Sonar/GPS upgrade...

[cupper]

So, I think this is the lucky year where I finally get to upgrade my sonar. I've got an old Humminbird that is as old as my boat ('94) with no GPS. I am looking to with a sonar-gps combo in the 500-800 dollar range... nothing too huge or fancy. I am liking what I see out of the new Humminbird combos as well as Lowrance. Any input would be greatly appreciated. What do you guys use/like? Why?

Thanks a bunch!

[HugoBox]

We have the Eagle 542C or 642C (whichever has the GPS built in). Not the most high end fancy unit on the planet but its served us well. It would be on the low end of the price range you're looking at. Only complaint is that the glare from the sun can make it tough to see from some angles. I'd love to upgrade but since ours does what its suppose to its hard to justify another $800. Maybe someone who has compared the Eagle and Lowrance side by side can comment, but for chasing 'skis I'm not sure if the extra $100 spent for the same unit but with "Lowrance" instead of "Eagle" on it is money well spent.

[TheHawgTrough]

I've been thinking about this also. I got a Lowrance without the color from 4-5 years ago. It has the GPS, but I would think the bottom composition would show up better in color.

Also, would be nice to have another one up front by the trolling motor. Any idea what the install costs would be for a front mounted unit?

[mtreno]

at that price range you should be able to find a deal on a pretty good unit. with lowrance going to there new units the lcx units have droped in price at all the major retailers. at 800 bucks you should be abole to find a lowrance x27 - or in the 5 - 600 range a deal on a 520 or 522. going to get a better screen - more pixcels - and more power verses an eagle unit. eagle is lowrance low end.

hummingbird units are interesting. but to me not worth the money. side by side there gps is not good. lowrance takes a bit of tweaking, but far better. side image sonar is neat - but thats about the end of it - its just to much information for the avg fisherman. alot of the walleye pros i talk to use it to pre fish just for learning but just the normal sonar readings while fishing an event. once again to much info.

there is a reason why 90% of all combo units sold are lowrance

[TrophyEyes]

I picked up a Lowrance 520C last year and I love it. I still don't know all the functions, but it is far clearer then the model I was using before. I also am trying to figure out how to mount my old model on the bow.

[10,000 Casts]

Color is the way to go. Alot easier to see in the sun. I have 2 lowrance LMS334c (5" color sonar gps combo from 3 years ago. They are 3 years old, the new model from last year is the LMS522. I haven't switched because Lowrance had some issues that needed to be taken care of... Shallow weeds readings and gps software issues so I didn't upgrade. Although the 7" screen LCX 27c would be nice up on the bow, it's really not need of us Muskie guys imo. The reason that I will only buy Lowrance is beacuse they take a Lakemaster chip. Humminbird can't, they can only take Navionics. If you are going to spend $500+ then you need to get a map chip otherwise you are wasting your $$$. Find out which lakes you need and which chip has them in high def and go from there. Humminbird makes an awesome unit but for me, the mapping is the key.

Size, Power, GPS, and which chip? are the main questions. This winter, there should be some smoking deals at the sport shows, bring cash, don't pay the sales tax and save a few hundred bucks off msrp and leave happy.

[MUSKY18]

Color rocks!!!! Never thought I would like it until I got one with color. Never go back!!

Have a 520C on the console and an X125 on the bow. Both units are great, however, I am looking forward to getting a GPS unit on my bow. I think I will put a 522C up there when the time comes, as it has the internal antenna. Also, with my universal sonar, it will hook right up to my TM and I am ready to go!!!

Lowrance is the only choice for me and the units I will continue to have on my boats!

[mtreno]

yep color is by far the way to go. with the 2.4 upgrade on the lcx models (not sure on the lms upgrade #) the shallow water isssue has been taken care of - must be set on shallow water mode (should be for all water depths less than a couple hundred ft). they came out with the lms520 & lms522 to clean up some of the issues they had with the old 334s.

lowrance untis will use either chip - lakemaster/navionics. i use both but do like my navionics better for a number of reasons. hummingbird will only use navionics - lakemaster is a lowrance company. lake chips are by far a whole other topic that has alot more to do with personal choice.

[10,000 Casts]

the 2.4 upgrade helped some units but not all of the units... To many people have to keep on getting their units updated way too often. You are correct on the shallow water mode but sometimes it still doesn't work. For those of you that have these units, if they work correctly don't ever update them. I hope this years models won't need any updates as it drives alot of fishermen nuts.

My 334c's are diamons in the rough, they work awesome but you are correct, most of them didn't... I paid $200 a piece so they were worth a shot and I love them.

Everyone has their prefs on the chips, I like Lakemaster becasue it is faster, it has roads, and it seems to be more accurate on the lakes that I fish.

I am pretty sure Lakemaster is not a Lowrance company, they just pay for the exclusive rights to the chip. It will only be a matter of time before Humminbird gets the rights to the chip, I know that they were trying last year.

[Croix]

Don't mean to hyjack the post but, If I get the 522C with internal gps, how much accuracy am I going to compromise?

NOTE: I Fish all of MN, WI, and LOTW well into Canada.

