U S - 2 terrova rf interference (long winded but may be worth the time)

Hopefully this thread will save a few guys the many hours of effort and frustration that I just went through . First off let me say I love the terrova 80 motor , I also love my humminbird electronics 898csi and 858 c . The cost of these items built by Johnson outdoors is around $4000.00 for all three , I kinda think they should work properly. THEY DON'T!! . The terrova with the built in US-2 transducer was producing extreme rf interference on my bow mounted 858c this was also transferred to my console 898sci through the Ethernet cable . In an effort to get things right I was very carefull to follow all instructions and I also tried every suggestion tech support had to offer , the one thing that made perfect sence was this. I was told by tech support at humminbird that I would need to be sure my transducer cable was not at any time routed in close proximity to my power cable . HMMMM ! An interesting statement since the sonar cable is routed through the shaft of the trolling motor with the power cables from the factory !!!! Hear is what I finally did to fix the problem . I disconnected the US-2 transducer and hooked up the the transducer that came with the 858 mounted it externally on the terrova and LIKE MAGIC it works , US-2 is a great idea but simply does not work !!! Had I known this in advance I would have purchased a graph with DI and the terrova without the US-2 !!! Are they going to offer to trade these items out ? I highly doubt it !!! Now that I'm not working on there equipment any more I have time to go FISHING !! CHOOSE WISELY!!!!! Please post your comments and experiences with US-2 I'm sure I'm not the only one with this trouble !

Did you check the fuse in the head of your motor for the noise reduction circuit?

Yes , twice the fuse is good !

I having the same trouble but I'm not useing the US-2 but the RF is comming from the Ip-link setup with the ethernet cable connection I have been working with HB but still not fixed , I have installed a new choke on the transducer cable and did the negitive ground from TM batteries to crank ground still have massive RF, a $6000 pile of electronics made buy JOI's companies that won't work together................ I'm still a fan-boy of HB and Minnkota but its getting harder everyday to stay on their wagon lol, I'll get it worked out even if I have to rewire my entire boat

While I completely understand the frustration with tracking down and dealing with RF..(been there myself)...I also realize there are hundreds of users that install these setups every year without any type of RF problem at all...

Good stories are rarely published..
Bad stories always are....

RF is not a depth finder issue...never has been, never will be...(we must note here thar crosstalk interference is not RF and is a topic for another day)..

RF is generated in the our boat somewhere ...and today's electronics are sensitive enough to pick it up...

Every boat setup is different...requiring different solutions for each in it's own merit...

The only way to guarantee no RF showing up in our expensive electronics toys is to buy cheaper less sensitive electronics ...(and I doubt any of us would want to "not have the latest greatest")...

Rickie

mvinc I understand and agree with you 100% but my RF is comming from the new Ip-link that I have since installed on my TM, thats where I'm getting my RF from HB is sending me another ferrite ring to install on the ethernet cable, we shall see what this does I understand the RF thing and how and why it happens, but this is two products that are from the same compny JOI it just seems that they should work together when hooked up, I got the TM transducer extra made just for the TM I'm sure it will get fixed just upset that the only time I can tell whats on the locator screen is when I'm at a drift not under TM power ... lol we shall see

I dont get any RF when 1198 is mounted at the helm, only when it is hooked to the TM with the link system hooked up , so hopefully this second ring will help this will make 3 rings installed on the TM system, one that came with the link the second that is on the transducer cable and this new one which will go on the ethernet cable

My boats going to have alot of rings in it before we get done

and if this wont fix it I will be ready to rewire my entire boat, which will be an extreme pain lol

The interference mentioned when i started this thread totally quit when I unhooked the US-2 transducer and used an externally mounted one , to me it is clearly not coming from my boat but from the US-2 transducer and the cable being contained within the trolling motor and shaft . I changed nothing else at the time i did this and the problem went away completely , yes there may be some US-2 users out there that are having no issues , if there are I want to hear from them as we'll as the guys that are or have had a similar problem and if it was ever resolved!

Call HB. They have a noise kit for free. It is not the transducer, but noise coupled into the cable from pwm to the motor. Turn the motor to max speed, the noise will go away.

