Topic: Newbie here with a question about my new 898c HD SI unit

[btoia]

Hello......new guy here (my name is Brian) and I just bought my first boat yesterday.  I purchased a new Crestliner Fish Hawk 1650 and loaded it up with a 898c HD SI and paired it with a Minn Kota 80/ Terrova iPilot.  I have the 898 mounted on the main console.  The marine tech that installed everything told me that the transducer from the Terrova was wired to the 898 as well as the transducer which came with the unit (that is mounted on the bottom of the transom.  I want to add another unit to the bow that will communicate with the 898 and would like to know which is my best options.  I will need to know which accessories I need to get to pair them up as well.

I mostly cast for Musky and bass and will be spending the majority of my time on the bow.  My budget is around $500 - $700 and I'm also getting a $200 credit from the dealer because it came with a 300 series Humminbird FF which I did not want. 

Thanks in advance for your help! 

[newkid4si]

Brian
   The first thing I would do is--- SLOW DOWN. I understand your excitement, but as this is your first boat
   and Side Image unit, you will find that there is a lot to learn.
   The 898 is a great unit, but it takes time to learn about the different parts ( 2D,DI and SI ) and how to best us them.
   During this time try to determine what you need for the bow unit. 2D or DI or SI or all three.
   You may find that moving the 898 to the bow and placing another unit at the console works.

                           Mike
   

[btoia]

Brian
   The first thing I would do is--- SLOW DOWN. I understand your excitement, but as this is your first boat
   and Side Image unit, you will find that there is a lot to learn.
   The 898 is a great unit, but it takes time to learn about the different parts ( 2D,DI and SI ) and how to best us them.
   During this time try to determine what you need for the bow unit. 2D or DI or SI or all three.
   You may find that moving the 898 to the bow and placing another unit at the console works.

                           Mike
 

Thanks for the response, Mike.  Yes there is a lot to learn and it's almost overwhelming.  But the only way that works for me is to jump right into it.  I'm not so sure I want to mount the 898 up front for the following reason.  A) it's big and will get in the way and B) when it does get in the way, its going to be much more expensive to replace or fix when something happens to it.  I'd honestly rather keep it on the consol and get unit with 2d and maybe downscan that will communicate with the 898.   Def open to suggestions.

[Humminbird_Greg]

Welcome to the Humminbird Side Imaging Forums Brian.

Mike is right; we don’t want you to jump into this and drown.  So help us give you some better guidance by answering some questions first:

You said that the Marine Tech told you that the transducer in the Terrova was wired to the 898 unit?  Make sure that this is correct because I don’t think you want it to be connected this way.  This would mean that the 2D sonar for your 898 is coming from the trolling motor.  This means that when you are running across the lake (with your trolling motor out of the water) that the 898 will not be able to display any water depth.  I think that you would want the 898 unit working only off of its own HDSi transducer.

To get a unit to communicate with your 898 unit it has to be Ethernet capable.  This means a 700 series or larger unit.  You already stated your concern about putting your 898 on the bow so what about a 700 series unit?
778c HD – 2D sonar only.
788ci HD – 2D sonar only + GPS and mapping capability.
788ci HD DI – 2D + DI sonar + GPS and mapping capability.

For any of these three units you will need to buy the appropriate length AS-EC-XXE Ethernet Cable (replace the “XX” with the correct cable length, available in 2, 10, 15, 20 and 30 foot lengths) and the AS-EC-QDE Quick Disconnect Ethernet Adapter Cable (needed for any 700 series unit).

The 778c HD and 788ci HD units can operate off of the built-in US2 sonar on your Terrova trolling motor (the DI model cannot).

[btoia]

Welcome to the Humminbird Side Imaging Forums Brian.

Mike is right; we don’t want you to jump into this and drown.  So help us give you some better guidance by answering some questions first:

You said that the Marine Tech told you that the transducer in the Terrova was wired to the 898 unit?  Make sure that this is correct because I don’t think you want it to be connected this way.  This would mean that the 2D sonar for your 898 is coming from the trolling motor.  This means that when you are running across the lake (with your trolling motor out of the water) that the 898 will not be able to display any water depth.  I think that you would want the 898 unit working only off of its own HDSi transducer.

To get a unit to communicate with your 898 unit it has to be Ethernet capable.  This means a 700 series or larger unit.  You already stated your concern about putting your 898 on the bow so what about a 700 series unit?
778c HD – 2D sonar only.
788ci HD – 2D sonar only + GPS and mapping capability.
788ci HD DI – 2D + DI sonar + GPS and mapping capability.

For any of these three units you will need to buy the appropriate length AS-EC-XXE Ethernet Cable (replace the “XX” with the correct cable length, available in 2, 10, 15, 20 and 30 foot lengths) and the AS-EC-QDE Quick Disconnect Ethernet Adapter Cable (needed for any 700 series unit).

The 778c HD and 788ci HD units can operate off of the built-in US2 sonar on your Terrova trolling motor (the DI model cannot).

