Marcum LX-6 review

I recently purchased an LX-6 and thought I would give my review after using for the last five days while up at my cabin. I’ll start out by saying that I currently own an FL-8 and a HB Ice 55 and now the LX-6, all of which I have used this year.

So for the other units…I will always keep my FL 8 as a backup and it’s been flawless for the past 12 years even through tons of abuse. This Ice 55 was really enjoyable to use and has a lot of good features for the price (at least with the rebate they were offering) but I had some reliability issues right away and lost confidence in it.

On to the LX-6…this thing is SWEET! I did, however, have some issues which I will touch on later. The display was so crisp and easy to view and I loved the ability to have vertical zoom on the side. Additionally, the ability to adjust the vertical zoom window and depth is really helpful. The unit itself was surprisingly small as a whole and realy easy to carry around and the arm which holds the transducer and the transducer holder are really great to use (I know they’re on other Marcum units but this is my first). Also, the easy access jumper in the back for charging is great.

Very happy with the unith but now onto some constructive critisism. The auto depth and auto zoom modes didn’t work very well and the dynamic depth mode was basically unusable. All of these auto modes would jump all over the place with dynamic depth being the worst in addition to having a sawtooth looking thing at the bottom.

Here’s a quick video showing the issues (if I can get this to work):

http://s1188.beta.photobucket.com/user/joetc85/media/IMG_0183mov_zps59efab7d.mp4.html

I have to say though that my biggest issue was that the flasher was so small. When using the flasher and vertical zoom (my favorite configuringation) and removing the gauges there was a significant amount of screen to the right and bottom that wasn’t being used. This is the one thing that keeps me from being blown away by this unit.

One additional thing is that I read about bad interference issues and I can say that I had no issues fishing 4 ft. from my FL-8 all weekend in depths from 14-26 fow and over rocks and soft bottom. Playing with the IR was required however and anything other than having the LX-6 set at IR setting 5 was a complete mess.

Overall I’m really happy with the LX-6 even with the few issues which I think are well known by Marcum. The nice thing is knowing that the units software is upgradable and that these issue will most likely be addressed.

Joe

Not to start an argument here or get my post dropped,

After reading alot of comments about the new Marcum products, and the constant upgrades available which sounds like you have to pay for, I think i’m going to stay with my Vex FL-18.

Yes i know it’s old Tech but everytime i get ready to pull the trigger on a Marcum product, i read a negative review.

The upgrades in my opinion shouldn’t cost anything. It looks to me IMO to be a marketing ploy to have Marcum constantly in your back pocket.

I understand that Marcum is a great sponsor to this website and also with this response my entry into the LX9 giveaway will probably be thrown in the trash, but speaking only of what i have been reading makes me “Pucker up” a bit about buying one of their units since my FL-18 have served me well over the years.

Maybe i’ll just wait till the “bugs” and costly upgrades cease (if that would ever happen) and decide then whether to buy one or not

P.S to Joetc

it was not my intention at all to steal your post.

please forgive me if it appeared that way. I apologize to any other IDO’er for the same

Are there some bugs, probably. The thing is, the bugs are with the features the others don’t even offer… (it’s still in my opinion, the best flasher hands down) and being able to upgrade for a charge is a bad thing ? You would rather buy a unit that will never get better and give you any option to make it better in 2, 5 10 years…??? You don’t have to upgrade to new features… it’s voluntary. For all the reasons that stop you, are all the reasons that steer me towards a Marcum To each their own… btw, if you happen to win the LX9, I can take it off your hands

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The upgrades in my opinion shouldn’t cost anything. It looks to me IMO to be a marketing ploy to have Marcum constantly in your back pocket.

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Software updates are and always will be free. IF someone has given you the impression otherwise they are incorrect.

Touche Big G!

Very well put

I’m hoping to win the LX9 so i can put my concerns to rest after it impresses me to no end!

Good to know James

I was reading in the past that the Showdown products charged a $50 upgrade fee.

Maybe that doesn’t apply to the LX products?

I was more interested in an LX product anyway

If I didn’t get it across clearly in my original I will state it outright that even with the known issues this is the best unit I’ve ever used. The features that have issues I was really excited about but they are not even offered in other units.

Joe

That’s how I read it Joe I don’t have a flasher yet, ran an LX7 quite a bit last year, quite honestly, WAY more machine than I even knew how to use Now I am thinking LX6 as it seems a little more compact, so I appreciate all the reviews I can get I do love the idea, if they come out with new software, I mean to make it a totally different machine, it is software and not hard parts What can they change…who knows !!! Kinda like buying a $600 laptop and being able to upgrade from VISTA to Windows 8 if you want for $39.99, rather than $600 buying a new laptop (and who doesn’t want that ?)

