Fish / Depth finders.....

[Hawkeye]

What do you use, and how do you like it.

If money were no object, what would you buy and why?

I'm bored..... getting ready to go buy bread and milk (and look at a boat) and I wanted something to read when I get back. I know we had a nice thread on fishfinders on the board before "the crash".....

See you in a little bit...

Oh, I've got an old Lowrance that doesn't work half the time... that's why I want some ideas about buying the best fishfinder I can get for my money.......

TT<><

[Channelcat]

I use a Lowrance X-71 and a Humminbird flasher. The X-71 for detail work and temp, and the flasher for running the lake. I can put the X-71 in Fast-Trac and it works as well as the flasher.

[MT Stringer]

I have used this fish/depth finder on two different boats and a kayak. I've attached a pic of the unit mounted on an Ocean Kayak "Drifter". Using a puck style transducer for shoot thru the hull operation, it would display the depth as shallow as 1.9 feet. Yep, I was right on top of Confederate Reef in West Galveston Bay.

With it mounted on my bay boat (using the standard transom mount transducer) it works perfect at speeds up to 50 mph and depths ranging from 2 to 50 feet. No clutter or signal loss.

It also comes with a temp sensor and capability to hook up up to 2 more temperature sensors (with optional cables).

This unit has been replaced by the Fishmark series so I'm guessing the Fishmark 320 would be the newer model.

Good luck in your search.
Mike

[Trophycats]

Without a doubt..the Hummingbird Legend 3000 for a depth finder and a Hummingbird Ocean Pro for a flasher. I have both on my boat and with the Legend I can pick up a cat if it is 4 inches off of the bottom. I have used just about every model on the market and it is hard to beat these 2 units. What most people dont know is that a flasher can be just as accurate as a depthfinder IF you learn to read them. I use mine a lot and it will show fish and structure, but it takes a while to learn to read them and know what to look for.

[NightTrain]

I like my Garmin 240...temp sensor and "see-thru"technology...the ability to sense fish in brush,etc...I have the good old Eagle(came with the boat)on the console to "mark bottom".Nothin' fancy but gets it done.

[mudd_catt]

I have a Humminbird, and it isa good enough for the money, but is money were no object, I would have one word to say - COLOR. It makes a world of difference in distinguishing bottom feature, especially hardness. (too bad I can't afford a replacement LOL)

[bg]

Rarymarine DS600X. That might be overkill for shallow freshwater lakes and rivers though. Next choice would be a Garmin 250C. If you go with a non-color unit, I'd look at the Furuno LS4100 and LS6100 (depending on your available space) and the Garmin 250.

[redneck]

If I could buy anything ..... Lowrance LCX-104c - 10.4" Color Display - Top of the line..... and only $2300 :)

I am in the process of pulling an Eagle Fishmark 480 off my rig and mounting a Lowrance.


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[Sick Leave]

I am looking at a Eagle FishElite 480 GPS and depth finder combo. I read your thread you posted in July and you said your were pulling your Eagle 480 depth finder off your boat and putting on a Lowrance.

What did you not like about your Eagle 480 and what Lowrance model did you replace it with? Is the orange backlight a problem in viewing the screen on the Eagle? Color is out of my price range right now so that is not an option for me. I need some help finding a good GPS/depth finder combo. I currently have a Lowrance X85 depth finder on my console but I want the combo instead. I will be moving the X85 to the bow. Please respond soon as I want to buy a new one before 12/27/2004. Thanks for any informed answer you can provide.

[redneck]

I upgraded for several reasons, 1 is bigger screen and 2 is Lowrance is a more powerful unit, 3 lowrance quality.

I upgraded to LCX15

For the money the 480 is a good unit. If you can afford moving up to a Lowrance you will appreciate it. I know folks who have switched from Lowrance to Eagle and have not been happy.

Lowrance is more of the pro grade graph and eagle is more of the weekender grade IMHO.

I make a good portion of my living fishing and I need a quality sonar.

www.txcatfishguide.com (http://www.txcatfishguide.com)

[redneck]

Oh yeah I had bad problems with the eagle 480 and 320 losing bottom. They would lose bottom at an idle.

Put the x15 transducer in the same spot and never lose bottom even at top end speeds.

[jfo]

Redneck,

You gonna love the 15. Its a big pop from the wallet but I'm really happy with the results. I can tell big from small shad, very good structure detail and the flexibility of what data fields to put up on the screen is nice. Be sure and pull the .pdf user manual down from the web so you can keyword search it. The only problem I have with my unit is that the LCD display slows way down when the temp gets below30 or so...jfo

[mudd_catt]

jfo, I don't blame it, I slow way down when it's that cold too! ;)

[MUDHOLE KID]

Well Men I'm Still In Yester-year.i Like My Old Eagle Paper Graph.i Know Theres Lots Of Equipment Out There That Is Much More Technical.i Keep Making Parts And Getting Paper Of Ebay And Piecing It Together.i've Just Used It So Long That We've Made A Bond.it Don't Lie To Me And I Never Doubt It.to Me It's Just What You Get Use To And Learn To Rely On.if You Change Ever Year Do You Ready Ever Learn The Equipment.like T-cat Said,flashers Are A Ace In The Hole If You Know It And Rely On It,i Know Folks That Still Use Them Seriously.but One Day My Dinasour Is Gonna Die And I'll Have To Replace It.then The Time Will Come To Buy A New One And One I've Been Looking At Is The Lowrance X-15mt.i'll Be Looking For High Wattage And A High Pixel Count.then Start With The Process Of Trusting It.

