Fishfinders?!

fletch44	I have a Si-Tex depth sounder that came with a used boat that I purchased. It seems to do a decent job when bottom fishing, showing structures and what appears to be fish near the bottom. How much more detail can I get by upgrading and is it worth it? If so, any suggestions?	2002-12-26
snapperbait	Ok, I'll be glad to help but first we need some more information like the Si-tex model you currently have, the type of fishing (saltwater or freshwater), and what depths you frequently fish.. Also, What models might you want to upgrade too...	2002-12-26
Boatist	Fletch44 I agree with Snapperbait but would add one more question. What type transducer do you have, is it a 50khz or 200khz and also what cone angel, 45,36,20,12, or 8 degrees. Bottom fishing (rockfish) over 200 feet deep in saltwater need 400 watts or more RMS power and a 50khz transducer. Also some way to expand bottom like a 8 times zoom or Bottom lock.	2002-12-27
fletch44	Si-Tex AVS-107 Fish saltwater mainly in depths from 30 - 150. 150 - 300 every once an awhile. Not sure what transducer is on it. I don't know what to upgrade to or if it would be upgrading. How detailed does it need to be?	2002-12-27
snapperbait	If your fishing the bottom in the 30-150' range and would like to know the bottoms hardness like the difference between sand and hard rock bottom then it would be beneficial for you to upgrade to a color depth finder... You might not gain any more detail by upgrading but you will know more about what's down there... That's the key.. The color display shows the density of the bottom, structure, and fish by representing the density of the object or bottom with different colors... With a color display it makes it easy to distinguish between hard and soft bottom... A color display will also allow you to tell the difference between a school of bait fish and larger fish that you may be targeting by showing up as different colors... A Dual frequency transducer (50khz / 200khz) would benefit you when fishing deeper water ... In 30 to 150' a 200 kHz transducer would be just fine... Also look towards LCD (liquid crystal display) rather than CRT (cathode ray tube) displays, as LCD's are a bit easier to see in direct sunlight... http://www.si-tex.com/html/depth_sounders.html	2002-12-27
fletch44	Thank you for the info!!	2002-12-28
Boatist	Fletch The standard for most fish finders is a 200 KHz with a 20 degree cone angle. If your unit has 300 watts RMS then you should be able to see fish down to near 150 feet. Deeper than that you will need more Power and a narrower cone angle. Also even on the best units need a way to expand the bottom so your fish will show up on more than one pixel. Most units have a 4 times zoom and at 150 feet that works well. Get out to 300 or more and still will have trouble seeing Rockfish. Units that have a bottom lock will still work but need a lot more power and a 50 kHz transducer. The manufacture will tell you it will work to 1000 feet but do not believe it. If you know how to read you unit you can tell size of fish and bottom characteristic. If the unit has gray line or white line that also helps. Several ways to tell the size of fish, 1: The height of the fish, this will tell you how thick the fish is top to bottom. 2: large fish you can actually see the blatters and cavities of the fish, this is easier with gray line. With a little practice can even tell some types of fish. The bottom hardness can also be shown. On some units will have to manually set bottom depth. The bottom signal will be strong off of rocks and weeks off of mud or sand. So the thickness of the black bottom band will widen on rocks. For this turning off gray line makes it show up better.	2002-12-30

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