Electronics

[WTM]

No need for livescope. Garmin 93sv for down image and Hummingbird Helix 9 for side imaging. Hummingbirds SI is far superior to Garmins SI and Garmins down image is far superior to Hummingbirds. JMO

depends really on how they are compared. if you do like russel marine and do a disingenuous "stare and compare" helix mega si+ versus a 93uhd with a gt54 in a green color pallete, then yeah, the helix is superior. but when you compare it to a gt56 on an ultra uhd or gpsmap head then they are very close. thats the one reason why i dont buy or recommend russel marine to anyone. if they are doing that on a freaking yourube review no telling what they are doing business wise.

just for yugoz and giggles, here is a guy's shot of an 8616 and a gt56 on fontana lake in nc.

 

[Crow Terminator]

Here's some bluegill beds from my Helix 10 and a weedline. I've had the 93sv UHD and 106sv UHD with GT56 transducer. As far as scanning goes, the EchoMap units lack the fine tuning adjustments that you get on their upper end units and Humminbirds. You can get decent images if you use a blank SD card and do screen shot images but what you actually see on the unit screen won't look as crisp/clear. The resolution of the screen just isn't good enough for that. I can dial in a Humminbird if I want to take time and go past something a dozen times and tweak settings...but who has time for that? For just quick setup and ease of scanning to see what's there...the Garmin GT56 and Humminbird Mega are pretty close. I have a Helix 10 and Solix 10. If I had to do over, I would go with a Helix 12 or 15 vs the Solix 10. The touch screen interface of the Garmins is 10x better than Humminbird IMO. I am not a fan of the Mega Live though...I much prefer the Mega 360.

 

[TN Larry]

the included mapping is the same as their paid version minus the dynamic lake offsets and some of the sat and sonar images they took during their survey. theyve basically combined their survey maps and navionics together using garmins survey data and some of navionics data where they havent surveyed. you can check out their mapping at their site and see if they surveyes a particular lake. its comparable to c-map and lakemaster.

they can be networked with an ethernet cable between two 93sv's. in order to network 3 unit combinations you would need a gms10 port expander, ie networking panoptix with two heads. they can share sonar, way points, etc while networked.

as far as SI youre only going to be as good as the resolution as those units which is 800x480. the gt54 included with those units are not as good as the new gt56 but with a 93uhd it doesnt really matter because of the resolution limitation of the display.

this is about as good as it gets with a gt54 and a 93uhd. hope this helps.

View attachment 153862

In your opinion, who has the best side imaging while keeping economics in mind? I plan to buy two units the same sometime this year. One for side imaging at the console to link to the same one at the bow that will be used mostly for mapping.

 

[big 8s in Weakley county]

With Black Friday coming up I have found the 93 for 699 the 106 for 999 and the 126 for 1499 all with the 54 transducer. Would you get 2 of the 106 or would you get 1 106 for the console and a 126 for the front and live scope. I know I am going to be over my 2k budget. Also would you consider the 93 or just get the 106? Several say they like having a bigger screen what's y'all opinion

 

[TITANSFAN2104]

With Black Friday coming up I have found the 93 for 699 the 106 for 999 and the 126 for 1499 all with the 54 transducer. Would you get 2 of the 106 or would you get 1 106 for the console and a 126 for the front and live scope. I know I am going to be over my 2k budget. Also would you consider the 93 or just get the 106? Several say they like having a bigger screen what's y'all opinion

The bigger the screen , the better. I had the 1242 up front and an 8610 on my bass boat. On my aluminum ranger i have the 93 up front. Im thinking of getting 2 of getting one of the black friday 126s. I really cant make up my mind if i want to mix and match birds and garmin.

 

[Crow Terminator]

The 106 has a higher screen resolution than the 93 too, so it's not just a screen size difference in them. I've had the 93 and 106...there's quite a bit of noticeable difference between them when using them for side and down imaging. I don't think for livescope you would really see much difference though.

I currently have two 10" units...and my suggestion would be to get one of the 12s for the console and a 10 up front. My next unit will be no smaller than a 12. I went away from Garmin to Humminbird and wish now I would have gotten a 12 inch Helix instead of a 10 inch Solix, but I just "had to have" that touch screen.

 

[big 8s in Weakley county]

The 106 has a higher screen resolution than the 93 too, so it's not just a screen size difference in them. I've had the 93 and 106...there's quite a bit of noticeable difference between them when using them for side and down imaging. I don't think for livescope you would really see much difference though.

I currently have two 10" units...and my suggestion would be to get one of the 12s for the console and a 10 up front. My next unit will be no smaller than a 12. I went away from Garmin to Humminbird and wish now I would have gotten a 12 inch Helix instead of a 10 inch Solix, but I just "had to have" that touch screen.

