Garmin EchoMAP UHD2 93SV or Ultra 106SV?

I just got a Livescope LVS34 and need to upgrade head units.

The choices I'm considering in the $1k range are:

1. UHD2 93SV w/GT56($1,199)
2. Ultra 106SV w/GT54 ($999) W/GT56, it's $1,819- a bit much.

Which is a better head unit, the UHV2 93SV or the 106SV Ultra? Anything in particular stand out?

I initially like the 106SV with both fresh and saltwater maps, since I fish both. Are the included maps decent, or will I end up buying upgraded maps?

Secondly, is the difference between the GT54 and the GT56 transducers a night and day difference?

I'm way behind in my knowledge, so I appreciate any help. Thanks in advance!

Once again the difference between the GT54 and GT56 is power like the livescope. How much do you think you will be using the side imaging, down scan and sonar with livescope. Usually I’m only using those if I’m moving, all my fishing is done with livescope. I don’t use that transducer enough now to justify the cost for the difference. I would put my money to things that would help livescope or display resolution. Larger is better but I don’t know the resolution and specs between those units. :twocents

Garmin Echomap UHD 9 and 12

126 with a 56 tranducer

That Echomap 126 is interesting.

If that price was to my door, I would buy right now, and be done with making decisions.

What is your setup SuperDave?

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Originally Posted by gabowman

What is your setup SuperDave?

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I have a 93sv UHD with GT54 transducer and the LVS32

I've been thinking about this at length, and I'm leaning toward the Ultra 106SV for several reasons...

1. Charts - It comes with fresh and saltwater charts for no extra cost, which I would use regularly
2. Networking ability - Having two Ethernet ports, I can run my livescope AND network it with my current 93SV without the need for a hub
3. Resolution - It has better pixel count than the UHD2 93SV And the GT54 is a good transducer, still a step up from my current transducer.
4. Cost - The unit is $999, but I have some BPS gift cards, so in the end, it will cost me the same out of pocket as a discontinued UHD 93SV.

So, for that price, I get a great screen, a great network and money in the bank.

The only other strong contender is the Ultra 126SV listed above with the GT56 transducer. I can't use my BPS gift cards for that, so it will end up costing me double. But that is tempting!

Although the larger screen would be nice it sounds like a good decision to me.

Okay, I've decided on my plan of action.

I'm going to return the LVS34 that was $1,200+ after tax
Buy the Ultra 106SV for $999 - gift cards = $699
Buy a used LVS32 for $330 shipped. (I'm perfectly happy with the LVS32 images)
Sell my existing Echomap 93SV (for $330?)
AND... add iPilot to my Riptide Autopilot with the extra cash.

I think this is the best plan of action for me. Spot-lock would be more valuable to me than a slight upgrade in imaging.

And later, I might be able to upgrade to a GT56 transducer if I can sell the GT54 for $200 or so. I guess we will see.

Feels good to finally have a solid decision. No more torturing myself, looking at specs and weighing options. Quite a relief, actually.

Sounds like a good plan to me.

Yes, I'm pretty happy with the idea of finally having a good excuse to upgrade to an iPilot for little or no money out of pocket. I found an upgrade kit for $500, and will order it once as I verify that the used LVS32 works properly later today.

Got my I pilot upgrade kit from Trolling Motor.com. fast service and have YouTube installation videos.

Sent from my SM-S127DL using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app

Thanks, Tracker! I will check there. I saw thekits at LakesideMarineandService.com and they were $799, so hoping somewhere else is less. On Ebay they have them for $500, but not for the Terrova, only the PD motors.

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Originally Posted by Tracker60

Got my I pilot upgrade kit from Trolling Motor.com. fast service and have YouTube installation videos.

Sent from my SM-S127DL using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app

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Hey Tracker, it looks like they sell the same kit for only $449. The only difference I see it that their kit doesn't come with the bottom cover of the head unit like the one that comes from Lakeside. Not sure if the top cover will fit mine, but for $300 less, I'm willing to take the chance. I can always buy the bottom if it doesn't fit.

Thanks again!

