Recommend a sonar unit for a kayak under $700 total

[waymont]

I have a kayak, and I think it's time I dive into getting a sonar unit. I'm a complete newbie to using them, so I don't have any knowledge about wether them come with  all the parts necessary to start using them other than needing a battery.

I also fish out of a Porta-Bote boat (folding boat) so it would be great to be able to use it in both boats.

thanks!

PS:

Price of $700 not including the battery

[Koz]

You're going to need to narrow down a few things first.

 

1. Are you just looking for down imaging or side imaging as well? If you want side imaging your transducer is going to need line of sight. For example, with simple down imaging you can place your transducer inside the hull or mount it in one of the underside hull cavities. 

 

2. Where are you planning to store your battery? In the hull? Behind your seat? On the rail?

 

3. How well your vision is may play a part in what size screen you choose. My initial purchase was a Lowrance 5" with both down and side scan but after about a year my old eyes decided to upgrade to a 7" Humminbird and I could not be happier.

 

4. Where do you plan to mount the unit? Side rails? In front of you? Think about where your rod holders and other rail gear are currently loaded and if you may need to move something around. Also, do you have a pedal drive in front of you? All this and head unit screen size are factors.

 

5. What other features do you want? Simple Sonar? GPS? Pre-loaded maps?

 

I have a Yak Attack CellBlok attached to the rail for my battery storage and the Yak Attack Switchblade transducer arm attached to that for my transducer. It's a great setup.

 

I also have a Yak Attack Humminbird Helix Fishfinder Mount attached to the CellBlok. I like this setup because I can lay the mount down and out so it's not too high. But you may find you need to mount the mount to the rail so it sits lower and doesn't interfere with casting or landing a fish.

 

I have the Humminbird Helix DI SI MEGA GPS which runs around $750 and I love it. Currently, the Yak Attack Switchblade / Cellblok combo runs for $100. My fishfinder mount was another $50. I have a 10 amp battery that I bought for $50 on Amazon. I had a 7 amp with my 5" Lowrance, but it wasn't enough juice for prolonged use with my Humminbird. My NOCO Genius 10a charger was another $84, but with a 10A or less battery you can get a cheaper one amp charger for $30. But it will take 7-10 hours to charge your smaller battery.

 

In my opinion, a good, basic starter unit is the Lowrance Hook Revel 5" or 7" with the Splitshot transducer (sonar and down imaging). The tripleshot transducer includes the side imaging. The 5" splitshot is listed at $389. But if you go to the Lowrance website be sure to check out their reconditioned units. My Lowrance was reconditioned and it looked brand new when I got it and I saved almost two hundred bucks.

 

No matter what you buy, the needed accessories add up. I would also think about what you might want in the future and spend the extra money now. I wish I had bought the 7" right away instead of the 5". It's a HUGE difference.

 

You may also want to search YouTube for videos related to fishfinder setup for your specific kayak.

 

If you have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

[waymont]

2 hours ago, Koz said:

 

If you have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

This is a great response! Thx

I want a 7" unit to be mounted on my left side rail, I want side imaging, not sure about the battery location (have to think on that) I have a NuCanoe so under the seat in a battery storage possibility, don't need pre-loaded maps, want gps.

I have no experience with transducer location.

 

I'll check out the Hook 7.

[Koz]

3 hours ago, waymont said:

This is a great response! Thx

I want a 7" unit to be mounted on my left side rail, I want side imaging, not sure about the battery location (have to think on that) I have a NuCanoe so under the seat in a battery storage possibility, don't need pre-loaded maps, want gps.

I have no experience with transducer location.

 

I'll check out the Hook 7.

I like my YakAttack Switchblade transducer mount for a lot of reasons. First and foremost, I don't have to worry about it getting dinged up with it permanently mounted underneath the kayak or even temporarily mounted when getting the kayak in and out of the water.

 

My Switchblade/Cellblok/head mount stays together as a single unit and I connect it to the rail when I launch and take it off when I get back to shore. Everything is mounted on the CellBlok.

 

Because the battery is in the CellBlok I don't have wires running everywhere, didn't need to drill anything, and I don't have to connect/disconnect the battery on each trip.

 

You may find it's more convenient for you to drill holes and run wires but before you do that I suggest you use a temporary setup and make sure that head unit is exactly where you want it. Try it on the left rail and right rail in different positions.

 

I tried it on both the left and right side numerous times. Because I usually cast left I prefer it on the left so I can fish and look at the fishfinder at the same time. But again, with everything attached to the CellBlok it's easy to switch sides if I need to (I just need to turn around the Switchblade arm).

 

The Hook Reveal 7 is a great unit and they are a bit more beginner friendly than the Humminbird units. I love my Humminbird, but I bet I'm still not getting everything I can out of it. I should probably take an afternoon and just fiddle with it instead of fish.

 

 

[casts_by_fly]

I agree but disagree with Koz.  My thoughts:

 

• a 7” unit is a good balance. Lots of screen real estate for most people and uses. For a single screen (not split screen) and sitting next to it in a kayak, it is plenty of pixels. If you’re running split screen or advanced imaging then maybe not but that’s not the case here. 
   
• I love my helix. Out of the box default settings are going to get you very close. If thats all you wanted to do, then hummingbird has the best default/auto setting set. I really had to play with my dads lowrance elite to get close to but not as good as my helix. 
   
• I hard wired from the start. I knew I was going to rail mount. Running wires in my autopilot isn’t that hard. I went right rail because I cast right handed and my rods are left. I’m also right handed to hit buttons. I changed my battery from bow hatch to center hatch. But otherwise I’ve not moved much. I love the clean deck with only two wire coming out of a through hull mount on the top of the rails. If you’re adamant about using it in the portabote also, then a switchblade and rail mounted battery is the right way. Put a mighty mount on the portabote to mount it to. 

[Hook2Jaw]

I'm pretty sure you can score a Garmin Echomap UHD 93SV for right at 700 right now.  It's touch screen, you can map views to buttons, and the 1120khz is nothing to scoff at.  The DI is absolutely impressive, and Garmin has always had great 2D sonar as well.  The preloaded Garmin maps have been great.

 

From the Hummindbird side you could grab a Humminbird Helix 7 MSI G3 for under 700, and the MSI is better than the Garmin's with a GT54 instead of a GT56.  A good bit better.  The sonar and DI are lacking in comparison.

 

If you're not mounting in a transducer recess, I'd use a Yakattack Switchblade.  I run the Garmin unit I mentioned above on a RAM transducer arm and it's pretty middling as far as quality goes.

 

My thoughts are as follows, you'll see a few more fish on SI with the bird and better detail from things you'll still see on SI with the Garmin unit, but I graph by looking for cover, which the Garmin will show without issue, and then go back over that marked cover with DI.  For my purposes, the Garmin is great.