So you would rather have a smaller live scope screen and bigger one at the console? Most say they like it bigger from who I've talked to.

 

[X-Tennessean]

Call and speak with Danny at Performance Fishing Products. Yes he sells various products but that is not his "bread and butter". He is a working man just like the rest of us but has a passion for fishing and fishing gear. I promise you will not be disappointed.
For example: I am in the process of rigging my new boat, I currently run an Ultrex MSI 80lb 24v and wanted go to a 36v on the glass boat.
He said I'll be glad to sell you one but let me explain why I want to try and pursuade you to go with just the U2 sonar.
U2 you can add any TD you want and IF the U2 goes out it can be replaced not to mention it is several hundred $$ cheaper up front vs an MSI or MDI you have to replace the entire shaft/motor at about $900 and you cannot do an addon TD!
Most folks now days are using thier livescope to scan and not SI or DI which is what I do.
Talk with him, explain what your goals are and style of fishing and he will steer you right and price whatever package you want to go with giving you the most logical options for your $$.

 

[Crow Terminator]

I do most of my searching and scanning from the drivers seat so I like having the bigger unit there. I am one of the few that didn't like livescope or forward facing sonar so take that into consideration. When I first began going from Garmin to Humminbird, I had a 106 Ultra up front just for live scope. In my opinion, your mount setup is probably more important vs the difference between the 93 and 106 as just a dedicated LS unit. Because whatever you get, you'll want it be as close to your face as possible...the higher up, the better. And don't overlook whether you want your transducer on a separate pole or trolling motor. I promise you, if you have a spot lock trolling motor, you'll need a separate pole setup for the LS transducer. You can spend some Ben Franklin's in a hurry when you combine a LS unit with a good high up mount and separate pole for the transducer.

 

[WTM]

With Black Friday coming up I have found the 93 for 699 the 106 for 999 and the 126 for 1499 all with the 54 transducer. Would you get 2 of the 106 or would you get 1 106 for the console and a 126 for the front and live scope. I know I am going to be over my 2k budget. Also would you consider the 93 or just get the 106? Several say they like having a bigger screen what's y'all opinion

if you are ever thinking of adding panoptix AND networking the console unit, i would bite the bullet on the ultras.

1. most important. 93's only have one ethernet port but ultras have two. in order to connect a 93 at the bow to panoptix and network it to the console unit, you need three connections. that calls for a gms 10 port expander, about $275. add that to the $699 and youre at the 106 ultra sales price. sure you can use a 20 dollar netgear port expander but if it ever gets the least moisture in it it will short out the enet ports on the mfd.

2. processing power and memory. the ultras have higher core counts on the cpu's and more on board memory. dont believe me, ask some of these guys with both to bring up the maps and do a quick zoom and see which one redraws the map the quickest. now relate that to drawing an image on the screen. if you ever update the onboard mapping, it has to read from the ac sd card, which will slow it down. doesnt have enough memory to load directly to the unit.

3. resolution. not really going to matter with panoptix. the image it draws is with a 20 degree slice vs a .5 degree slice from ultra si. the 93 can handle it and might actually look a little better with an lvs32.

depending on how you fish and your budget, will determine which ultra combo youll need.

myself, if i was buying it with how i fish and a two unit boat. a 126 at the console and a 106 at the bow. the 2" extra at the console will be great for a multipane combo with say mapping, di(2d) and si running at the same time. get an extension mount at the bow and raise the 106 off the deck if needed if you plan on using panoptix. two 106's will be fine as well, youll just have less space for combos.

also keep in mind if you install this yourself, how long these xducers are and what type of transom and hull you have. youll need 8-9 inches of clearance on both sides of the xducer.

 

[agelessssone]

With Black Friday coming up I have found the 93 for 699 the 106 for 999 and the 126 for 1499 all with the 54 transducer. Would you get 2 of the 106 or would you get 1 106 for the console and a 126 for the front and live scope. I know I am going to be over my 2k budget. Also would you consider the 93 or just get the 106? Several say they like having a bigger screen what's y'all opinion

Spend til it hurts. You'll thank yourself on a few years.

 

[bluball]

With Black Friday coming up I have found the 93 for 699 the 106 for 999 and the 126 for 1499 all with the 54 transducer. Would you get 2 of the 106 or would you get 1 106 for the console and a 126 for the front and live scope. I know I am going to be over my 2k budget. Also would you consider the 93 or just get the 106? Several say they like having a bigger screen what's y'all opinion

Me personally i would fo the 106 at the console and a 126 at the bow with livescope.