I have the 126sv upgraded from 9” uhd screen obviously way bigger as far as clarity to me just looks like bigger pixels even tho the amount of pixels is waaaay more between the two units. The only thing I’ll say is I used to run one 9” screen and livescope unit on the ice all day 6-8 hours never any problems. I use the same battery setup in the boat running the screen and livescope off different batteries and I’m getting alarms for low voltage 6 or so hours in. You will have to consider power source upgrade. All in all I wish I would have went with gps unit instead. I went this route to link everything together 2 9” 1 12” and livescope. Let us know how you like your new setup

Also forgot to mention the 10” had same amount of pixels in smaller screen so you should have a better looking picture than I do with the 12. I think you’ll enjoy it over the 9”. I started with 7” screens and every upgrade was amazing

I will. That is interesting what you say about the pixels just looking bigger. I wonder which generation you have? I could have gotten a floor-model Ultra 126SV with the 56GT for $1,300 shipped, but if I go with the 106 with my credits from BPS, I can upgrade my TM to I-Pilot, so I'm going that route.

Anything I upgrade to will be better than my current unit, and I'm still happy with it, as old as it is. I sold my old Echomap 94SV Chirp for $375 on Facebook, by the way. Not bad for an older unit!

Yup hard to beat I sold my old units for decent price but did sweeten the deal with all my waypoints and contours included in the card

Hey thill. Give them a call and they should get you the right parts.

Sent from my SM-S127DL using Crappie.com Fishing mobile app

I will do that on Monday. It looks like there are actually 3 kits.
One is the legacy I-Pilot for $449, with basic controls
The 2nd one is the bluetooth one, with the extra GPS puck for $799
The last one is the latest greatest one, with bluetooth and LINK for $1,009

I think I want the 2nd one, but I don't feel like spending $800+

Is the original I-Pilot that bad? Does it not hold a very good spot lock? Is that why they added the extra sensor in the next generation?

The bluetooth i pilot heading sensor gives you the ability to jog 5 feet at a timein any direction with the click of a button on the rempte when in spotlock. I've got a sensor myeslf that i'll be installing just to be able to. A nice feature to have in my opinion. Say you're in spotlock sitting 40 feet back casting to a brushpile & you want to go in to 20 feet then you can click the remote 4 times & it will take you there & respotlock at 20 feet. Also be a good way to stop shy of a current waypoint & then ease up a safe distance to avoid the trolling motor blowing them out. I'll be installing mine this week if i don't get to it today. :ThumbsUp

Thanks for that info. Sounds useful.

Any other interesting new features?

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Originally Posted by thill

Thanks for that info. Sounds useful.

Any other interesting new features?

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I installed mine yesterday. Now i'll go to the lake later this week & calibrate it & set the offset & be good to go. Just something to remember is to download the ipilot app on your phone & update the software if it's needed. Mine wouldn't spotlock in the garage until i updated mine which does both the controller in the trolling motor & the remote at the same time. Now it works like a charm. It's way simpler than it sounds too so don't sweat it. :ThumbsUp

Updating always seems to fix issues or cause them. Glad it's fixed yours!

It's a $300 difference between the kits. I need to do a little research to see the difference between the two.

The only thing I think I need is spot lock, as my AP/CP works great, but maybe I just don't know what I need. I'm going to look it up today. Thanks.

Well, I did it. I sold my 94SV Chirp. I feel pretty good about it. The only significant thing I'm losing is the GT51M 'ducer which has an impressive 600W/500W power, and "up to 1500 watts of power when operating in ClearVu/SideVu frequencies of 260/455 kWh" for an 1,800 foot depth range. That's a lot of power to reach out. It has been an excellent unit that has never disappointed.

Then I found a Livescope LVS32 on Marketplace for $300, and it looks new, came with mounts and a nice cover, and works perfectly.

And finally, I have traded the LVS34 transducer that I bought for an Echomap 106SV with $200 refunded. I can't wait to test it out, especially the mapping. I hope it's of decent quality and resolution.

This leaves me a little bit of money left over. Now I need to decide which I-Pilot upgrade I want to go with. One kit comes with the heading sensor and the other doesn't.

If I go with the regular I-pilot, I can get a kit for my aluminum boat AND my center console, which would be nice.

If I get the BT I-Pilot with heading sensor, I would have to choose one boat or the other.

I'm leaning toward going with the regular on two motors, but haven't decided 100% yet.

I wouldn't be without a heading sensor.