sonar/gps combo

[sonny]

Hi all,,,,been awhile,,,been lurking all the time but i am normally a man of few words,,,but,then again everyone needs a little help now and again!!!

 

i am in the market for a sonar/gps combo,,,and seem to prefer lowrance,,,i would like anyones feed back on these units and which is the best bang for the buck...bty,,,leaning towards the LMS-334C iGPS figure i can grab this one for around $700...perfer lowrance because i already have navionics map

 

thanks,,,hope to hear some good reviews!!

[fishindevil]

welcome aboard sonny,and to let you know i have the 339igps.dumb ass lowrance its 2 above the 334 but fot the money you want to spend thats an awsome unitand for most fishing purposes its the best just make sure you have the unit fully exposed or the gps will cut in and out...or go to the 337 its got the puck so you can put it anywhere.. go to the lowrance website and check them out they also have a simulator that you can download and really work your unit to see if its for you...its great .so do that for your model and you will see what i mean...it would be my choice for the money....good luck.....cheers

[sonny]

thanks for the info,,,will be mounted under the windshield...don't know if that makes a differance!

[tschirk]

Check w Lowrance. I have an early 334i and found out that there is an undocumented recall on it and similar models due to a bad GPS attena and poor GPS reception. Just take it back to Lowrance for a new unit.

 

I was going to spend the extra money for the 339 but the lowrance tech suggested that unless I was doing a lot of salt-water fishing the dual freq tranduscer wasn't worth it. Therefore LMS-334i was the best deal. I paid $700 a year ago. I would expect to pay~$600 since it is being replaced with a new version with Ethernet port (model#500 something).

[Pigeontroller]

I have the LMS-332c, great unit, no complaints. I have the external antenna, I had some reception problems by placing the antenna in front of the windshield. Moved it to the back of the boat and I get great reception. I moved the antenna around quite abit in figuring out the reception problems and realized how much antenna placement effects the reception. Bottom line, if you get the internal antenna you won't have the option of moving the antenna! I was unsure of with model to get, 332 or 334, now after the reception issues i'm sure glad I went with the puck!

[taper]

I agree with the lowrance choice. I have the Eagle Fishstrike 2000 and love it. It can be bought for $900 and the 7 inch screen is great.

[just2manylures]

I called Lowrance up and they told me the 334 is better then the 339 for the great lakes. The 339 is actually a step down??? maybe there numbering system is from the bazaro world

 

my 2 cents

 

2many

[aplumma]

I use the dual frequency on my Garmin alot. It has the ability to use both at the same time. The difference is noticed when you are tracking the bottom for texture and dropoffs. Heres why... On a 200 khz 10 degree cone at 30 feet you are reading the highest spot in a 6 foot circle since the unit only reads the first and fastest reflection it gets back. The 50 hkz 40 degree cone at 30 feet is reading an area that is 20 foot around. That means that you can be 10 foot off the shelf before it tells you that the bottom is dropping off and if it is a trench less than 20 foot it will not tell you that it is even their. With the 10 degree cone you can track bottom and see when the bottom becomes large rocky to muddy or any other combination. With both on you can read the bottom and see suspended fish as you move around. I hope this helps you decide.

 

Art

[sonny]

Thanks guys,,,i was always wondering about using the dual freq and how it would come into effect in only using in freash water and not as deep,,,again it makes my decision easier,,,i might start looking at the units with dual freq capability

[julieshig]

Hi Ted & the Gad,

 

I JUST found your post while looking at problems with our antenna and Lowrance LMC 334i, just like you! Ours is basically brand new, even thoug we bought it about two years ago. When we installed in on our new boat, we found exactly the problems you're mentioning. How old is old when it comes to this recall???? I can't believe that.

 

Thanks for posting, you may have helped out loads.

 

Cheers.

 

Check w Lowrance. I have an early 334i and found out that there is an undocumented recall on it and similar models due to a bad GPS attena and poor GPS reception. Just take it back to Lowrance for a new unit.

 

I was going to spend the extra money for the 339 but the lowrance tech suggested that unless I was doing a lot of salt-water fishing the dual freq tranduscer wasn't worth it. Therefore LMS-334i was the best deal. I paid $700 a year ago. I would expect to pay~$600 since it is being replaced with a new version with Ethernet port (model#500 something).

[fishindevil]

Well with my 339igps-dual frequency,its great as i can track my cannonballs,and the 50klhrtz works very well,it has 400watts peak to peak,and man it sure makes a big difference when im fishing in deep water,it marks the thermalcline to if there is one,like i said i can track the cannonballs great for deep water you cant beat the 50