Scherbacj

I checked a few of these out today and I think the Ghost foot pedal is better than the Ultrex. I also like how the head of the Ghost doesn’t turn with the motor, but that’s probably a preference thing. But in all honesty, I think they are all pretty even and it comes down to what graphs you have and what minor features you prefer. Unfortunately they didn’t have a Tour Pro, but I already have a cable steer so I don’t think it will be much different. I was all but set in the tour pro, but after seeing some of the other features I can use with my HDS Pro I think am going to go with a Ghost. Plus, I’ve heard the Motorguide doesn’t have enough room to Mount the transducer on it, so a TM mounted transducer is out the window. With the Ghost I can have the transom Mount transducer for while I am running, and the built in TM x-ducer while fishing. Plus, I can use Ghost 360 with the Ghost. But saying one is clearly superior over another is tribal. However, the Garmin remote is clearly superior so if you like using the remote a lot, the Garmin is probably the way to go.

Good points! It was more of a curiosity than anything. I’m not trying do it, just wondering if it was possible. Thanks

I’ve seen lithium batteries that are 24 volts but come in a single case as a single battery, if you don’t have room for 3 12v trolling motor batteries is it possible to use 1 of these 24v batteries in series with a 12v lithium to make a 36v system? Or do all the batteries have to be the same voltage to run them in series like that.

Is there any reason not to use a Plug & Receptacle like the one below? I feel like it is a cleaner pass through of the deck/gunnel rather than just using a grommet. It uses 8ga wire so I don’t see it adding much resistance.

I am installing a Lowrance HDS 12 PRO on the bow of my boat, but the wiring harness included is only like 6 feet long so I am gonna have to run some duplex wire from the battery compartment to the bow and I am wondering what gauge I should use? Should I match the gauge of the included harness? Or upsize it since I will be running a longer length? I found some “wiring kits” that have the duplex cable and fuse box and those use 10 gauge, but that seems overkill since the stock harness is around 18 gauge. Plus it’s much cheaper to just buy some duplex cable and get the fuse holder and terminals from my work. Also, does it matter if I run a plug setup like my trolling motor so I have a neat/water tight pass through? Or should I just run the wires straight through the deck/gunnel so I have fewer connection points and less chance for interference or whatever?

Has anyone tried the Motorguide Universal Sonar? How is the image quality? It doesn’t look like the Ghost has many extra features I would like, so I am probably going with the Motorguide, but you can get it with or without the Universal Sonar and since I already have a transducer for my graphs I don’t see a reason to spend the extra $300 for the universal sonar unless it is “better” or somehow offers something a external transducer doesn’t? Has anyone tried the Motorguide Universal Sonar? How is the image quality? It doesn’t look like the Ghost has many extra features I would like, so I am probably going with the Motorguide, but you can get it with or without the Universal Sonar and since I already have a transducer for my graphs I don’t see a reason to spend the extra $300 for the universal sonar unless it is “better” or somehow offers something a external transducer doesn’t? Has anyone tried the Motorguide Universal Sonar? How is the image quality? It doesn’t look like the Ghost has many extra features I would like, so I am probably going with the Motorguide, but you can get it with or without the Universal Sonar and since I already have a transducer for my graphs I don’t see a reason to spend the extra $300 for the universal sonar unless it is “better” or somehow offers something a external transducer doesn’t? Has anyone tried the Motorguide Universal Sonar? How is the image quality? It doesn’t look like the Ghost has many extra features I would like, so I am probably going with the Motorguide, but you can get it with or without the Universal Sonar and since I already have a transducer for my graphs I don’t see a reason to spend the extra $300 for the universal sonar unless it is “better” or somehow offers something a external transducer doesn’t?

That kind of answers my question. Since my “main” unit will be on the bow, but I already have a mount on the transom, I was just wondering if it was actually better to put it on the TM? I understand that my readings will be closer to where I fish from instead of 20 feet behind me, but does the image quality differ? How does Side Imaging/Down Imaging do if you are using the trolling motor? The only reason I want to run the Transom Mount X-ducer to my bow unit is because it’s an HD so I can’t run it directly to my Elite FS at the console without the module, so to save money & hassle I am going to run it to the HDS Pro and then just network the Elite FS. Or, is it better to have the bigger & higher quality graph at the console? I figured it would be better to have the larger and higher resolution graph at the bow so I can see it better while actually fishing and so I can eventually add FFS, but am I thinking about this wrong?

