Side Scan vs Traditional 2D?

Hey, fellas!

I’ve currently got a little Garmin Striker 4 unit mounted on my Bass Pro Shops Pond Prowler 8 boat. Been thinking about upgrading to a unit that has side scan.

Before doing so, wanted to ask the advice of those of you who have experience with the technology. Is the difference and added feature of side scan worth investing in? One of the things I have seen others use it for is scanning boat docks for crappie. That seems helpful.

For those of you who have used side scan, how much difference would you say it made when you first moved from 2D to side scan? Did it help you locate schools of crappie easier?


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It’s good for covering more water and finding structure. Once I find structure though I prefer traditional sonar and down imaging. Now I use Livescope instead.

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Originally Posted by SuperDave336

It’s good for covering more water and finding structure. Once I find structure though I prefer traditional sonar and down imaging. Now I use Livescope instead.

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Thank you, Dave! Do you usually scan one side at a time, or both sides? How long did it take you to get the hang of identifying brush piles, etc. with it?


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Side scan is most accurate/detailed when the boat is moving a few mph. For that very reason I never considered getting one. I went from b/w 2D unit to a Downscan color unit, then jumped to Livescope. I now use my DI unit for maps/waypoints. :twocents

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Originally Posted by Pistol_Creek

Thank you, Dave! Do you usually scan one side at a time, or both sides? How long did it take you to get the hang of identifying brush piles, etc. with it?


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I usually scan both sides at same time. I did mess around with one side only but just leave on both sides now. Like CrappyPappy said you need to be moving for best reading. I usually go 2-3 mph since I’m in kayak and have good success. It’s pretty easy to identify structure with it although it’s tough sometimes if it’s a tree that’s been in the water a long time. The structure gets waterlogged which causes it to soak up the sonar waves more and you don’t get as hard of a return. Also algae that grows on it will cause same effect. Going over it with traditional or down scan helps identify it in better details.

While shooting docks I use one side only to get the most reach under the dock. Also allows me to stay off the dock as to not spook fish. 2d isn't much good in the 12 feet or less most of the docks I shoot are in. When shooting a marina I try to scan both sides of the slip at one time to cover water more quickly. I can't decide weather I want Mega 360 or some sort of live sonar next

I use side scan to cover water more faster, I look out about 70’ on each side of my boat. When I find something interesting, I put it in as a waypoint, then look at it with 2d to see if it’s worth fishing, if so I leave and come back later after the fish regroup and come back to the marked spot that. Messed up driving right over the top of it.

Note that Humminbird SI has a unique adjustable Chart Speed setting that can be adjusted down to get fantastic images at less than 0.5mph ...

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Rickie

I won’t be without an si unit. It has helped me catch thousands of fish. Saves me a lot of time on the water. I catch a lot of crappie and a ton of bluegill. Not to mention the Spotted bass it helps me find. For finding bluegill beds nothing can beat an si unit. You can see the bluegill beds and if you look in the grates that is crappie. I just pull up…toss out a buoy and start fishing. Just ordered a new boat today and first item on the list is a Helix 10 Mega si. I will use the 2d sonar to make a pass over the grate as it will tell me the depth of the crappie.

Regards

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I can’t expand on those posts. Mine was an older hummingbird unit and it made a huge difference. Scanning and marking piles or structure and returning to them later is fantastic. As you can see in Alphahawks post there’s nothing better for those looking for bluegill. Worth every penny kinda sums it up.

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Originally Posted by skeetbum

I can’t expand on those posts. Mine was an older hummingbird unit and it made a huge difference. Scanning and marking piles or structure and returning to them later is fantastic. As you can see in Alphahawks post there’s nothing better for those looking for bluegill. Worth every penny kinda sums it up.

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I'm still using Humminbird 999HD SI units and love them. With such low resolution maps the GPS side works so fast. My Garmins 1042, 942, 93HDxsv, you drift past your spot before the map shows you arrived.

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Originally Posted by DockShootinJack

While shooting docks I use one side only to get the most reach under the dock. Also allows me to stay off the dock as to not spook fish. 2d isn't much good in the 12 feet or less most of the docks I shoot are in. When shooting a marina I try to scan both sides of the slip at one time to cover water more quickly. I can't decide weather I want Mega 360 or some sort of live sonar next

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Nice. That’s one of the reasons I am interested in the Si, the marina fishing.


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Originally Posted by Alphahawk

I won’t be without an si unit. It has helped me catch thousands of fish. Saves me a lot of time on the water. I catch a lot of crappie and a ton of bluegill. Not to mention the Spotted bass it helps me find. For finding bluegill beds nothing can beat an si unit. You can see the bluegill beds and if you look in the grates that is crappie. I just pull up…toss out a buoy and start fishing. Just ordered a new boat today and first item on the list is a Helix 10 Mega si. I will use the 2d sonar to make a pass over the grate as it will tell me the depth of the crappie.

Regards

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My gosh… those images are amazing! Thank you so much for sharing. Those beds show up so well. That sells it for me right there. I love fishing for bluegill almost as much as crappie. This looks like a game changer.


