If you were buying electronics today...

[Sharphooks]

sharp hooks you should sell me your crappy Garmin Fantom 18 radar

I’m not dissing the Fantom...the first day I launched my boat, as in first maiden voyage, I was in an unfamiliar extremely shallow tidal lagoon in absolute impenetrable pea-soup fog .... I switched on the Fantom 18 and there were these huge red blobs on the screen...I finally figured out they were mid-channel markers....I turned the gain down a bit and got a nice road-map out of the lagoon...I was impressed how it picked up everything, including logs in the water. I only mentioned that target separation issue between Fantom and the Furuno NXT comparison I saw on that vid because I suppose under certain circumstances , you would want precise target separation —-barge and a tow coming head on, for instance. I haven’t tested it yet in those circumstances

Truth is, it seems like a good solid radar, though I wish the dome had a bit lower profile like the Furuno

 

[Saratoga]

I‘ve gone with Garmin on my last three boats and have been really pleased with the performance, installation efficiency, and integration between components. I briefly strayed when looking at autopilots and purchased the Raymarine evolution setup. But I quickly returned it when I realized how cumbersome & inefficient the cabling was in order to complete the installation compared to the Garmin solution. I really like the Garmin chartplotter interface and have found it to be very intuitive. And the integration with the Garmin ActiveCaptain app is very good. I can remotely control my engine speed using the app on my iPhone which is cool. I can also create and upload/download way points between the app and chartplotter. I’ve heard a lot of good things about Furuno, Lowrance, and Simrad as well so I’m sure those offerings are also excellent. I’m not a fan of Raymarine based on what I’ve seen first hand. To me, the ability to have a clean efficient installation means more reliable performance over the long term. Other than that, I think once you become familiar with the interface for a particular brand, it can make others appear less efficient even though they might be very good in their own right. I’d say the most important thing to do with whatever system you get is to spend the time to understand how to utilize the features and navigate the menus. Practice using your radar and AIS on clear sunny days as often as you can. It makes a difference. The more familiar you are with how objects are returned on the screen, the more effective you’ll be at using it when you can’t see more than 10’ in front of you. If you have MARPA target tracking on your radar system, that’s a great feature to familiarize yourself with as well. I’ve used it to follow the path of another boat in the dark to mitigate against hitting unseen debris and have also used it to help guide another boat back to the dock that didn’t have radar when we were caught in thick fog offshore. I acquired the boat as a target using MARPA and was able to give them navigation directions over the VHF to avoid boat traffic as we headed back in. It’s a great feature.

 

[zurk]

Looking to buy a second NSS12 Evo3 for the bridge deck. Price of a new one is a little crazy, 1k more than when I bought the first one. If anyone is looking to sell...

why in the world would you buy a second nss12 evo3 when the same b&g zeus 3 12" is 1/2 the price and delivers the same functionality from the same mfg and shows the same data.....

 

[Corbin]

why in the world would you buy a second nss12 evo3 when the same b&g zeus 3 12" is 1/2 the price and delivers the same functionality from the same mfg and shows the same data.....

Just looked them up on Radioworld.ca. The Simrad is 4000.00 and the B&G is 4725.00
I was hoping to use the the GO12, but the tech at Simrad said they don't play well together.

 

[Matt320]

I’ve had garmin in my last two boats and I’ve absolutely loved them. My current boat had lowrance when I bought it with the transom transducer it included with the sounder and I wasn’t very happy with it. Changed it out for a garmin 942xs with built in charts and paired it with an airmar b150m thru-hull transducer and a phantom 18 radome. Recently I decided to upgraded to the 8610xsv and love it. Would run either as the 9” is a price point and the new 943xsv series is a great unit at $1900.00, and the 8610xsv has the HDMI port to plug your phone into to watch movies and such. Also has better technology, but it runs around $3500.00. They both include charts. If I where to put any electronics in a new boat I would only use garmin especially as Volvo penta, one of the biggest manufacturers for the marine world only uses garmin with all there diesel and gas powered engines. You will not be disappointed.

 

[zurk]

Just looked them up on Radioworld.ca. The Simrad is 4000.00 and the B&G is 4725.00
I was hoping to use the the GO12, but the tech at Simrad said they don't play well together.

no you cant use the GO12. wow they have really jacked the prices up. guess they figured out people know about the sailboat exemption now.
i bought my 12" for $1000. zeus 2 12". works well with my evo2 7" which does the hard lifting.
basically you change one setting on the b&g to convert it to an evo.

