Fish Finders/ GPS

[MWBROWN]

I am new to boating and would like some tips on which fish finder/ gps units are good for the money. They are a bit expensive, so I want to make the correct choice. Is a combo unit a good idea, or should I buy seperate units.I have a 1984 Balyliner fish and ski, 85 hp, and I fish in the Mobile Bay,Wolf Bay area. <br /><br />Thanks

 

[Boatist]

Re: Fish Finders/ GPS

Welcome to the board.<br /><br />Probably get better responce if post in electronics. Good value for the money I would look at Eagle brand made at the same location as Lowrance. You might want to take a good look at Furuno, Garmin, Lowrance, and Eagle. If you take care of your unit will last a very long time. As an example my 1985 unit as good as new and has many features I like better than todays units.<br /><br />Fishing Saltwater you will want more power. Deep saltwater over about 300 feet will also want a 50Khz transducer. Power can be rated in Peak to Peak or RMS. 800 Watts RMS = 100 watts peak to peak. Divide Peak to Peak by 8 to get RMS watts.<br /><br />When buying a unit you will see statments like depth to 800 feet. This might be true in a crystal clear fresh water lake to see a rock bottom. However if you want to see fish built like a stelth fighter in salt water or a muddy river again divide by something like 8 and do not expect to see fish over 100 feet.<br /><br />Deep Saltwater (450 feet)then you need power 1000 Watts RMS or 8000 peak to peak. Also should have a 200/50 KHZ Dual frequency transducer. Also Deep water then you need a high resolution at least 480 vertical Pixels and some type of zoom or bottom expantion.<br /><br /><br />Anyway leave some info how deep you will fish and weather it salt water or Fresh water and you will get some info.

 

[JB]

Re: Fish Finders/ GPS

Moving to Electronics.