Fish finder to get?

[hewesfisher]

The Elite 5x is a discontinued model so that explains the price break. Since it is sonar only, no GPS, you would need to add a paddle wheel for speed.

The Garmin 551DV is also sonar only, no GPS. I could not confirm if the transducer included with this unit is speed capable.

Both Dragonfly units have internal GPS, so speed sensor is not required. However, I had to correct the listing for the Dragonfly 5.7, it does NOT include the transducer. When I double checked the link this morning, the listing was different and caught my attention. The CPT-60 is separate and runs about $85. Makes the 7" Dragonfly an awesome deal at $504 WITH transducer. For me, GPS speed is far more accurate than paddle wheel anyway, so I use GPS speed instead and it matches my Luhr-Speed indicator.

I give no credence to the sources this Google search produces, but there are a bunch - "best fishfinder under $500".

[hewesbob]

My Garmin shows GPS speed on the screen so there is no need for a speed wheel. I am using the TM 150 transducer.

[buzzbob]

I don't believe the Dragonfly units have a sonar recording or screenshot capability for the person who likes to play back their sonar recordings/history.

[hewesfisher]

I don't believe the Dragonfly units have a sonar recording or screenshot capability for the person who likes to play back their sonar recordings/history.

They most certainly dp - http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=7356#capture" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

How to Capture a Screen Image on Your Dragonfly Display

1. Make sure you have a micro SD card installed in your Dragonfly unit
2. Press the power button momentarily to display the Shortcuts screen
3. Highlight the camera icon using the Uni-controller
4. Press the Uni-controller to capture the current screen and save it to the installed microSD card
5. Highlight the Eject SD Card option from the Shortcuts screen and press the Uni-controller.
6. Press the microSD card to eject it.
7. Install your microSD card into its adaptor and copy your image to your computer

Not only that, but Raymarine has a contest on through the end of the year and one lucky person a month in 2015 will get a full refund of their purchase price - http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=7356" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Hunter757]

hewesfisher, from what I read its my understanding that it only has one sd card slot so if you take out the maps sd card and put in a empty sd card your navigation system and lake map on the screen will not work? Now I did read somewhere that you can capture a shot and it will save it in a internal memory not sure of the size and then you can later transfer that shot at the dock or home to a empty sd card.

I am looking for a new unit myself and I am just a small lake guy but want some options with the unit. I would say the dragonfly is a good general unit but does not have playback? It is a plug and play unit with very few end user options is they way raymarine talks about it on youtube and the website. But you can save a WP and chicken tracks but it will not let you chart a path. If you want a plug and play unit and want to capture WP when your over them without a lot of fuss then the dragonfly unit seems to be the way to go.

I think the Lowrance elite with chirp seems like a unit with more options to me. The one thing to remember is the X unit does not have maps or GPS and yes they have discontinued the HDI models and replaced them with new chirp models. It seems like it all comes down to what you want out of your FF.

I am still straching my head to figure what to buy it will come down to cost and who has the better price point for me.

[hewesfisher]

hewesfisher, from what I read its my understanding that it only has one sd card slot so if you take out the maps sd card and put in a empty sd card your navigation system and lake map on the screen will not work? Now I did read somewhere that you can capture a shot and it will save it in a internal memory not sure of the size and then you can later transfer that shot at the dock or home to a empty sd card.

I am looking for a new unit myself and I am just a small lake guy but want some options with the unit. I would say the dragonfly is a good general unit but does not have playback? It is a plug and play unit with very few end user options is they way raymarine talks about it on youtube and the website. But you can save a WP and chicken tracks but it will not let you chart a path. If you want a plug and play unit and want to capture WP when your over them without a lot of fuss then the dragonfly unit seems to be the way to go.

I think the Lowrance elite with chirp seems like a unit with more options to me. The one thing to remember is the X unit does not have maps or GPS and yes they have discontinued the HDI models and replaced them with new chirp models. It seems like it all comes down to what you want out of your FF.

I am still straching my head to figure what to buy it will come down to cost and who has the better price point for me.

Correct, there is only one card slot, same on my a78 too. A search this morning did not reveal any units under $500 (OPs max $$ limit) with two card slots.

There is internal memory that will do as you describe, save a waypoint, screenshot, etc so you can transfer to an sdmicro later. I haven't used that feature on my sonar yet and don't know what the internal memory is on either sonar. The Dragonfly 5.7 and 7 can store 3000 waypoints and 15 tracks of up to 15,000 trackpoints - http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=6854& ... 5&col=6856" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; The waypoint and track storage for the new 4" & 5" is listed as "TBC" whatever that means.

