Fishfinder thoughts..

New boat will be here in a few days. Will be adding a new fishfinder… have always been a lowrance guy. Had a HDS 7 many years ago, now have a hook 7 on pontoon. For new boat looking at a simrad go 9… anyone have any thoughts on it or something better in the 1k price range?

It’s about budget. I have a Simrad Evo2 and recently added a 3D structure scan and transducer. I need to do some fine tuning, but I like it. The unit came with the boat and the structure scan and transducer were pretty spendy.

A friend had a Garmin…likes it a lot. Get as much as you can afford so you won’t be wishing you had more.


______________________________________________________ "I am constantly amazed at the stupidity of the general public." ~my dad

Equipment:
2007 Grady White 222 Fisherman / 250 Yamaha
Simrad NSS evo2 and G4
1- 25 boy that won’t move out)
1 - 21 year old (fishing maniac)
1 - wife (The Warden)

ECFC

simrad GO9 is a great unit. we have installed a bunch of them, and I had one personall, and will have another one.


www.teamcharlestonmarine.com IF I RESPOND IN ALL CAPS, ITS NOT ON PURPOSE, AND I AM NOT YELLING

Thanks

Check the GPS Store online they are located just across the border in NC so shipping is real quick and they have the best prices i have found recently. I bought (2) Garmin Echomap 9 units from them two years ago for big boat. These were not touchscreen but do have SV and chip for about $800 each. Just bought a Garmin Echomap 7 touch screen from them earlier this year for flats boat has standard CV transducer and Navionics chip and was right at $500. Word on the street is that Garmin is coming out with a new series of units so pricing on current models should be dropping as they sell though inventory. I was a Raymarine guy before but as my Raymarine stuff started to get outdated I looked around alot I looked at Simrad real hard but found the Garmin platform easier to operate in my opinion. My 9s do not talk with one another which would bother some people but I am fine with it, I like them both being 100% stand alone. Hodges Marine also has good prices.

All I have ever used is Garmin and love the one I bought. The only regret I have is not going with a bigger screen. Whatever brand, get the biggest screen you have room for and can afford. I can’t imagine ever be sorry you bought one too big.


"Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It's Hand", but really, who cares?

Thanks everyone… was thinking of flush mounting the unit .but since I sit when cruising, may go on a ram mount so I can angle it to see better… do a lot of slow live bait striper fishing on a lake where I live

Garmin has great customer service. A few years back I dropped my unit and the screen went blank. Called Garmin on Monday ask the guy if there’s any way I can have it back before the weekend if it’s fixable. he said maybe.overnighted it to them. Got a phone call Thursday said they were shipping me a reconditioned unit. They downloaded all my numbers. The only thing it cost me was the shipping fees when I send it to them.


I am fragile. Not like a flower. But like a bomb.

Yep what DF said. I had bought a Garmin 5 two years ago for my flats boat. After using the 9” units on the big boat the 5-inch started looking really small. Sold the 5-inch pretty much for what I bought it for on eBay and that’s when I jumped to the 7. The bigger screen is real nice in split screen mode.
I had considered a RAM mount for mine on the flats board but ended up just mounting it on top of the console instead for a cleaner look. I do have to look through the steering wheel a little when I sit down but it’s tolerable.

I don’t know your age, but I have learned the older you get the bigger screen you need! I have 2 9" Lowrance
units and one 12". I wish I could afford a 16" now at 74. I started with a Hummingbird flasher, then a Lowrance flasher then a Lowrance paper graph then a Garman LCD graph then back to Lowrance

I put a Simrad GO9 XSE on my boat last summer and I’m really liking it. I got the Active Imaging transducer as I understand that makes a big difference. I was coming from a Lowrance Elite myself and it is similar but there is a learning curve, at least they use the same cards and it is easy to transfer waypoints. I found the prices are pretty close to the same no matter where you buy it excep for taxes. I bought mine from Hodges Marine in Florida, they do not charge taxes if you don’t live in Florida and have free shipping. It was on my doorstep in two days. I would buy the same one again.


Sea Hunt 212 Triton "Head East"

YEPPERS , KNOW WHAT YA MEAN BOAT POOR;;; SEE MINE BETTER IFFN I’M STANDING BACK TWORDS THE TRANSOM…:slightly_smiling_face::smiley::smiley:


George McDonald US Navy Seabees,Retired, MAD, Charleston Chapter [http://www.militaryappreciationday.org

When you see “Old Glory” waving in the breeze, know that it is the dying breaths of our fallen hero’s that makes it wave.
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