I'm so confused....

I am wanting to upgrade my electronics. I don't have a lot of $ to throw at it. Budget is $350. It's going on a 16/48 flatbottom Jon. 5" screen minimum. I thought I was really sold on the Garmin Striker Plus 5 cv with cv20-TM transducer. My home lake isn't on the Navionics list, so I really liked the idea of being able to map my own lake with the Quickdraw mapping program. I also really like the versatility of the different screen setups. Single, double or triple panes. Seems like a great unit.

But, I watched a video the other day (It was put out by Lowrance) and it was basically calling Garmins version of downscan fake because it used only one beam or something and how much better Lowrances was. Even had them side by side trolling around and showed how much better Lowrances picked up on detail. Now I am second guessing myself. I wanna get the most bang for my limited bucks but I am going crazy looking at these things.

I guess my question is am I going to sacrifice an appreciable amount of quality in downscan imaging to get the mapping with the Garmin unit vs going with say the Hook2 5 or 7 for around the same price? HEEEELLLLLP!!!! :banghead

To muddy the water, lol, have you looked at the Humminbird Helix series with mapping capability?
One thing to consider is the area being displayed on DI verse 2D. 2D will show a bigger area under the boat, however DI will have better clarity of what's in its smaller view. Trade offs. The other factor is water depth, how deep do you usually fish? If it's less than 10', it doesn't matter much between the two.


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I have the garmin 7sv. I like it. Yes, no maps, but I fish narrow river systems. I use navionics on my phone. Works good for me. I had Lowrance 2d and di with maps and liked it too. I've looked at Lowrance hook 2 and that looks to be a great deal. I plan to get it for my sons boat soon.

BG12 ,I face a problem very close to yours. Since you can now find the Garmin Striker SV (old model) on sale for about $400 bucks (has the CV 52 transducer) and there is very little difference in the "plus" series. My dilema is, Lowrance now has the Hook 2 7x Tripple Shot for the same price(brand new this year) and it has the down scan element in the transducer. Problem is, it is hard to find any one that has tried out the new unit. Hope we both make a good decision ......... I have GPS on my other unit......crappie1133

No matter what choice you make there will be something better and/or more affordable shortly after you make your purchase. That's just the way technology is today I saved for a helix 7, then decided to keep saving for Helix 9 and then went a little more and finally purchased the Helix 10 SI GPS which I am glad I waited to do that. Now after a year I'm still learning how to use it and it's already been discontinued in favor of chirp and mega which will have 3D overtaking them one day. If the unit with the mapping has caught your eye then I'd say go for it now and enjoy it then down the road you can replace it with something so much better that's not even out on market yet.

I would take a look at this Helix 5 DI it too has Auto Chart Live so you map your own lake and the DI is True DI not made from overlapping side images like some do and it looks to be on sale at BP right now.

Humminbird HELIX 5 CHIRP DI GPS G2 Fishfinder and Chartplotter


$349.99


https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/humm...ductextensions

Sounds to me like the Garmin with the mapping capability is what you like best about it. Lowrance may or may not offer that. I don't think you would really notice and extreme difference in picture quality between the 2.
Remember this, that was a sales video put out by Lowrance so guess which unit is going to perform best. Plus Lowrance just lost in a court case with Garmin over down scan. Figure out what is most important feature to you and go with that.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hanr3

To muddy the water, lol, have you looked at the Humminbird Helix series with mapping capability?
One thing to consider is the area being displayed on DI verse 2D. 2D will show a bigger area under the boat, however DI will have better clarity of what's in its smaller view. Trade offs. The other factor is water depth, how deep do you usually fish? If it's less than 10', it doesn't matter much between the two.

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I guess I missed the Helix having mapping. I've looked at this stuff til I'm crosseyed. Deepest part of my lake is 25', with most of my fishing done in 15' or less.

And thanks for muddying the water more! :bash:biggrin

will it stay in budget if you buy the Striker AND a GT transducer? That would solve your problem.

otherwise, the Lowrance will have superior DI

The Helix 5 Chirp DI GPS G2 is $350. Includes DI, unimaps, a micro sd slot for purchased maps (lakemaster, navionics, etc.) or a blank card to save your routes, waypoints, etc., auto chart live, smart strike, HD screen and a few other features. The smart strike works with your map to highlight potential fishing spots.

For $150 more you can add SI on the Helix 5.


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by BG12

I am wanting to upgrade my electronics. I don't have a lot of $ to throw at it. Budget is $350. It's going on a 16/48 flatbottom Jon. 5" screen minimum. I thought I was really sold on the Garmin Striker Plus 5 cv with cv20-TM transducer. My home lake isn't on the Navionics list, so I really liked the idea of being able to map my own lake with the Quickdraw mapping program. I also really like the versatility of the different screen setups. Single, double or triple panes. Seems like a great unit.

But, I watched a video the other day (It was put out by Lowrance) and it was basically calling Garmins version of downscan fake because it used only one beam or something and how much better Lowrances was. Even had them side by side trolling around and showed how much better Lowrances picked up on detail. Now I am second guessing myself. I wanna get the most bang for my limited bucks but I am going crazy looking at these things.

I guess my question is am I going to sacrifice an appreciable amount of quality in downscan imaging to get the mapping with the Garmin unit vs going with say the Hook2 5 or 7 for around the same price? HEEEELLLLLP!!!! :banghead

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It was posted by lowrance.... Got a ton of guys calling BS. they took it down and reposted it.