[jfo]

On some units the high watts go only with the 50khz transducers, the 200's don't use the higher power. In water less than say 100, the 50 isn't what u need so in the end, I never use the high watts on my x15. On that unit, the 200khz puts out 500 watts rms and only the 50khz uses the 1000 watts. Point is, for me the pixelization is primary because I'm rarely in over 60-70 feet....jfo

[MUDHOLE KID]

Jfo,do You Recommend The X15,is It Trustworthy? I Understand The Wattage Statement You Made ,i Agree.if You Have A X-15 Unit ,give Me The Pros And Cons.

[jfo]

The biggest con is the price, the one with the integrated gps is nearly $1000. But I notice that its nowhere near the top-top of the cost curve. You can buy it with or without the gps so that's good in that you only buy what you want and will use and can afford.

The transducer seems to be more fragile than standard. I personally know four (3 50's and 1 50/200) people who've broken theirs...now all four of these guys are on the water more than normal so I dunno if its the design or the amount of use these heads. I drive a jet so this would never do so I switched to an airmar thru-hull transducer so it only sticks down around 5mm. Generally, the positioning of the unit is such that its oriented with the screen raised facing the user. Due to that, water goes into the memory stick slots in the rain. I don't really baby mine, when the boat is in motion I use it....but when I stop, if its raining, I "dab" it off and slap on the cover. Once my cartridge stopped working and I probed all around in the slot to clean it and then all was ok again...I use the cover since.

You can buy navionics or hotmaps for the X15 that give you detailed contours, channels which are really amazingly accurate. They cost as well but they hold a ton of information right on the screen. I use the heck out of the shallow water alarm feature which is quite loud enough (set it wide open) to let me know when its too shallow. I have this set on 2ft so what it really does when it goes off is tell me to turn back toward where I think the channel is. Generally my unit "gives up" at around .9 feet and when the unit "loses the bottom" because its too shallow, I have to get back into 3-4 feet before it can regain it. For me this sometimes means I'm driving around with the depth flashing like a busted VCR...

The details and quality of the screen are great like I said earlier. I can "see" different bait types and can instantly see a cloud of butterbean shad so I know not to throw onto it. I can see my sinkers off the back rod-holders. I really can tell the diff between 4-7 inch shad and 8-14 inch shad. I think that the number one purchasing variable for me is the resolution because of this performance and I'll never buy a unit with less than what I have.

I've used some GPS's that cost ten times what the X15's GPS part does and I'll say that its is a TON of value for the money. The gps is really, really solid. The "trail" feature lays down a line on the screen that you can follow to get home. Stay on that line and even if the vis is bad, you're only gonna be worried about hitting somebody else or a floater, its very nice safety feature.

oh well, nuf rambling. Here's the link to the user manual: http://www.lowrance.com/Manuals/default.asp
my uit is the lcx 15 mt...jfo

[MUDHOLE KID]

Thanks For All The Info Bro,sounds Enticing,i'll Check Out The Web Page

[Catfish]

I will have to agree w/ T-Cats - The hummingbird Legend 3000 is one of the best ones if you are a Catman ... It picks up the bottom fish better than any other one I am aware of ... For all of you , who dislike Hummingbird . This unit was not designed by them .. The name of the company will not come to my head right now , they are someone that hummingbird bought out ...

[MUDHOLE KID]

Wendell You're Also Correct. I Got The Chance To See Warrens Legend 3000.it Is A Very Nice Graph. For The Money It's Probally The Unit To Buy. It's At The Top Of The List Also.i May Just Flip A Coin. "but If Money Was No Object ,you Know I'm Going To Try The High Dollar One First,and If I Didn't Like It I'd Try A Different One".<grin> You Agree?

[Catfish]

Of course , however if you are anything like me - Money does matter - Zercom I believe is the name os the old Co. .... Anyway -- They closed these out last year , so you may be able to pick one up pretty cheap ...

[MUDHOLE KID]

HEY WENDELL,,,,,,!!!!!! DUDE, TALK ABOUT LUCK AND TIMING,CHECK THIS OUT ,YEAH I'LL TRY IT FOR THAT,DID I GET A DEAL OR WHAT.HumminBird Legend 3000 Fish Finder - *NIB* (http://cgi.aol.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=4513930467&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT)

[Catfish]

Looks like you did ,,, I believe you will enjoy the unit - Only one real thing I dislike about mine ... It is so darn sensitive that the bubbles under the dam drive it crazy ///

[MUDHOLE KID]

So You're Saying It Will Detect A Fish Fart?lol...............i Like That

[Catfish]

According on if it is a male or female <GRIN>