Is a $2,000 Fish Finder BETTER Than a $800 Unit? - The Surprising Truth
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- čas přidán 28. 05. 2024
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Equipment Mentioned in this Video:
Lowrance Elite FS™ Chartplotter/Fish Finder System
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HDS-9 LIVE with Active Imaging 3-in-1
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Lowrance Hook Reveal 9 Series Fishfinders
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Give us images from the exact same spots and your comparisons will be absolute GOLD
That’s the first thing I thought. All the images from the 3 units should have been from the same spots, so you can compare apples with apples. Otherwise we could be looking at oranges.
If anyone from lowrance is reading this, THIS is how you convince people to upgrade or step up to a higher end unit. Bullet points on a sales page is one thing but side by sides make a way more convincing argument.
And is done with very little extra effort....... I a lot of times Wonder how certain people in the positions they are in with the jobs they hold like how they keep those jobs when it's pretty obvious it could be done better easily, have people that do their job better, yeah you may have to pay them a little more but it is going to equal your company having much more business and many more happy customers and a happy customer is a return customer who brings other customers with them
And tell them to never look at a Garmin Echmap, which costs half as much as the Lowrance and us much better and easier to use.
Except for one thing, it makes your cheaper products look like crap!
@officialWWM And whoever buys a lower end Lowrance will never buy another Lowrance again. The Hook series are not good. What is worse is that Lowrance uses screen images from the HD series in their advertising for the Hook series. It is false advertising. I have a Hook7 and have never been able to get a side view that provided any useful information at all. It just shows solid clutter on both sides no matter what is there. But the advertising shows distinctive images of trees. Neither contrast or brightness settings make any difference. I paid extra for the upgraded transducer too.
The side by side encourages me to buy two Garmin 93SV UHD2 units . It costs half as much as the Lowrance HDS, shows just as much detail and is much easier to use.
I just sold my older boat and locator with all the GPS, side scan, lake chip etc. My new boat came with a $149 Lowrance Hook 4x with none of the above. Its so simple and turns on/off so quick, marks fish, and works at speed. Im much happier downgrading
Is that the $105 one at Walmart? I’m on a budget and have a small John boat but don’t have tons of money to blow on one but would like something basic
@@tinotabares6034 I think so. Color screen. The only dislike I got is shallow water always reads a little distortion on the screen between 0-2ft. Im not great at tuning the clarity but I did a little, and its been crazy accurate marking fish, bottom or suspended once u learn what its reading as fish.
I HEARD THE BLUE PALETTE HIGHLIGHTS FISH WITH WHITE DOT, EASIEST TO SEE ON THE WATER IS THE GOAL .THIS AMBER LOOK IT IS EASY TO MISS FISH ON THE WATER WITH WAVES ,SUN ETC. DIFFICULT FOR 69 YEAR OLD EYES TO SEE AT TIMES. THANKS JONNY YOU AND RANDY ARE TOPS
Interesting to see some of the differences… I have Elite FS 7’s and have always wondered how they compared. I think the FS units are the perfect sweet spot to get the most bang for your buck! Thanks for sharing
Great review! The only rebuke: You compare down scanning with HDS & Elite at a sensor frequency 800, but with Hook - at 455 ...
If you really would like to compare the differences you should use the same spot for recording, same frequency, same colors, settings etc. Buut, if you are getting free stuff from the manufacturer, I guess it's not that easy!😂
Johnny, just picked up a lowrance activetarget combo from the Bass Tank! I can’t wait for it to get here! Thanks for pointing me to the bass tank!
Another main comparison between these units (in my opinion) is network capabilities. In the 9inch units, the Elite FS only has 1 Ethernet port. The HDS Live has 2. So if you are wanting to run Active Target and still transfer your weighpoints easily between 2 units (very important to me personally), you'll need at least 1 unit with 2 ports or you're stuck buying an eithernet hub. Just something else to consider.