 

[Aqua Trance]

no you cant use the GO12. wow they have really jacked the prices up. guess they figured out people know about the sailboat exemption now.
i bought my 12" for $1000. zeus 2 12". works well with my evo2 7" which does the hard lifting.
basically you change one setting on the b&g to convert it to an evo.

Interesting that you say what you would buy today so this is what
I did buy new electronics today. After a lot of evaluation and reflection I decided to go with

LOWRANCE HDS 12 & 12 BOAT IN A BOX
LOWRANCE OUTBOARD PILOT HYDRAULIC PACK
XSONIC AIRMAR P66
LOWRANCE HALO20+ RADAR
I-com M506 AIS to integrate with the MFD's
I looked at all the systems,
I have used most of the systems>
I think what works for you may not work for me so to speak. Lots of my friends swear by Garmin but I had 1 system and I didn't find it as intuitive as they did . Doesn't mean anyone is better than the other. F vs C vs D. 100 opinions 100 people.
Biggest thing is does it work for you!!



























So well my old stuff still works very well I am moving on and will probably put the old stuff up for sale to someone starting out that can't afford to blow 15K

 

[23Hourston]

Interesting that you say what you would buy today so this is what
I did buy new electronics today. After a lot of evaluation and reflection I decided to go with

LOWRANCE HDS 12 & 12 BOAT IN A BOX
LOWRANCE OUTBOARD PILOT HYDRAULIC PACK
XSONIC AIRMAR P66
LOWRANCE HALO20+ RADAR
I-com M506 AIS to integrate with the MFD's
I looked at all the systems,
I have used most of the systems>
I think what works for you may not work for me so to speak. Lots of my friends swear by Garmin but I had 1 system and I didn't find it as intuitive as they did . Doesn't mean anyone is better than the other. F vs C vs D. 100 opinions 100 people.
Biggest thing is does it work for you!!



























So well my old stuff still works very well I am moving on and will probably put the old stuff up for sale to someone starting out that can't afford to blow 15K

I just went with a Grm phantom 18. 2400.00
Gpsmap1042 1700.00
Garmin heading sensor 170.00 for chart overlay
Icom 330g with gps for ais 250.00
I now have 2 cp300 chartplotters with black box plus 2 Vancouver island map chips
And possibly the transducer p66 for sale

 

[Dave....]

And this is why I struggle Lots of good, insightful opinions but few clear winners. Since I cant boat this weekend, I want to find a retailer where I can see multiple brands ( eg. simrad, garmin, furono, Lowrance) side by side. Anyone like that exist in Vancouver area ? I just can't watch another youtube video and cant find a site that does feature comparisons. My buddy has the garmin 1242SXV w/ phantom and likes it...i hear great things about Simrad quality and service, I've used Lowrance before and liked them and now furuno added to the mix. If you know a good retailer, lmk OR a good site that seems like unbiased reviews..lmk as well. thanks everyone.

 

[Aquaholic]

One of my favourite recent threads. Great info and opinions.

 

[zurk]

FYI simrad=lowrance=b&g - they are all the same company with the same hardware or close enough with different firmware splash screens.

 

[CBsqrd]

And this is why I struggle Lots of good, insightful opinions but few clear winners. Since I cant boat this weekend, I want to find a retailer where I can see multiple brands ( eg. simrad, garmin, furono, Lowrance) side by side. Anyone like that exist in Vancouver area ? I just can't watch another youtube video and cant find a site that does feature comparisons. My buddy has the garmin 1242SXV w/ phantom and likes it...i hear great things about Simrad quality and service, I've used Lowrance before and liked them and now furuno added to the mix. If you know a good retailer, lmk OR a good site that seems like unbiased reviews..lmk as well. thanks everyone.

Roton carries Navico (Lowrance, Simrad, etc.), Furuno, Raymarine and Garmin. Not open on weekends though.

 

[wolf]

Ill chime in a bit when it really comes down to it yes you can 15 grand on something that in 6 months as per industry standards are obsolete. lets be real for 1 min a simple chartplotter / fishfinder combo is all you really need something thats going to keep you on track and easy to operate.. and if you want throw in radar . last year I never had to use my radar 3 times..i use it cause I have it... pleasure boats 30 years ago VERY few had it...
do you think a 15 grand system works any better then a 1000 system when your fishing ?? not really it has a map and a sounder . I remember when I had the newest x 15 thought i had the BOMB guiding in knight inlet showed me where everything is and all the other boats would use me to get to fishing grounds LOL
Had a lil screen I used it for 10 years and never had a issue . Cost has to warrant the use in a lot of cases . Yes i have a newer 12 inch but thats cause I got it under warranty lowerance really looked after me, and ill be honest there is a TON of stuff on it that i hardly ever use . If you only go out 20 times a year then figure out what that is per trip if your rich LOL like some on here then spend away...

