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So I'm looking into picking up a new ice/boat fishing sonar. I currently run an older Lowrance elite and want to upgrade. My questions are, is there a sonar that can be used as both an ice sonar and then be used effectively in the boat also? Or should I just get a sonar for ice fishing and a separate for my boat? What sonar do you run and why? I thought there was a previous post about this but wasn't able to find it. You're expertise and knowledge would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
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I would look into the lowrance elite 5 icemachine. It's a decent unit, great for the ice, ok for the boat. Don't bother with the marcum/vexilar stuff. They have no GPS and are harder to use. There is reason no one uses them from a boat.
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I use humminbird 570 in my boat and a fishing buddy on the ice. I also use a humminbird 565 and a 571di on my toon.
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I use the Lowrance Elite 4 ice machine. It has been awesome for ice fishing. It has a handy carrying case and GPS that is a necessity for using it on a boat. I haven't used it on a boat but I was told that all I would need to do is get a transducer that is made to be mounted on a boat. Just as a heads up the Elite 4x doesn't have GPS.
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Target separation is particularly important for ice fishing and that's a main difference:
1/2" Marcum
2.4" Hummingbird
3.5" Lowarance
My Marcum LX-9 further has a zoom to make the five feet of the water column you're fishing full screen to see that differentiation with high resolution. With fine tuning of it's many adjustments you can see the fish in the weeds and branches. I spent a lot of time reading on the internet before deciding and it all made sense and noticing it's backed up by winners of ice fishing tournaments.
Related posts:
http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gfo...time&mh=25
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]Boat fishing and ice fishing are as different as stock car racing and gran prix racing. Both racing venues involve vehicles with a driver. But beyond that, the difference is night & day. Same with the fishing venues; both are enhanced with the use of a sonar. But the comparison diverges greatly from there. Can you use one sonar for both? Of course you can; millions of folks do. But one or the other sports is going to suffer. Using a boat sonar on the ice will work, but the wide screen filled with fish marks from fish that are no longer there is confusing at best. Flashers are real time only; if there ain't no flashes, there ain't no fish.[/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]Your money will be better spent by buying both types, but it's your money and only you know what you can, and can not, afford. Buy the best of both that your budget will allow and you will be happy in BOTH venues.[/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]As to target separation listed above, the best shown was 1/2" and the Vexilar wasn't listed. That's a shame because certain Vexilar models have target separation of better than 1/4"; which beats ALL the rest.[/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]They ain't cheap, but IMHO, they ARE the best. I will be selling my FL20 and upgrading to the FLX28 for next season. Keep your eyes open for my ad next fall for an excellent buy and the best flasher money can buy. [  ][/#800000][/font]
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Bob Hicks, from Utah
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I stopped in and looked at flashers last week. Interesting machines and way out of my current budget at this time.[:/]
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Here is the one I got. Priced at $128 on Amazon. I've been using it for about 8 months now. It has worked great on my little boat. Ice fishing I've had success and it is sensitive enough to show me where my lure is when I drop it down. Requires 4 AAA batteries and for ice fishing I have to replace the batteries after about 8 hours of use. If you are on a budget it's a great finder, works well for what it is.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C95I...ge_o02_s00
Good luck.
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To the original poster, if you go back in the archives you will soon realize that these flasher/finder discussions are like Ford/Chevy/Dodge debates. However, the comment below deserves a reply.
[quote dubob] Using a boat sonar on the ice will work, but the wide screen filled with fish marks from fish that are no longer there is confusing at best. Flashers are real time only; if there ain't no flashes, there ain't no fish.[/quote]
Many mid range to good LCD "boat sonars" ,if you will, have a real time sonar function that works exactly like a flasher. You do not need to even have a top end unit to get this. My 11 year old Fishmark 320 has an excellent real time function. You can see the jig and the fish in real time, all the time. As for the lines on the screen from the previous 10-15 seconds (the history), these can be used to your advantage as well. When fishing medium depth to deep lakes, and you have a suspended fish come through well away from your offering and then leave outside of your cone of reception, you can still match the exact location where the fish was when you reel up to it and very frequently, the fish will come back and bite. I can't tell you how many fish I've caught this way, especially at Strawberry and Fish Lake. But to each their own and I hold no delusions that I will convince flasher lovers that their finders aren't the best thing ever produced by humankind.
To the OP, my old fishmark still serves quite nicely on my float tube. You can indeed get a good boat finder that will work very well on the hard deck. Just make sure it has the "real time sonar" function.
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⇧⇧⇧⇧⇧☝︎☝︎☝︎☝︎☝︎☝︎
Yep. doggonefishin said it all.
Flashers were invented in the '50s, and they really haven't changed much. What other technology are you using that is nearly 70 years old?
[red]⫸[/red][orange]<{[/orange][yellow]{{[/yellow][green]{{[/green][size 4][blue]⦇[/blue][/size][blue]°[/blue][#8000FF]>[/#8000FF]
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Question for Anyone?
With this superior Flasher Target separation, how are two fish at the same depth, same location at the same time (less than 1" apart) Displayed on the flasher screen as being just that?
What would anyone do differently if they new it was two fish instead of one.
