"Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

Electrical/Electronics discussion
drookit
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"Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#1

Post by drookit »

Been looking long and hard at chartplotter combos. God what a headache from all the choices.

I haven't looked much at Lowrance, even though it seems there's quite a following here for them. In my defense, I still remember my first handheld GPS, a Lowrance Globalnav 212. It was a brick and so not user friendly, I felt I had to carry the owner's manual with me and it loved batteries. So I carried a compass and a map instead of the brick, book and batteries. :rotfl:

I'm not sure I want a color screen. Or do I?

I do want a "detachable" mount seeing that the boat is a soft top.

Thinking an internal antenna, again due to the soft top, size of the boat, and keeping it simple.

I was thinking along the lines of the Humminbird 768 if I go grayscale.

Help?


Thanks!

Ken
1985 Almar Lite 16'
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welder
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#2

Post by welder »

You need the one Lucky Louie just bought a few months ago...
be right back....
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drookit
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#3

Post by drookit »

Now that I've stated publicly my feelings towards Lowrance based upon my handheld GPS experience, I've stumbled across the Elite 5 combo. Interesting.

From the reviews I've read, seems the only complaints I've seen so far is the owners manual is lacking on the Elite 5. Kinda remember that being a complaint on a lot of Lowrance products for years now. Good product, poor owners manual.

Ken
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#4

Post by welder »

I just talked to Lucky Louie [Don] but he was in sleep mode and I think that Elite5 is the one he has and it's a nice little machine and doesn't take up the dash board.
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#5

Post by goatram »

Ken For the money Spent Lowrance has their stuff priced right. Their Customer Service is improving. A year ago they stank. Once Stung it is hard to put aside the hurt feelings. With that said a lot of people have been hurt by them. But once you use the equipment for the price paid it is a deal. I have all Lowrance except for the Autopilot which is Simrad I have a LCX 113 GPS/FF, LVR 880 Radio, EP-60 Fuel Flow, Yamaha Interface Cable, and the LRA 1800 Radar, the Simrad 2403VRF ties into the NMEA 2000 backbone system they all talk to each other on the Backbone. I heard that Lowrance is getting ready to launch a replacement for the HDS Series of FF/GPS. Technology changes about every two years or so :banghead:
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#6

Post by MacCTD »

I did a lot of reading and checked out many of the units in the under $1500 range. I ended up going with the Lowrance HDS-7 with insight USA and the 50/200 transducer. So far I have been very happy with it and the chartography it comes with is great. The prices may be less now.
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#7

Post by Lucky Louie »

welder wrote:I just talked to Lucky Louie [Don] but he was in sleep mode and I think that Elite5 is the one he has and it's a nice little machine and doesn't take up the dash board.

Yep mine is the Elite-5. I didn't want to get anything very large as there is not much console space in a 15 ft bateau..... :rotfl: Pretty easy to operate too. I figured out how to get it to do what I want it to without reading the manual. (Of course most of the manuals are crap these days anyway) So far I have been quite happy with the plotter/sounder.

I added a Navionics chart card for the mid south. Does pretty darn good. It isn't very good map card in the Atchfalaya swamp, but there probobly isn't many IF ANY that are.... (At least I haven't found one yet) It does well everywhere else I have been since adding it. (Use the map/plotter function mainly to verify what the map in my head is telling me :mrgreen: )
drookit
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#8

Post by drookit »

Louie, thanks for the review. I'm thinking of going with the Elite 5 Gold with the included Navionics card from BOE. Want to see one in person before I commit.

Ken
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? Johnson 8hp kicker.
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#9

Post by dave »

drookit

I just got a Garmin 740S for my 16ft Alumaweld. I picked that over others because it is easily removable, and it has an internal antenna. I would have gotten a larger chartplotter, but everything larger had external antennas.
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#10

Post by MacCTD »

All the HDS units have internal antennas, the HDS-8 and HDS-10 included.
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#11

Post by Lucky Louie »

drookit wrote:Louie, thanks for the review. I'm thinking of going with the Elite 5 Gold with the included Navionics card from BOE. Want to see one in person before I commit.

Ken
Well just come on down for a visit and I'll take ya out in "Da swamps" and you can see it "Work it's magic" first hand. :mrgreen:

It is on a easlily removable bracket too. Unhook one twist lock connection, push the release (WIDE SUCKER) and it lifts right off the mount.
drookit
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#12

Post by drookit »

Lucky Louie wrote:
drookit wrote:Louie, thanks for the review. I'm thinking of going with the Elite 5 Gold with the included Navionics card from BOE. Want to see one in person before I commit.

Ken
Well just come on down for a visit and I'll take ya out in "Da swamps" and you can see it "Work it's magic" first hand. :mrgreen:

It is on a easlily removable bracket too. Unhook one twist lock connection, push the release (WIDE SUCKER) and it lifts right off the mount.
Louie don't tempt me.

I always seem to get in trouble in LA, or trouble seems to find me. :rotfl:

Must be the drive thru daiquiri stands.

:thumbsup:

Ken
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1987 Suzuki 65hp
? Johnson 8hp kicker.
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#13

Post by Lucky Louie »

drookit wrote:
Lucky Louie wrote:
drookit wrote:Louie, thanks for the review. I'm thinking of going with the Elite 5 Gold with the included Navionics card from BOE. Want to see one in person before I commit.

Ken
Well just come on down for a visit and I'll take ya out in "Da swamps" and you can see it "Work it's magic" first hand. :mrgreen:

It is on a easlily removable bracket too. Unhook one twist lock connection, push the release (WIDE SUCKER) and it lifts right off the mount.
Louie don't tempt me.

I always seem to get in trouble in LA, or trouble seems to find me. :rotfl:

Must be the drive thru daiquiri stands.

:thumbsup:

Ken
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#14

Post by dave »

MacCTD wrote:All the HDS units have internal antennas, the HDS-8 and HDS-10 included.
Too bad the hired help at West Marine don't know that. I would have preferred the HDS-10.
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#15

Post by cape steve »

Any opinions on the LSS-1 'structure scan'? Thinking about getting it with the HDS 7. Looks like incredible technology, anybody had real world experience? Any durability concerns? Can the LSS console be removed easily?

Anybody had experience with the HDS internal antenna used in a hard top? I have a pacific v20 hard top and am guessing I should get the external antenna.. SD
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Re: "Mucking through the minefield of electronics"

#16

Post by West Lake Willows »

Cape Steve,

What type of fishing do you do? The structure scan is as it sounds mainly for marking structure. It is basically useless for marking bait or fish. This is not its intended purpose. You will see a very large bait ball or a very large fish, and I know some guys who have said they got on fish because of it, but again this is not its intended purpose. It is incredible for marking structure, it "looks" out to the sides and you can see some pretty incredible detail of the bottom. So if that is of use to you and the style of fishing you will do, it will be very helpful. I haven't heard any durability concerns.

As for the internal antenna on the HDS, I know I am adding the external antenna for it with my pilot house. I am picking up my electronics on Wednesday for my boat that arrives the end of this month. Lowrance recommends it for a pilot house. I have a buddy that has the HDS 10 and a NON ALLOY hard top and he has no issues at all. I don't know if an alloy top would make a difference. Here is a picture of his install with no issues.

You can see the bracket for the HDS 10 in this picture. No issues with it installed there.

Image

Scott
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