I'm making the switch to Garmin

I think I’m getting ready too – or at least Garmin Panoptix off the front and Humminbird at the helm for Follow the Contour, Spot-Lock with the I-Pilot, etc…

What units did you decide to go with, Mr. Koonce?

I am going with the 7610xsv at the helm as the 96sv up off the front !!
The touchscreen 7610 off of Front is going to give me a nice big screen to see and actually get to use multi screens for when I’m running down scan structure scan along with my mapping. My understanding is the built-in mapping on these things are phenomenal!!
Although I am curious about the Ultra HD chip Garmin has for these units anybody have these with experience?

The mapping is good & with the quickdraw feature it gets even better. Enjoy !!

Hey Dave show us a pic when you get them set up.

Will Do !!

I am seriously considering the switch myself. Funds are a little right now, but I am saving up until next spring. I just don’t know which one. I look at them every time I go to Cabelas.

In the family circle, there were 3 new Lowrance models purchased last year and none of us were completely satisfied. So about 5-6 weeks ago, I pulled the trigger on a Striker 7. So far, I have to say I feel like I made the right choice. Everything works great and screen clarity/definition is awesome! The color choices on the sonar screen are plenty bright for daylight viewing but not nearly as blinding in the dark, which means less adjusting and HOPEFULLY…… a few less bugs! The screen may be small for some peoples preference/needs but for my set up and circumstances, it’s perfect! Gotta say, I think Garmin has a new fan. The only thing I’m unsure of is longevity of life and only time will tell how that plays out.

The ultra HD mapping chip is very nice I highly suggest picking it up!

bowtecmike wrote:

The ultra HD mapping chip is very nice I highly suggest picking it up!

If you had to pick out one thing you liked best about it what would that be ?

I saw the mapping and the ability to plot out a course without hitting bottom or anything else was pretty cool !!

I purchased a Garmin EchoMap 73sv this year. I thought I had settled on a Helix 7, but before pulling the trigger, I started looking into the Garmin. I bought the previous generation EchoMap without CHIRP because the closeout deal at Cabelas was just too good to pass up. Pretty much all the features of the Helix 7 SI and more for much less $$. With the Garmin, I didn’t have to buy a separate map chip because LakeVu Maps HD is built in. After I purchased it, Garmin decides to offer a firmware update that adds Quickdraw functionality. With Hummingbird, I would have had to spend a few extra hundred to get detailed maps and their version of Quickdraw.

So far, performance on the water has been impressive. It has met or exceeded all my expectation so far. Haven’t quite figured out what I am looking at in regards to side imaging yet, but I have had a few wow moments when using down imaging. I can only imagine that the Panoptix would be a whole other level of awesome.

As for customer service. I noticed the LakeVu Maps installed on the unit did not have 1 ft contours of a lake I fish. Garmin’s website shows that lake in 1 ft HD maps. Called Garmin and in about 2 days, received an update chip with all their most recent maps. They definitely honor their 1 time map update promise.

Very Nice Trent !!!

I put a 93sv on the counsel. awesome unit!

Cabelas has the Garmin® echoMAP™ 73sv Combo with LakeVü™ HD on sale right now for $549. That is incredibly tempting!!

I’m curious if the Garmin built in maps show all of the wing dams from Pool 2 down through the southern Iowa pools. How is the mapping for the upper Mississippi in general? I have an old LakeMaster chip that I’m running in an old Lowrance 334C and I’d have to say that it does a good job with the wing dams on Pools 2, 3, and 4.

Thanks,

Boone

I’ll let you know how they look once I’m all set up !!

Got to spend a few hours workin tbe Garmins this afternoon…
These baby’s do tricks !!
Thanks Cal and James for some phone a friend assistance on the install

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Looks sweet Dave. When you get them all dialed in show us some more screen pics.

Will do !!

Dave Koonce wrote:

Will do !!

Koonce – FYI to save screen captures just hold down the “HOME” tab until you get a “saving file…” message. The unit will then ask you where you want to save the file if you have more than 1 SD card installed. Super easy.

Can Garmin get it so I can save it right to this post on IDO ?

That would be Super Sweet !!!

But seriously though… that HOME tab does sound easy !!!

Koonce Out !!

Congrats Koonce,

You won’t regret it! I took a quantum leap from some older units to a 7612 on the console and an 840 on the bow. There is absolutely no comparison.

My only complaint is that when I go to the bow, I’m trying to use a button unit as a touch screen. I’m not to bright to it takes a few touches on the glass to figure it out each time! LOL

Enjoy!