I have a 17 ft McKee that I want to replace the gps with a chart plotter. I now have a Furuno GPS 37 which is great and does a good job in the ocean, but I am doing more inshore now and wanted to change to a chart plotter. What would you all recommend, Raymarine, Garmin…I am looking to spend around $500 or so.
Thanks
http://www.boemarine.com/Products/104-001/Default.aspx
507 dollars.
Lowrance elite 5. Built in inshore and coastal chart + inshore sonar built in.
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Luke 8:22-25
Phin - Thanks for the info. I already have a great sounder on board. Do they make this model without the sounder? Also, I do a little bit of nearshore(0-20 miles) fishing in this boat. What kind of chip capabilities does it have?
Thanks
Bought a Garmin 441s last month from BOE for $429.00. Still figuring out all the bells and whistles but so far I like it. Probably has more features that I need or will use.
I use the Garmin 276C and have enjoyed it for 6 years. It has withstood a lot of abuse and gives great detail for its size. It is now discontinued but I am sure there is a similar substitute.
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You are talking about saving literally only like 50 bucks or so getting a Lowrance unit without the basic sonar, so I would get the combo unit and sell my other sonar on an inshore or nearshore rig where having a backup sonar isn’t imperitive unless you have a really great sonar that is better than what comes on the lowrance. Or you can look at it as a 50 dollar back-up sonar system if you ever need it.
On these units, you can mark bottom structure on the sonar by moving a cursor to the structure and saving the waypoint from there.
Having the standalone units does give you bigger screens to look at though.
http://www.boemarine.com/Products/103-001/Default.aspx is the chartplotter only.
These have an SD slot that will read the navionics, nauticpath, etc. chart cards. You will have to get the HDS-5 if you want aerial photography overlay, which is cool because you can adjust the transparency of it and in the 3d view it’s incredible. The HDS-5 will run you 100-150 more I think, but I am not sure.
Either of the linked-to models above has everything you would need preloaded chartwise, however, (besides the aerial photo or other eye candy). Having the charts preloaded on any machine lets the machine run much faster than if it has to read the cartography off an SD chip. SD readers are going to have inherent delay vs internal memory.
The lowrance’s chart position updating and position acquisition on startup are much noticably faster than anything I have seen except the Lowrance HDS. I had a garmin 540s for a few weeks, and I replaced it with a Lowrance HDS system. The Lowrance elite series is basically the same technology minus the high def. sonar and aerial photography high def. mapping capability.
For an even better deal, you can find the older model Lowrances being closed out at various places since the Elite series is replacing them. I would strongly recommend the new Elite or HDS series though as they have better antennas built in and better functionality.
I am not a Garmin fan; I will
I am a Garmin fan… i think it is easier to operate, but have not had a lot of experience with Lowrance. I have had a Garmin 440, 498, and a 540. Have loved all 3, and never had a problem with any of the units. Just kept selling boats they were on.
Think you can pick up a 498 (discontinued) for under $350… i bought my 540s for $450 new on some google shopping website.
Phin,
not trying to argue, just curious… What makes you say the sonar on Garmin is no good? I think it works great up to about 100’ of water. Anything over that the screen is just to small to figure out what is going on down there besides wrecks.
What do you mean buy jump through hoops? You mean loading waypoints from computer to SD card, or how trying to find your waypoints in an unorganized jumble of chit like i have. Think i have about 300 waypoints, and takes me forever to scroll through them. Is Lowarance easier?
Reason i ask is i need to upgraded to a bigger unit in the next couple months. Probably cheaper to buy a big screen sonar.
Thanks
Also keep in mind that West Marine will match any online price as long as it is a shop/dealer, not eBay. Then you save shipping cost and get it right away (if in-stock). Plus, it supports local business.
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Not every price. They would not match the price I paid for my GPS, they said it was below their cost and would not match it.
quote:
Originally posted by coates2122What makes you say the sonar on Garmin is no good?
</font id=“quote”></blockquote id=“quote”>I have been on a good many dif. boats, and it is usually to run the boat to bottom fish when I have been brought along. I am a gear and electronics fanatic when it comes to bottom fishing. Don’t get me wrong, if I wanted the very best sonar possible and money was no option, I would not be talking about Lowrance units. But within most of our budgets and on our type of fishing rigs, Lowrance is really high up there for me. Some people skip Lowrance simply because the biggest screen they can get from that company is 10 inches!
Anyhow, I pay attention to the sonar on any boat as well as mine constantly if I am able to do so, and I am often asked to fiddle with others’ sonars to get them operating better. Most people know very little about what their equipment will do at all, and it really is somewhat amazing to me that such is the case when it comes to such expensive equipment. So much info can be gained from even the $500 units we have access to now. It goes much further than bottom fishing. If you know what to look for and what you’re seeing beneath you, it can aid you so much in fishing.
In my opinion the Garmins do not separate off-the-bottom returns (fish/bait) well enough for you to know much about what you are seeing (or at least not as much as with other brands with similar or identical transducers). On some of the smaller units, it is because of the screen size and resolution as you say being poor. However, I have had several small lowrance units, 5" and 7" diagonal screens in black and white and color, and this was not an issue. Lowrance has excellent target separation even without the HDS technology.
If I cannot tell suspended B liners from suspended bait in 150ft, for example, then the sonar is worth
I sure hope lowrances customer service has improved…