Great job! This took a lot of work...its appreciated
Thanks for the video. Your video was the most informative I've found on fish finders. Well done and thanks for all the information!
fun to see that whenever you see a fish on the fish finder it's always the species you are hunting for - I fish for a different fish myself but when I see these dots they certainly don't look like bass to me haha. Good to see we still have to catch the fish - we can't download them in our boat --- yet
Hi mate, very helpful and informative video, but, surely for the best and fair comparison between the three units, the screen shots should have been done at exactly the same place, with exactly (where available) , the same settings and palette. Wouldn't this be a fairer way to see the difference with down and side scan??
I think you're spot on, but just saying.
Keep up the great work.
Thank you Jonny I have the HDS carbons on my boat and I'm very happy with it
Great video. The electronic company’s have made it so complicated to choose which unit is best because of all the different models they market. Hats off to you my friend for making it more simple. Don’t tell Randy but I am in the market for a forward facing unit and I want a good one.
it's really your budget .. and if you want networking the hook doesn't
By the active target and an elite fs
Great content. It could only have been better had you shown the same track, at the same speed. Can’t wait until you do the same comparison on Humminbird products. I went from Helix 10’s to Helix 12’s, as my eyes are getting worse and reading sidescan images from a distance, is better on the 12’s. Would love to know if the Solix is any better than the Helix(same with Apex).
Why did you compare the side scan images on different KHz? The Tripleshot transducer with the Hook Reveal has 800kHz setting as well which should have given a clearer image than shown in the video.
Not a fair test & comparison at all…..when frequencies are not the same……sorry
Would love to see comparison to the hummingbird units
Great comparison! Looking forward to your Helix comparison as well.
Great stuff as usual. Would love to see a Garmin Echomap UHD 93SV versus a Lowrance FS-9 versus a Humminbird Helix 9 comparison.
Loved this, I was just looking at lowrance hds9, now I know. I currently have a humminbird helix.
I would like to see the difference between bird and garmin. No forward facing sonar. I will be in the market shortly to buy. Always been a bird guy but garmin is impressive to.
Probably too soon but bass pro will have the garmin 93sv with the gt54 transducer (the 9 inch that they usually bundle with livescope) onsale starting thursday for $699.
@@FlippinOkie Russell Marine also has it for $699 right now
I doubt they're putting a $1,500 livescope transducer with anything for "$699"...
You doubt theyd put livescope with the most commonly sold unit thats paired with livescope??
Always look forward to “Fish the Moment” video releases.
Great video! Anyone can install a fishfinder. Run 10AWG marine wire for the power source and level up the transducer using the coin method and you're done. Anyone can do it and no expertise required. And if you don't want to spend the time on installation, any marine shop can do it. It's just not complicated.
What is the coin method? Have a link to a video?
This is a great comparison, I hope you do more!
Had the elite TI and it was good 0-25 feet. However @50feet and above I saw very little compared to my old Gen 2 with structure scan. After many calls to tech support I trade in for the HDS. Im much happier with it.
Hey, great comparison. I have an elite ti with sidescan and i found that when i load the logfile into a sonar viewer like reefmaster i get far better quality. Would be interesting to see if this quality difference comes down to transducer type and or software. Its also interesting that downscan gets logged but i can only display the older 2d type on my unit. Definitely some software limitations here in the cheaper units.
Now that you have ‘the settings’ for Lowrance, after you get the Humminbird, do a comparison between brands. Garmin is also really cranking things up and their screens and units are surely competitive
I want to see a 9” Garmin go against a 9” Lowrance FS both similar in value in side scan mode.
Great video! I am proud of myself. I just installed the hook reveal on my tracker. It turned out well... I think. It's the 2nd unit I've use with the first one being the piece of junk that came with the boat. It had cute little pacman fish. The new one was only 7", but so far, I love it. I was able to easily identify bait fish balls. Anyway, a big upgrade over what I was using. I hope they start coming down in price. I really liked the hummingbirds and think I might get one of those next.
