Humminbird Side Imaging

[MNBassGuy]

Has anyone had any experience with these units? I'm considering buying one, but I'd like to hear some opinions. I've heard some great things, and I've heard some not so great things.

I'd like to know about the unit as a whole (mapping, sonar, etc) as well.

[Central Bassman]

I have been on the water with a few guys that have had them and i think they are sweet. The few things I don’t like about them is that you have to mount them on the back of the boat and that’s it. No threw hull or on the trolling motor, also you have keep a steady MPH when you are using this unit for it to read good and I think its nothing over 5 mph

http://www.fishingminnesota.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1003142&fpart=1

http://www.fishingminnesota.com/forum/ub...306#Post1119306

[Fluker]

I'm right there with you. When they first came out, I heard a lot more -'s than +'s. Now it's the opposite. My personal feeling on that is that these units are pretty complex and it's take some dedication to learn how to use them correctly. We're now starting to hear from those guys that have done that, and they love them.

I might be missing the boat here, but I'm gonna wait a little longer. Hummingbird has the only units out there, so I think they are charging a premium for them. Lowrance has got to follow suit eventually, if they are smart. Now maybe their are patents out there, and if Lowrance has to pay loyalties, then I'm not sure if we'll see competition drive the prices down any what so ever.

You're also looking at first generation units. Again, I've heard a lot of kudo's about these units, but I also heard a lot of Kudo's about the first LCX models from Lowrance. A few short years later and look at the improvements in the LCX units.

Like anything, I'm sure it'll take me fishing with someone who has one, and knows how to use it, to make me go "Oh man, I've gotta get one of those!".

Chuck

[katoguy]

I have one. Will it get better as the technology is refined? Certainly. Fluker, the first generation units are already past tense. Premium and prestige pricing is definitely taking place. A lot of the negatives are for improper set-up and misunderstanding/misinterpreting the information.

Yes, it needs to be on the outside, back of the boat (holes, ouch), to work properly. (The transducer can't look sideways through the water if it is mounted thru-hull!) You need to drive pretty much straight past structure at 3-6 mph for good viewing. The transducer cannot be mounted on a trolling motor or the constant spinning (steering) will distort the side views.

If I was thinking about getting a new boat the HB SI would be a must. For those interested in learning lake structure or finding cover, SI will help you in a fraction of the time compared to regular down-looking sonar.

I doubt Lowrance will be able to come up with anything similar till the patents run out in a couple decades. What will be the next, new technology?

[DARTER]

Side imaging(side scan sonar) is new technology for recreational fishing, true, but it has been around for a while now. I wonder how these compact units compare to the towed units. I can't imagine the resolution can even come close. Interesting though. Some day (our kids) will spend 6 hours watching T.V. in the boat until they find that pesky fish that broke there $50 crank bait off. If you get angry at people driving while talking on the phone, just wait until the time comes when 30 boats are out there with guys plastered to the 30" wide screen looking for that state record. Gross. I'll still be pitching under docks.

[katoguy]

Side scan is different than side imaging.

Big boats and the armed services have been using a sort of side imaging technology in the more recent years, but it, too, is different and cost a heck of a lot more than HB side imaging. HB brought the price down to what some fisherman can afford.

Side scan is just transducer(s) pointing sideways. Heck, BottomLine was using that 15 years ago. The imaging software is the key that ties it altogether into one picture.

[Pherris]

I have SI on my boat. There is a BIG learning curve to understand what you are seeing but once you figure it out it can be a big advantage. It will not work at speeds above 8-9 mph and 3-6 is optimal in my opinion. You can have a ducer set up to shoot through the hull if you want to use the graph on plane but you need a switch to dictate which ducer it is reading. The SI WILL NOT work when getting the signal through the hull but the graph features will. I skipped the second ducer and have a HB 767 mounted in the dash. This combination really helps you understand what you are seeing on your graph because you run SI on your big screen and the graph on the second unit to get a much better feeling for what you are seeing. Also if you only fish shallow water I do not think you would get your $$ worth.

The first time I really understood what a tremendous tool it was I was fishing about a 200 yard stretch of reeds and we able to cruise along the reeds and find where the fish were actualy schooled in them. Sure enough we pulled 15-20 fish in about 45 minutes. Spotting and then catching them like that was simply amazing with the SI. It does add a new eliment to fishing but by no means will it make you a better fisherman. That can only be accomplished by investing time both on and off the water to the sport. Good Fishing!!

[Superduty]

Thats an awesome story! How far did you keep the boat from the reeds. I'm starting to feel like I'm at a disadvantage if I don't buy a SI unit.

[Pherris]

We were about 60 feet. You can adjust how far the signal goes out on each side and I usally keep it at 100' and in that situation I had it set so just the side of the boat the reeds were on was full screen viewable. Good Fishing!!

[MNBassGuy]

Well, I'm going to get mine today! Gotta use my Gander B-dau coupon before the end of the month.

[Central Bassman]

What size unit did you get??

[bassNspear]

i heard that when you are trolling faster, where your creating a wake, they dont work as well

is this true?

[DARTER]

lol

 Originally Posted By: katoguy

Side scan is different than side imaging.

Big boats and the armed services have been using a sort of side imaging technology in the more recent years, but it, too, is different and cost a heck of a lot more than HB side imaging. HB brought the price down to what some fisherman can afford.

Side scan is just transducer(s) pointing sideways. Heck, BottomLine was using that 15 years ago. The imaging software is the key that ties it altogether into one picture.

[MNBassGuy]

I got the 997 model. Pretty nice unit.

I'm not sure about the "Side scan is just transducer(s) pointing sideways" comment. I have one ducer for my unit. It's larger than a normal ducer, but it handles both the side imaging and the standard sonar. I've heard a lot of people say that there are multiple ducers, but that's just not the case.

[katoguy]

Sidescan yes, side imaging no! I think some people are confusing the two.

[Pherris]

 Originally Posted By: MNBassGuy

I got the 997 model. Pretty nice unit.

I'm not sure about the "Side scan is just transducer(s) pointing sideways" comment. I have one ducer for my unit. It's larger than a normal ducer, but it handles both the side imaging and the standard sonar. I've heard a lot of people say that there are multiple ducers, but that's just not the case.

There is only one transducer and it dose provide signal for both SI and sonar. The issue is that the sonar will not work at speeds above 10-12mph so you will not get an accurate sonar reading when the boat is on plane. As I mentioned in an earlier post you can add a through the hull transducer and install a switch to control which ducer is sending the signal. The through hull ducer will only provide sonar reading. There is a really good newsgroup on yahoo groups that I found to be very helpful in learning how to use the unit and interrupt what you are seeing. You have the same unit as I and if you invest the time to learn it you will be very pleased with the results. Some people do have issues with the prop wash causing interferance if the transducer is not mounted/positioned properly. This is one of the subjects discussed on the newsgroup. Good luck with the new unit.