Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Fishing Forum :: Looking for a new fishfinder
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Thecubsdad |
with DI? Considering a helix 5 DI gps upgrade....fish south farm and the north Kawishiwi and would like the autochart live as well as be portable to transfer to the bow of the Lund. Just retired and looking fwd to more time in Ely. Thanks |
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Captn Tony |
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okinaw55 |
thegildedgopher: "I had a 5 inch lowrance with SI and it was tough to read detail on that size screen. The other issue with SI units on canoes is transducer size and mounting. Do your homework so you won’t be surprised is all I’m saying. What model and how do you feel about it? |
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okinaw55 |
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okinaw55 |
CRL: "Though I only have experience with a Helix 5 with GPS and DI, I just saw a Helix 7 Chirp Mega SI G2N advertised for $499.97, normally $799.99 from a Bass Pro Shops/Cabela's flier. Thought you may be interested." Thanks for the heads-up guys. Much appreciated. |
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okinaw55 |
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GickFirk22 |
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GickFirk22 |
okinaw55: "I'm leaning to the helix 7 with max di gps 3gn only (no side imaging). Add lithium battery 12v 10ah for $70-ish for about 2lbs of weight in the battery. If I had that unit on say .. 4-5 hours a day, with that battery, how long would it last without a charge and the gps on sometimes? Do the amp hours change because of less draw?" Are you going with the DI so you can shoot through the hull in your canoe instead of having to have the ducer on the outside of the boat? Or is it a battery life consideration...or both? This is probably the crux of my decision making as well... |
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eDadtke |
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okinaw55 |
GickFirk22: "okinaw55: "I'm leaning to the helix 7 with max di gps 3gn only (no side imaging). Add lithium battery 12v 10ah for $70-ish for about 2lbs of weight in the battery. If I had that unit on say .. 4-5 hours a day, with that battery, how long would it last without a charge and the gps on sometimes? Do the amp hours change because of less draw?" Honestly I don't think the side imaging is worth it in a canoe for the extra 200 bucks. I'm not concerned with the weight as much with the lithium battery. Given that they have suction cup mounts, I'd probably give those a try before siliconing the transducer to the bow floor. |
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okinaw55 |
cyclones30: "Yeah, I think the SI is nice but not really for canoe country unless you're in super calm water. Mega DI would be awesome for picking out rocks vs weeds vs fish and stuff. I have no idea how it would do going thru a hull. I'm really surprised at the rate that these things get better. 8-10 years ago I bought a top of the line lowrance unit and while it still works, the screen is small and maps are not even compatible anymore. |
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thegildedgopher |
okinaw55: "thegildedgopher: "I had a 5 inch lowrance with SI and it was tough to read detail on that size screen. The other issue with SI units on canoes is transducer size and mounting. Do your homework so you won’t be surprised is all I’m saying. I got the garmin 93sv UHD, but it’s for my fishing boat and not for a canoe. I’ve played around a lot with the maps at home, can mark spots on the phone app and they sync to the Garmin which is convenient. Haven’t had it on the water yet since it was purchased mid-winter. Bird makes a good unit I’m sure; I just got scared reading about issues. Software upgrades gone awry, not finding bottom, poor performance in shallow water, etc. I’m told their mega SI is a step above everybody else’s tech FWIW. If this is primarily a canoe unit i would skip the SI. My 2 cents. |
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okinaw55 |
thegildedgopher: "okinaw55: "thegildedgopher: "I had a 5 inch lowrance with SI and it was tough to read detail on that size screen. The other issue with SI units on canoes is transducer size and mounting. Do your homework so you won’t be surprised is all I’m saying. Yeah I plan on skipping it especially since the price goes up 200 and I doubt I would ever be comfortable using it. I've watched videos and the whole rock, ledge, vegetation, and fish "shadows" would just be too much work in a canoe. |
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JD |
