A Lowrance Question before i throw it in the lake

[fishon68]

I have a LMS-522c w/internal gps purchased last season, the gps works great, my ? is I very rarely ever see fish on it, I have been out and caught fish but never see them on the screen, i have it set to read arches as the fish id shows fish everywhere, it also at times takes about 2-5 minutes to read depth after moving spot to spot? I do see the lines when i pull up anchor and sometimes from the rods so i assume transducer is working, do i have this set up wrong?This is very expensive just to be used for a depth finder Maybe time for a H-Bird.

[TrophyEyes]

I have the 520c, so mine is not exactly the same, but close. My suggestion would be to:

- Remove the "fish" id off. I feel that it is is far less sensative then just watching for the hooks.

- If you go to the sensativity tab on the menu you will also be able to turn your sensativity up.

- I would make sure is that you have the transducer that came with the unit. They guys that installed mine were going to leave my old transducer on and that would have caused big problems.

- If you don't want to play around with resetting all the measures, just reset to default settings. I think those default settings work pretty well.

- If you are not seeing your depth or fish while moving relatively fast your ping rate is too slow.

- You also want to make sure your transducer is pointed straight down and not flipped up. I ran too far on my lift and nocked my transduce out of place.

- If that doesn't work call Lowrance and they will give you some more options.

[Casey Sunsdahl]

Transducer angle and location is a huge key to reading properly loosen it up and play with it in the water..

I would put the sonar in SHALLOW WATER mode instead of general fishing.. also set ping at 75-100%.. chart speed at 100%.. surface clutter LOW.. noise reduction LOW.. colorline 65.. sensitivity 80-100%..

Should be a good starting point... Let us know if you fix it

[fishon68]

I will check these things and set up as you guys suggested, thanks and i will report back, also what do you mean by shallow mode?

[fishon68]

I won't make it out for a couple days so if anybody has any other things to try i would like to know, thanks in advance for any other info you guys may have.

[PerchJerker]

If the fish-id is on it will show fish symbols, not arches. As mentioned, turn that feature off and leave it off.

Casey has a lot of great info about how to set up the unit. Do that for starters. Now here's the key - spend some time learning your unit, try changing 1 setting at a time to see what it does, and learn how use and interpret what the unit is showing you.

Make sure you're running the latest version of the software. Your manual will tell you how to check the Software Info in the unit. You can check the software updates page on Lowrance to see if it is the latest update.

Good luck getting it figured out.

[17FishMan]

Ok..I have the 522 also, I've looked and looked and cann't seem to find the SHALLOW WATER mode. Where is it. Thanks.

[PerchJerker]

I believe it's under the Sonar Setup options, if you're running the latest versions of the software (the first verisions didn't have that as an option).

[ozzie]

can a guy just take his lowrance unit into say cabela's and get the latest updates.....I am not computer savy and have no clue what people mean about downloading the latest version to a card of some sort then putting it in the lowrance unit....or is there a way to purchase the latest updates already on a card just to insert into the unit?

[fishon68]

I have updated mine to the newest software, not hard to do, just install update on sd card and install in you unit, the install will start and install, i still do not have a shallow water adjustment on mine.

[desert_bulls]

To check what version you have on is by hit your menu button twice, then go to system setup. On the bottom of that screen, go to software information. You should have version 2.4. There is a version 2.4 beta, but only if you are having the following problems.

I hope that helps.

Warning: This update addresses issues some customers have reported with their digital depth reading flashing or the sonar chart stopping scrolling, typically in very shallow water with thick weed coverage.

Please note this release is still undergoing rigorous validation procedures, and is currently being made available as a BETA only for customers experiencing this specific issue. Customers not experiencing this issue should not update their units.

For this update to function properly, Shallow Mode must be enabled. To enable Shallow Mode: View the SONAR page, press the MENU button to open the Sonar Menu and select SONAR Featuers... and in the Fishing Mode drop-down box, ensure Shallow water is selected.

