sea trial, AIS static data and DSC position input are all things you must check before handing the boat back.

Save your results and get your Readiness Score

Create a free account after the test: your score by topic, a mistakes bank, the complete study notes for the first topic, flashcards and the ABYC Numbers & Formulas Sheet.

Take the test first

What's in the premium NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) prep

Premium NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) prep is studied one topic at a time. Each step starts with that topic's key notes and flashcard deck, then its own question sets of 25, so you master one topic before you move to the next. When every topic is strong, the 6 full mock exams show you're ready.

3,000practice questions, every answer explained
6full-length mock exams, 50 questions each, timed
800flashcards with spaced repetition, sorted by topic
60comprehensive key notes across 7 topics

Your step-by-step study path

  1. 1
    Radar Installations9 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 450 practice questions in 18 sets of 25
    Notes free with an account
  2. 2
    Autopilot and Heading Sensor Installations9 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
    Premium
  3. 3
    NMEA 0183 Installations9 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
    Premium
  4. 4
    DSC and AIS Installations9 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
    Premium
  5. 5
    Data, Ethernet and Marine Computer Installations8 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
    Premium
  6. 6
    Satellite Communications and TVRO Installations8 key notes, 115 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
    Premium
  7. 7
    Cybersecurity for Vessel Networks8 key notes, 110 flashcards, then 425 practice questions in 17 sets of 25
    Premium
  8. Final step: 6 full mock exams50 questions each, timed like test day. Pass them, then book your exam.
    Premium
Free with an account

Read the complete NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) study notes for “Radar Installations”

Our first full set of comprehensive notes, about 13 minutes of reading: Choosing the location · Antenna and beam · Power and cabling · Commissioning, a worked exam example, the traps examiners use and a one-minute recap. Create a free account to read it and see how premium notes work before you decide.

Open the free dashboard

Study tools included

3,000 practice questions

3,000 exam-style questions per exam, organized topic by topic in sets of 25. Every answer explained, with the rule it comes from.

6 full mock exams

6 full-length timed mock exams per exam, with real question counts and time limits, so test day feels like practice day.

Exam Readiness Score

One 0 to 100 number that tells you when you're ready to book. Reach 80 and you're covered by our Pass Guarantee.

800 flashcards + spaced repetition

800 flashcards per exam, in a deck for each topic, that come back right before you'd forget them. Five minutes a day keeps every number fresh.

60 comprehensive key notes

60 key notes per exam, split across its topics and each explained in full: the concepts, worked exam examples, the traps examiners use and a quick recap. Your first set is free with an account.

Mind maps

See the whole exam on one screen: every topic and the facts under it.

Sample questions with answers

These are the questions in the free test above, with answers. Try the test first. You'll learn more by getting some wrong.

