best resource for learning DI/SI interpretation?

[txchaser]

As the title says, I'm looking for the best resource for learning DI/SI interpretation. I see lots of stuff that I have a hunch about what I'm looking at, but am not really sure. And often the 2d sonar and the DI are telling me pretty different things, usually the 2d missing what look like schools of fish hanging on the bottom. Fiddling with the gain never got them to pop up. 

Anyway, I have some ideas that I picked up along the way, like bass don't stack vertically, that's probably crappie. And if you see a bunch of fish relating to the bottom that are not stacked more than one or two deep, and spread out, it is probably bass. 

Questions like this:

What does a catfish look like? Do they ever school? How do I tell them apart from bass? What does a big school of bluegill look like, and do they ever relate to the bottom? When I see a return on SI that's probably a fish, any way to tell any more than that like what size or type it might be? 

 

On the plus side, time on the water with the unit has helped me notice more and more, like @WRB's great advice on quickly figuring out the depth of the bait and the life zone in general, is helping me eliminate a lot of water. 

[WRB]

Reading sonar returns takes time and trail-error.

Stacked sonar returns could be fish or a stream of air/gas bubbles. A cloud could be a school of small baitfish or a spring.

Crappie often look like a tree on 2D sonar but dots on DI. DI can separate fish size by color density. 

Catfish like Channel catfish and Blue do fact school at times.

Bass and carp look the same on sonar unfortunately.

Deep fish on structure a structure spoon is your friend, everything eats them. You watch a spoon fall to the bait and if the bait scatters you know bass are not in the area. Marks near the bottom will move up to check out a spoon, get ready for a strike.

Tom

 

 

 

 

 

[12poundbass]

Doug Vahreberg 

Tactical Bassin’

Fish the Moment

 

These are three good resources on YouTube for learning electronics. 

[Dens228]

I learned a lot from the Tacticalbassn video's.  Especially the SI.

That coupled with actually spending time paying attention to your electronics.  I had to get away from just looking at the depth reading.

[mrw464]

Fish the Moment is really great for this

[TnRiver46]

Just keep driving around slowly and watching it! I can only help with DI but when you are moving (slowly), the fish will look like little solid white dots on the screen. When you are sitting still they will look more like horizontal lines. Top pic is a massive pile of white bass at 2.53 mph 

 

Middle pic is also white bass at a slower speed and you can see the dots kind of spreading into lines 

 

and finally here they are sitting still in the bottom pic 

[Michigander]

If you're real serious, you could hire a scuba diver with a video camera to follow you as you idled around. ?

[schplurg]

I have 17 GoPros mounted on my hull.

[Dens228]

6 hours ago, schplurg said:

I have 17 GoPros mounted on my hull.

Rookie..........................lol

[Roger W]

I would agree with Fish the Moment on youtube.  Has a lot of content in this area and does great job explaining everything.