Fish Finder Questions, Comments and Answers

If you are interested in using a fish finder, I suggest you get familiar with some of the technology and vocabulary.

How Does A Fish Finder Work?

Which is better, the Humminbird Wrist Wireless Smartcast Fishfinder or the HawkEye Portable Fishfinder? Both are basically the same price.
Humminbird Smartcast Fishfinder vs Hawkeye Portable

I'm looking for a fishfinder/gps combo or just a depth/fish finder w/o the gps. I need the best bang for a fairly reasonable buck.
Fish Finder: Best Bang For Your Buck

I have a humminbird fish finder, can the transducer be mounted in the live well with water over it and still read the depth accurately?
Transducer Mounting in a Live Well

I'm considering a fairly top of the line fish finder/GPS unit for my bass boat. I currently have a Hummingbird side shooting unit for my trolling motor and am looking for a unit to tell me speed, water temp, and record waypoints.
Fish Finder Features

I currently have a Lowrance X125 on the dash. I'm looking to put the X125 on the bow and replace it with something different. I'm looking at the Lowrance X100c and the Lowrance X102c. Are the benefits worth the difference in cost?
Benefits and Compatibility

I have read that if you run a bow mount fish locator you should wire it to the main battery that runs the main motor/electronics and not the trolling motor battery due to interference when the trolling motor is running. Is that correct?
Trolling Motor Interference

What is a better flasher, lowrance ice machine or vexilar f18 ?
Lowrance Ice Machine vs Vexilar F18

I have a lowrance x47 and would like to know why the fish arches are not anything like the demo. They are normally small and not a complete arch.
Lowrance X47 Fish Finder Demo Arches

Can a transducer cable be spliced? Mine was cut by a boat service company.
Transducer Splicing

I simply need to find out, what year was the fish finder invented?
Year the fish finder was invented

I have an X55 not working, new transducer, powers up OK, screen and menu buttons OK, just no bottom reading in auto or manual. Is there a way to get into the firmware for self test, so as to confirm the serviceability of the unit?
Looking for the Bottom

I have a humminbird Matrix that is "hard mounted" into my dash and it has a dual transducer 83Khz & 200 Khz. I recently purchased a lowrance 111C with a 200 Khz transducer and am wondering if the transducers will interfere with each other?
Transducer Conflicts

I like the PiranhaMax 20 and the Fisheasy 245 DS. They are about the same, but the Fisheasy is 4 time more energivore (176ma against 40ma) so I think I will buy the Piranhamax 20. Do you see some reasons I would be better with the Fisheasy?
PiranhaMax 20 vs FishEasy 245DS

I bass fish with a 1648 grizzly boat and would like to purchase a really good fishfinder for shallow fresh water lakes like High Rock in North Carolina. Bass Pro recommends a Humminbird 565 with a 60 degree dual transducer. What is the best choice for $300 or less?
Fish Finders around $300

How does the Humminbird Smartcast work?
Humminbird Smartcast Fish Finder

I am looking for a recommendation or two for a fish finder. Here is what I am looking for in the way of features: Features Needed

I'd like to connect my new Lowrance iFINDER H2Oc Handheld Mapping GPS Receiver to my Humminbird Matrix 77C Fish Finder. Can this be done?
GPS and Fish Finder Connections

I keep a small 18 foot boat on the island of Elethura in the Bahamas. I want to purchase a fish finder. My friends on the island tell me that I need to accurately read down to at least 1000 feet. I want a nice unit that will last. That is easy to install, and more importantly, easy to understand.
Fishing in the Bahamas

I am in the market for a GPS/FISHFINDER. I would like to know more about Humminbird Sidefinders comparerd to regular units. What is best value for about $1000?
Sonar, 3D, Side Imaging and Technology

I have a Lowrance LCX15CT and I'm disappointed in it's performance I have had to call Lowrance six times to find out why the unit is having trouble seeing the bottom ...
Lowrance LCX15CT

Moisture problem in the Humminbird Matrix 47

What can you tell me about the new Aqua View VPG (vertical pixel graph) thanks. Also do you think I should wait till they drop in price for next year? Or do they?
Aqua Vu VPG

Hey guys, I bought a Eagle Cuda 168 a couple of years ago and was thinking of using it for ice fishing. They sell transducer for it but how good would it be compared to Vexilars? Would I be able to see my bait down there?
Ice Fishing with the Eagle Cuda 168

I'm looking at an upgrade from my 240Blue Garmin. It is dual frequency (50khz & 200khz) and am wondering if I really need "dual frequency" if I upgrade? Or would a single frequency give me better resolution?
Do I really need an upgrade?

I've read that peak-to-peak power is a measure of how powerful a depth finder is and that we should look for units with 1500 watts and higher as a general rule. The smaller color units (like the Eagle FishEasy 320C), though, advertise only around 800 watts.
Does that mean that these wouldn't have very good sharpness or detail?

Is the Humminbird 565 well suited for small pond and reservoir fishing? Also, when it shows a fish, is that fish directly below the boat or behind it?
Are the fish below the boat?

One of my concerns is resolution ... my buddy's unit can see his lure ... what kind of resolution is needed for that?
Resolution Is Not The Only Concern

I was wondering how well the Humminbird 565 fish finder would do for ice fishing?
Icefishing with the Humminbird 565

If you own a fish finder be so kind as to fill out the form on the page, so we can let other owners know how you feel about your fishfinder. Wouldn't it be nice to know and share this information before you purchased your fish finder or if there is a problem that can be easily solved before having to send your fish finder back to the manufacturer and find out there was nothing wrong and you wasted several weeks of fishing time.

Comments about fish finders by their owners