vexilar vs aqua-vu

[nitrotmaxx]

I was thinking about buying one of these this fall but don't know witch one would be more practical or useful.

[Matt Johnson]

Go with the flasher unit (Vexilar). You can get by just fine without the underwater camera, but a flasher unit is a must have when out on the ice in my opinion. It's not only your underwater eyes, but it's the fish's mood indicator as well. It's a real time, instantaneous read-out that allows you to effectively dictate and determine how a fish reacts to certain presentations and conditions. Not to mention it also tells you the depth, if there's fish down there, the depth of the fish, your presentation, weed growth, bottom content... and the list goes on.

So for me, I'd choose the flasher unit before the underwater camera.

Good Fishin,

Matt Johnson

[CNY Tim]

Matt's right on nitro! Flasher first and I would give the new MarCum LX-2 a serious look at that $319 price, but if you want a real good deal now fishingpro.com has LX-3's for $300 and LX-1's for $225 also check hsolist as well LX's have been running there new in box as low as $260. Lot's of good options there to sift through but I agree the flasher is the most important tool for me in ice fishing.

[hanson]

nitro-

Flasher for sure.

Some lakes are so dirty or stained that a camera is useless. A flasher doesn't care about stuff like that.

This is a good argument with many advantages to both sides but a flasher is a 'must have' tool in my opinion.

[castmaster]

what they said!! also, unless you fish walleyes alot, i would suggest sticking with the fl8. i have both the 8 and 18 and only use the zoom feature on the 18 when fishing eyes or something else relating to the bottom. probably 80% of the time i run it just like an fl8. doesnt really seem to be worth the extra $100 for the 18.

[Northland Sportsman]

I agree! The flasher is the way to go. Once you fish with one you won't go without it. They provide so much information it is great and makes you wonder how you ever did without. I bought a camera last year and it has its uses, but is not a "must have" like the Vex or Marcum units!

[CNY Tim]

castmaster - I found that out as well when I fished the FL-18. It frustrated me that I could not utilize the zoom more because the perch and walleyes ran above the 6' bottom only zoom in 90% of my fishing scenarios. That's what sold me on the LX-3 because with a 10' zoom window in less than 40' I was seeing those fish in zoom from pursuit to take because of the larger zoom window. That was cool and above all way more functional than the 18's zoom in my scenarios. I feel this new LX-2 is going to be hot because your still getting that 10' zoom window, and new display colors at a non-zoom price... If Vexilar was the only manufaturer of 3 color flashers the FL-8 would be my choice over the FL-18. Now if the Fl-18 came out with a larger zoom window it maybe worth the extra $80 to $100 if zoom is your thing and you want Vexilar. But it's hard to knock the crispness in display with regard to the MarCum it cuts down significantly on the signal clutter that I have found in both of my Vexilar units. Another plus about Fl-8 is I believe it rejects interference better than the 18, at least my experience showed I had less signal interference in similar scenarios.

[Ryan_V]

this question has been discussed in great detail here in the past and the conclusion is almost always the same. Flasher first, then camera. I've had a vex for 5 years now and would give up my camera in a heartbeat before I'd give up my VEX!!!

[Deitz Dittrich]

Again, ditto what has been said above... flasher first.. camera second... Cameras are great to have but the information they give you is much less than a flasher!

[WalleyeStriker]

Flasher....Flasher....Flasher....Then lights, CAMERA, action!

[Captain B.R.K]

Looks like it is an obvious choice......SONAR over the CAMERA!

Unless you have CASHfor both, buy one of each