Topic: SON file broken?

[sonarbear]

Hello,

I'm having problems getting some of the log files of my 898cx read into PC software. I get the error message about unsupported SON file version or - in the case of Humviewer - it just hangs during GPS import. This problem inavlidates a lot of the records I've made, which is a major problem.
Here is an example:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/g5v0bvlp0nwzu76/AAAa1fNWmRgBnSpJj8e0Dgjna?dl=0
Does anybody know, what the problem might be?

Best,
Mike

[rnvinc]

How long is the recording ... ??

The GPS file can take a long time to load into Humviewer if the recording is lengthy ...

Rickie

[sonarbear]

It's not the length. At first I thought so, but it happens even with short files. This one is just a few hundred MB.
I talked to the guys over at Reefmaster, and they said it's likely corrupted pings. They sent me a small fix to import the files into Reefmaster, so at least this is working.
It might somehow be a malfunction of the unit. The latest firmware update described a similar problem being fixed, so maybe the fix wasn't so good after all. I haven't heard back from HB service. They are very particular in which messages they answer, unfortunately. Hopefully they are just thoroughly investigating :-)

[rnvinc]

Please post HB's reply when you hear from them ...

It may help others ...

Rickie

[sonarbear]

I will. But their service is terrible. I asked two questions this time: regarding the file error and regarding the nmea input for heading info. They replied only on the latter. Each email had very little information, but they replied swiftly. Regarding the SON file issue, nothing so far. Just as when I asked them about the zig-zag artifact in recordings with the low freq 2D enabled. They never replied. I suspect it might have something to do with not wanting to face serious issues.
The fact that Reefmaster has a tool to fix broken Humminbird SON files speaks for itself, in my opinion...

[rnvinc]

The zigzag effect has been an ongoing issue for some time now ...and not just in the recording files ...

It's evident in my 1197 with any software version above 6.310 ...



On another note ...

It's doubtful you will get a satisfactory answer about the HB recording files and possible issues within the files ...

HB has no affiliation with any 3rd party software for viewing HB recordings (other than the XTF SON converter that used to be available in my HB account)...(I don't even see it in my HB account any more) ..

Their statement has always been ...[paraphrased]= ...the unit itself is the recording viewer offered by HB (and the user's knowledge of the files creating the recording are irrelevant to the user ...with the unit being the recording viewer) ..
----

Still... please post HB's reply ... if you get one different than we have thru the years ...

Rickie

[rnvinc]

One other pathway ...

You may send Robert (he owns sideimagingsoft.com) a PM about the SON file issue ... he has knowledge dealing with these files ... (and he does check in occasionally) ..

I think Robert may have even been the guy that created the XTF SON file converter from back in the early HB Side Imaging days ... (not 100% sure of that) ..

Robert does not work for HB  ... as does none of us ... but he was one of the "pioneers" from HB SI past ...

Rickie

[sonarbear]

I didn't get a reply, but was able to ask through the other service case open about the issue. The reply was: we don't support any external software and the SON files written by the 898 are obsolete anyways and not supported anymore.
I think my future buying guideline will be: Humminbird is obsolete and not supported anymore.