 

[trophywife]

i agree with wolfe, cuz i am cheap too. and just a poor fisherman.
i have 12" standard horizon- 8 years old
small garmin- sounder is very good , mapping is *****
out back a humminbird. it works
stand alone icom radar- 10 years old
all of it works and i know how to operate it.
i like the KISS method.

if i had some fun money i would go all SIMRAD- 12-15k later, ouch.

 

[Dave....]

Roton carries Navico (Lowrance, Simrad, etc.), Furuno, Raymarine and Garmin. Not open on weekends though.

Thanks for this. I am off today so will go there this am. Seeing these side by side will be really helpful.

 

[wolf]

i agree with wolfe, cuz i am cheap too. and just a poor fisherman.
i have 12" standard horizon- 8 years old
small garmin- sounder is very good , mapping is *****
out back a humminbird. it works
stand alone icom radar- 10 years old
all of it works and i know how to operate it.
i like the KISS method.

if i had some fun money i would go all SIMRAD- 12-15k later, ouch.

Totally I have a stand alone JRC-1500 radar that was a grand works just fine...shows me logs and worst birds, one time that scared the **** out of me seen this blob coming at me I even slowed down to watch them pass me huge flock of muirs

 

[ericl]

And this is why I struggle Lots of good, insightful opinions but few clear winners. Since I cant boat this weekend, I want to find a retailer where I can see multiple brands ( eg. simrad, garmin, furono, Lowrance) side by side. Anyone like that exist in Vancouver area ? I just can't watch another youtube video and cant find a site that does feature comparisons. My buddy has the garmin 1242SXV w/ phantom and likes it...i hear great things about Simrad quality and service, I've used Lowrance before and liked them and now furuno added to the mix. If you know a good retailer, lmk OR a good site that seems like unbiased reviews..lmk as well. thanks everyone.

Well said. Gil Travis sells this stuff & answers questions on www.thehulltruth.com forum. He is a former DOD sonar spook. He gives straight accurate answers. FYI he uses Garmin. IMO all their chart data comes from the same source of bathymetric data. All of them use standard Airmar transducers except each company has their unique down-side-forward scan transducers, probably made to their specs by Airmar. They all use different methods/frequencies for down-side-forward scan systems.
With rare exception new stuff will not work with their older stuff; 5-10 years depending on mfgr.

Furuno does not make a MFD display smaller than 9" & it is $2500 US. It has dual-channel 1Kw CHIRP built-in & is price competitive with the others flagship units. Furuno also make the only down-side scan F/F that IMO works well for anything beyond shallow lakes, but the black box/transducer is around $5K US.

I have spent many hours scouring the internet for good detailed info but came up empty.

West Marine usually has very brand except Furuno to try-out in person.

I would advise getting CHIRP, a good CHIRP transducer and whatever else fits the budget with RADAR being the lowest priority.

 

[Charts]

I am pulling the trigger on the following:
Lowrance Elite 9 FS
Lowrance Halo 20 radar
Point 1
P66 Ducer
Total cost will be $3700 to my door

Currently running HD7 Gen 1 and a Raytheon stand alone radar so time for an upgrade

My question is for that money is that a good system and something I'll be happy with? Its a lot of money for me so I want to make sure I am spending it wisely? I fish Prince Rupert area and love fishing bottom fish so look for structure a lot. I priced out the Simrad Go9 XSE but only having a touch screen + Prince Rupert rain I wasn't sold on it.

Thank in advance for your advice!!

 

[wolf]

Raytheon stand alone radar so time for an upgrade

Why upgrade, does it still work? I personally like the stand alone as its all separate if the GPS goes down you have radar to get home on. when you start putting radar, sounde,r GPS, all on that tiny 9 inch screen it gets SMALL real fast for a bigger boat get as big a screen as you can really if the radar still works use it till it dies which ive HARDLY ever seen and spend that money on the 12 inch, you know how women say bigger is better LOL LOL and ill add if for some weird reason the radar craps out in a year or 2 or whatever you can always up grade to a new dome....

 

[Charts]

I just find it very difficult to read where everything is in comparison to my chartplotter. I can ethernet my Gen 1 7 inch to the new FS and have two screens in the event of a failure I will still have a plotter to read. I am really interested in overlay when fishing in Fogust and navigating around. Right now if I was to be going through the broken islands of Bamfield in the fog its a tough go reading two different screens.