[10,000 Casts]

another thing, Lowrances are alot easier to network if you want to run off of 1 gps puck and share waypoints. Humminbird parts are really tough to find

[10,000 Casts]

Quote:

Don't mean to hyjack the post but, If I get the 522C with internal gps, how much accuracy am I going to compromise?

depends on the day, should't be too much between the internal and external but any marine gps will be off 25ft or more

[mtreno]

humm - have not seen where it has not helped - or where it needed to be updated again. i get alot of guys in the store that say thay have updated there unit and then i look and its running 1.8 or even 1.4 versions. i just dont understand how it could go back to the old software? i update there units and then they work. i would never update a unit that is working fine. but the first thing that goes wrong i check software version and then check to see if there is a newer one. there is no reason why you if you did not like the update that you could not go back to the old version. or so i have been told - i have never had a reason to go back myself.

i think your right about lakemaster - something about lowrance holding exclusive rights sounds correct.

[bonefish]

You might want to get in touch with Dave at Pro Fishing Supply. Not only is he a Fishing MN sponsor but he knows the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to picking the best electronics in your price range for your boat and fishing style. I was more than satisfied with his service and prices.

[10,000 Casts]

either way, I hope they fix it this year, a guy that puts down that kind of cash houldn't have to come in for an update in the first place. Some people I know call it an "oil change" because they have had to do it so much.

[mtreno]

i agree - but with any high end software - there are always bugs and upgrades.

one of the things that is nice and so many people dont understand is how easy it is to update a unit. the unit does the work itself - now many stores will do the update for you if you bring your unit in. but it really only takes the a few seconds. log on to lowrance HSOforum - go to updates/downloads - go to unit updates - find you unit model number - save it to a mmc/sd card - once saved take that card and put it in your unit - turn unit on and it will say "loading". when done go to your software information and make sure its running what you just installed.

to check and see if there is a update needed look to see what software you are running - log on to webpage and see what the current version is.

i have a x-19 - been updated once in the 6 years i have owned it.

i have a lcx-112 - been updated once in the 2 years i have owned it

i have a lms-522 - been updated once in the 1 year

not sure about the "oil change"

[10,000 Casts]

you're lucky

For anyone downloading the update, you hav e to have Java Script on your computer.

[mtreno]

Don't mean to hyjack the post but, If I get the 522C with internal gps, how much accuracy am I going to compromise?

just be sure your mounting the unit with a clear view to the sky. in a tiller box or even under a windshield they sometimes have issues.

[Lund 95]

I have 522c's mounted on the counsel and the bow they have worked flawlessly thus far. Color is definitely the way to go which ever unit you decide to go with.

[10,000 Casts]

Some people don't like the internals because of the mounting situation and they don't think that they are as accurate. As far as accuracy goes, I don't think you'll notice. The 522's are better than the 334's because they moved the antenna up to the top of the unit. I like the internals because I use them for alot more than just fishing. I use it in my truck in the winter, on a 4 wheeler and I take it to my buddies boat on West Battle since he doesn't have gps. It is alot more convienient not to have to bring a puck although it could be done. If it is going on a boat and never comming off or in the electronic box, or the dash of a bass boat, the get an external gps, if you want to use like I do, get the internal.

Did you guys here of the Bass boat dealer that pr rigged their bass boats with 522's mounted in the dash? They sold a bumch in the spring and the guys couldn't figure out why their gps' didn't work.

[cjac]

The Big "C" retail outlet has the Lowrance 522 units with transducer (rear mount) for $500, plus there's a $75 off coupon in the Fishing Catalog they sent out, so $425 to get into a combo unit that was $650, plus the chip.

As 10k casts said, they moved the internal antenna to the top of the unit, big help. Plus, the issues with the Lowrance units and reading in shallow water are easier to fix than you think.

Great deal to get into a combo unit.

Chris

[10,000 Casts]

Thats a sweet deal. Just make sure that they aren't piecing units together and that the warranty is still good.

the best thing about the Big "C", take a good deal, add a coupon, use your gift certificate from your last purchase, put it on the "C" credit card and sometimes get a rebate and you have a smoking deal.

[superhawk16]

I would agree with most of the posts here that one of the Lowrance models would be a good option. The side imaging on the Humminbirds is absolutely awesome because you can see a picture of the bottom off to your sides but the smallest unit would be just out of your price range. If I were you I would look into the new Lowrance HD units that are coming out as we speak. They have some really good features and are more or less an updated version of the older Lowrance gps/sonar combos that are going to be discontinued.

[Croix]

So the Humminbird 797c2 Sonar/External GPS Combo with Side Imaging includes the navioncis bundle package, does anyone what is included in the bundle or where I can find a list of lakes for our region? Would this be sufficent for MN, WI and LOTW or would I be going out and puchasing additional plots...Thanks!

[veha44]

When fishing the midwest, the bundles/hd built in aren't really worth the money. You will still end up buying a mapping chip seperately and you will be using that map chip almost exclusivly. The mapping chips give you the High definition mapping (1ft or 3ft contours) along with many extra lakes.

Now if you are going to be fishing all over the country or want the Nautical info for the great lakes (hd units by lowrance) then it can make it worth it, but if you are just doing the MN, Wi, and LOTW then a Navionics North should cover the lakes you fish and the chip works in both the Humminbird and Lowrance units.