[sparkyaber]

I agree with the software issue, it has been a huge issues in he past. I know from first hand experience on many units.

I don't think that the 522 has a shallow water mode, only on the 25's and larger.

[Trouthunter]

522 does have the shallow water mode

[brknrn]

The 520 and 522 DO NOT have shallow water mode unless you install the BETA hardware update. I have been having the problem of losing bottom with my unit for 2.5 years now. I am on my 4th unit and 3rd transducer with ZERO results.

On my last unit I installed the BETA udpate and it locked the unit up completely - Blank screen.

The contact I have been working with at Lowrance is Linda Colt. I don't know if it is OK to post her email on this site but if I get the approval I will. I haven't used Private Messaging on here but if you send me a message I am sure I can figure it out and get you her information.

[Jaypo]

I had troubles with my 520C last year after only a few months of use. My recommendation is to call Linda Colt. She is fantastic and provides service that we only hope for these days. Any problems, I would start there.

Type Linda Colt into Google and you will get her contact info.

[WIFisher]

I have the eagle version before Lowrance bought the design and i have never had problems.. I mark schools of fish easily. the walleyes are usually tougher to read and sometimes just look like a small hump on the bottom of the lake. I can usually even mark my jig if its directly below the ducer...

Good Luck,

Ryan

[baitshopboy]

those 522 just need to be dialed in, turn down the sensitivity and play with the colorline, then the noise rejection the n then the ping speed once more. then it should all come together

[Juan Grande]

What's the easiest way to get the software upgrade onto your SD card? Do you have to have a card reader or can you put the card in your printer and upload it that way?

I have similar problems with my 332. I will try the software upgrade to see if that helps. I don't think I've ever marked a fish where I was confident that's what I was seeing. I've played with the settings and have them close to what you've all recommended. I also don't pick up the bottom while moving any faster than 5 mph or so. The GPS loses its signal pretty often too.

[fishon68]

Juan Grande, I loaded it on a sd card thru a card reader and then just install it in your unit and it will auto load the update.Make sure the unit is off then install card and then turn on.

[superbee]

I have the lms 480 and am having the same problems. I have changed all the settings, am running the updated software and it still works sporadically. Tried a different transducer and same results. Anything over a trolling speed and it won't read the bottom. Lowrance has had alot of problems the last few years, alot of others I know have experienced the same thing. A couple friends couldn't get their new units to work at all straight out of the box. If you get yours working, let us know what you did and will give it a try.

[fishon68]

I have a e-mail in to Linda Colt at Lowrance just waiting for a reply, I got a auto-reply stating she is busy answering so many e-mails so i will be patient and let you guys know what happens.

[gunning]

That Linda Colt is a busy person with all the problems Lowrance has. Another bass boat forum I go to has nothing but good things to say about her, the problem is it sounds like Lowrance CS is so bad its hard to get through to them. Her name is out on other forums so people bypass regular Lowrance CS and just try to contact her. I will never buy a Lowrance after all the problems they have been having with their units plus it seems like they have been a step behind Humminbird's technology the last few years.

[zepman]

I've been having similiar problems with everyone else and I can tell you that my next unit will be a HB!!

[stifler51]

not to ninja someones thread but my depth finder is in this range

also set ping at 75-100%.. chart speed at 100%.. surface clutter LOW.. noise reduction LOW.. colorline 65.. sensitivity 80-100%..

but i cant even see and anchor drop practically on top the transducer or rod. could there be something wrong with my ducer? or unit

[fishon68]

I have recieved a couple e-mails from Linda, she gave me suggestions on adjustments, do the update which i have done, i have tried moving transducer in diff. positions no luck, I can always see my anchor line when pulling it up but never see anything else, was out yesterday and caught a few eye's but never marked 1 on the screen so not sure if it is the head unit or ducer, I will keep you updated as to what she recommends.Hopeful she will just exchange the whole set-up, if not may have to try Brand X.