It's been a long time coming

[Pipepro]

I finally pulled the trigger and upgraded the electronics on my boat. I looked back through my posts and it was back in 2019 that I was asking Wayne about different setups. Sheish talk about slow to make a decision.


After a long time looking I decided on Lowrance. I originally wanted Birds but in no short part due to availabilty (as in not) I went with the Lowrance units. I settled with the Boat in a box with one 12" HDS Live unit, one 9" HDS Live unit, the 3-in-1 Transducer, a Point 1 gps and heading compass. a NMEA 2000 setup to share heading data from the point 1 and an ethernet cable to network the 2 units. It comes with the C-Map Contour + already loaded and for now thats the maps I am going to be using. More on that later.





I thought about it a bunch, and I wanted two 12" units but couldnt quite swing it right now. I mounted the 12" at the console, and put the 9 up on the bow. Im glad I did. I know I probably should have put the 12 up front. Bigger screen being farther away from my eye and all that BUT since I am new to this electronic game, having it at the console where i am spending my time idling around and learning what I am looking at works out better.


Mounting the 12" on my little console was a bit of a challenge. After looking at the super expensive mounting options online, I made some cardboard mock ups and then headed out to the shop. I used 3/16" plate steel to whip up a bracket that bolts through the dash and provides a shelf for the included mounting bracket to bolt to. So far I love it. I can see over it and it clears my steering wheel without telescoping or tilt.








The 9" is primarily used for maps with a small screen split for 2D image.  Having the network is everything I wanted. Being able to mark waypoints on my dash unit and then being able to swing around and pull up to them with the trolling motor is awesome. You probably noticed I only have one transducer in this network. For now I am doing all my searching from the console, and only using the front unit for my location. With the netowrk setup I can add depth and water temp overlays even though they are from the back of the boat. The cool part is using the point 1 antenna/compas for heading only on the front graph, and using the internal GPS antenna on the unit for location. I have the point 1 antenna mounted really close to the rear 3-n-1 transducer so its about as accurate as I can get.


The plan for the future is a big screen for the front and some dedicated front transducer. Moving the 9" to a swing mount by the dash for mapping only. But thats a ways in the future. 


I ran dedicated 10g wire to both units (overkill I know) and pulled the ethernet and NMEA cables up to the front unit. Setup was super simple and the Boat in a box came with everything I needed. One note, I thought after reading through all the literature before buying that I would need another NMEA tee and extension cable. The way the NMEA network is setup is one tee for each node. One for the power cable, one for each unit and one for the Point 1 antenna. I mistakenly thought I was short some items but the antenna comes with a tee and cable, and the NMEA starter kit comes with a power node and tee. Oops. I returned the items no issues.





I had the hardest time deciding on the transducer mounting location. The instructions are pretty clear. However, I dont have a Jackplate so if I mount it up high where its protected it may be blocked when the motor is trimmed down and It wont read while on plane. I have a small step in the transom where the transducer had a clear shot both ways but its really low and is flush with the running surface of the hull. I went with the low position, knowing it could get hit but for now its the best location and it holds bottom at speed so thats a bonus. I got pretty lucky I think. I had a good idea of the angle the boat sits when in the water, and I set the transducer accordingly. My images are pretty sweet, but a bit disappointing that most of the lakes by me are muck bottom and no sunk boats or tires or rocks for that matter. Lots to learn though.

[Smallie_Stalker]

Congrats on the upgrade!    The pics look great.

[Oldfart9999]

Hope you are happy with the units, very nice looking mount!!!
Rodney

[big g]

Good luck!  For me it would be more of a distraction from watching mother natures keys.  But I am technically challenged.   

[Pipepro]

Thanks everyone. I'm super excited to see how it will change my fishing. There is so much pressure on the lakes up here that if I can find any fish away from the "normal" spots it'll be worth it. It's quite a step up from my ol' hook3.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

[Donald Garner]

Congrats on the Electronics Upgrade

[mygreenihc]

Pipepro,  that is a sweet setup.  Had I known that you were going to do this,  I just sold two brand new 3n1 transducers for less than half price.   


What trolling motor are you currently running?  Lowrance just released free 360 degree scan for the 3n1 AI transducer,  but I am not sure whether it is only for the Ghost nosecone or for the one like you have as well.  I ungraded to it on my Ghost nosecone and it is sweet.  I am going to see if I can do the same on my console graph.  i will let you know what I find.


Brad