Wow, you can see the bait fish’s balls…..that’s amazing!!! Excellent detail.
I recently updated my units from lowrance Gen 2's to the Live. I'm very impressed with the Live. If you have the money for the better unit, then get it!! You won't be disappointed!!
Great video.
What’s the difference? I have hds gen 2, the ones before touchscreens came out
@@greygoose117, it's a huge difference. The images are clearer and I can see a lot more things I couldn't see with the gen 2's. The details are superb. I had my gen 2's dialed in pretty good but they can't compare to the lives.
@@greygoose117 it's like watching stop motion animation compared to video from a camera
Great video, you should for sure try and do the same type of comparison videos with Garmin products and also Humminbird products. Would be really neat to see.
Awesome comparison and info video! 👍👍❤
Great video with some great information. I have learned so much about fish finders by wacthing your videos. I have a Lowrance 7ti on my bass tracker boat. It's ok, I am still learning how to read the side imaging. We also have a 19' SunTracker fishing pontoon boat.Which fish finder would you recommend for the pontoon boat? And would you mount it at the console or on the front of the boat? Thanks
Loved the comparison video. I run lowrance now, but I'm thinking of making the switch to Humminbird. I would love to see the comparison between the helix and solix. And then a comparison between the two brands. I'll wait to purchase until I see those two videos. Thanks, and great job!
Garmin makes some pretty good stuff too
Lowrance is by far my favorite
just started with your channel & content is great. Can't wait to see comparisons between similar units from different companies. I imagine the quality of the images will change considerably depending on the quality of the transducers, or am I wrong?
I'll stick with my Garmin Styker IV. That thing is awesome.
Great video as usual. I have the Hook Reveal 9 on my console and the 7 on the trolling motor. This is my 2nd season with them and I luv them. I would very much like to see your setup guide for the Hook Reveal but it is not on your website. As far as the sidescan, I don't use it that much for the reasons you cover here but it is a nice feature to have on the trolling motor.
Would like to see comparison between all the HDS live unit because what I'm been seeing is that the 9 live come with dual processor and the 12&16 come with quad processor
Another great video. Lots of great information. Please do more on other brands.
I have 2 Garmin Striker units on my Bass Buggy and I really like them. I paid about $1,100 for both units total with one on the console and one on the bow. The units are linked and share data which can be done easily right out of the box. The 9sv on the bow stays on down imaging and side view while the 7sv on the console is used for graphing and mapping usually. The images are easy to read and give me a really good idea what's going on under my boat. I don't have any problems seeing structure or fish on any mode which is good for an old guy who needs reading glasses. Best of all, I got two great brand new units for less than the cost of the $1,349 unit that was reviewed.
Same here! I have the striker 7 and I can do the same. Granted not as crystal clear as these but still have no issues.
About to order a couple of echomaps because I wanted the maps on there. How do you like the strikers vs what an echomap offers? The price is tempting for sure
@@Gibb591 I've never used the echomaps, so I can't really say personally. All I know is that my units were easy to install myself on my pontoon boat and that they give me exactly what I want from them and more without any hassles. My latest video shows my 7sv doing its thing. The 9sv on the bow is much larger and I'll probably feature it in a video here soon.
You’re the best on CZcams for fish finding electronics & tech. It may not be popular, but I have a request that hopefully would benefit many others. I’m fishing from a kayak and would like a small quality simple fish finder. Just 2D sonar is sufficient. Could you do a comparison of this style of fish finder? Maybe top three to four models compared fire features & value. Under $500 please. $300 even better! Thanks.
If it is true that fish get conditioned to the sound and vibrations of forward facing sonar and stop biting over time, then individual manufacturers have a chance to take the lead by simply building a sound distorter on the transducer that mixes up or masks the sound and frequency to keep fish from getting conditioned. Wait and see, this is be a huge selling point for the first company to do it.
