Fish finders £400 or less

[Ankle.Biter]

I think this is a very competitive market and seems to be changing all the time.

I'm not sure what sideways scanning is but it seems that 3d or down imaging seems to be the thing now.

Any advice?

[mister whiskas]

Hi, Do some research and check how deep the images are clear, some are only good to 60-70ft, as in lakes and the like. If you fish inshore it's no problem, but then why put yourself to that expense. Hope that helps.

[northeast1]

I have never really been that bothered about fish finders, all i want them for is confirming the wreck is there and marking a wreck then it dont really get used just the gps.

The 3d fish finders do look great and i had wanted one myself just to see what the bottom looked like in more detail but decided the money could be spent on other things. I have a colour Lawrence 5x HD fishfinder that goes down to 1000ft, i have tested it at 320ft already and its very clear but by no means one of the best on the market...on my old boat i had a Garmin 160 and it did me for 6 years but only went down to 350ft.

If you got the cash go for the best you can i say

[Ankle.Biter]

I looked at the Raymarine Dragonfly. It looked amazing. You could really make out the detail.

It's interesting that lots of people are not that fussed on fish finders in general and prefer a Gps.

[Safetyman]

The good thing about the Dragonfly is it combines GPS and a Fishfinder into one although with charts included it will be a tad outside your budget. I did look at the Lowrance Elite 7X also but decided to buy the Dragonfly instead.

Before this I had an old black and white fishfinder which didn't show anything very well so the difference in quality was amazing. But don't be fooled by the amazing photos they use to in their adverts, you might get that sort of clarity in the clear waters of some southern ocean but not in the north sea.

[big_sean]

I am the same as Richie all I want to see is really the wreck and also distinguish whether its a hard or soft sea bed. Too many people spend hours mapping the sea bed and trying to find fish. On my last boat I had a Koden and I seen this same one used in many charter boats. I have been to wrecks which show no fish and bagged up so for me it shows the wreck and sea bed and that's all I need.

I am currently using a Lowrance HDS 5X which for me is ok and it does what I need it to.


Sean

[drifter]

The entry level fishfinders are very limited but irrespective of what you pay the fishfinder is only as good as the transducer and how/where it is located on the hull. Furthermore, for enhanced clarity and to clean up the wreck image or sea bed feature, the entire fish finding setup usually needs a compatible DSM (digital sounder module) between the fishfinder and the transducer. DSM's are not cheap and could be even more expensive than the fishfinder.
A fishfinder in conjunction with the GPS will confirm you are on the wreck or desired mark but in my opinion a good GPS system is more benificial than an expensive fish finding setup. Once you are confident of your GPS accuracy you can actually leave the fishfinder off especially when fishing the ground or shallow marks. I have a theory that fishfinders can sometimes spook the fish when fishing shallow water marks.

[big_sean]

I have a theory that fishfinders can sometimes spook the fish when fishing shallow water marks.

When bass fishing on the south coast you mark the wreck then leave it alone for a day or so and then go and try it without the fishfinder on and that gets results if you leave the fishfinder on you wont get the bass.

Sean

[The Jester]

I've been along the expensive fishinder route before, and networking them to the plotter etc. But this time i've gone for the Lowrance Elite 5X, simple to use and cheaper than the DSI version, as long as it shows the lump of scrap rising up off the sea bed, that will do me.....

As for the structure scan, it looks a nice addition, but is it worth it , you want to be fishing the wreck, not watching pretty images of it on the screen...

Alan, the decision is yours...

[canman]

I have a Lowrance LCX 104c which came with the boat, but is quite old technology now. The picture on the 10" screen is not as good as the modern HD. screens, but does a good job, plus I leave it on while moving from mark to mark and sometimes shows good fish marks over rough ground whilst still on the move. I always turn the unit off at anchor as I too believe the pulse from the transducer can spook the fish.
I would say this though, go for a model that was made to use in salt water with a 50/200mhz transducer for best results.