livemusic Posted April 20, 2015 Posted April 20, 2015 Like everything else these days, there are so many choices! How the heck do you choose a fishfinder? I am buying a used boat next week and the fishfinder doesn't work. I want one for the console, as well as up front. If I don't like the boat, I would sell it and buy another, so, hopefully, fishfinders would move to another boat okay. Do you just use yours for depth or depth and temp? Do you ever use it to actually see fish? Do you use GPS and if so, in what way? Please describe how you use yours and if you have advice, it's appreciated. There may no need to buy top of the line but I don't mind spending some money on this. What do you think is necessary? Quote
FLStorm Posted April 20, 2015 Posted April 20, 2015 When I bought mine, I think I drove everyone in my house crazy. I was reading up as much as I could on Humminbird, Lowrance and Garmin. I figured that if I was going to go in and drop money on a unit I want the most features I can get (and afford.) GPS is a big feature that I wanted to marks spots and get around lakes that I don't fish often. I ended up with a Humminbird 899, however it was not my first choice. I wanted one of the new Garmin units but I got a good deal on the 899 and don't regret it at all. Right now all the unit are really nice and have outstanding features. My recommendation would be to go out with buddies that have units like this on their boats or go to a store where you can play around with the different units and see which is the easiest for you to use. And these units will show you some incredible things on the bottom of your lake. Quote
Thornback Posted April 21, 2015 Posted April 21, 2015 Important for me is color monitor, GPS, and side imaging. Quote
Super User Catt Posted April 21, 2015 Super User Posted April 21, 2015 How do I choose a fish finder? Open my tackle box & pick one 1 Quote
Super User Wayne P. Posted April 21, 2015 Super User Posted April 21, 2015 Like everything else these days, there are so many choices! How the heck do you choose a fishfinder? I am buying a used boat next week and the fishfinder doesn't work. I want one for the console, as well as up front. If I don't like the boat, I would sell it and buy another, so, hopefully, fishfinders would move to another boat okay. Do you just use yours for depth or depth and temp? Do you ever use it to actually see fish? Do you use GPS and if so, in what way? Please describe how you use yours and if you have advice, it's appreciated. There may no need to buy top of the line but I don't mind spending some money on this. What do you think is necessary? Look through the sceen shots I have posted above to see how I use my equipment and what it shows. Quote
Super User Catt Posted April 21, 2015 Super User Posted April 21, 2015 How do I choose a fish finder? Open my tackle box & pick one my mistake I thought we were talking fish finders not depth finders! 1 Quote
Comfortably Numb Posted April 21, 2015 Posted April 21, 2015 Small size screen HB Helix is good unit and deal. Mid size screens garmin 74sv and 94sv are really goodbang for the buck. HB Onix too Lowrance HDS are solid as well as the HB x99 series. I just ordered a Garmin 7608xsv. I think Garmin and the HB Onix have best and newest technology Quote
livemusic Posted April 21, 2015 Author Posted April 21, 2015 Look through the sceen shots I have posted above to see how I use my equipment and what it shows. I don't see any screenshots. Quote
Super User slonezp Posted April 21, 2015 Super User Posted April 21, 2015 I don't see any screenshots. There's a sticky at the top of the electronics forum. As far as choosing, How much do you want to spend on 2 graphs and what features are important? Quote
Super User Chris at Tech Posted April 21, 2015 Super User Posted April 21, 2015 If you can, go to Bass Pro, Cabelas or another tackle shop with a decent selection. Play with at least one of each brand to get a feel for their user interface. Once you identify the user interface you prefer, you can target your search to your price range inside that brand. 1 Quote
livemusic Posted April 21, 2015 Author Posted April 21, 2015 There's a sticky at the top of the electronics forum. As far as choosing, How much do you want to spend on 2 graphs and what features are important? I don't know enough about this to know what I want but after viewing the screenshots sticky thread, it confirmed to me that one can identify actual fish if you know enough about how to use it and have a good unit. I don't know what the learning curve is on how to fine tune the unit and interpret it, but I guess I would be willing to give it a go. I have some money saved up and can spend whatever is needed, within reason. I'm buying a cheap used 17' Tracker bass boat that is in great condition. Saving a bundle versus buying new or other used ones I looked at. As for the front unit, I don't know that it has to be super sophisticated. Mostly concerned about showing depth. A depth unit could be had for $150 or less. But I don't know much about this. Perhaps I need a better unit up front than I think I do. I assume that the most high tech one would need to be at the console? For that one, I'd be willing to spend whatever it takes to get great images. It's pretty fascinating what a trained eye can see. Quote
Super User Chris at Tech Posted April 21, 2015 Super User Posted April 21, 2015 What you say is correct, but there are other features you should consider. Take a look at some YouTube videos to understand what GPS, mapping, side scan, down scan, etc offer to if those features are something you'd find helpful or not. Quote
Super User scaleface Posted April 21, 2015 Super User Posted April 21, 2015 A lot of extraordinary anglers use binoculars . Quote
Super User Wayne P. Posted April 22, 2015 Super User Posted April 22, 2015 I prefer and have the most technology at the bow which is where I am 95% of the time on the water. My stuff is a fishing tool and a search tool. 1 Quote
Comfortably Numb Posted April 22, 2015 Posted April 22, 2015 If I were you I would get a Garmin 73sv at console and 93sv at bow. Or two 73's Quote
ty.gunter Posted April 23, 2015 Posted April 23, 2015 I have been bass fishing for a few years but recently got serious. I purchased the Humminbird Helix SI and DI with GPS for front and back. Great units have all options the high dollar units have for a fraction of the price. Be a great unit to start with in my opinion. Quote
livemusic Posted April 25, 2015 Author Posted April 25, 2015 I have been bass fishing for a few years but recently got serious. I purchased the Humminbird Helix SI and DI with GPS for front and back. Great units have all options the high dollar units have for a fraction of the price. Be a great unit to start with in my opinion. What do the higher end Humminbirds do that the Helix SI and DI with GPS won't do? What is the difference? Thanks. Quote
Super User Wayne P. Posted April 25, 2015 Super User Posted April 25, 2015 What do the higher end Humminbirds do that the Helix SI and DI with GPS won't do? What is the difference? Thanks. Bigger screens, favorite view buttons, linkable to other units to share data, double the memory card capacity, and faster processors, plus some other stuff. Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.