scotty918

That's one thing I like about the Humminbird units; You can use the buttons or the screen. I have a Lowrance Elite TI2, the touch screen works fine 85% of the time, but sometimes it registers my touch in the wrong locations. Buttons would be nice. I miss my Humminbird Helix Mega.

It just seems like Lowrance went in the wrong direction with this? Why take away features?

See, that's what I was thinking. I'll see if I can get a hold of someone else at Lowrance. To me, this whole deal is backwards. The 3 in 1 transducer is supposed to be superior to the Total Scan transducer. However here is the tech's reasoning behind the owner's manual mix up and the locked down scan frequency. "I am sorry for the confusion. The manual for the ti2 was written before we introduced the 3 in 1 active imaging transducer. If you had a total scan you could most definitely change the frequency of the down scan. However there is only one option with the 3 in 1 and corporate had not publicly released that information yet, but there is only one option for the 3 in 1." "There is only the one frequency that is used for down scan and we are not allowed to give out what frequency that is. I am sorry"

I am only posting this for those interested in the Lowrance Elite TI2 unit with the 3 in 1 Active Imaging transducer. You cannot change the DownScan frequency on this unit. I downloaded and read the owner's manual before I purchased it. In the manual, it states you can choose between 455 kHz and 800 kHz. This is not the case. The unit is locked at a certain frequency. I have been in contact with Lowrance and they have confirmed this. The truly silly part is that they won't tell you what frequency they are using. I am not asking for nuclear codes here, I am just curious about the frequency being used on the unit. I do not understand why that information can't be given out by Lowrance? Anyway, I wish I would have known this before purchasing the unit. Hopefully someone else finds this helpful.

It could be a combination of the grass and the xducer cover at that depth. It might be worth taking the cover off and testing it without it?

That doesn't sound like a settings issue. What transducer are you using and how is it mounted?

When you say loss of bottom depth readings, do you mean the unit can't find the bottom or the overlay is disappearing?

Your side beam is going to be caddywhompus since it is not level. How bad? Not sure. Also, the wiggle in the bracket may cause some distortion. How bad? Again, not sure. Take er out, take some screen shots (not with your phone but with the unit itself) and post em up. You'll probably be able to tell whether that system will work or not after your maiden voyage. Personally, I'd get it level and eliminate the wobble BEFORE going out, but I'm OCD when it comes to installation. If the manufacturer says make it level, I'd make it level. If it says it needs to be in alignment with the boat, I'd put it in alignment with the boat.

I have a Mega 10. I can vouch for the quality of the side scan and down scan. I've posted screenshots in the top thread (p.12), see for yourself.

My 2 cents... If you are deciding between a couple of fish finders that are different screen sizes, always pick the bigger screen size. I've never been on my kayak and thought, "I'd sure like to be looking at a smaller screen right now".

We'll buy thousands of dollars worth of sonar technology and multi-thousand dollar boats and then worry about the purity of trolling?

You might consider a minimum of 12ft in length, a 9'3 yak may leave a little something to be desired in the tracking department. A Jackson Cuda 12 (or better yet the 14) sounds like it'd be a fit for your application. Have you had a chance to demo any kayaks?

Just some screen shots from today.

There is a "Lowrance Ready" installation spot under my Hobie that I modified (not hard) to fit the Humminbird. What kind of kayak do you have?

I have a side imaging unit on my Hobie. Suffice to say, I'm a big fan of side imaging.

No problem. I just searched the model on Walmart's website and it was in the product description.

It's a 12 amp hour battery.

What is the amp draw of your fish finder? I don't see anything wrong with the battery, but I'm no expert.

I'll make the adjustments. I'm going out on the lake again next weekend. Thanks for the pointers.

Just some screen shots from today...

I have a Pro Angler 14 and I'm absolutely enamored with it. I used to have a 19ft runabout motorboat that I finally sold. Then, last year, I bought a the PA. The PA was a way for me to conveniently fish without the hassle and disconnect of a bass boat. It's stable, easy (for me) to pedal long distances, and easy to put in the back of the pickup if I decide to go fishing on a whim. Granted, I use a bed extender for my pickup. I really don't have any bad things to say about it except for the cost. I've also owned a Jackson Cuda 12 that was a great kayak. However, I kayak to fish, not the other way around. The pedal driven yak is simply much easier (for me) to fish out of than a paddle yak.

Well, I finished installation of the Humminbird Helix 10 Mega on Friday. Yesterday, the weather was perfect, so, I tested it out on Skiatook Lake in Oklahoma. The Good: This technology absolutely knocked my socks off. One caveat, this is my first fish finder and so it's probably easy to impress me. I literally couldn't believe the unit could deliver such good imaging, so, I drove over the boat ramp at Black Dog park to prove it to myself. Also, I'm glad I didn't go any smaller than a 10 inch screen. Size matters A LOT with side imaging. I'm already devising ways to mount the head unit closer to my face. Finally, I was worried I wouldn't be able to go fast enough for the side imaging to be effective. It turns out, I was getting fantastic shots at speeds as slow as 1mph. The Bad: I mounted the transducer below the kayak just aft of the center. While this produced good shots, I was VERY uneasy about hitting something with the transducer. Forgive the crudeness of the mount itself (see picture), this was just something quick I threw together. I'm still working on a more permanent mounting solution. I'm brain storming ways to mount it off the back of the kayak so it's not at the lowest overall point on the yak. Anyway, thanks for the input along the way. Here are some screenshots I took.

Thanks fellas.

The Helix 10 G2N is going to be more difficult to install on the Hobie. I'll need a bigger battery than I thought because of the 2.7 amp draw. It's not a touch screen. I'll need a transducer arm since the cavity on the bottom of the Hobie supports the Lowrance Totalscan transducer and not the Hummingbird Mega transducer. The problem is this, even with all of that, those Mega images I'm seeing look outstanding. They look head and shoulders better than the Lowrance structure scan shots I've seen. I wonder if the Mega side imaging shots are that much better, or, is it clever marketing? If the shots are truly as good as I've seen, then I still think the Hummingbird is worth it. I'm not trying to start a brand war, I'm just trying to figure out the right unit for me so I can get it right the first time.

Thanks. To be honest, this kind of has me rethinking a lot of things. I need to do my homework and figure out the various ways to store a bigger battery on this kayak. Weight won't be the issue, but space comes at a premium.