eDadtke: "I think I am going to get the Deeper Chirp. I bring a Sunjack 15 solar panel with 2 10,000 mAh battery packs. This should give me a light weight solution where my phone and Deeper stay charged for a week. Anyone else tried Deeper in canoe country?" My friend brought one on a 3 day kayak fishing trip where we fished for 8 hours, 2 days in a row, and he went through 4 10k mAh battery packs, powering his phone and the Deeper unit. If you have good sunlight and are always charging 1 pack fully, you might be able to make it work, but I'd probably bring 2x 20k mAh battery packs, or 4x 10k mAh battery packs, or 2x 10k and 1x 20k (assuming you own 2x 10ks already). But, that's just to be safe... you might be able to make it work with your proposed solution. |
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Reke0402 |
okinaw55: "I'm leaning to the helix 7 with max di gps 3gn only (no side imaging). Add lithium battery 12v 10ah for $70-ish for about 2lbs of weight in the battery. If I had that unit on say .. 4-5 hours a day, with that battery, how long would it last without a charge and the gps on sometimes? Do the amp hours change because of less draw?" Check out energized outdoors site below they have different graphs showing estimated usage with different battery options https://ampedoutdoors.com/pages/humminbird%C2%AE |
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okinaw55 |
Ability to load lakemaster chip or compatible Side imaging Down imaging Light and portable for the BWCA GPS This last one may ask too much but one with a battery that can be charged via the Goal Zero solar pad and small 4 cell battery pack (power station) I bought probably 7-8 years ago. It's out of production but I think it was called the nomad 10? For suggestions know that I don't care the cost. I want a top of the line product. Thanks guys in advance. |
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cyclones30 |
SI on a 5 inch screen is not ideal just given the screen size...but it works. A 7 would be much nicer for SI but are you just using it on canoe trips? A little overkill for that probably. Also using it on a boat the rest of the season? Then not I'd say. I have.....3 Helix 7's right now. I love them haha. One on my jon boat (or two) and another for my fishing kayak and I take one for a rental boat in MN for a week. |
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CRL |
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okinaw55 |
CRL: "I really like my Hummingbird Helix 5 with GPS and down imaging, but not side imaging. I have a Nocaqua 10 Ah battery. I'm not sure if it could be recharged with your charger. If I had unlimited funds, I could be convinced to try a Helix 7 with side imaging and a Dakota Lithium battery... I picked this unit to balance price, weight, and function. Photos of my setup attached. I've been checking out the helix 5's actually. I love your tiny battery pack. That is ideal. |
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cyclones30 |
In that case, go for a G2 or G3 Helix 7 with Mega SI, Mega DI, and GPS. The sonar picture is clearer/better on Mega than the earlier generations of SI and DI. I have no idea how well your charging setup will do on a battery for it. And lithium batteries are super light and amazing, but they require a different charge vs the standard. So I'd look into something that can charge lithium if you go that route... |
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thegildedgopher |
I thought I wanted a bird unit, especially for lake master maps, but over the last few years I have read countless stories of software issues with HB. I ended up going with a Garmin for that reason. |
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CanoeingHarry |
WHAT GRAPH AND TRANDUCER MOUNT IS THAT? |
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cyclones30 |
I have a Helix 7 G3 Mega DI GPS, what do you want to know about it? I also have a G3N Mega SI, DI, GPS so if you need to know transducer size or something I can get that too very easily. Never had a software issue in any of our birds going back to the old 758ci my grandpa still runs a lakemaster chip in on his fishing boat. I'm going to sell my Gen1 Helix 7 here sometime if someone wants a DI, GPS one. |
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cyclones30 |
CRL: "Though I only have experience with a Helix 5 with GPS and DI, I just saw a Helix 7 Chirp Mega SI G2N advertised for $499.97, normally $799.99 from a Bass Pro Shops/Cabela's flier. Thought you may be interested." I noticed the same thing before I tossed it in the recycle bin last night. I'm surprised they still have the G2's around. That's a hell of a price for a 7 with Mega and SI with networking capabilities. If it does AutoChart that would be fun too for BW lakes especially if you like to go back to the same lakes. |
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CRL |
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