I am pondering purchaser of Livescope technology for my 17' aluminum boat. what would be cost estimate for purchase, and installation. how should the electronics be mounted. I have never seen in action. Is it that big a difference?
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I am pondering purchaser of Livescope technology for my 17' aluminum boat. what would be cost estimate for purchase, and installation. how should the electronics be mounted. I have never seen in action. Is it that big a difference?
Contact Brian@BBGmarine for a price ... I bought my Garmin 93sv & Livescope from him & he's a good dude & has great prices & service.
Installation is pretty straight forward & instructions come with the LS. I elected to mount the LS tdx on the shaft of my trolling motor. The power wires to the LS black box are ~6ft long, so you'll have to run it to a separate battery or buy wiring to run it back to your transom or console. The LS system does pull a lot of power (~5amps/hr) which is why many opt to run it to a separate battery. The tdx cable is very long so it would have to be coiled up and taped if you mount it on the trolling motor.
I just got mine and have only had it out on one trip, so not everything is "installed" just yet. I already had a Hook 7 unit up front, so I elected to buy a Cumberland Crappie Fishfinder Mount to put my Garmin 93sv on, so it would be above/behind the Hook 7. I intend to run maps or DI/maps on the Hook, & Livescope only on the Garmin. (I did not purchase the transducer for the Garmin 93sv on that account). I purchased a 68ah AGM battery for the Garmin unit & Livescope box.
a good solid regular graph thats got SI and Di is plenty to find fish .
and about 1 fourth or less cost wise .
a nice hummingbird will get the job done very well .
but if you want to learn about fish activity and how to ketch them it helps tremendously to be able to see whats going on down there in real time .
from what i have been told i doubt you can get out much under 3,000 dollars on a good set up but i may be wrong :dono
My whole setup : Garmin 93sv (w/o tdx), Livescope, adjustable mounting pole, & 68ah AGM battery was ~ $2500Quote:
Originally Posted by Ketchn
2500 it is then
625 will also buy a really good used hummingbird....just saying
I've heard questionable reviews from those who have had them.....what's the groups opinion that has actually seen them in action?
Having seen them in action, and reaped the benefits of fishing several times with a buddy that has one, are the main reasons I now have one ... if that tells you anything.Quote:
Originally Posted by FishGuyMN
Also, if you look at the Poll post you will notice that collectively there are more people that have and like them or are considering purchasing one, than those that are not interested, by nearly a 3:1 margin.
Do I expect to start catching limits of Slabs, just because I have a Livescope system on my boat ... no, of course not. What I do expect is to find more places to fish (away from the bank & visible cover), as well as be able to quickly decide on whether to fish a specific piece of cover or not so as to spend less time "searching" and more time "fishing" (and hopefully do more "catching"). It should also help my confidence in fishing new bodies of water & on lakes I've fished before but struggled on.
DI & SI vs LS like night and day
thank you, I wasn't aware of the poll.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CrappiePappy
Will not guarantee to put fish in the box. I was on a boat with it fish were there but would not bite. Fished with it all day. Nothing but frustration. Maybe if I was fishing competition I would spend the money. But I will be saving my money & stick with DI & SI.
Sent from my SM-G892A using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
You can save all kinds money and have no graph at all. But since you asked about the livescope, it's worth every penny. Go for it.
Sent from my moto g(7) supra using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app
Since I have Helix SI Gen 3 the place where I see Live Scope to be very help full is finding fish on weed edges where sI cannot pick them out. deeper structure much quicker to search with SI just my two cents.
It is a big difference. The livescope is unbelievable when it comes to finding fish. You can actually count the number of fish you’ll see and be able to pick out the bigger fish to target. It doesn’t guarantee that you’ll catch them but it takes the guesswork out of finding them. If you’re going to fish tournaments, you’ll have to have one or you’ll be at a big disadvantage from the guys that have one. Bought mine for recreational fishing and love using it like a video game. If you can afford one, get it. If you can’t, just get a regular finder. They’ll help you find fish too. Just not in as great a detail as LS.Quote:
Originally Posted by mullinsb2000
LiveScope is not a turn it on and find fish piece of electronics. You have to spend the time learning it and getting it set properly and then spend time learning to interpret the information on the screen. It is fairly simple to me, but I've always picked up on electronics fairly quick. It helps if you know someone that will help you and shorten the learning curve.
The cost is the most prohibitive item about the system. Before buying, make sure you have a dedicated place for the "black box" and consider battery options. I have a dedicated 31 series battery for mine. Not necessary, but I don't have to worry about another battery discharging.
If you get in a boat with someone that uses it and knows how to use it well, you will be sold on it. You cannot compare DI or SI to LS. I still use sonar to find my fish in open water or SI to find brush piles and mark them, but when it is time to put the jig in the water, I turn on the LS. I'd be glad to give you more of my thoughts or answer questions. Feel free to PM me.