I recently installed a HD7 at the counsal and have an HD5 at the bow and have them networked via network cable. The HD5 is showing and sharing waypoints and map, however; I can’t get the HD5 to get the sonar from the HD7. Is this a common problem or do I need to adjust a setting somewhere? I went through the manuals and on-screen settings and believe it is correct with the map and waypoint sharing.
Transducer info is not part of the network.
-J.
Jon,
So it would be a setting or something with the HD5 unit by itself?
Thanks,
You need a transducer for both units.
-J.
oh okay, for some reason I thought it would share that too, makes perfect sense now!
ethernet allows for sharing of ducers. Network (nmea 2000) doesn’t share ducers.
I know it’s the ethernet cable I have 
I was under the impression the HDS units could share a transducer if you have the Structure Scan module. Am I wrong?
JD
Is your ethernet going unit to unit or is it going through a structure scan or expansion port?
Mine is through structure scan and then on my units, there is a setting under sonar which asks me ‘what unit’ I am sharing off of. When I first hooked my bow unit up, since it was not connected to any sonar and just had the ethernet connected, it defaulted to pulling the sonar from my console unit. There is also an auto configure network that I think identifies each unit as well.
If you have an ethernet connection between the two, you should be able to use any transducer, regardless of whether you have the structure scan or expansion port. I have a bow location, console location, and tiller location all run off my structure scan. No transducer to the tiller location, just ethernet and power. I can run the structure scan, transom, or bow ducers from any of the locations as long as the other units are powered up.
Good info! 
I’m just running a nmea network.
-J.
Sorry I’m late to respond but these guys have covered it really good.
A NMEA 2000 network or backbone carries GPS information between units. Sharing waypoints, sharing one GPS antenna and temperature information for example. If you want multiple units to use one transducer for sonar information then you will need to connect the two units together with an ethernet cable and select the proper settings in each unit. This is why the Structure Scan module is connected to the unit through an ethernet cable.
Something else to remember is that mapping information cannot be shared between units. Each unit will have it’s own mapping information pre-loaded or have it’s own mapping card in it. You cannot have a mapping card in one unit and use that information on a different unit regardless of the cables connecting the units together.
good morning. i have found if you set the unit connected to the transducer as it’s own hotspot, and connect the two units together via wireless, you can share the transducer and waypoints/routes/trails, even if you want to connect an older model (well, not that old) to a Elite FS and/or HDS unit. i have successfully connected an Elite 7 Ti to an Elite FS9. Wireless runs on the same protocols as the ethernet cable.
Something else to remember is that mapping information cannot be shared between units. Each unit will have it’s own mapping information pre-loaded or have it’s own mapping card in it. You cannot have a mapping card in one unit and use that information on a different unit regardless of the cables connecting the units together.
Are you referring to pre-Live units? I have 3 HDS Lives in my boat and I can share, via ethernet, the map chip info between the three units.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
