Sonar/GPS Help

I convinced my wife that my fish finder died. I told her you can't buy one for less than $800. She told me I could spend $800 and get the most basic model...I smiled and said thank you...... My current set up is a handheld GPS and a $100 fish finder. WHAT SHOULD I GET??? The big question... I would love to hear some advice from people on brands, reliability, transducer info.

First question - What style transducer do I need? I want something that will pick up fish well in 200 feet. I would rather have a sonar that performs well at 200 feet than 5 feet.

Second question - Garmin or Lowrance?.....These are my only 2 options. I have used both in the past and am undecided. I feel Garmin is superior, but the new Lowrance HDS sonars look pretty impressive. Anyone want to comment if the HDS is worth the money?

Third question - Anyone want to sell me one? e -mail to petrelia@charter.net..

Had two Garmins till last year. Bought Lowrance LCX 28. No compairison.Should have done it a long time ago.Buddy has HDS 5 and loves it but I haven't used it yet. Good part is now that the HDS is out ,you can get really good deals on LCX. Just my 2 cents. I'll never go back!

Furuno FCV620 would be the best sonar possible for $800.

This unit is good summer and winter. buy this ine.
crappie man crappie man is online now
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Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 3
Default Lowrance 522c Ice model
I have a Lowrance 522c Ice machine/ internal gps. In my opinion the best ice unit ever made. Great shape, but the wife wants her own unit, and I'm laid off, so its back to the vex 8 or similar. Converted the transducer with a float like a vex. much better than having to have the unit right next to hole.
but have all the original equip. $550 firm Ice unit is 169.oo extra. Cheapest one I could find was around $700 on sale with a retail of 8-900 depending on where u look.. Google Lowrance 522 reviews. 4.7 out of 5.
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I am assuming that you will be using this for salmon/trout trolling thus the ability to see fish in deep water. Whatever unit you decide on make sure it has dual frequency capability. You will use the low frequency (50 kHz) to track cannonballs and mark fish in deep water.

Thanks for all the advice. I am leaning towards the Raymarine A50D. Does anyone have anything bad to say about this machine?

I should have read your title and realized you were looking for a Sonar/GPS combo unit. I thought you were looking for a dedicated sonar unit thus the Furuno recommendation.

The A50D appears to be a nice unit. My dad runs a digital RM sonar on his boat and is very happy with it as is Frank S who posts here frequently. They work very well!

Two concerns:

1) The viability of splitting a 5" inch screen. Alot of buddies have tried this and were unhappy which resulted in them buying a second GPS or sonar.

2) I could be completely wrong here...but Raymarine is struggling financially and very well might go "belly up" in the near future which could affect the warranty, customer service, etc.

Good Luck-

I am glad I didn't just take the advice of finaddict when he told me to buy this sonar.

I spent the last week researching every brand of sonar that is made, how sonars work, and what to look for in a good one. I am glad I did it because I learned alot. Way more than i would have watching TV each night. I learned this is the best you can buy for less than $800.

Finaddict was right. This is the best you can buy. Alot of manufacturers advertise their products very well and sucker in alot of people with visual effects. Once you spend some time to learn how sonars work, you will realize that Furuno is the brand you want. If you plan to buy a sonar soon, or have bought one recently, spend the time to learn how to use it. It is a big asset on your boat.....if you know how it works.

Here is a 620 for less than $700.