Does my sonar spook the fish?

In watching the video from the Crappie Masters tournament on St John's river I noticed the winner commented he was fishing next to some locals. They were all catching fish in this area and the tournament fisherman commented that he asked the local to turn his fish finder off so they could catch more fish. I was wondering if anybody has experienced when setting on a school of fish if turning the fish finder off produced better results?
An article that I googled when my curiosity got raused.
Does your boat scare or spook fish
In my search I read where Hummingbird claims thier transducers do not spook the fish.

I catch fish with mine on all the time.

Bunch of B/S. If that was the case no one would catch any fish. He must have just got very lucky to win that tournament let along any tournament. What a crock.

CX.

the bass pro's don't want your electronics on if your a spectator near by.I believe less is better,especially at night. in flat water I always turn off the units if I'm on a spot I already know. on days when there is a decent chop on the lake i think you can get by with a little more noise. maybe hummingbird can get kvd to incorporate his hydrowave with their transducer to achieve the ultimate fish finder!

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Originally Posted by Crappie Xtreme

Bunch of B/S. If that was the case no one would catch any fish. He must have just got very lucky to win that tournament let along any tournament. What a crock.

CX.

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Think what you want. while it may not scare all the fish away, obviously, it does effect some fish and it's usually the bigger ones or in high pressure areas. There has been MORE than 1 crappie tournament won recently by anglers who turn off their transducer. Same reason people catch more fish in Mississippi with the drift rather than going into the wind. Less noise. If you think they don't spook i Highly encourage you to Go see for yourself down there...

In this day where we have 2 to 3 transducers all making noise on a boat i can only imagine it makes a difference.

Well just so you know I do know that catching a drift does catch more fish than going against the wind because I have done it a LOT. I don't need anyone to show me. But as far as the transducer making noise and scaring fish that I don't believe. I have had my boat right up in bushes in shallow water with the transducer on and have caught a LOT of fish right beside my trolling motor. I'm not saying they don't make some kind of noise I just don't believe it makes a difference. A boat going against the wind and the waves hitting the bottom of the boat make way more noise than any transducer. Believe what you want I don't believe it makes a difference.

CX.

I just think in certain situations it really does make a difference. I'm with you cx in that iv had the troller nail the brush and be all up in it and still caught fish. But in open water situations when the fish are roaming and high in water columns, and when there is a lot of pressure on them that's when I think it will make a difference. Everybody is entitled to their fish catchin opinions!

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Originally Posted by birdman

I just think in certain situations it really does make a difference. I'm with you cx in that iv had the troller nail the brush and be all up in it and still caught fish. But in open water situations when the fish are roaming and high in water columns, and when there is a lot of pressure on them that's when I think it will make a difference. Everybody is entitled to their fish catchin opinions!

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Sorry i dont mean to sound like a jerk although it read that way. Opinions are like you know what, everyone has one. Lol. The only reason i used my graph when spider riggin is so i can stay away from any sets that i have got caught in and so i can mark sets when i get caught in them. And to stay in the same depth of water that i have been catchin fish in. Spider riggin is a great way to find them for sure. Lol

CX.

yes , i have been having trouble with my sonar spooking fish, dynamite really disturbs them