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Originally Posted by Alphahawk

I won’t be without an si unit. It has helped me catch thousands of fish. Saves me a lot of time on the water. I catch a lot of crappie and a ton of bluegill. Not to mention the Spotted bass it helps me find. For finding bluegill beds nothing can beat an si unit. You can see the bluegill beds and if you look in the grates that is crappie. I just pull up…toss out a buoy and start fishing. Just ordered a new boat today and first item on the list is a Helix 10 Mega si. I will use the 2d sonar to make a pass over the grate as it will tell me the depth of the crappie.

Regards

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Also… what kind of structure is that where the grates are showing?


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Originally Posted by Pistol_Creek

Nice. That’s one of the reasons I am interested in the Si, the marina fishing.


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Not all Marinas are created equally. Lots of u productive boats. Look for house boats that have lights pointing at the water, fishing poles, minnow buckets. Those will usually have some fish holding structure dropped to the bottom. Pontoons are another hot spot. Look for ones that haven't moved in a while. Spider webs are a good sign. Scan those for fish high up between the tubes.

Are those actually pics from your own unit? Or is it from Humminbird? If they are your own I think I have to take another look at HB, my Lowrance is nothing like that. Maybe I need to learn a bit more about the adjustments.

Humminbirds you can record everything to a SIM card to play back on your computer at home. Even the 999's give a great picture as long as your settings match your speed and you are not using a Etec engine (terrible alternator interference). Using HumViewer you can mark anything interesting, right-click a spot and Google Earth will open up and zoom the exact spot in. I side scan new areas while recording, play it back at home at 10x the speed marking everything interesting, then upload all the new waypoints back into all the units I have. Doing this I have marked over 1500 trees, stumps, ledges, trash piles, etc. I will note this, the waypoints generated by a Humminbird transferred to a Garmin only get you in the ball bark. The new Crappie Chaser is all Garmin so I usually have to make a quick side scan pass on the initial approach to pinpoint the spot before getting right on top using 2D Sonar A-Scope for a precision waypoint.

Thats THE one piece of tech I wouldn't be without now that I've got it, and that's coming from someone that LOVES Livescope.

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Originally Posted by MDCrappie

Are those actually pics from your own unit? Or is it from Humminbird? If they are your own I think I have to take another look at HB, my Lowrance is nothing like that. Maybe I need to learn a bit more about the adjustments.

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Those are from my unit. Had hundreds more but deleted most to free up space on my phone.

Regards


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Originally Posted by Pistol_Creek

Also… what kind of structure is that where the grates are showing?


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One image is of the dead lock…a lock no longer in use…. below Nickajack Dam. The other is an image of the live lock discharge below Nickajack. They hold lots of fish.


Regards


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:popcorn

An interesting si story. Been out in Arkansas since September 2022. I am boat less until my new build is ready. Been doing a lot of trout fishing with a friend on the Little Red River. He knows how I love to fish so back in May he offered to take me out on a local lake that reportedly was a fantastic shell cracker lake. Neither he nor I had ever been on the lake. We launched and for 45 minutes he is using Live Scope searching for beds. Now on his setup he does not have horizontal mode. I noticed he had a Helix si unit on his boat. I told him that the si unit would put us on fish pretty quick. He informed me that while he had the unit for a number of years he never learned to use it. I told him I knew how to use it and I’m fixing to put us on some shell cracker. I was reluctant to speak up as it was his boat and he was kind to take me out…but I could not hold my tongue any longer…LOL. It only took me 15 minutes to find the first bed of shell cracker. We caught a lot of really healthy shell cracker and bluegill. We went back a week later and I scanned the whole lake. Now when I get my boat I’ll know where the bedding areas are.

RegardsAttachment 462800Attachment 462801


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Originally Posted by Alphahawk

An interesting si story. Been out in Arkansas since September 2022. I am boat less until my new build is ready. Been doing a lot of trout fishing with a friend on the Little Red River. He knows how I love to fish so back in May he offered to take me out on a local lake that reportedly was a fantastic shell cracker lake. Neither he nor I had ever been on the lake. We launched and for 45 minutes he is using Live Scope searching for beds. Now on his setup he does not have horizontal mode. I noticed he had a Helix si unit on his boat. I told him that the si unit would put us on fish pretty quick. He informed me that while he had the unit for a number of years he never learned to use it. I told him I knew how to use it and I’m fixing to put us on some shell cracker. I was reluctant to speak up as it was his boat and he was kind to take me out…but I could not hold my tongue any longer…LOL. It only took me 15 minutes to find the first bed of shell cracker. We caught a lot of really healthy shell cracker and bluegill. We went back a week later and I scanned the whole lake. Now when I get my boat I’ll know where the bedding areas are.

RegardsAttachment 462800Attachment 462801


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man what a friend, I need a few like that.