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Good to know James

I was reading in the past that the Showdown products charged a $50 upgrade fee.

Maybe that doesn’t apply to the LX products?

I was more interested in an LX product anyway

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The Showdown upgrades required MarCum technicians to perform the upgrade procedure and in some cases, like the Troller 2.0, new hard parts were required necessitating the $50 charge which included shipping.

With the digital LX series upgrades are performed in the home by the owner of the unit so there’s no cost for the software upgrade.

Great to know

Thanks for the input. With the input from you guys, i’m already gaining more knowledge about the Marcum products which is “Turning the Bow” in the Marcum direction

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Great to know

Thanks for the input. With the input from you guys, i’m already gaining more knowledge about the Marcum products which is “Turning the Bow” in the Marcum direction

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Yep. I was one who commented on the Showdown upgrade. The Showdown 5.6 has been stable for quite a while now. The one I had was many years old and the upgrade was a total hardware replacement, not just software so sending in was required. The Showdown, LX-3, LX-5 are all well tested, stable, outstanding products so if you get a new one you can trust you won’t need to update anything.
As James mentioned, the LX-6, LX-7, and LX-9 are newer digital models and there may be occasional firmware updates you can install yourself at no cost, similar to how you’d update the sonar/gps on your boat. You could go to marcumtech.com and visit the UPGRADE menu to learn more about how that’s done and see if that alleviates your concerns.

John S.

Thank you for the review! Honestly, not in the market to buy one at the minute but it just furthers my thought to never buy anything the first couple years its released. If I was in the market to buy right now, I would probably hold off on getting one until at least next season. I bet come spring these bugs will all be worked out, but until then I don’t want to be on the ice and having to mess with it to get it to work properly.

I’m sure that review helped MANY people who were looking to buy. In a nutshell it kind of says its a darn nice unit but still has a couple bugs.. and if you can get past that (like you did), its worth it to buy.

As for updates, some of you are confusing firmware with software. Software can be done at home, just plug and download. Firmware has to be done in the factory as it is a platform that is installed in the unit. Software is programming that can be changed, altered, and replaced at home. Two different things. Firmware is permanent and must be wiped clean, then re-installed at the factory. Software is editable and can be changed at home with a computer download and a cord.

Showdown has firmware.
lx 6 7 and 9 have software.

I dont know what to think of the any of the LX 6,7,9 running on 3.01 or a version of it (LX9).

With my LX6 one day it works, the next day it has issues. The unit is great when working properly and when its not you just wanna take a baseball bat and smash it.

Away from other flashers, and in deeper water dynamic range seems to work satisfactory with minor hiccups. If near other with flashers dont even attempt to turn dynamic range on.

At this point I find it best to choose either auto or set your range manually. Also found zoom to be less jumpy if set to 10ft instead of 5ft.

This weeks settings for me working well so far:

Ping: 3

Sensitivity: 5

Target: 0

Display: Chart zoom, Vertical, Vertical zoom

Zoom: 10ft or off completely

Range: Auto & manual. Use dynamic when away from others in deeper water.

**You may also find it less hassle to just turn zoom off altogether.

If your a simple person and just flats out want something to work at this point stick to the mechanical flasher. If your have an LX7 still on v2.9 your fine, 3.01 is not available for download yet for LX7 but I dont recommend the upgrade unless the bugs are worked out.

If you already have an LX6, 7, w/3.01 or a 9, I say be patience. Hopefully Marcum has another update soon. Definitely worth the wait.

I’d much prefer finer and more range increments and to always set the range manually than an improved dynamic setting. Auto depth/range adjustments and ice fishing is way overkill and time wasted IMO.

Personally, I need better gain control and better shallow performance and someone to run my auger for me. A second zoom window would be SUPER, but I won’t keep bringing that up..

I hate to say it but I am another person who was not WOWED by my Marcum product ( LX-5 ) It is a OK product but really did not do much that the FL-18 did not. To be honest I believe that I got a defective unit from the start and just did not bother to mess with the return process ( MY fault ) the zoom feature did not seem to work right and I have lots of problems with interference from other units in the general area. The battery went bad in the 1st year and the charging unit that it came with did not work correctly ( I now have a Vexilar battery in it and charge it with the vexilar charger ) I still use it as is – Just did now see the WOW factor I was looking for. Hope to try one of the newer units some day and maybe see all the hype others talk about.

Fishthumper, I wouldn’t doubt you have something bad going on, there was lots of screwy product tossed out there just before Versa took over.