Hmmm , Ok I'll call them , this will be the the third call and also one email to humminbird greg on this issue , wonder why they never mentioned or offered a free noise kit ! Keep the info coming this may help a few others besides myself !

You can find more details on the Humminbird's FAQ's regarding things that can be done for interference that you may experience with a trolling motor

Humminbird: America

Just like Cane Pole said...RF is generated in your TM (or other 12v source)...not the Xducer...

The depth finder (or depth finder coupled with the iPilot/iLink) is "receiving" the RF ....not "causing" the RF...(usually inducted thru the Xducer cable)...

People too easily blame RF on the depth finder when the depth finder is not the "cause"...the depth finder is the "effect"...

The boat's 12v power system (TM included) is generating the RF "somewhere"...and its "bleeding" into the depth finder system "somewhere" ...(xducer cable, Ethernet cable, iPilot system PC boards, head unit, etc)..

There's only a limited number of ways to "capture" RF before it reaches the depth finder head unit..(ferrite rings, shielded cabling, neg to ground, programming filters, etc)...

Then it's time to trace down the "source" that's "causing" the RF....12v power somewhere..

Its just a process of elimination until the "cause" (or source) is found and controlled...

Johnson outdoors and Humminbird do many things to try to keep RF from affecting user's dealings with RF...(shielded cabling, ferrite ring in the PC11 power cable, programming filters, etc)....

JO and HB also go out of their way to help users control RF if it is found in certain setups...(advice on boat wiring, ferrite cores, etc)...

RF just happens and it's frustrating I know...

But it's not the depth finder's fault...it's the 12v power (TM included) somewhere in the boat's setup...

Find the "cause" (12v generated RF) and the "effect" (head unit displayed RF) will not be "affected"

Rickie

Ok guys I do understand that the probable source of the rf is the trolling motor . I guess I should have said the rf is coming THRU my transducer and its cable instead of saying it was coming FROM the transducer and its cable. I simply resolved the problem by using an external transducer instead of the internal US-2 , I did this because after a couple of calls to HB support the problem was still there , I was not offered a free noise kit , it was never mentioned and was told to be sure the transducer cable was not routed close to the power cable , but they did exactly that when they designed and built this product.they did send me a pc-11 power cord after I requested it . It did not help.My opinion is that when you manufacture a trolling motor that is a known source of rf and offer it with a built in transducer your begging for rf to end up at the customers depth finder. if the noise kit is free they should put one in the box with each motor they sell.Maybe I got ahold of a couple inexperienced tech support people when I called for help, I've learned more from this thread than I did from them. I realize i could keep working on it and maybe get it to work properly,I'm happy with the terrova and my 2 HB depthfinders but for me the US-2 option was not worth the trouble. Thanks for your help and input I do appreciate it !

x-2 shouldnt even be an option us-2 sux

One note, when I upgraded to the ipilot link on the terrova a ferrite ring came with it to install inside the base of the TM . I had some rf problems when I had a motor guide and went through all the tail chasing. It all works perfectly now. I know it is frustrating but stay after it.

I've got a new Terrova with US2 and a 788 up front....no interference at all...I mean NONE. I think this is the first TM/ FF combo I've had that didn't have at least a little receiver desensitivity on it. My trolling motor does not share power with anything else though.

I have a new US2 Fortrex and the interference is bad (Lowrance HDS), a lot worse than the Maxxum it replaced. I have the choke, ferrite cores and finally made some adjustments to the df to make it tolerable. If I had room on the tm for a 2d transducer I'd put one on it, but the LSS-1 transducer takes up pretty much all the space on the motor. I called minn kota and they were no help. Their customer service is not very impressive IMO.

My US2 works just fine.

I have the same problem. Where did you disconnect the US-2 transducer? In the TM head.
Thanks

Yes , there is a threaded connector in the head disconnect it then on the bottom of the head remove the plug that the cable passes through , slide the cable out and then replace the plug, I was gonna just leave it there and not us it and run the external transducer cable right beside it but I'm sure I'm done trying to get the thing to work and I wanted a clean look so its gone :-)