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Originally Posted by Alphahawk

An interesting si story. Been out in Arkansas since September 2022. I am boat less until my new build is ready. Been doing a lot of trout fishing with a friend on the Little Red River. He knows how I love to fish so back in May he offered to take me out on a local lake that reportedly was a fantastic shell cracker lake. Neither he nor I had ever been on the lake. We launched and for 45 minutes he is using Live Scope searching for beds. Now on his setup he does not have horizontal mode. I noticed he had a Helix si unit on his boat. I told him that the si unit would put us on fish pretty quick. He informed me that while he had the unit for a number of years he never learned to use it. I told him I knew how to use it and I’m fixing to put us on some shell cracker. I was reluctant to speak up as it was his boat and he was kind to take me out…but I could not hold my tongue any longer…LOL. It only took me 15 minutes to find the first bed of shell cracker. We caught a lot of really healthy shell cracker and bluegill. We went back a week later and I scanned the whole lake. Now when I get my boat I’ll know where the bedding areas are.

RegardsAttachment 462800Attachment 462801


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Trout Magnet Man! I follow you on YouTube. You and Victor over at I_Fish are two of my favorite anglers to watch. Fantastic content. I’ve seen those shell crackers you guys were catching. Beautiful. Really neat story and seals the deal for me on side imaging. I’m gonna put one on my pond prowler next. Is there a notable difference in the Humminbird mega side imaging vs the regular side imaging? I’m thinking a Helix 7 or 9 would be a good size for my setup. Would love to learn how to locate those beds like that.


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Originally Posted by rojoguio

Humminbirds you can record everything to a SIM card to play back on your computer at home. Even the 999's give a great picture as long as your settings match your speed and you are not using a Etec engine (terrible alternator interference). Using HumViewer you can mark anything interesting, right-click a spot and Google Earth will open up and zoom the exact spot in. I side scan new areas while recording, play it back at home at 10x the speed marking everything interesting, then upload all the new waypoints back into all the units I have. Doing this I have marked over 1500 trees, stumps, ledges, trash piles, etc. I will note this, the waypoints generated by a Humminbird transferred to a Garmin only get you in the ball bark. The new Crappie Chaser is all Garmin so I usually have to make a quick side scan pass on the initial approach to pinpoint the spot before getting right on top using 2D Sonar A-Scope for a precision waypoint.

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Is there a marked difference between Humminbird side imaging and mega side imaging? I noticed the helix 7 with standard side imaging is several hundred dollars less than the mega imaging versions. Would the standard si offer the resolution to identify bluegill beds?


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Yes there is a big difference. Always go with the biggest screen and highest resolution that you can afford, even if it means waiting an extra month or so to save up. Contact by phone BBG Marine, a site sponsor, for a quote. They will save you some money.

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Originally Posted by Pistol_Creek

Trout Magnet Man! I follow you on YouTube. You and Victor over at I_Fish are two of my favorite anglers to watch. Fantastic content. I’ve seen those shell crackers you guys were catching. Beautiful. Really neat story and seals the deal for me on side imaging. I’m gonna put one on my pond prowler next. Is there a notable difference in the Humminbird mega side imaging vs the regular side imaging? I’m thinking a Helix 7 or 9 would be a good size for my setup. Would love to learn how to locate those beds like that.


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Of course the image is higher resolution but I tell you, I used an old 899 for several years and found just as many bluegill beds. Of course having owned a Mega I don’t want to step down….LOL. I had that 899 hung on the side of a kayak for 2 years. If you have budget constraints I think the 7 or 9 will serve you well.

Regards


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If you have the budget, the 9" is the smallest I'd consider and is what I have on my 12' rowboat. I have mine set up as a portable unit. I wish I'd spent the extra and gotten the 10. I had a Gen. 1 Helix 10 but went to the 9 for ice fishing and Mega 360 and saved a few dollars; should have stayed with the 10.
For side imaging, the more width you have on the screen, the bigger the details you'll have. Bigger IS better for SI.

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Originally Posted by Alphahawk

Of course the image is higher resolution but I tell you, I used an old 899 for several years and found just as many bluegill beds. Of course having owned a Mega I don’t want to step down….LOL. I had that 899 hung on the side of a kayak for 2 years. If you have budget constraints I think the 7 or 9 will serve you well.

Regards


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Noted. Thank you so much for the information. This is super helpful to a new fisherman like myself. I’m going to shoot for getting a 9” or 10” version in the near future. It’s exciting to think about locating those beds and brush piles. I imagine it would be fun to just scan the lake on slow days, too.


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I have the Mega Si 9 on the console of the boat. It was all that was available when I got it a couple of years ago( the dreaded supply chain issues). I plan to move it to the front of the boat and put a 10 in it's place.

scanning will help find the crappie friendly locations, SI will also eliminate them docks the fish aint liking the day you go as well .
2d is also important to sit right on them as well and it is somewhat important to employ both if you want to stay on the fish

Never use 2d or downscan anymore while on the front of the boat. Spotlock TM and Active Target eliminated the need. Still use 2d when running mainly to make sure of depth.

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