Being able to stow/deploy and auto pilot like you mention does sound pretty useful. I might have to look into that. I don’t know if the Ghost can do any of that, but switching to Hummingbirds and Minn Kota isn’t an option at the moment because I would have to replace EVERYTHING to do it. If the Ghost is able to do some of that, I might consider the extra cost, if it doesn’t have similar functions then I don’t see any reason to go that route over the Tour Pro. Thanks for your input!

I am new to this, but the Motorguide Tour Pro has spot lock and has a universal sonar that will provide 2D and Down Imaging with any graphs. I have no idea on the quality of the sonar imaging, but if you mostly want spot lock, and maybe heading lock, it would be a good fit and you also get some sonar features and possibly more depending on your graph. I am trying to decide between the Tour Pro and the Ghost. I know the Ghost is a much better TM, and will integrate with my HDS Pro’s a lot more, but I don’t know how much I will use many of those features so being able to get the Tour Pro for $1,500 less is pretty appealing. For the guys who have matching Trolling Motors and Graphs, what features do you use the most besides Spot-Lock and Heading Lock? I guess being able to setup a course and let the motor run it while you fish is cool, but aside from your “home lake”, how often do you take the time to chart a course and run it? I’m still new so to me it seems like you would spend a lot of time creating the course and less time fishing. Also, I like that the Tour Pro is still a cable steer unit. So even if the spot lock/steering motor goes out, you still have a usable trolling motor. Most other motors can’t be steered manually once the steering motor goes out.

Tried searching but I think it’s too hard a topic to define with simple terms. Is there any advantage to running a 3-in-1 transducer from the trolling motor instead of the transom mount? I get my HDS Pro and AIHD 3-in-1 tomorrow and just wondering if I should look into trolling motor mounts or just put it on the transom? secondary question, in order to work with all my graphs I will have to hook the transducer to my bow graph and then hookup my console graph with Ethernet, if I run the transom Mount the cable will run the full length of the boat, should that cause an lag or other issues? The X-ducer has a 25FT cable so I don’t see why it would be an issue, but I am very new to electronics on a boat.

Everything I read says they can be networked together, but it isn’t clear if I would still need the S3100. The only I have heard about problems with is the HDS Gen 2 causing the Elite FS to go into “Legacy” mode. But this isn’t a HDS Gen 2. I worry about switching to Hummingbird because I’ve heard the user interface and settings are rough for beginners. Going with the HDS Pro is the fastest and cheapest way to get started, but if I end up having to buy the S3100 module anyways then not so much. I can get into a 9” & 12” Garmin GPSmap combo for around $4,000 right now, which isn’t bad, but a lot more than $1,500 for the HDS Pro to use with the existing Elite FS. I’m sure all of them are sufficient for my uses, I just know in my other hobbies, Buy Once Cry Once has usually worked out the best so I would rather switch now if that’s what is better in the end.

I will add FFS at some point, but not right away. Is Garmins FFS that much better that it’s the only way to go? And what is more comparable to the HDS Pro, the Echomap Ultra, Echomap Ultra 2, or GPSmap 1243XSV? I’m trying to keep my initial sonar setup around $3,500 for now. That’s 2D, DI, SI for now, FFS would come later. Also, are the Garmin units easy to use for newbie? I would consider doing the Lowrance for now and then when I add FFS just add a Garmin screen just for that, but read a few instances where the Garmins transducer interfered with the Lowrance.

Also, if I hook the transducer to the HDS Pro will I be able to network it to the Elite FS without the S3100 module? Or do I still need that for the HD Tranducer to work on the Elite FS?

I just got my first boat and it came with a Lowrance Elite FS7 at the console. I am trying to decide if I should just get a HDS Pro 10” for the bow with the AIHD 3-in-1 Transducer and then network it to the Elite FS? I found a good deal on the HDS Pro 10 with Transducer so that seems like the easiest way to get started. Or, since the Elite FS didn’t come with a transducer, should I just go ahead and switch to Garmin or Hummingbird now before I invest more and gets harder to switch. I live and fish in Arizona and haven’t been able to find out if Lakemaster or C-Map or Navionics has the best lake maps for my region? what would you all do?