Topic: Newbie needs help

[scags176]

HELP !
I am ready to rig my bass boat and have never used more than a flasher and temp gauge. I am very impressed with the SI and DI GPS units and was told they are very user friendly. I can fit a 898si at the helm and was unsure if another 898si at the bow or a 958di is a better choice, I would like to mark way points at the helm and be able to return to them with the trolling motor. I also like the engine diagnostics from my mercury optimax and being able to load maps, planning a trip to Table Rock and have a lot of water to cover.

[Humminbird_Greg]

User preference here.  I suggest getting out on the water with someone who has a Side Imaging unit on the bow and one that has a Down Imaging unit on the bow and figure out which sonar type you would rather have at the bow.

Something to consider here: with a second Si unit at the bow you could Ethernet connect them and share all sonar between units as well as waypoint data.  With the DI unit at the bow you would not be able to share sonar data but could still share waypoint data.

Either way you can see your motor data (if you Optimax is capable) on either unit by using an AS-ETH-5PS Ethernet Switch and an AS-ETH-NMEA2K NMEA 2000 gateway.

[scags176]

Thanks Greg, when you said share sonar, does that mean you can use the transom transducer at the bow and visa versa to see sonar and imaging, as long as both units are SI ? Does the network capabilities start at the 798SI ? Have you heard of any success with SI on the trolling motor, I heard you need a speed of 3-5 MPH to work properly.

[Humminbird_Greg]

“when you said share sonar, does that mean you can use the transom transducer at the bow and visa versa to see sonar and imaging, as long as both units are SI ?”
Yep, with two Si units you can share all of the sonar from one unit to the second one (the first one has to be on for this to work).  You can decide to show the Si sonar from the transom transducer up on your bow unit or maybe the Di sonar from your bow mounted transducer on the console mounted unit.

“Does the network capabilities start at the 798SI ?”
Specifically the 798ci HD Si model.  The “HD” denotes that this is a 2012 model 798 unit (we have made several versions of 798 units) and so it has an Ethernet connection.  Older (non-HD) 798 model units do not have the Ethernet connections on them.

“Have you heard of any success with SI on the trolling motor, I heard you need a speed of 3-5 MPH to work properly.”
Yes I have but more-so on bass fishing type web sites.  To get the picture like images that many post on the Internet you do have to have the boat moving at a constant slow speed in a straight direction.  However, by slowly turning the trolling motor or while slowly trolling you can also see what is to the sides of the Si transducer.  You can try searching this web site for other posts about this.

[scags176]

Greg,
Thank you very much!