Well sound travels a lot further underwater than it doesn't air of course and fish don't seem to be bothered about boats driving by a football field away or so so I doubt that's going to be an issue really I mean it could but I would like to see the science proving it
As always a great video !
Great information - nice to see a comparison with a Humminbird Lexis 9 0r 10
I got the elite ti9 which is same as your fs 1,349.00 unit but doesn’t have live. Ti9 is only 600$ on sale and I think image is amazing compared to hummingbird and way easier to use and get around all available options. I’ve always known lowrance as off-road gps systems and it’s simplicity and ease of use shows in comparison to my hummingbird units.
great video ! thanks for sharing !
Great video with some great information. I have learned so much about fish finders by wacthing your videos. I have a Lowrance 7ti on my bass tracker boat. It's ok, I am still learning how to read the side imaging. We also have a 19' SunTracker fishing pontoon boat.Which fish finder would you recommend for the pontoon boat?
I have been looking at Humminbirds, Lawrence, and Garmin. And would you mount the unit it at the console or on the front of the boat? Thanks
Super helpful video. I know which unit I want now
I love the video content you provide and always learn something. I do have a question. The reason for the question is Is it worth it to spend money to install a fish finder on the bow. I already have Livescope so is there a benefit to also have a HB or Low fish finder on the bow mount?
Jonny - is your settings guide for the Lowrance Elite FS units also applicable to the older Elite TI2 units?
Great video thanks 👍🏽
Great video. Right to the point. Just comparing video quality. Tnx.
Just bought the elite fs and active target . Can’t wait to open a whole new world . 47 first time using electronics should be interesting.
I don’t think you can buy Elite ti2 from the stores much anymore. But they run the 3in1 transducer and are cheaper than that hook unit. Can get good deals on them used too, I got the 12” from BPS when the fs came out for $1000. Wish I could find some better videos on them though.
Hey Johnny my buddy had a fish finder that was antiquated so I bought him a lowrance hook revieal it sounds like I should have bought the 1,300 fish finder but that's all I could afford johnny great video bro. Hey you know what Johnny all the videos I've seen of yours are awesome. Hey Johnny I have a question do you come out with people on their boat and show them how to use them better off course us paying you for your time.god bless you and your family your pal fisherman Mike.
Great video. I have a Lowrance HDS Carbon how does it follow in with the HDS Live. Would love to see a vidao with the HDS Carbon in the mix. But over over all great video. Thanks
A feature that didn't get reviewed is the mapping capabilities.
It's like most people dont know the mapping is there. For me that's the important part running up and down the coast offshore etc... This review is pretty much pointless
@@dave216dx most people don’t buy a unit for maps
The sidescan quality jump is similar when going from a Garmin echomap 9 to an echomap ultra 10, I was shocked at how much I could see when I upgraded
Yep screen resolution is alot better on the ultra units same has the lowrance HDS
Great video, Jonny! So is safe to assume that the Active Target for the Elite and HDS will have similar results in the clarity? Love videos comparisons like this - helps on purchasing decisions without being able to buy them all ourselves to do those comparisons!!
I've used Active Target on both the Elite FS and HDS Live unit and it looks pretty much the same.
@@FishtheMoment I used to run mine on an Elite and switched to a Carbon. The higher resolution screen is somewhat noticeable, but the carbon is much better in the sun and is easier to see from less than perfect angles (for those that don't mount on a pedestal). I have an HDS Live on the console and it's great, but no reason to spend the money for it as a dedicated Active Target unit. My takeaway was that the Elite was perfectly fine for Active Target, but the Carbon was a good upgrade if it's in your budget. I just switched my elite to a mapping unit on the front.
I’m currently running the Lowrance 7TI2 with active imaging 3 in 1 transducer. Will upgrading just my head unit provide a better quality image ? From what I can tell I have the best transducer from lowrance, so is an upgraded head unit going to do anything for me or am I just buying a bigger screen ?
You never said I had to pay for those sonar settings for the Lowrance Hook Reveal.
