Marcum LX-i Hand Held Sonar - A Close Up Look

[Dave]

It’s that time of year when ice anglers are gathering gear and preparing for the hard water season. One piece of gear that’s being talked about more is the hand held sonar, or, more commonly known as a hand held depth finder. Finding a spot, or a spot on the spot, can be quite time consuming. Sure, you can carry a flasher unit around and take depth readings but, with a transducer and cable dangling around your feet as you walk across the area, while you carry the heavier flasher unit, it gets to be quite cumbersome and we’ve all seen someone take a spill on the ice while taking depth readings. It’s not a pretty picture to see an expensive flasher take a crash on the ice. Enter, the hand held sonar. Quicker and easier is the theme nowadays.

After researching the units on the market (a ton of information is on the internet) I selected the Marcum Technologies LX-i and here’s my thoughts on why I did.

The LX-i fit nicely in my hand. I felt it gave a nicer grip with gloves on than other units. I figured the flat side on the LX-i will prevent the unit from rolling off a table or shelf in the fish house, too. After a few tests, I was right.

I suspected the highest-powered unit would shoot through the thickest ice. Without much thought, that made sense to me and quite a few guys I spoke with. After talking with a few Pro’s, I was told the highest-powered unit has more benefits as well. If fishing on a lake with a soft mucky bottom, the higher-powered unit produces a stronger signal, in turn, bouncing back a stronger return signal, to give a more accurate depth reading, rather than trying to detect a weaker signal when it returns to the receiver. Also, with more power, the sonar’s capable of taking readings in deeper water than other units and has better capability (more power) to shoot through the hull of a boat, if needed.

The LX-i has 2500 watts of power and is capable to read depths at 299 feet! That’s 100 feet deeper than any other hand held sonar that I’ve researched before I chose.

Also, I researched battery performance because I hate charging or replacing batteries. Some hand held sonar units use common alkaline batteries. While alkaline batteries may be suitable for warm weather use, my main use for a hand held is during winter, below freezing temperatures! Many photographers conveyed that lithium batteries have superior life to alkaline and offer good cold-weather performance.

LX-i lithium battery pack.

It’d take about 2 ½ times more alkaline batteries to receive the same performance as one lithium battery. Lithium batteries are used in many emergency devices for a reason, too. Plus, alkaline batteries have a nasty habit to leak when left in a device for too long. I used this information from my photography buddies in order to make my decision. So, let’s see, alkaline batteries (up to four in some units) for ten hours of use or one lithium battery pack, like what’s in the LX-i, for 20 hours of use. You do the math for cost and performance.

Using a coin to unlatch the battery cover, the lithium battery pack slips in one direction.

The battery compartment is sealed using a rubber ring.

Loaded, ready for use.

LCD displays depths to 299 feet. It displays in increments down to a tenth of a foot to 99.9 ft. The LCD display was crisp and clear.

The 12-degree cone angle helps pinpoint subtle changes in depth, locating that spot on the spot more easily, was my reasoning.

The automatic shut off, which most units have, is activated in about 19 seconds according to my watch, if the sonar's not locked in on a bottom reading. The LX-i has an audible fish alarm and the depth display will alternately display the lake bottom depth and depth of the fish detected, so you can detect if fish are in the area, too.

There’s also an audible and visual low battery-warning signal, which obviously I haven’t been able to test yet since it’s a new unit. Maybe I’ll have to wait a year or two to let you know how that feature works, since the battery pack should last a long time.

Marcum offers the LX-i separately or in a “performance pack”, which includes the carrying case, which has a belt clip on it, and the lithium battery pack.

The case clip is large enough for use on belts, pockets or jacket openings.

With the many features of the Marcum Lx-i hand held sonar, I'm pretty sure I'll be more than One Step Ahead of the next guy when finding the spot.

Oh, and I actually did a 5 minute float test, too. No moisture in the LCD display or battery compartment where noted.

[Dan Thiem]

Excellent report Dave. Sure worth looking into.

[rundrave]

hey dave, great write up. That info was exactly what I needed. I think I may be picking one up! You got me sold!

thanks again for all the info

[Dave]

No problem. Glad it helped ya. Another thought I had during lunch. After teaching my young ones how to use the LX-i, I can stand on one spot, have them check the depths around me and yell the readings to me. I could get a better visual "picture" of the structure in certain areas. For some of us, our minds get cluttered when we multi-task too much.

[zebco4040]

Great report Dave, I am glad I put off purchasing a Vexilar & Strikemaster version at Dick's the other day (nothing wrong with either).

I will be looking for a godo deal at the show this weekend to add to the Marcum lineup I have.

[schweady]

Thanks for the report, Dave. I was looking at this one this weekend and noticed that the unit packaging says it will work when canoeing. Do you know anything about problems a guy would have with not reaching the unit deep enough to get accurate depth/fish readings while paddle-trolling along in the ol Alumacraft? or perhaps that's what the narrower cone angle is about? or will it shoot through the hull?

[schweady]

Duplicate Post deleted by schweady

[Dave]

I guess I don't understand what you mean by not reaching the unit deep enough. Paddle along, stick the LX-i in the water and take a depth reading.

[schweady]

That's what I was hoping, but thought that maybe being right next to the aluminum would screw up the reading by interrupting the cone.

[Dave]

Oh, I get ya now. No, you shouldn't have any problem. The narrow cone also adds in the ability for the LX-i to read depths to 300 feet!