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I have both Lowrance and Garmin. dont care 4 the lowrance mapping with Garmin You can make your own FREE and also share Free Have always used Lowrance HDS units But I am going to make a switch to all Garmin ( PANOPTIX BABY) coming soon to a boat near me!

I found the Helix mentioned above on sale at Amazon for $297.96 But in reading the reviews it appears to use it's mapping program you have to also buy additional cards....



The HELIX 5 CHIRP DI GPS G2 is also AutoChart Live capable. AutoChart Live uses GPS and 2D sonar information in order to allow you to map basically any body of water, revealing its most up to date depth contours. Keep in mind though, that this feature can only use LakeMaster and Navionics charts as support, thus you’ll need a LakeMaster or Navionics card chip in order to use it. Also, the unit is compatible with Zero Lines chips, which offer zero line contours for most bodies of water in the U.S. and Canada.

Isnt there like 8hrs storage on the unit before you have to buy the zero lines if you want more?

I would like to unconfused you on this one thing. Do not buy nothing with a screen size less than at least 7". The saying bigger is better is really true when buying a sonar unit whether it is any name brand or SI DI or 2D.:twocents

Yup thought I was ready to buy one for the bow until I read this thread. Here we go again looking again. Sometimes I should just listen to my wife. “Which one looks prettier”


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Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think you have to have lakemaster in order to create your own contour maps. I haven't used this feature so not positive. I have the helix 5 Si and the helix 9 si mega and that's my understanding.

Correct, 8 hours of recording on the unit. After that you need a ZLC. You do not need a map chip to use Autochart. The unit comes preloaded with humminbird maps.


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The Garmin comes with enough memory to do 2 million acres. Thanks for all the input. Keep it coming if you have it. I may be seriously overthinking this. Anything is gonna be better than the cell phone sized Eagle Cuda 300 I have now....:Doh:

I personally would do the Helix 5. It has the autochart capabilities, and even if you have to add a card later it’s not the end of the world.


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I was debating something similar, Got caught up in the CV vs GT transducer debate. Wound up with a CV transducer, LOVE it. For the Lowrance video you referenced, and as already mentioned, its VERY one sided. When i watched it, their where no responses from lowrance when they where questioned, in the comments section. They deleted the video instead.
Get as big a screen as you can. Do you have a smart phone? Imagine trying to view SI, mapping, and DI on it. You will not see enough to matter, and you'll wind up straining your eyes to the point of needing glasses, or better ones.
Have you thought about used? You can get a bigger screen, more features.
The plus to quickdraw, on units with a microsd card slot, all you need is a store bought card. You do not need a $100 zero lines card. Go to the store of your choice.

Thanks for all the responses and opinions guys. Think I'll hit Bass Pro in Little Rock tomorrow and push some buttons and see what I like.

That's a very smart thing to do! Getting hands on them. See which menu's appeal to you.

of all the things I have read on this subject on this forum and/or any other forum, that is the most profound to me. put your hands on them, push the buttons, see what they are supposed to be able to do,( keeping in mind they at showing you computer generated imaging), and then decide...back when I was first looking at getting a boat, I was looking at all of this....had me going in circles, pulling hair out. still don't have a boat, but until either garman or lawrance can show me other wise I am sold on the helix unit. 5" or the 7" version. Dollars available at the time of purchase will determine which model I get. Since all my research, my situation has changed a bit. I have moved, and am going to look at a boat on Tuesday. Nothing fancy or elegant, but will suit my needs anyway. Good luck on your search and decision.

Pulled the trigger on the Garmin Striker Plus 5CV. I think I'll be happy with it. Thanks for all your help. Hope to be able to show ya'll some cool screenshots. I know that won't be Mega quality stuff, but I can see this being as fun to fishing as running trail cams is to hunting!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BG12

Pulled the trigger on the Garmin Striker Plus 5CV. I think I'll be happy with it. Thanks for all your help. Hope to be able to show ya'll some cool screenshots. I know that won't be Mega quality stuff, but I can see this being as fun to fishing as running trail cams is to hunting!!

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AWESOME unit for the moneys !!! when you get it set up you will be SURPRISED !!!!

I work at BP selling marine electronics. Lowrance, Garmin, and Bird all have their strong points and weak points. I tell everybody Ford/Chevy/Dodge. Buy the one you like and are comfortable with. No matter which you choose, you'll run across one down the road that you'll wish you had bought. By the way, I run Garmin on my boat and am very happy with them.

Too late on the advice for OP but to others reading this thread. Don't rule out used units. Your dollar will go a lot further . Two and three old units often go for 50% of their original purchase price. Has saved me a ton of money over the years. I do buy new now and then.

Another way to stretch your electronics dollar. Buy the older model brand new when its new the replacement hits the market. A great example would be the Helix gen1 pricing when the Helix gen2 was released.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by hays47

Too late on the advice for OP but to others reading this thread. Don't rule out used units. Your dollar will go a lot further . Two and three old units often go for 50% of their original purchase price. Has saved me a ton of money over the years. I do buy new now and then.

Another way to stretch your electronics dollar. Buy the older model brand new when its new the replacement hits the market. A great example would be the Helix gen1 pricing when the Helix gen2 was released.

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That’s exactly what I did recently. Bought a gen1 Helix 9 SI for ~650.


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Same here. I have a legacy unit, 899 and last year bought a 898 and Terrova TM, both used. Saved a ton of money.
Ethernet linked them and couldn't be happier. I might upgrade in a year or two to a couple of Helix 10's. But we will see.

After all of this, got another boat this past week and it game with an HDS7 gen 1 at the console, and an HDS5 gen 1 and a Hook7 up front... Now I am learning all over again....:banghead