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[quote doggonefishin]But to each their own and I hold no delusions that I will convince flasher lovers that their finders aren't the best thing ever produced by humankind.[/quote][font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]For ice fishing! I would never want or use a flasher on my boat. And for what it's worth, there isn't ANY one-size-fits-all machine made that will give you absolutely the best features of all functions. I use a Lowrance HDS on my boat and the Vexilar FL20 on the ice. Couldn't be happier. Well maybe - I plan on getting the FLX28 for next season. And we are in total agreement on one thing - to each his own. I would never disparage you for using whatever product that meets your requirements. Peace and tight lines to you wherever you fish. [  ][/#800000][/font]
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Bob Hicks, from Utah
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Before I was just mentioning a major feature difference between fishfinders for ice fishing compared open water. The main advantage of target separation for ice fishing is watching a fish swim up from below as closes in on your lure. You can use that to time setting the hook. Most of the fish finders show that in a simulation mode for side by side comparison in the store. Zoom helps separate what otherwise might be viewed as blended together. Brightness and a large screen helps, too.
I see what you mean about distinguishing between two fish which would be less important though greater resolution would tend to do that along with other features such as six distinct colors and various adjustments that also brings out contrast to help with differentiation between what is there.
It matters more with structure. Looking at the sonar readings of an underwater tree or a weed bed bottom, I can see the fish moving through the branches and weeds. When I first looked at that, I couldn't picture in my mind what was actually happening until I lowered the video camera to take a look. But, now when I see it on sonar, I have a better guess. There are sonar returns from things not moving like weeds, rocks and branches. Fish help differentiate themselves by moving, so look for changes in intensity of the return and changes in depth. But, sometimes fish are there and mostly being still, so the camera really helps for that.
One ice fishing friend's experience is with the circular flasher style display. I generally don't use that one in preference to displaying the same flashes vertically and off to the side of the video picture. But, at a push of a button, I can display his favored style or any of numerous other choices.
I also display the graph markings of fish right over the video. That way I can see changes even if I glance away for a moment and feel the greater freedom of watching intermittently instead of continuously.
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These new Boat sonars have real time and flasher on them. The guy on hooked on Utah fishes with a boat finder and you can see his jig, and fish come up after it. I will look for it on YouTube and post a link
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HOOKED ON UTAH
[url "https://youtu.be/hpoyJvxHB5s"]https://youtu.be/hpoyJvxHB5s[/url]
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Here is a better one
[url "https://youtu.be/g--Gp-MLlKY"]https://youtu.be/g--Gp-MLlKY[/url]
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As it was previously said, its a matter of personal preference. For ice fishing, i prefer a wide screen sonar. I think it helps to look back at the history to see what happened. Most of the modern units allows me to use a flasher screen if I desire. On the normal sonar screen, the far right side is basically "live" anyways. Furthermore, I can't picture a scenario where I would need target separation smaller than 3 or 4 inches. Plus i can use the unit on a boat. As pictured in the previously posted video, the Lowrance Elite 5 is a great machine. When I save up some money, I am buying one. I use an older Lowrance model and catch plenty of fish. I respect the other opinions of the flasher people that have posted previously. It works for them. Decide what works for you. For me, its the wide screen sonars.
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Having GPS built in your unit is far more important than target separation. You can use the unit on your boat all summer, mark spots that would be good in the winter. And how many times have you walked out on a lake and said.. I wish I could find where I was last time, now you can. There are times when one hole will out produce all the rest..now you just waypoint it and it's there forever. If you are going to spend $500 on a fishfinder get one that will find you some fishing spots too.
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Ice Fishing
With a regular Lowrance color graph like X107c you will never see a tree or weed bed or a brush pile while stationary, like Ice fishing. Only moving in a boat will these objects reveal them selves.
The bottom will be represented by a black line and will be located at the depth of the tallest stationary object in the transducer cone (like the Top of a tree). Ice Fishing, the bottom ( as in the two Ice fishing video's) is always flat.
That flat line displayed as the bottom is fictitious. If you drop your jig to what appears to be the bottom represented by your display, you will be able to drop it an additional distance equal to the height of the tree. There is no seeing fish in this reception zone, it is Below what is displayed as the bottom.
Are you saying that the new flashers overcome what I have described? Please Explain?
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I too am a vex fan boy. I haven't used any of the others so I can't give an opinion on them. As to the comment about flasher having 70 year old out dated technology... that is not true. Vex has made a number of changes over the years, (the latest being the 28 series), and in my opinion, leads the way in flasher technology, but that is another chevy ford debate. Regarding the question about multiple fish coming in and what is seen... You see a separate line for every fish. Sometimes the number of fish can be so thick and so many that the whole screen at the depth they are suspended is solid red. Normally though I see a line for every fish. As mentioned, you pay for a Vex, but then again, they last forever. Very solid piece of equipment. As also mentioned, flashers can be used for boat fishing, but they are really made for ice and are the cats meow when ice fishing. Round screen vs flat vertical screen... they all work the same, just a matter of what you get used to or like. Color vs black and white... no question in my mind, color all the way. Best thing to do is hookup with someone who has a sonar unit and go fish with them to see how they work. I tend to think they all work, just a matter of choice what you end up with. Any beat blind fishing.
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