Old vs. New Electronics

[yellowsubmarine]

I just bought a boat that comes with a 12 or 13 year old Lowrance fish finder (model unknown). I also have a 1 year old Bottom Line Graph. The Bottom Line is nothing fancy, one of the lower end models. My question is does anyone know how far the technology has advanced? I'm no pro fisherman and don't need a fancy $1500 graph, but I'm wondering how these two would compare as far as target seperation and things of that nature that come into consideration for the units effectiveness. Any comments or insight is welcome. Thanks

[redhooks]

hey Yellowsub-i'm not sure if this will help but I'm pretty sure not much has changed with flashers til the FL-18 and LX3 came along. I icefish w/ an old SITEX FL8(it must be 15+yrs old made before Vexilar bought them out) it doesn't have IR but I have no problems with it. I'd upgrade to a new FL8 or FL18 but mine works so well I'll run it til she drops, if it ain't broke....
redhooks

[Chev_trucks501]

YellowSub,

LCD locators have changed a ton in the last 10 years...heck even in the last 5. If your bottom line is a lower end model (1101, 1100)
You should think about upgrading to a new one this year. The pixel count is horrible on the Bottomline Low End units. I believe the Hot Unit this year will be the Eagle Fishmark 320. Easily the best locator for the money. With a 320x320 display and 1500 watts of power it is more than enough for what you will find around here. Plus it sells for a stunning $198 at Fleet Farm. Pretty good for a unit with various grayscale options and built in temp sensors. Well there is my 2 cents

Good Luck
chev

[yellowsubmarine]

Hey Chevy man,
Thanks for the tip. Just curious though, what are some of the major changes and how big of an impact do they really have the amateur or novice fisherman?

[Surface Tension]

The biggest change in LCRs is resolution.
At one time paper graphs and Videos was the only way to get a good detailed high reslution printout. With the newer high pixal psi screens of the LCRs the quality has realy gone up and the price for quality has gone down.

[Chev_trucks501]

YellowSub,

I agree with Surface Tension in that the screens have improved drastically over the years. 320x320 for $198 is a great deal! Plus you get the free temp sensor which is built into the transducer. It is adaptable to speed also. As far as changes they have continually upgraded lots of things in the locators not just the screen. Multi-level gray scale is one thing. It helps you determine bottom composistion and accurate readings. ASP (Advanced Signal Processor) has been upgraded a few times to factor out false echos. Those are probably the 2 major things in addition to the Screen Pixel count. As far as a beginner fisherman is concerned I would recommend the Fishmark 320. It is a great price and has all the features of a more expensive unit. Plus you will get accurate readings of the bottom and any fish that may be present. Just don't run the unit on Fish ID! Major bad setting. They should take that darn setting off all thelocators. Well Good Luck

Chev

[yellowsubmarine]

Thanks for the tips guys, guess I'll have to check into one of these newer units, or keep the one I have now, I've been pretty happy with it. Maybe I'll have to rig both of em up and see how they compare side by side.

[irvingdog]

I'll second that Fishmark 320!