Gun Dog Supply EXCLUSIVE
One hour of BASIC OBEDIENCE training
from Pro Trainer Robin MacFarlane.
This is the big brother of the 425X. The 825X has a very similar setup as far as stimulation modes and training options. The difference between them is range. This is a half mile range system compared to about 500 yards on the 425X. I prefer it, especially for bird dog folks. 500 yards is a little tight for a bird dog in my opinion. And for not that much more money, you can get the extra range and still have all the same features.
Another thing that I like about the 825X is that the transmitter is a little bit bigger. It fits in my hand better than the 425X. I like the 425X, but the dial and transmitter size are a little small for me.
SportDOG knows how to make dials better than anybody, and that's a big deal to me. If you are used to a dial on a transmitter and you prefer that over some of the newer setups out there, SportDOG makes the best dials. They feel great and it's probably my favorite thing about this particular collar.
I really like the size of the collar. It's small. It's going to fit most dogs really well. Exact same size collar as you've got in the 425X. So, the difference in range is going to be right here in the transmitter.
The SD-825X offers a lot of different stimulation choices. It also has tone and vibration on the dial, which allows you to have both tone and vibration at the same time in several different mode setups.
Another feature is the ability to change stimulation on the collar. This is something exclusive to SportDOG. When you buy this collar and you take it out of the box, it's going to be in what's called their medium stimulation setting. If you have a very sensitive dog and you need to turn it down, there is a low stimulation option. It doesn't change anything on the transmitter, but what it does is it changes the output on the collar. It steps everything down. With the majority of the dogs that I've worked with, the medium setup works great.
Overall, the SD-825X is just an all-around great collar.