1. A 4-ft open-array radar is planned for a low mount on a flybridge hardtop where guests stand. What is the main safety concern with this location?
Answer: Guests' heads would be inside the radiated beam. Radar emits RF energy in a fan-shaped beam, so people must not stand in its plane at close range. Mount the scanner above head height and observe the maker's safe distance. Antenna shadowing and range are real installation factors, but exposure of people is the safety issue.
2. During commissioning, a buoy that is dead ahead by eye shows on the radar 6° to starboard of the heading line. What is the correct fix?
Answer: Adjust the radar's bearing alignment in setup. A constant bearing error on the radar picture is corrected with the radar's bearing (heading line) alignment during commissioning, using a target dead ahead. Rotating the heading sensor would corrupt heading for the autopilot and every other user, and gain only changes echo strength.
3. When fitting a rudder feedback unit, how should the linkage be set up so the reported angle tracks the rudder accurately?
Answer: With the rudder centered, the arms parallel and equal in length. A parallel linkage with equal arm lengths makes the feedback arm move through the same angle as the rudder, so the reading stays accurate across the full range. Calibration sets the end points and center, but it cannot fully correct a badly nonlinear linkage.
4. On sea trial in calm water, a newly installed autopilot keeps steering past the set course and swinging back, so the boat snakes. Heading and rudder feedback check correct. What should be adjusted first?
Answer: Reduce the rudder gain (response) setting. Snaking around a correct heading means the pilot is applying too much rudder for each degree of error, so it overshoots. Reduce rudder gain (or the response level). Raising gain makes it worse; swapped feedback wires would drive the rudder hard over rather than cause a gentle oscillation.
5. A steel-hulled trawler has large, shifting compass deviation, and the owner wants reliable heading for the autopilot and radar overlay. What heading source should you recommend?
Answer: A satellite (GNSS) compass with dual antennas. A satellite compass measures true heading from the phase difference between two GNSS antennas, so hull magnetism does not affect it, and it outputs heading and rate of turn at a fast rate. Course over ground is not heading at low speed or in current, and any magnetic sensor still suffers from the steel hull.
6. A radar's NMEA 0183 input stays blank after an installer wires the GPS talker's A (+) to the radar's B (−) and the GPS's B (−) to the radar's A (+). Both are set to 4800 baud. What is the fix?
Answer: Swap the pair so A goes to A and B goes to B. NMEA 0183 uses a differential RS-422 pair, and reversed polarity inverts every bit so the listener reads nothing valid. Wire talker A to listener A and B to B. 0183 does not use CAN-style terminators, and the baud rates already match.
7. A radar's single NMEA 0183 input must receive position from a GPS and heading from a separate heading sensor, each a separate 0183 talker. What is the correct solution?
Answer: Combine both talkers through an NMEA 0183 multiplexer. NMEA 0183 allows one talker per listener input; two talker outputs wired together fight each other and corrupt the data. A multiplexer listens to several talkers and merges their sentences onto one output. One talker can feed several listeners, but not the reverse.
8. An owner obtained an MMSI through a US recreational boating association and now plans a cruise to the Bahamas. What should the installer advise before the DSC radio is used there?
Answer: A domestic-only MMSI is not valid for international voyages. MMSIs issued by US agents such as BoatUS or Sea Tow are for vessels staying in US waters. A vessel going to a foreign port needs an FCC Ship Station License, which issues an internationally registered MMSI. Changing an MMSI already stored in many radios also needs the maker or dealer to reset it.
9. The owner wants one VHF antenna to serve both the VHF radio and a new Class B AIS transponder. What does the installation need?
Answer: An AIS/VHF antenna splitter rated for transponders. An active antenna splitter switches the antenna between the VHF and the AIS so one does not transmit into the other's receiver, and it prioritizes the VHF. A plain T would put transmitter power into the other unit and mismatch the line. AIS uses VHF channels 87B and 88B through a VHF antenna.
10. When commissioning a Class A AIS transponder, which static data must the installer enter so other vessels' displays draw the ship's outline and position correctly?
Answer: GNSS antenna distances from bow, stern, port and starboard. The A, B, C and D dimensions (GNSS antenna position measured from bow, stern, port side and starboard side) let receivers draw the vessel's size and offset the reported position correctly. MMSI, name, call sign and ship type are also entered; speed, fuel and contact details are not AIS static data.
11. An IP camera on a vessel network disappears intermittently, and the MFD reports an IP address conflict. Both the camera and a satellite modem are set to the same static address. What is the fix?
Answer: Give each device a unique address outside the DHCP range. Two devices with the same IP address cause intermittent loss of whichever one the network last learned. Give static devices unique addresses outside the DHCP pool so the router never hands out a duplicate. Cable category and crossover cables do not cause an address conflict.
12. A helm computer reboots every time the main engines are cranked. What is the best installation fix?
Answer: Power it from a DC-DC supply that rides through cranking dips. Engine cranking pulls battery voltage down briefly, and a computer resets when its supply sags below its minimum. A marine DC-DC supply with wide input range (or a supply from a separate house bank) holds the output steady. A bigger fuse changes nothing, and the backbone cannot supply a computer's current.
13. A satellite TV (TVRO) dome is planned on the same arch as a radar scanner. Where should the dome go?
Answer: Out of the radar's beam, clearly above or below the scanner. Radar energy can overload or damage the dome's LNB and electronics, so place the dome outside the radar beam's vertical spread, above or well below the scanner's plane, and also clear of masts that would block its view of the satellite. A dome beside the scanner sits right in the beam.
14. You install a Wi-Fi router that connects the vessel's MFD network to guests' phones and marina Wi-Fi. What is the most important security step before handover?
Answer: Change default passwords and keep guests on a separate network. Default admin credentials are public, so change them, and separate guest and internet traffic from navigation equipment (a separate SSID or VLAN). Disabling updates leaves known flaws unpatched, and one shared password means any guest could reach the helm systems.
15. A customer emails you a firmware file for their autopilot that a forum member posted, saying it fixes a known bug. What should you do?
Answer: Use only firmware from the maker's official source, checked first. Firmware from an unofficial source can contain malware or be built for different hardware, and a bad autopilot update can disable steering. Download updates only from the manufacturer, check the version and release notes, back up settings and update at the dock.

