Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

[jockokelley]

I have a Lowrance X-20A that is original equipment on my boat. Despite its age, it works fine for me except that it loses the bottom in shallow water. When I get in water under about 6 feet, it loses the bottom and the depth readout just flashes until it reestablishes its lock on the bottom when I get a little deeper. It works great at all speeds and all water conditions as long as there is at least 6 feet of water. Are all Lowrance/Eagle products this way? I fish around a lot of rocks and sand bars, so this is an obvious concern. Is there anything I can do to get it reading accurately at shallower depths? I should mention that the transducer is mounted inside the hull.

 

[Perfidiajoe]

Re: Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

Is there a sensitivity setting? Try that. Good Luck Joe

 

[Boatist]

Re: Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

Many older Lowrance units did this. Turn the sensitivity down and if you have any surface cluter set turn it off.<br /><br />Almost forgot if you look at the screen I belive the display is right but the digital is lost.

 

[stevens]

Re: Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

I read somewhere that reducing the ping speed might also help in shallow waters, giving the unit more time between each ping to sort things out. If your unit has this type of setting, try reducing the ping rate.

 

[Richard Petersen]

Re: Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

Are you in manual or full auto control?

 

[jockokelley]

Re: Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

I tried the sensitivity and it doesn't help, but like one of you said, I might be losing digital only. I'll have to check that out. By ping speed, do you mean the display speed adjustment? It seems logical that the display speed would represent a corresponding change in ping speed, but I don't know if that is the case. I also wasn't sure what the poster meant by a surface clutter setting. Could someone explain? If I can't get it to work in a way that is convenient while operating at high speed, i.e., having to concentrate on the screen too much instead of watching where I am going, I'll just get newer unit. Thanks to those of you that responded.

 

[Boatist]

Re: Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

Surface Clutter is a signals received near the top of your screen. I'll see if I can explain it. Lets say your are fishing 100 feet deep and looking for fish in the bottom 10 to 20 feet. The proper way to adjust would be to turn the sensitivity up until you see returns in the area you are fishing. If you are not seeing false returns in that area 80 to 100 feet then you will miss lots of fish.<br /><br />Ok so you will see when you turn up the sensitivy that high the top of the screen will be mostly blacked out. This is for a lot of reasons so I will list a few. Things like wave action will add air to the water and it will be more toward the surface, boat trafic adds turbulance and exhaust, sun can make alge grow near the top. Also since the little particals in the water are so much closer the power and signal returns are stronger. So the top of the screen is black. So what they did was to come out with a surface cluter control. When the ping is sent out it reduces the sensitivity then slowly turn it back up as the signal travel to the bottom and back up. Better models this adjustment can be set to your personal prerfrence. If your fishing deep and move into shallow water the unit may not see these returns at all because it is in the area where the sensitivity is set very low.<br /><br />Some older models like my X50 that has a key pad to set controlls it is set with a second function of the a key. The adjustment would be from 0 to 9. So to set you would hit 5 2nd function 3 SCC. To turn off you would hit 0 2nd function 3 scc. <br /><br />Newer models that are menu driven then you would have to look thru the menus to see if you can find a "surface Clutter control" and adust there. Many menu diven models just did away with these controls to make it very simple to operate.<br /><br />Ping speed on many model is adjusted by chart speed. But there is also a ping pulse width and this can be set on some models. As an example lets say it was set to 1 sec. So the pulse is sent out for one second. Durning that one second the transmiter was on, the signal traveled 25 feet down and was reflected batk up but since the transmiter was on the receiver did not here the echo. Change the pulse with to 1/2 second and now only goes 12.5 feet and back up before receiver turns on. Actually pulse width are in the milli seconds and the actual distance the signal travele I do not know, but adjusted wrong can be quite a distance. Safe starting point is to go back to factory defaults.<br /><br />I do not know if this makes any sence to you or not but it is the way it works.<br /><br />Another example would be you are throwing a rubber ball at a concreat wall 5 feet away. Then you raise you glove to try and catch it. If you raise the glove too slow the ball return will allready have gone by so you can not catch it.

 

[jockokelley]

Re: Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

Boatist,<br />Thanks for all the info. I have never heard those things explained before. It all makes perfect sense to me. I can now make more adjustments and understand what SHOULD happen when I do. I appreciate your taking the time out to teach me.

 

[Boatist]

Re: Lowrance X-20A in shallow water

Jocko K<br />Is the X-20A menu driven or is it old enough to have a Keypad?? (0 to 9 with function keys and second function)