I’d call Marcum and see what they can do for you. Or, try and sit down with a fellow lx5 user and see what you can diagnose between the two of you. The zoom isn’t super intuitive, but easy to use once explained and if it’s not working correctly you absolutely NEED to get it fixed. The zoom on the lx5 is what makes it such a good flasher. Also, switching transducers might clear up all your interference issues. I’d be more than happy to meet up someplace, I’ve got a couple new ducers floating around and a lx5 that’s a real runner. PM me if interested, or find a guy running one out on the lake and bug him!

I’d have to agree with almost everything said so far on this thing. I LOVE my lx-6, but if I were only to have one flasher this would not be it. The capability you have with a digital like this is out of this world. Still, for getting beat around hole hopping in the shallows it’s tough to beat the two dials on an old fashioned analog and I think it always will be.

Myself I’m prefereing my 7 over my 5 more and more for shallow fishing and hopping only problem is the wife keeps it in the shack with her….

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As for updates, some of you are confusing firmware with software. Software can be done at home, just plug and download. Firmware has to be done in the factory as it is a platform that is installed in the unit. Software is programming that can be changed, altered, and replaced at home. Two different things. Firmware is permanent and must be wiped clean, then re-installed at the factory. Software is editable and can be changed at home with a computer download and a cord.

Showdown has firmware.
lx 6 7 and 9 have software.

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That’s a valid point, but on Marcum’s website they use “firmware” and “software” to describe the same download process.

word on the street is an update is coming Jan 7th…from a different forum after a call to marcum today…hopefully it is as good of an update as last years was (fingers crossed not 3.01k)

So much for that update. Nothing posted yet. I love the lx6. Just wish all the features worked as promoted (and believe they should for the cost). Still better than the FL18 I fished with for three years. Come on marcum. Shouldn’t be to hard to get an update out as it is the same platform as the lx7 and the same issues.

yeah i should have figured we’d be lucky to see it no matter what they tell you..ill be happy if it is here before the end of the week!!!

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So much for that update. Nothing posted yet. I love the lx6. Just wish all the features worked as promoted (and believe they should for the cost). Still better than the FL18 I fished with for three years. Come on marcum. Shouldn’t be to hard to get an update out as it is the same platform as the lx7 and the same issues.

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I leave for Lake of the Woods MN on Wednesday. Oh well. Won’t be using any of the auto or dynamic settings.

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I leave for Lake of the Woods MN on Wednesday. Oh well. Won’t be using any of the auto or dynamic settings.

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Do you have a PC Laptop? I am sure if your staying at a resort they have an internet connection, should be a short use of internet connection for the update. If your staying on the ice…well that may be more difficult.

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I leave for Lake of the Woods MN on Wednesday. Oh well. Won’t be using any of the auto or dynamic settings.

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Got back from LOTW this past weekend and im sorry to say my LX6 had very little use, got used half a day out of the 3 days we stayed due to the flickering and bottom lock issues. It worked 50% of the time satisfactory. Zoom feature is gonna be very important here as well as fishing shallow towards late-afternoon/evening. So make sure you have a backup flasher that has zoom features.

In part the LX6 is usable but you have to constantly dink around with the settings which make it annoying. Till the update happens its gonna continue to be an emergency backup unit which im sad to say as I bought it to be my primary unit.

Yes, I have a laptop and wifi hotspot on my phone. We are staying on the ice. All my manual setting work just fine. I’m not worried about taking this unit without a backup. I fished with it for about 8 hours this week and only had issues with the auto settings. I should be fine. Thanks.

I’ll tell you one thing. I bet these issues would be stopped a lot faster and updates would come out faster if everyone started sending in their units for them not working how they are supposed to instead of living with units that dont work as advertised…If you look at other forums, marcum’s facebook page, etc, everyone seems to be having the same issues…it really stinks that you cant use your 600 dollar unit when out on LOTW…the season for most of us is so short that having working electronics is a big need!

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I leave for Lake of the Woods MN on Wednesday. Oh well. Won’t be using any of the auto or dynamic settings.

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Got back from LOTW this past weekend and im sorry to say my LX6 had very little use, got used half a day out of the 3 days we stayed due to the flickering and bottom lock issues. It worked 50% of the time satisfactory. Zoom feature is gonna be very important here as well as fishing shallow towards late-afternoon/evening. So make sure you have a backup flasher that has zoom features.

In part the LX6 is usable but you have to constantly dink around with the settings which make it annoying. Till the update happens its gonna continue to be an emergency backup unit which im sad to say as I bought it to be my primary unit.

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I was hoping the 6 wouldn’t have the issues that the 7 had based on it coming out this year and not last year. Oh well, wish me luck, I sold my vex so I’m stuck.