Get the full NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) prep

Most popular · cancel anytime

Premium Monthly

$147/month
per exam
About $4.83 a day · less than an hour of shop time, for the certification customers and insurers look for
  • One ABYC exam of your choice: any of the 10 certifications, from Marine Electrical to USCG Regulations
  • 3,000 practice questions + 6 full mock exams per exam
  • 800 flashcards + 60 key notes per exam, by topic, plus mind maps
  • Spaced repetition + mistakes bank
  • Readiness Score & detailed reports
  • Video lessons as they release
  • Content updates during your access
  • 5 bonuses: numbers and formulas sheet, standards map, study planner and more
  • Pass Guarantee: complete the prep, pass or 100% back

Renews monthly until you cancel. Cancel in two clicks from your account; you keep access until the end of the month you've paid for. No minimum term.

Best value · 3 months free

Premium Yearly

$1,323/year
per exam
Pay for 9 months, get 12. Save $441 against paying monthly.
  • One ABYC exam of your choice: any of the 10 certifications, from Marine Electrical to USCG Regulations
  • 3,000 practice questions + 6 full mock exams per exam
  • 800 flashcards + 60 key notes per exam, by topic, plus mind maps
  • Spaced repetition + mistakes bank
  • Readiness Score & detailed reports
  • Video lessons as they release
  • Content updates during your access
  • 5 bonuses: numbers and formulas sheet, standards map, study planner and more
  • Pass Guarantee: complete the prep, pass or 100% back

Renews once a year until you cancel. We email you before each renewal. Cancel any time from your account; you keep access until the end of the year you've paid for.

Pass Guarantee. Complete the full prep, sit your exam within 60 days, and if you don't pass we refund 100% of your subscription payments. See the requirements
Secure checkout by Stripe Card, Apple Pay, Google Pay Pass Guarantee

NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) exam FAQ

How many questions are on the NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) exam?

50 multiple-choice questions, with a time limit of taken at the end of the training day. nmea does not publish a time limit for the initial exam; the renewal test is 50 questions with a 1-hour limit. Format: open book, multiple choice, in person only. course materials include printed slides and an electronic copy of the nmea 0400 installation standard. the credential is issued only once you also have one year of verified field experience.

What is the passing score for NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI)?

80% or higher. One proctored retake within 90 days; after that, re-attend the class at a 50% discount.

How much does the NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) exam cost?

US$520 NMEA member, US$1,040 non-member, for the class and exam. NMEA Trade membership includes one free installer course. Renewal every 3 years: US$100. ABYC charges members less than nonmembers, so confirm current fees with ABYC before you book.

Which languages is the NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) exam offered in?

English.

Where do I take the NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) exam?

NMEA instructors, in person only, at the end of a one-day class (see NMEA's training schedule); the exam is not sold on its own.

Is this NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) practice test free?

Yes. The 15-question practice test on this page is free, with an explanation for every answer and no signup. A free account also unlocks the complete study notes for the first topic. The full NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) prep is Premium at $147 a month for this exam.

What's in the premium NMEA Advanced MEI (AMEI) prep?

3,000 practice questions organized topic by topic (Radar Installations: 450; Autopilot and Heading Sensor Installations: 425; NMEA 0183 Installations: 425; DSC and AIS Installations: 425; Data, Ethernet and Marine Computer Installations: 425; Satellite Communications and TVRO Installations: 425; Cybersecurity for Vessel Networks: 425), 6 full-length timed mock exams of 50 questions, 800 flashcards and 60 comprehensive key notes split across all 7 topics, plus a mistakes bank and the Readiness Score.

Related practice tests

NMEA

Certified Marine Electronics Technician (CMET)

NMEA's highest certification for marine electronics technicians.

15 free questions3,000 premium Qs · 6 mocks · 800 flashcards · 60 key notes
Start free test →
NMEA

National Marine Electronics Technician (NMET)

The NMET exam is identical to the CMET exam: the same experience-based questions on installing, troubleshooting and repairing marine electronics, drawn from one pool.

15 free questions3,000 premium Qs · 6 mocks · 800 flashcards · 60 key notes
Start free test →
NMEA

Basic Marine Electronics Installer (BMEI)

NMEA's entry-level installer certificate, showing a working knowledge of the NMEA 0400 Installation Standard.

15 free questions3,000 premium Qs · 6 mocks · 800 flashcards · 60 key notes
Start free test →

Exam details are summarized from the official candidate information available in November 2026. ABYC changes formats and fees, so confirm with National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA) before you book. ABYCExamPrep is not affiliated with the American Boat & Yacht Council.

Start the free test