Getting No Love........GPS Question

[kenny]

I posted this over on TOB and got no info.
There are just to **** many GPS/sounder combos out there!
It causes a lot of stress trying to pick the right one. I've always had Garmin and the 546S $850. looks Ok but the improved screen resolution costs $200. over the 541S. $650. Then there's the tall narrow screen, I like my old square screen.

I'm pretty much decided to get a Lowrance but then which 5" one to buy...more decisions.
The regular Elite-5 is about $550. and up.
The Elite-5 Gold (with better charts) $633. and up.
The HDS-5 Nautic Insight (high def.)is $659. and up

I didn't consider the DSI-5 or down scanning option. I mean what are you going to see in 1'-6' of water.

SO what are your opinions??

[corndog]

Kenny I have the old garmin 232 which works decent. Dont be scared of the tall screen it gives you more heads up on where you are going and enough side vision. I was thinkung the same thing when I first started using it. I wish I had a colored screen the b&w is harder to read the tracks up against the depth relief lines. Myself when I purchase again I will go with the biggest of a screen that I can afford. Look forward to others comments for future knowledge.

[buoy37]

I am in the same predicament. I know the week after dropping some major cash. Something new and improved will come around and I'll kick myself. It always happens with electronics.

[fuzzy]

I got the 541.wish I was smart enough to use it.

[Termo]

Kenny,
I have the Standard Horizon CP300i GPS plotter (about $700 + the C-Map Max chip $180.00) w/ seperate fish finder. If you prefer all-in one unit, the Standard Horizon CPF 390i would be a good choice for you if you can afford it ($1,100 + chip). I love this product because all the SH units use the C-MAP chip and you can buy them for any geographic location (I have 1 for the Gulf of Mexico and 1 for Florida/Bahamas). The chip is the magic bullet. No matter what new comes out on the market, this chip fits all their new products, so you don't have to keep upgrading units, plus I have never had a problem. When new info comes out from C-MAP (about every other year) you just take the chip to someone (like Boat Owner's Warehouse) and they download the new charts/info on your chip and you plug it back into your unit. Just a thought, but worth considering. Here's the link if you're interested (click on "Products" from main page:

http://www.standardhorizon.com/

[Termo]

By the way, this unit is very user-friendly--it would have to be 'cause I'm pretty stupid.

[Lori77563]

I have an older Garmin 440 that is good for navigation but the depth finder is useless. I bought a Hummingbird DSI unit and love it, it shows details and structure that no regular depth finder will, yes even in 3-4'. If I had the money I would buy the Lowrance GPS unit with side scan sonar (only $1400).

[kenny]

Lori why is the depth finder useless? Lowrance has a DSI (down scan imaging) anyone seen that in action?

[Lori77563]

In shallow water they just doesn't work well, it will show depth and that is about it. Traditional depth/fish finders are designed to look straight down, have a very narrow beam width and cannot differentiate between between bottom changes, thermoclines and other issues effectively. They simply overlay the 2 signals (usually 40khz and 200khz) and display them in a 1D image. My DSI unit has a 30 degree beam and takes the 2 signals and through software combines them to present a cleaner and more accurate 2D image of what is down there. It works best in 5'+ of water but does a pretty good job in 3'. The side scan sonar will show a 2D image of just about everything around the boat. The pictures Lowrance and Hummingbird show on their web site of the DSI bottom images of course were under optimal conditions in deeper water but will give you a pretty goog idea of what you can get.

I got the B&W unit as it was much cheaper and doesn't have all the color that makes the screen too busy, in my opinion.

[Robalo]

Kenny: I have Lowrance and there cheaper version "Eagle" combo. My Eagle combo (color) is about a 5" screen and was a closeout for $300. I have some issues with it lately (they hate heat over a long time and the plugs can/will rot), but the depth finder works better than any hummingbird I ever had (they were the older hummingbirds I had and they were bad at high speeds). It seems that these things act up after about 5 years.

Good luck with whatever you decide-if ya want a cheap unit, check out "eagle" combos; otherwise spend the $ and get a Garmin IMO.

[TTU Wader]

I know Steve_A just got a new Lowrance, PM him. Think he had the HD series

[sfef84]

Kenny,

A buddy of mine is a hydrographer for NOAA. Sonar acquisition is his specialty. The other day we were chatting about lowrance's structure imaging and here is verbatim the text from google chat:
Erik: and the structure scan for lawramce if phenomenal for the money
12:16 PM me: have you used it first hand before?
12:17 PM Erik: I have not, but researched intensely. Its the way to go
12:18 PM me: it seems like such an expensive technology... Its crazy how cheap the module is
12:19 PM Erik: ya tell me about, I use over a million dollars worth of equipment to obtain the same imagery. Its all about the software these days
12:20 PM me: really

I know you are a lifelong Galveston bay fisherman, imagine how cool it would be to hit all those spots you've acquired through the years and see what you are actually fishing. It would be awesome in offat's, marking old wrecks on the beach or bay etc. Imagine all the snapper spots you can find in state waters!

Also, is your outboard NMEA2000 compatible?

[sfef84]

Also, I have an HDS-7 w built in charts. It has a LOT of detail on the close in zoom, not just shaded relief. I found a lot of 9-10ft holes around west bay that were never on my old garmin.
On the Garmin maps, you can see a few deep holes on the map, but are only indicated by a number, so when your looking at 1,000 "3", its hard to find a number like "8". On my lowrance, it has these areas both graphically (like a off shaded color) as well as the spot sounding.

Garmin is losing market share big time. They are overpriced, less advanced, and have OLD maps. They have been the top dog with little saltwater competition in the <20ft boat area for a long time and companies like Lowrance are working HARD to take market share.

Get the Lowrance... You don't need any extra wires or space for mounting external garmin sounders. THe time it took me to install my lowrance from opening the box, to having it mounted and running was 20 minutes. Hook up the pos and neg wires to fuse block and run the transducer to the transom. done.

[Hogie70]

The HDS-5 Nautic Insight (high def.)is $659. and up
That is what I have & I love it...

[sfef84]

my problem with Garmin is that they are like Apple. They dumb down their products because they have a lack of confidence in the abilities of their consumers. I can play with the most expensive recreational marine unit they have and figure it out in 5 minutes. Not because "its so intuitive", but because you can only do basic stuff on it. adjust brightness, search for a POI, adjust a safety depth, adjust the gain on the fishfinder.. etc Their most expensive unit is basically the same as their least expensive, but with a bigger screen.