side / depth electronics - small water canoe jon boat

[Nashua Nev]

recommendations with all the new electronic stuff out there,   not concerned with gps

 

i fish mostly smaller water for bass in NH out of my canoe and jon boat. max depth maybe 50 feet but usually less. I am not concerned with mounting it i can make something portable as i have in the past with just a simple depth finder.  

 

Looking for best way to search underwater to find places that should hold bass.

 

7 inch screen so i can see it.  I seem to be drawn to the humminbird . seems simple enough.

 

does this side imaging thing really work that well ?  how about the 360 ? how about the learning curve ?

 

i dont understand this switchfire , dragon fly and chirp. ( i am doing some internet research to try to help me understand )

 

was looking towards the humminbird 598 with side and down image but only 5 inch screen.

 

then there is the new helix and onyx    we would be willing to spend 7 or 800 , splitting it with 4 others @ 200 each.

 

 

[12poundbass]

The Helix 7 would work great for you. The gps automatically comes with the Side Imaging unit. There's a thread on here titled SCREENSHOTS you can check out the snap shots people have posted from their units. I think you'll be amazed what these units can do. Like with anything there's a learning cure. There are plenty of experts on here to help you with the learning cure.

[Wayne P.]

Swithfire is what Humminbird units have that gives you two ways to control sonar sensitivity. Swithfire CLEAR is mostly automatic, Switchfire MAX is just manual.

 

For the Humminbird Helix 7 models, ONLY the Helix 7 CHIRP SI GPS G2N model will connect to the Humminbird 360 transducer. That transducer is an Ethernet accessory. BUT you don't need a Side Imaging unit to run the 360. That can be displayed on a Sonar model or Down Imaging model and can provide Side Imaging to those models IF they are the G2N versions.

360 is Side Imaging that rotates.

 

CHIRP is multi-frequency band sonar. Instead of a single frequency for each sonar pulse, there is a range of frequencies for each pulse. Example is 200 kHz for 2D sonar or in the same band a multi-frequency of 175-225 kHz CHIRP. CHIRP gives better target separation.

 

All units and brands that have the side looking imaging technology have GPS/mapping.

 

DragonFly is a Raymarine model with the imaging technoloy copied from Humminbird.

 

In your price range for Humminbird that can support 360 and has Side Imaging, that would be the Helix 7 CHIRP SI GPS G2N model. The bow 360 version is $1,000 MSRP extra.

 

The Humminbird Helix models replaced all the units that have number names like the 598ci HD SI Combo. That model was discontinued about 4 years ago.

[Goose52]

I've been running down-imaging / side-imaging sonars on my canoe for 6 years (currently running a Helix 10) - this technology is the real deal and can help you catch more fish.  Not sure you would want the hassle of trying to rig a 360 unit on your canoe however. I have a fairly pimped-out boat and didn't want to even go there when it comes to trying to mount the 360 imaging unit and still keep my boat readily transportable.  You might want to visit the Humminbird 360 imaging web page here to see what the 360 units look like.

 

If you decide to bypass the 360 option, you can go for a cheaper version of the Helix 7 than the one quoted by Wayne P. - the HELIX 7 CHIRP SI GPS G2 (without networking) - factory list price of $699. Perhaps even less would be the previous model Helix 7 SI (before the G2 model) if you can find one someplace on close-out.

 

 

[WIGuide]

Side scan/imaging is the real deal. It helps you find productive water a whole lot faster, as long as you actually put the time in to use it. If you don't it'll just be another fancy toy. As far as not really caring if you have gps or not, I would recommend you change your mind on that. The units you're looking at are going to come with gps, but it's ridiculously useful as well. Unless these lakes are so small that everything is within a cast of you, dropping a waypoint on a productive spot or a piece of structure/cover is a great advantage to you. 

[J Francho]

I use a Helix 5 in my hybrid kayak/canoe, a Wilderness Systems Commander 140.  SI, ID, traditional sonar, and GPS all are well used.  Once I've SI'd a location, I get down to the nitty-gritty with the combo DI/traditional sonar view.  I use a deployment arm from Yakattack for the transducer.

[Nashua Nev]

Thank You for all the input.  Sounds like i can get 360 if i simply turn the transducer for side imaging. it is going to be a temp mount anyway so there is no reason i cannot make it to turn to point front and back.  I am going to look for a deal on the humminbird helix 7 or 9.  water here is frozen now so i have time to wait. 

will do some more research on the types of transponder available also.

[Wayne P.]

54 minutes ago, Nashua Nev said:

Thank You for all the input.  Sounds like i can get 360 if i simply turn the transducer for side imaging. it is going to be a temp mount anyway so there is no reason i cannot make it to turn to point front and back.  I am going to look for a deal on the humminbird helix 7 or 9.  water here is frozen now so i have time to wait. 

will do some more research on the types of transponder available also.

 

Imaging has to scan (motion) to create the picture-like images. Just turning a Side Imaging transducer 90 degrees to point front and back does not scan.

You can somewhat simulate 360 with a side scanning transducer, but the screen scroll rate and rate of turning the transducer has to be somewhat exact. I used to do that before I got a 360.

 

In any case you won't have the circular view to display the images like using a 360 transducer and 360 view.

 

The upper 3/4 of this screen shot is simulating 360 where I was keeping up with a school of bass chasing a shad school that was shown at the bottom of the screen shot.

 

 

This is what the same scenario looks like using 360:

 

[Goose52]

On 12/26/2016 at 11:43 AM, Nashua Nev said:

 I am going to look for a deal on the humminbird helix 7 or 9.  

 

If you haven't yet, you might want to look at the HB web site for the dimensions for the Helix 7 and 9. They are fairly large units. I run a Helix 10 (which is the same size/case as the Helix 9) on my canoe and before purchase I made a cardboard template to the dimensions of the Helix 10 and tried it for fit on the dashboard of my boat.

 

Another thing to think about is the weight of the units - my Helix 10 weighs over 6 pounds (just the head unit) and I imagine the Helix 9 would weigh about the same so that can be a factor when you are designing your mounting method.

 

If you go for the Helix 9 you will have a unit the same size as my Helix 10. The photo below shows the size of the unit on my boat...