I was just googling this last night to find the difference between the elite and the HDS units. I just find it a little ironic that you made a video for it today
Super informative video! I’m trying to decide between the new Garmin 93sv UHD2 with GT56 transducer vs. Lowrance HDS Live 9 with AI 3-in-1 transducer. The UHD2 is new, but the HDS Live is a higher tier. Can you give me your thoughts?Thanks!!
Interesting video. Initially you said that all three units were switched over on the same transducer. Later it seems that the Hook Reveal was on the Tripleshot which is the reason you give for the poorer sidescan. Can you confirm please? I have the Hook Reveal with a 3 in 1 so possibly the side scan is more on the level of the FS. I am told that the 2D on the 3 in 1 is a big upgrade on the Tripleshot. I never installed the Tripleshot and upgraded to the 3 in 1 straight away after reading that the Tripleshot was garbage. It would be interesting to know what you were running exactly.
I have a reveal 7 unit, This video and others are extremely helpful. A question I would have is potential upgrades of transducers for hook reveal, Will it actually improve side-car resolution or are you limited by the unit itself?...
Nice video, what do you think. A lowrance hds gen 3 is it better than a lowrance fs? What do you think.?
Best wishes from north west germany.
Johnny, what is the difference between the elite FS units and the Elite TI & TI2 units? I have the 9” Elite TI2 unit and my side scan isn’t as crisp as the FS you’re showing here…
Do a mapping comparison between brands
Thank you very much!
I primarily saltwater fish, but still have a Lowrance TI2 and a motorguide XI5 trolling motor. I keep having a hard time getting mine dialed in.
Or you could get a Garmin Echomap UHD 93SV on sale right now and have images better than the Lowrance HDS live, since they have a higher frequency transducer.
I’ve seen all three units on side scan and the Hook Reveal settings look like they can be tweaked from why is shown, the contrast looks high. Just my two cents, but great stuff though buddy. This is the type of info we need for the weekend tournament angler
Great job 👍🏽
Using a Hook Reveal 7 t/s - difference is I changed the Transducer to the AI 3 in 1 Transducer.. the image clarity and separation is far better.
Thanx Jonny! Pls do Garmin 9” echomap uhd withe the 10” Garmin unit soon
Using the same criteria as the Live sonar comparison for Chirp down scan and side scan and mapping units, what's the best value of Garmin, Lowrance, Hummingbird and Raymarine under $500?
Can you give your thoughts on the garmin echomap uhd 93sv please!? Looking to buy it from the bass tank, possibly with the bundle.
I have hummingbird helix 9 and 7. I love the 9 because of presets. The 7 just as good but no presets
Will Amy of these work on a trolling motor or connect to a hds gen 3 3d model?
Ready to upgrade my fish Finder. Which Brand has the best side view in a 10ish screen under 2500.
Thank you.. very helpful..
What about Florida lakes that average 15ft and less
9 ft is more an average
Great video as always
Any chance of a Garmin comparison? Have a LiveScope with the cheapest possible head unit and would like to see a comparison of upgrades.
Only seeing this video now. What voltage were the units running in - 12v or 16v ?
This is a great comparison & I'm currently saving for a fish finder for my kayak. I've been an avid yak angler 6 yrs going on7 & I've never had any tech.i would like see a side by side comparison of a echomap ultra 10" with gt56 vs solix 10g3 going over same area so it's a exact comparison. I would really like to see them head to head on side & down imaging
Have you bought a fish finder if so Wich one im in the same boat i need a quality fish finder
@@rodrigoelgu no I have not, it will probably be end of year , I'm still stuck between Echomap Ultra 106sxv with LVS34 or Solix10gn3 with mega 360. it's a big investment when adding live or 360 with it. Thier all pretty good. I have talked to hummingbird & Garmin tech support guys & they have been helpful. I can't reach or contact Lowrance support & have tried multiple times so that why I've ruled them out. I don't like idea of having no customer service!!! Gamin & hummingbird will get back to you the same day most of the time. That's a big deal to me!!!!