You can find all the specs on the Dragonfly 5.7"/7" and the new 4" & 5" units here - http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=11198" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I think it all comes down to what features an individual wants for the price they're willing to pay, and the OP asked for feedback on units with a max price of $500. Some of the other models mentioned were way outside of his price max price budget. All I tried to do was provide some clarity with regard to "bang for buck" units that met his criteria, which was primarily sonar, and stated GPS was not important. Playback and recording are features he never addressed so I didn't go there.

The new Dragonly 4DVS or 5DVS are sonar only units, CHIRP sonar and CHIRP DownVision. As of this morning, best price I could find for the 4DVS (4.5" screen) is $206.11 and the 5DVS (5" screen) is $246.52. Step up to the 4Pro or 5Pro and get GPS plus the capability to record and playback among other features. Video here - http://www.raymarine.com/view/?id=11200 ... &col=11252" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Phuffman]

Decided on the Lowrance Elite 5 Chirp with chart plotter/GPS. Thanks to all of you that helped me with this decision. Now time to wait for it to arrive and mount it. Stay tuned!

[hewesfisher]

[sickbayer]

Hey guys I've a question or two. I was thinking about buying the HDS 7 generation 2 reason being it can hook up to a engine. But where I am a little confused is what is CHRIP? Is it already on the FF or is it a certain kind of transducer? On my old boat I had a LCx 28 HD with broadband sounder that was pretty good although it certainly was not worth the money IMO. Any input be appreciated.

[hewesfisher]

http://www8.garmin.com/chirpsonar/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Although an ad for Dragonfly, this video is pretty cool.

[sickbayer]

Wow that's pretty neat, I like the dragon fly model, I'm leaning towards a hds7 3rd generation as it has the ability to hook up the engine.

[G-Man]

FYI - any Lowrance with a NEMA connection will communicate with an outboard that provides a NEMA output. My old LMS series Lowrance talked with my E-Tec and my current first generation HDS-7 does as well. Makes it easy to trim out the boat for maximum fuel efficiency when cruising and gives you a pretty accurate account of how much you really have left in the tank.

To reiterate what was provided in the Garmin link. CHIRP capability lies in the head unit, not with the transducer. If you already have a Lowrance compatible transducer, all you need to do is hookup the head unit and go. I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on an upgrade as well and will probably end up with one of the Gen 3 units.

[sickbayer]

Thanks guys, although I will say it is kinda annoying how lowrance rate of new models.

[downriggeral]

Not sure but I think most Lowrance will take the speed wheel. I have one by the way that I'm no longer using. $20

[MarkFromSea]

FYI - any Lowrance with a NEMA connection will communicate with an outboard that provides a NEMA output. My old LMS series Lowrance talked with my E-Tec and my current first generation HDS-7 does as well. Makes it easy to trim out the boat for maximum fuel efficiency when cruising and gives you a pretty accurate account of how much you really have left in the tank.

To reiterate what was provided in the Garmin link. CHIRP capability lies in the head unit, not with the transducer. If you already have a Lowrance compatible transducer, all you need to do is hookup the head unit and go. I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on an upgrade as well and will probably end up with one of the Gen 3 units.

My understanding is the xducer also needs to be duel frequency, broad band, for the chirp head unit to work correctly... or to maximize the head potential.
http://www.airmar.com/blog/2013/10/airm ... ansducers/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://faq.airmar.com/index.php?action= ... artlang=en" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Just because a transducer comes with a head unit doesn't make it the perfect match for the head unit. That's my understanding, I have old equipment so no chirp for me yet.

[G-Man]

That is not actually the case. A transducer can transmit just about any frequency, just not all of them as efficiently as the frequency for which it was designed. The CHIRP technology doesn't radically change the frequency it transmits, instead it is more of a subtle change that increases or decreases with reference to time. This allows for some really neat methods of controlling the beam emitted from your transducer.

[MarkFromSea]

Thanks!

[hewesfisher]

More than you'll ever want to know about CHIRP and transducers:

http://www.thehulltruth.com/marine-elec ... ned-2.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://themarineinstallersrant.blogspot ... at-up.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[hewesfisher]

More than you'll ever want to know about CHIRP and transducers:

http://www.thehulltruth.com/marine-elec ... ned-2.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://themarineinstallersrant.blogspot ... at-up.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A few from Airmar:

http://airmartechnology.com/uploads/bro ... ooklet.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.airmartechnology.com/uploads ... erview.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Hunter757]

Well after a ton of research I pulled the trigger and got the Lowrance elite 5 HDI today. Could not pass up the deal Gander Mountain had it for 299.00 shipped to my front door, this deal is only this weekend. It comes with the 83-200 45-800 transducer and NO tax....

I thought long and hard about the chirp and well lets face it I am no pro so the HDI will work just fine for me. It should be here in a week or so. Now to figure out if I want to get the map upgrade or not? Oh and I can use my old ram mount from my Hummingbird they use the same square base so a bonus for me. Should only take an hour or less to get it installed.