Next Upgrade: Lowrance hds7 touch bundle Vs. Humminbird 898 with Navionics Map?

You guys gave me such good advice concerning my trolling motor last year I am asking about my next upgrade. I have narrowed it down to the HDS7 Touch Bundle wuth USA Insight Mapping which I found for around 1,650.00 Vs the Humminbird 898 plus the Navionics Platinum map chip which I have found for about 1,500.00. (I am not particularly happy that Tennessee is on the East Chip. I don't fish there much, but since I am in North Mississippi I would go there before some of the other states on the South Chip.)

Due to everyone's great advice I did get the Terrova iPilot 80 last year and love it. I know about the new link option with Humminbird, but that seems to be a 700 - 800 dollar upgrade. I am also not sure what that will end up getting me. I currently have a Lowrance elite 5 B&W at the console and a Eagle 640c up front. My Terrova has the built in transducer and there is a skimmer on the back for the console. I am thinking about making the new unit moveable so I can use it in both spots, but keep the 640c up front anyway.

Will the New transducer in the back of the boat do me any good up front? I can turn it around on the Ram Mount and be able to view it from the front without moving it. It will do good for crankbait trolling later.

I have not had any experience with these more advanced units, but I am very technically capable since I am an IT guy. So any opinions?

HDS. End of story.

U still new a GPS solution at the console for cranking ledges...not sure if your pulling with big motor or TM. If console, new GPS there. If TM, you can make do with it up front and out the 640c at console.

Need more info on how you fish to advise location, but there is no choice between units IMO....which is the only one that counts if you stop to think about it...at least to me anyhow.

Wannabe...

I want to be able to do both Crappie and Bass. I use the TM to move the boat when I crappie fish and fish from up front. I tend to troll and long line more than spider rig, but I am working on my technique for slow trolling.

I did not understand your last sentence. It is not a question between the 640c and the new GPS unit. It is a question which GPS unit is better. What I was saying is that I would run an extension to the front to move the new unit up front when I am there, but would leave the 640c up front and on. The 640c would read with the transducer on the trolling motor. I think it will also teach me to read the 640c better with the down imaging and side imaging features that would show on the back transducer.

I am also thinking that maybe I would put a structure scan transducer up front at some point and move the unit. But that would be later.

Hard to believe there are no opinions on this. I am asking because the information out there is not geared to details on usage of the units and the options needed to make it work best.

Am I right in that the Lowrance built in maps are better than the Humminbird and that you do need to get the additional card to get a more complete map on the HB? Am I right in the two units and their options I laid out basically being comparable?

Any info will be appreciated.

Get the biggest Screen, Get the 12

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BulldogBruce

Hard to believe there are no opinions on this. I am asking because the information out there is not geared to details on usage of the units and the options needed to make it work best.

Am I right in that the Lowrance built in maps are better than the Humminbird and that you do need to get the additional card to get a more complete map on the HB? Am I right in the two units and their options I laid out basically being comparable?

Any info will be appreciated.

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Its a ford/Chevy thing. The insight maps are very good though on lowrance. If you get the Birds you will need a Navionics card. Just be sure and take the time to learn which ever unit you get and you will be more successful.


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Ok, then I default to my original statement. HDS. End of story.

For north ms lakes, insite is far superior.

IMO, side imaging off the TM is a waste of time. Mount to back and be done with it.

Wannabe...

I meant to mount the SI transducer to the transom. Moving the unit from console to deck depending on fishing technique is desirable if you only have one unit.

Wannabe...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Wannabe...

I meant to mount the SI transducer to the transom. Moving the unit from console to deck depending on fishing technique is desirable if you only have one unit.

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My thought on being able to move it is to be able to easily enter waypoints while I am fishing and be able to utilize the down imaging to help me learn to interpret the readout of the 640c better.

Of you have the 640 at front (which is an excellent unit btw) and HDS ducer at back, your not doubt to get a true side by side comparison. Would be helpful for interpreting structure like that, but not so much for fish themselves because you wil never be sure if a fish you see in the front swam out I the cine before passing over with the back. Vice versa, u may not see one on front and do in the back but it may have swam into the cone and was not there when your front unit passed over the spot.

Still, I'm sold on HDS vs hbird.

Wannabe...

The new HDS Touch are by far the easiest unit to operate. The images are amazing as well.

I may be making an investment if yall keep sweet talking lowrance like that. Sure does look like a cool unit.

WB should know since he has had every unit known to man on his boats!:banghead

HDS!!! I have the 12, and it's the chit!!!! You can run Navionics AND Insight at the same time. It's great that way!!! Insight has more detail to old structure like Roads, Buildings, Bridges, and covers the areas that Navionics left off. Navionics show much more detail in the contours like drops, humps, ledges, points, and flats.


Big River Marine
Bill Burnett
870-635-0202

We sell XPRESS, EXCEL, and ALWELD Boats. Yamaha, Suzuki, Evinrude, Mud Buddy, and Tohatsu/Nissan Engines.
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Navionics is good, where coverage is available. It's crap on Grenada in particular. No coverage at all past Skuna landing or Choctaw. Great for summer, but useless for spring and a lot of fall.

Wannabe...

You can make your own Map with the New HDS and the Insight Genesis.

I am concerned about how that is going to work though. The way I heard it described is there are different yearly rates for different levels. You can then use your gas to run a pattern and upload it and they will make the map for you to download. Depending on your level you can then download the map and the detail of them is based on your subscription.

What I am disturbed about is they can collect all this data and at some point in the future make super maps by having all these people collecting data for them and actually paying them for providing them the data. Sounds like a good deal for them. So you pay them to give them data.

I was reading about that. Didn't really understand how that worked. Sounds like they have it figured out...