GPS/Fishfinder Units - general question

[IdahoSteve]

I've been looking at buying a GPS/Fishfinder unit and doing my homework now for 3 or 4 months. I've looked at Eagle, Garmin, and Humminbird. I'd pretty much settled on the Eagle SeaCharter 480 DF, so I downloaded the emulator and tried it out on my computer. I gotta say, I was a bit disappointed. I zoomed in on my local lake (Pend Oreille in Idaho) and by the time I got close enough to help me navigate, I got an "Over Zoomed" message and pretty much no detail at all.

I know most manufacturers provide a "Base Map" with their units, but am I going to have to buy an "upgrade" before I can use the unit at all? If that's the case, I consider it a real ripoff. It's like buying a TV and finding out you can't watch any channels without an upgrade.

Anyway, please give the the benefit of your experience. I realize I'm not well informed about this (yet) and may be entirely out to lunch. If so, please set me straight.

Thanks,

Steve

 

[tommays]

Re: GPS/Fishfinder Units - general question

You pay more money for a unit with a better base map or buy a cheeper one and buy the base map you like

I like the lowarance charts and there lake series of fishing hot spots at 99 dollars its a lot of good info for the money

I save a lot of prop dammage with the good chart when working my way through the many shallow bays in thia area

Tommays

 

[JB]

Re: GPS/Fishfinder Units - general question

On all but the most expensive units you have to load fine detail charts. It's a memory capacity issue. It would take many gigabytes to hold fine detail for the whole country, let alone the world.

I have been using Garmins for about 10 years now, with Fishing HotSpots maps from Mapsource. I simply load the detail maps for where I am going to fish.

For my fishing I don't need a high powered, megapixel sonar, so I use an Eagle Cuda 168 and keep my GPS for GPS stuff like navigating my vehicle and hiking when not on the water.

 

[Boatist]

Re: GPS/Fishfinder Units - general question

I assume your in Idaho and kind of question weather you need a 50 KHZ transducer or DF. The 200Khz transducer is best down to 200 feet of fresh clear water.

Deeper water or saltwater then you may want the dual Frequency. You should know that the dual frequency tranducer have a narrow cone angle. The 200khz standard is 12 degrees and the 50 KHZ standard is 37 degrees. The 200Khz frequency will give more detail and be more likely to show single fish.

The Single frequency 200 Khz tranducer standard is 20 degrees.

Fishing lakes I usually do not look much at the GPS for depth or shore line detail. Many of the lakes I fish the depth can change 100 feet from late spring to late summer. I do use it to navigate and locate my position. I do like the chart to show all navigation buoys that stay in the same place all year. Buoys out here to note rocks and shallow water hazard they move every week as the water level changes. If I am fishing a lake I do not know then I will set a shallow water alarm and watch the depth on the depth finder to make sure do not run aground.

GPS I use is always over zoomed and not really sure what that means. I use the GPS to Log known good fishing spots. In My GPS log I make notes Like " Good Black Bass in spring, water temp 68 degrees, depth 22 feet, Lake level elevation 466 feet, Morning Best. big rocks on bottom.".

Now next year when I am planing a trip to the lake I look in the paper and find the lake elevation. If the elevation is 465 feet I sort my spread sheet by elevation and pull up any locations near that elevation. When I get on the lake I head to that GPS WayPoint and when get close watch the depth finder for bottom structure and fish and will soon be catching fish. Water temperature will make some difference.

Anyway my point is i not looking at anything on the GPS screen to find fish other than My waypoints.

In my case most of the lakes I fish I fished for many years before there was a GPS unit. Now that we have Gps units does make it a lot eaiser to find that rock pile out in the middle of the lake with no land marks near by.

Ofcourse if it is the first time on the lake and you have purchased a map with contour lines it can help you find the type area you want to fish.

Another thing do not assume that Garmin is any better with the base map. In my experience in every case I have checked Garmin's base map was worse. Almost every Eagle/Lowrance unit base map has had all the navigation Buoys. Garmin units i have checked did not even have the navigation buoys unless you buy the upgrade map. Only thing with Garmin is you have to go to a store to see them as can not download and try on your computer.

Just a final note I do own a Garmin GPSMAP 76 and it works perfect.