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Help my head hurts looking at all the options.Here is what i want,i know i want minn kota terrova 80 lb with i pilot and remote.But where im having problems is deciding on the units.I want touch screen,down imaging and maybe side imaging as well with gps. It definatly doesn't have to be the latest and greatest.Something solid, proven and doesn't break the bank.Even if the technology is a couple years behind.What i have now is probably 20 years behind.
How do you fish,that would help with opinions of what to buy.On electronics bbg marine has a sale on the humminbird helix 7 si.
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i want to be able to follow a contour and troll for crappie and walleye.Quote:
Originally Posted by blueball
Too bad the sonars don't come in different colors. Otherwise, not much difference except preference. BBG for sales.
Looks to me like you have already decided on a TM which to me is a sound decision.
Give Brian a call at bbg marine he will get you headed in the right direction and has the best prices.
I would probally stay with the trolling motor you picked out and if a 7in screen is big enough I would go with the helix 7 onsale and get a lakemaster lake card if it has the lakes you fish on itQuote:
Originally Posted by SLARUE
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Cabela's has the Lowrance HDS-9 Gen2 Touch on sale for $999. Regular price is $1799.
I love my Terrova 80lbs, but after playing with the new Ultrex the Terrova will be for sale very soon. As far as electronics go I am partial to Raymarine. I use the Dragonfly Pro 7 with WiFish. It allows me to run an iPad on the deck so that I can see both front and rear Graphs.
9 is a pretty good deal,but no side scan,it will do down imaging with the hdi transducer thoughQuote:
Originally Posted by devonhubb
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it will also do sidescan with the LSS transducer.Quote:
Originally Posted by blueball
Yep,I have a touch 7,touch 9,and gen2 hds 10.Just saying the helix would be a good buy and have sides can for what $600 less than the touch 9 with the added lss transducer[emoji2]Quote:
Originally Posted by lowe rider
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SLARUE
ONIX (or ION) are the only touch screens that will do Follow the Contour with the Minn Kota motors ...Quote:
Originally Posted by SLARUE
Rickie
Yeah, you have to go up the scale to get the sonar units that will do what you want with the troller.
In my opinion I would go with the biggest screen my budget could afford.... I would certainly for go touch screen for a bigger screen if budget dictated such... Not breaking the budget means different things to everyone, If you could post a budget range for each unit I'm sure that would help people give better answers....
Cabelas has a good deal on the Onix 8CXI SIQuote:
Originally Posted by rnvinc
Based on what you are looking for, the ONLY machines you will be able to purchase in order to perform the functions you desire (with the Minn Kota motor) are hummingbird units. Keep in mind that you will need a "lakemaster" chip in order to be able to follow contour lines. The ISSUE I have seen is that Lakemaster Chips are limited in a lot of the lakes that I fish. They are not accurate (in my opinion) in regards to great lakes. So, walleye fishing on Lake Erie or Lake Huron, or trolling the Saginaw river and following a contour might be out of the question.
Many guys trolling for walleye are switching over to the XI5 as they interface with Lowrance and can utilize the Lowrance maps to follow contour lines. Lowrance maps are (in most cases) more accurate than the add on Navionics maps that are available.
I'm not a hummingbird guy so I cannot comment on what they can or cannot do. The new Lowrance units (HDS Gen3) have built in structure scan/side imaging and you no longer need an LSS module. IF however you would like to get 3D imaging, the new module can be purchased (with additional transducer) in order to operate that function. It is pretty cool I must say.
Unfortunatley, if you are stuck on one brand of Fish Finder, you are pretty much stuck on one brand of trolling motor (if you would like to link them together) and vice versa if you are stuck on one brand of trolling motor. I will tell you this that the XI5 is hands down better than the terrova when it comes to spot lock. Trolling contours and drop offs is pretty equail in my opinion. The Terrova/Ulterra wins out when it comes to feedback from the trolling motor as there is a slight delay when you hit the button on the XI5 remote. It can be a pain when jigging in a river and trying to make corrections quickly in order to maintain verticle position.
I happen to tournament fish walleye and I get to see all the cool new toys that come out all the time as well as what the top tournament guys use. I looked at most of the boats at one of the recent tournaments that had 140 boats. If memory serves me, there were maybe only 15 or 20 of those boats running Hummingbird. I cannot answer as to why however. That said, during jigging, there were only 15 or so boats fishing with an Xi5. That number jumped significantly when we got to trolling season.
What do I own and use? I have an HDS10 gen 2 with LSS2 structure scan networked with two HDS 7 gen two units (one front, one in back) along with a Terrova 80 with I pilot. In another boat I have an HDS8 gen 2 with LSS1 structure scan networed with an HDS5 gen2 at the bow with Power Drive v2 and I pilot. On the new boat I have an HDS 9 Gen3 with 3d unit, and a new 12 on the way. It has an Ulterra 80 with I-pilot.
My plans for next season are to leave my Terrova on my jigging platform but change my trolling platform over to the XI5. The motorguide remote sucks but most stuff is done from the fish finder. The I-pilot Link remote is like wearing a computer around your neck and the charge tends to not last as long as I troll. That is another issue.
Hope this helps.
You can save about 1-2K on sonar units if you drop the touch screen. Helix 9 and up will do everything you want, except touch screen. IF you must have touch screen you need the Onix series. Like mentioned, Minn-Kota, Hummingbird work together and lakemaster are the best maps. All owned by the same parent company.