Hi Greg,

Thanks for the response.  Very helpful.  Yes that is what they told me, which didn't make sense to me.  As long as I have a unit that can share wave points and has sonar at the bow I believe I will be in good shape.  So I'm trying to decided between the 788ci HD or the 858c HD.  These units are roughly $150 in price difference but I wouldn't need the adapter for the 858. 

I just got off the phone with HB (and I think I'm even more confuses now.  The lady I spoke to told me that the 858 will not share GPS with the 898 and that I would need to install the GPS module for the bow unit as well which is no big deal but I thought it would share.  Is this the case? 

In the end I believe I'm prob better off going with the 858 up front.  Even though it's bigger it will be easier on the eyes.  My only concern is removing and installing that unit over and over.  I've heard that the HB connectors get worn out after time.  With the 700 series the unit is mounted on a quick disconnect mounting bracket.

SO which ever unit I decided on, I will be running the bow unit off the Terrova transducer and the Consol unit off the HDSI transducer and connect both units with the 5 port ethernet hub.  Am I at least heading in the right direction now?  lol

Also another question Greg,
RIght now the 898 is wired to the cranking battery.  Sometimes I fish on electric only lakes for days at a time.  I'm worried that this will not work because the cranking battery will not be getting recharged.  I asked my dealer if they could wire the unit to the 24V trolling motor batteries and they didn't recommend it. However HD customer care said that I could wire them to the trolling motor batteries.  Right now I have a two bank changer on board.  Would I be better off just upgrading to a three bank and leave everything wired to the cranking battery?

[Humminbird_Greg]

It will share GPS with the 898 unit Brian.  In fact the 858c (or 858c HD) can share the 2D sonar with the 898 unit along with the water temperature and Waypoints.

There has been a lot of talk about the connectors getting worn out over time and they will – just like any other connector on any product you have.  The fact is that you just don’t see many posts where a worn out connector was the cause of a problem.  All of our units use the same basic connectors whether they are held in place by a connector collector that gets screwed in place or are contacted in the mount like the 700 series units.

The AS-ETH-5PS 5-Port Ethernet Switch is not needed unless you plan on later adding additional Ethernet accessories or another unit.  If you go with the Ethernet Switch you will need to get two of the AS-EC-XXE cables: one to run from each unit to wherever you mount the Ethernet Switch.

[btoia]

Ok thanks for clearing all that up for me.  So I can connect a 898 to a 858 with the provided Ethernet cables the unit comes with and only have install the 5 port switch if I add another Ethernet device?

[tgordon]

I have a 898 HD SI on my Bass Tracker mounted on the console with a Ram mount. I have a 788 HD DI mounted up front on the trolling motor with a Ram mount. They share waypoints and the like because they are connected with an Ethernet  cable. I've had them since February 2013.  I love them.  I've been working with them most weekends and its a lot of learning to be had. This board helps me more than anything as well as the UTube videos from Hummingbird and its staff of professional anglers. Take your time and enjoy the experience of high quality electronics.

TG

[Humminbird_Greg]

Ok thanks for clearing all that up for me.  So I can connect a 898 to a 858 with the provided Ethernet cables the unit comes with and only have install the 5 port switch if I add another Ethernet device?

Yes, you will only need one of the AS-EC-XXE cables to Ethernet connect the 858 to the 898 unit.

If you want to add another Ethernet accessory or unit later on you will have to use the 5-Port Ethernet Switch and a separate AS-EC-XXE cable for each device (depending on which device as some come with their own connection cable).

[btoia]

I have a 898 HD SI on my Bass Tracker mounted on the console with a Ram mount. I have a 788 HD DI mounted up front on the trolling motor with a Ram mount. They share waypoints and the like because they are connected with an Ethernet  cable. I've had them since February 2013.  I love them.  I've been working with them most weekends and its a lot of learning to be had. This board helps me more than anything as well as the UTube videos from Hummingbird and its staff of professional anglers. Take your time and enjoy the experience of high quality electronics.

TG

Hey Terry,

Just curious,  did you use the Ram rubber expansion nuts to install your ram mounts?

Thanks

[tgordon]

I drilled holes and used stainless steel hardware.

TG

[btoia]

cool, thanks for the pics!   

[5eyes]

Brian..do not wire your locator(s) to trolling motor batteries..chances of interference and low voltage..better of to get a small batt charger for your start battery,either built-in or a bench model..if your time off the water is long enough, one of those batt maintainer types may be the ticket..the current draw of an 898 is quite small..i have an 898..your choice of an 858 is wise..IMHO there is no such thing as a too big locator..by all means enjoy your 'bird  5

[JDX]

 When recording does the unit record all data being processed  or does it only record what you have set to view on the screen. Tomorrow will be the first run recording and with the XNT 9 20 mounted to see if I can get some high speed readings as well. I could easily spend the day fiddling with the 898 but I plan on getting into some Lake Michigan Smallmouth too. Thanks for the help.

[Bob B]

The raw data is recorded.....You can play it back and experiment with different settings.

[rnvinc]

I think the "only" raw data not included in the recording is the imaging frequency not chosen ...

Rickie