If u could compare echomap ultra 106 the 10" with gt56 & a solix10 g3, with scanning the same area with side& down so shes exact comparison that would be more than awesome. Noone has done a comparison like this apples to apples with gt56 & solix yet! Both 10" & both high frequencies...Those are 2 I'm having hard time deciding between!!?? Who has better maps? Is lake master better than LakeVu G3 Ultra or navionics vision + for Garmin? Idk but I would like to know because an exspensive investment!
I own a coding company more less programming company... now I help a friend put a 19 inch screen on his front deck of his boat but I used a 7 inch graph as the brains remember the bigger the screen the more u pay the brains or the same
That's just in simple terms
Currently running the 9ts hook at the console and the hook 5 ss at the bow. I'm looking to upgrade both and I still don't know if I want to get dual hook 12's now or wait until next season and get some carbon 12's
I have ran 2 hook2 12s at the bow and console for a few years and this past year I got a garmin panoptics 12" with a stacker mount and when I saw the difference between transducers esp on the side scan I will be upgrading to any lowrance that runs the active image transducer as the difference is night and day. Just my 2 cents but I would go the carbon route you won't be disappointed 🍻
Solid evaluation of the differences in machines. I have the lower priced Reveal . What would be your suggestion to actually learn how to successfully use it. I can go around local lake with the default settings and not see a fish on the screen. I know they’re there. Yes I’m lazy but what’s the quickest way to make use of the technology to consistently find fish?. Thanks
Here's a playlist explaining how to use fish finders effectively: czcams.com/play/PL9BHyCTcb741yg-FywFDqXEtgeGf7aVNS.html
Unfortunately though, there's no shortcut to consistently finding fish with a fish finder. The best and only way is to spend 2 - 3 hours every fishing trip graphing offshore areas and fishing spots you think have fish. This will help you learn what is fish and what isn't. I would estimate it took me over 100 hours driving with my fish finder on the lake to feel comfortable finding fish. But even now, I will still go out to the lake and it will sometimes take me 4-5 hours of graphing to find a school of bass.
Why did Lowrance faze out the Elite Ti units. I want a 12in and can't find one.
Great video
considering the hook reveal and the elite fs both have the same screen..... wouldn't upgrading the transducer to a active Imaging 3in1 improve the hook reveal Imaging quality up to the elite fs?
Good video. 👍
Beside the sign comparisons are great however just one suggestion I would give is I probably would have done a side-by-side comparison of the three of them scanning the exact same areas so that we could get a true accurate comparison you know what I mean
More please!
I went from a helix 5 to a 95sv in my opinion from 700$ unit to 1800$ unit is night and day difference and the amount of setting that need changed is very little as the price reaches 2000$
I bought the hook reveal 9 Tripleshot last week. The side and downscan worked great. However, the sonar showed pixelated with red and blue dots across the screen. I couldn't make out anything besides surface. I played with many settings and watched many videos for two weeks prior to my trip. I hate to return it, but I have no choice. I may go with Garmin.
Give us a call when you are on the water, I'm sure we can sort it out.
@@lowrance Thanks. I will do just that. I really love the size and features.
What about saltwater application ? Is it worth the difference in price point as far as what you will see ( 2D vs DS vs SS) ???
10:10 ...I'm always wondering what causes the two dark vertical shaded bands, under the letters "B" and "S"....
I have just purchased a elite FS7. Do i really need navionics platinum for the shading at a whopping 249.00 or is the regular system good enough thus saving me money? I cannot find any website that can answer this. Coming from hummingbird....I dont like that lowrance makes you pay yearly subscription just to use the product. May end up going back to hummingbird because lakemaster card is a one time purchase.
I'm thinking a Helix 7 Mega SI unit may be a better choice than the Hook Reveal for side scan despite it's smaller screen size. What do you think? I simply cannot justify spending more than $800 on a unit as a beginner in my financial situation.