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I have an 1198 with the big si transducer. It seems that I am seeing less detail.
Do transducers wear out? Do they have a lifespan?
Hadn't thought about this before, will try to restore defaults next time I'm on the water.
No I'm not really looking for a reason to buy a new helix 12! LOL
Piezoes vibrate ... vibration is mechanical energy ... Anything mechanical can wear ...
Yes xducers "wear" ... how much ...??
No one really has a way to quantify ...
Testing next to a brand new one is the best way I know of ...
Rickie
Should you take them off and keep them inside if you can?
I don't really know if sitting out in the weather has any effect on transducers ...Quote:
Originally Posted by IceNitro
I do know the Sun can deteriorate just about anything over time ...even stuff with UV inhibitors added ...
Rickie
A black object can get extremely hot in direct sunlight .... it would be prudent to prevent that.
I think the wire connections to the piezo is where the deterioration takes place .... not the piezo itself. I have seen some posts by Greg in the past indicating that doing the initial connection of the wires to the piezo is kind of an art.
I have worked with piezos for years on radar systems. They go bad....not too often but it happens. I have never seen one that was degraded...they would just go bad and not perform their function....in other words no in between on them....just worked or did not work. As was mentioned above the wiring was always the culprit. At times I would find the wiring coming out of the unit would be broken at the connecting point on the control terminal...but many times the wire had opened inside the potted part of the connector on the piezo itself......nothing we could do about that except to discard and replace.
Regards
So I am to presume that a transducer will either work or not work. They don't just wear and get weaker over time from use?
There could be a LOT of debate about it ..... I have seen post where people have a degraded image.Quote:
Originally Posted by scrat
I just had to replace a transducer. The sealant, tar like substance, started leaking out, water enters and it goes bad..
Thanks for the input Gentlemen!
Ice my boat is always in my shop if I am not fishing.
I am thinking my returns have just gotten weaker over time. I fish the exact same areas of the lake, on the same lake that I have fished ever since I bought the 1198. Think I will try the restore defaults first.
Have you tried manually setting the sensitivity and contrast settings to see if that makes a difference?
Stratos, yes I have tried that, and adjust those settings all day long. Excellent idea though. The picture just isn't as vibrant as it used to be.
I wonder if it could also be the unit itself starting to get old and starting to burn out like the old TV sets picture tubes use to do. I have some older sonar units that when they had way less hours on them worked better and later I bought new transducers and even moved them around the boat on different transducers and they didn't do any better as to showing stuff like they did. Looks like they would be some kind of meter or something like the old RF meter that checked the old CB radios antennas. Then you could see if you were getting everything you could out of a transducer or sonar unit. It just cost way to much to send a unit back if it is not really tore up or find out nothing is wrong with it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Redge
You could try your head unit on some else's setup for comparison.
The picture just isn't as vibrant as it used to be.[/QUOTE]
When we get older nothing seems as vibrant as it used to be. May not be the unit or the transducer. Lol! I dont know your age, but couldn't pass on the opportunity! But seriously though, My unit seemed to have a beautiful picture as well and when I fish with someone that has newer units, it seems that my images used to be as crisp as theirs, and not anymore. Seems like when new tech comes out old tech goes down. Gotta keep the sales up!