Topic: SI Transducer options

[johnmr12]

When I bought my 898c in 2013, the transom mounted transducer was unable to track the bottom when I was on plane. The solution was to buy a second transducer that I mounted in the hull, so I would use the hull transducer when I was on plane and the transom transducer when I was idling around. Well, I broke the transom transducer cable yesterday, so I need to replace the transducer. Before I buy the same one, I was wondering if Humminbird has improved their Side Imaging transducer technology to the point where it can track the bottom at running speed.

[rnvinc]

High Speed depth readings are attributed to boat hull design ...not sonar technology design ...

If any xducer is not is clean bubble free water when the boat rises out of the water for planing ... No amount of sonar technology will allow the sonar to read thru the air gap between the xducer face and the dynamics of how the water flows out from under the boat hull ...



Boat hull builders design hulls to "go fast" ... Which means get the hull out of the water as much as possible to create less drag ...

Unfortunately ..."go fast" boat hulls are not conducive to transom mount xducers in keeping the xducer in the water at "go fast" water dynamics ...

Rickie

[johnmr12]

I appreciate the reply, but I already determined that the side imaging transducer is not meant to be used at high speed. I have a ranger bass boat, so my hull design is not the issue. I mounted it in 4 different places using examples such as the one you provide, and none of them worked. I finally got hummingbird to just admit that most people use a second transducer. They even make a splitter for that purpose. I'm sure the splitter can be used for something else, but I am convinced it was created to solve this problem. It's not a big deal if I just buy the same SI transducer as the one I destroyed. I just figured if they had improved the technology I would prefer having one that could work while on plane. My guess is that they did improve it but only on models that came along after the 898 unit, and the transducers are not interchangeable between units.

[rnvinc]

There is no argument that the AS SIDB Y cable was designed to help with boat hull designs that are not conducive to keep a transom mount xducer in the water while the boat hull is not in the water at high speed ...

HB also offers this option for boat hull designs that are challenging for high speed depth readings ...

http://www.humminbird.com/Products/XPTH-9-HDSI-180-T/

Users have to decide if drilling a hole in the hull is a better option than using a "shoot thru" with the AS SIDB Y cable ...

Rickie

[rnvinc]

BTW ... The XHS 9 HDSI 180 T that came with your 898 is the very same xducer that is currently shipped with the 999ci SI and 1199ci SI ...

The design nor the technology has changed for the comparable core SI units (except the 899ci SI now ships with the cheaper XNT 9 SI 180 T to lower the retail price point) ...

Rickie

[johnmr12]

Rickie, it sounds like you are saying that ranger boats have a hull design that negatively affects transom mount transducer performance. That would really surprise me since ranger is the top selling bass boat. Also, I have used transom mounted transducers since 2002 on my ranger and never had an issue with reading at high speed until I installed the 898 with the SI transducer in 2013. Anyway, at this point I will just get another unit like the one I broke. I actually rarely use the SI sonar so I am in no hurry to replace it.

[rnvinc]

Here is the best resource for high performance boat hull installation info ...

http://www.bbcboards.net/humminbird-sonar-gps/172972-installation-networking-information-resource.html

Rickie