FISH/DEPTH FINDER

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cartech5

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I was just wondering what is a good depth finder under $200 I have had a few and there not all that great, so I want some peoples input that has had a decent reliable some what cheap one. I have seen a hummingbird I think its a 570 at walmart for $149 anybody had one of these? One thats Somewhat portable would be great 2 help please.
Thanks in advance
Matt
 
Vexilar is a really popular brand around here, its really good for ice fishing and good for boats too they usually range from 190.00 up to 450.00 depending on the model, it's not like the typical screened fish finder with a picture it's actually sonar and gives you alot more acurate reading.
 
If Vexilar is sonar then what are the other brands? I thought they were all sonar systems? Is there another type of technology?


BTW I am partial to Furuno for a high quality FF - no idea what there price range is. The units that I own are a lot more then 200.00
 
K let me be alittle more indebth lol they'er all sonar but this is model doesnt have a monitor that shows you the detail of the bottom, it only has a circle that registers where your line is in relation to the bottom and if fish are there you will see a blip on the radar move towards your line. Really hard to explain easier if you just watch this video https://youtu.be/MbVtbuVjjtU
 
My grandfather had a flasher depthfinder years ago....I never could figure it out...LOL That on seems similar but a whole lot more figuring it out...as opposed to a graphic on an LCD screen..

Personaly when I go fishing I don't want to have to figure ...I want to relax and fish. :D
 
lol the hardest part is setting your depth once you get an idea of how deep the hole your in is, its REALLY easy to use. im not the brightest bulb in the box when it comes to electronics and it litterally only took me 5 min to figure it out when i used my neighbors for the first time and it cought the slightest movement near the hook, the bigger the blip thats moving near your line the bigger the fish and you can actually watch the blip touch your hook on the radar an at the same time you can see your line tighten it's really freaking cool lol
 
Check out the Hummingbird 570. You should be able to find one for $200 +/- $25.

It is a black and white unit but the screen is nice and big and has good resolution. The transducer is really nice and is used on some of their higher end models.
 
JamesM56alum said:
lol the hardest part is setting your depth once you get an idea of how deep the hole your in is, its REALLY easy to use. im not the brightest bulb in the box when it comes to electronics and it litterally only took me 5 min to figure it out when i used my neighbors for the first time and it cought the slightest movement near the hook, the bigger the blip thats moving near your line the bigger the fish and you can actually watch the blip touch your hook on the radar an at the same time you can see your line tighten it's really freaking cool lol



I'm sure I could figure it out now... it just confused me as a kid...still alot of money until you get a chance to try one. Of course I am cheap like that....

Not to hijack but has anyone used the side scan units...they look sweet.
 
JasonLester said:
JamesM56alum said:
lol the hardest part is setting your depth once you get an idea of how deep the hole your in is, its REALLY easy to use. im not the brightest bulb in the box when it comes to electronics and it litterally only took me 5 min to figure it out when i used my neighbors for the first time and it cought the slightest movement near the hook, the bigger the blip thats moving near your line the bigger the fish and you can actually watch the blip touch your hook on the radar an at the same time you can see your line tighten it's really freaking cool lol



I'm sure I could figure it out now... it just confused me as a kid...still alot of money until you get a chance to try one. Of course I am cheap like that....

Not to hijack but has anyone used the side scan units...they look sweet.
No promlem man I just posted it to see any good ones so throughing some in here hell im all for it haha.
 
take a look at the Lowrance Mark 5 pro, dual beam 83/200, several screen options, is monochrome, not color, but around $200. I used Low products more than HB, the one HB I owned, just never worked like I thought it should so I dumped it.
 
i have the hds7 with the structure scan I love it but like you know very expensive
i have mine mounted on my trolling motor but am thinking about moving the side scan transducer to
the transom so i can get clearer pictures
I also like the down scan it give the detail of an ultra sound and it well worth the money i spent
 
Well I was looking around for some today aftervwork and came to academy, they had a lawrance x 4 last one on clearance for 59.99 so that what I ended up with for my small boat but tomorrow im trading a rifle for a 14 foot 1970 alumacraft v thats 5 or 6 feet wide will be my cat fishing boat, will probably buy a nice fish finder for that one though such as vexilar I think it would be perfect for cat fishing and fun to learn to use.
 
JamesM56alum said:
K let me be alittle more indebth lol they'er all sonar but this is model doesnt have a monitor that shows you the detail of the bottom, it only has a circle that registers where your line is in relation to the bottom and if fish are there you will see a blip on the radar move towards your line. Really hard to explain easier if you just watch this video https://youtu.be/MbVtbuVjjtU


Understand - you do know that most units (no matter who makes them) have a "flasher" mode that works just like this?

When you have a screen display it is just like having the "flasher" saved every few hundredths of a second. This allows the user to do other things and not have to stare at the display at all times.

With a unit displayed in the flash mode if you are not looking at the screen you will not know what is going on - you can miss stuff
 
Look to buy used. You will get much more bang for your buck.

X135 Lowrance is going to be a good unit available for a good price.

Heck, you might be able to find some color units w/5" screen in your price range if you look in the right spots.
 

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