You know lowrance now has the elite systems with CHIRP…like joby said. Just too many options. I will say this, You will find yourself using downscan 10x more often than sidescan.
“All fisherman lie. And if they say otherwise, then they’re lying”
I agree with Chip. Side scan is cool for looking under docks and off to the side which is neat, but not all that necessary.
I consider it more of a largemouth or crappie fisherman option. I vote for bigger screen if you have to choose. The details are much clearer.
No one in the history of modern man has said the words “I wish I had bought the smaller screen.” Almost all of us have said the opposite!
…I forgot to add: Look closely at the models you like and see if the on screen display or touch buttons take up screen space.
I’m not familiar with your particular choices but sometimes the displays can be turned off or moved to give you more fishfinding screen- this is a great option and is like getting a bigger screen.
The older I get the bigger screen I need! Some times my 12 " is not big enough with the screen split! Its nice to glance at the unit when at the stern working lines and be able to see it!
I have Lowrance HDS 10 with Side Scan… With that said if I was to choose between screen size or side scan. I would definitely choose screen size. Like was stated early, I use down scan a lot more than side scan.
Without a doubt, get the BIGGEST</font id=“size4”> screen that you can afford. I have yet to see one anywhere that I thought was too big. Next, I will have to agree with Chip on the downscan (down imaging, downvu, whatever brand). To me, it is a “must have” where the sidescan is not. The downscan really helps differentiate bottom “fish” from bottom structure and I can show you screenshots of what I’m talking about. Brand-wise, I have had about all of them over the years. Currently, I’m running a Garmin so that’s my favorite by default, but I came very close to buying a new Lowrance. On that, I just say “do your homework and research them all”. The electronics forum on THT is also a great source of information. Only brand that I really don’t care for is Raymarine, but I won’t get into that here.
Molon Labe!
The size of a fish is directly proportional to the time between when it’s lost and the story is told. - Me
Until you have loved a dog, part of your soul remains unawakened. - Anatole France (paraphrased)
RIP my “Puppy Dog” 10/15/2004 - 1/14/2013. I’ll never forget him. What a special friend he was.
Hey guys, don’t think you’re giving side scan enough credit. In deep water side scan is not near as useful as in shallow water(less than 20’). If you are pulling flat lines in shallow water, like in the spring, I have marked fish 60’ on one side of the boat or the other, turned that way and pulled the flat lines right through the fish with resulting strikes. Sorry, didn’t mean to hijack the thread. But I agree with most on here…in order of priority in my mind, screen size, dual frequency (63/200k), down scan, then side scan and I would go with the chirp as it provides 5-10 times the definition/separation as broad band. My unit is the Lowrance HDS 12 Gen 2 Touch…
Fishing is a prefectible art…in which nevertheless, no man is perfect – Gifford Pinchot
Key West Sportsman 1720
Ice Blue Pathfinder 2200 “Kemosabe”
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the elite 7’s are nice combos… you will find yourself staying with a normal sonar over downscan most of the time… you may see something off and switch over to find a bush or tree… id say look at the elite 7 chirp as it seems to be the hot ticket(chirp that is) and once you get use to settings and frequency you can pick out allot more suspended fish9again on normal sonar)
when i look at lowrance i see it as simrads little brother… simrad is the parent company of lowrance so simrad will get the better technology… i would be looking at a simrad evo2 7’with a tm150 and a lss2 tranducer… best of both worlds… everything is built in(down scan/side scan/chirp) a killer clear screen and easy to use interface… or if your not looking for newest and best look at the nss series…
i do have an elite7 on my boat… i may want better but i can be honest it has served me well… it really comes down to what you feel you want or if you think you want to expand down the road…
I saw the Lowrance HDS 7 touch with structure in action Saturday for the first time. It was very impressive to me. Much better than my old color Garmin.
[sigh] … I need to start a Donation thread … $3K+ for a FF is crazy to justify even to a Wife who loves fishing …
Anyone care to donate to the PRFF (Poor Rick Fishing Fund)?
I promise to share all (cough) of the information I obtain while utilizing the $3,999 fish finder … I promise
… it’s my Wife’s fault we HAVE to fish !!!
2005 Sea Pro 2100cc / Yamaha 150hp 4-Stroke
OK Rick, let me be the first to pledge toward the PRFF. I will pony up $10 for every Murray Striper you catch over 30 lbs and an additional $10 for every Murray Striper Liz catches over 35 lbs in 2015. Keep me posted on our running total.
I’m good for it. Just ask Chip.
Thanks for all the responses. The Simrad was my top choice, but I just can’t justify that kind of money on my little boat.
After playing with the units, their is a big difference in screen clarity between the 7" and 8" screens. 7" is the smallest I could live with, and the HDS 7 looks like the top choice. The Humminbird wasn’t as clear, and it was a lot of work to clear off the numbers on the screen to get more real estate. The HDS touch is just a swipe of the finger.
The 8" Humminbird was amazingly clear, bright, and looked really nice. Too bad Lowrance doesn’t make a HD downscan 8" without having to have side view.
The elite was nice, but I wasnt a fan of the buttons, and their seemed to be some lag when navigating around the chart. the HDS and Humminbird had a much faster response.
What exactly is the advantage of CHiRP? I thought maybe it was just a new fad. Is it really useful and needed? I wanted the side scan for mostly inshore fishing, and I thought I read somewhere CHiRP was best used offshore.
I can’t speak for Lowrance but for the Humminbird, the Navionic Platinum card only shows 1 ft contours in SOME areas.
I found the map lacking the 1 ft definition in other areas- unfortunately some of the areas I like to fish.
I realize they step up to 3 ft contours in really deep areas- that makes sense- but there were some fairly shallow areas they just seemed to miss altogether.
That’s one of the reasons I’m excited about the new HD map from Lakemaster- in addition to the Ipilot Link stuff I mentioned…
I am referring to the ability to use the lake master features. Like adjusting the contours across the lake based on the current lake level. Or highlighting every countour at a particular depth so that you can find locations that fish maybe holding at that depth.
