Need help understanding which garmin to buy

im not asking for people to educate me yourself, unless you would like to. What im looking for is a resource that breaks down what each different garmin fish finder does and how the features a different. For example id like to understand how the CV models differ from the SV as an example. Ive been on Garmins site and it does an ok job explaining some of the features but it would be great to have a chart that demonstrates how each graph differs from one another.

I plan on upgrading the electronics for my boat next spring and think im going with garmin. I would also like the ability to use the unit for ice fishing.

If any of you guys can point me to some videos or websites that do a good job of explaining the different features which im hoping can help me to narrow down which one i should buy.

Thanks

so is this accurate?

you buy the garmin unit then panoptix is a separate trandsducer you buy then if you wanna ice fish with it you buy a separate bundle?

You might want to check this Livescope all season bundle out at Reed’s.

I went through this last year – I couldn’t find a very good comprehensive listing with all the different options. They sell about a hundred different graphs combo’s. I was able to talk to the Garmin guys directly and then confirmed when I bought the boat with the dealer. The guys at Scheels in EP seem to also know what they are talking about. You could also try Joe’s or Capra’s to talk to a live person. I assume you want Livescope and not Panoptix.

You can buy the units and transducer separately but Garmin does sell the complete bundle. That’s probably the easiest way to do it. Piecing the needed parts together will probably save you a little $$$ though.

The real decision is whether you want Livescope – that changes the graph needed and the transducer. The list of compatible graphs is here:

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/591379#devices

I run 93 and 73 SV’s on the boat with Livescope. Love it. It’s ice compatible but I don’t remove the transducer from the boat. Too much work for how little I ice fish. I could buy a separate ice transducer just to make it like a normal flasher if I wanted to.

thanks matt. that is helpful.

its still a little confusing however. for example on garmins website they call it “panoptix livescope”. judging by your comments i take it they are different things?

https://explore.garmin.com/en-US/panoptix/

This explains the difference – Panoptix is the original version.

You want Livescope most likely. Too many damn names, too many versions. It’s confusing.

thanks Matt! Ill check that out.

you said that you run the 93 and 73 SV’s. if you could do it over again would you change anything? My cousin runs the same two units on his boat. Ive only ever run one unit. whats the advantage of having two? Map on one and livescope on the other?

Also do you find 9″ to be a big enough screen or would you recommend 12″. I know the price increase is steep

also thank you netguy! ill check out that video as well.

crappie55369 wrote:

thanks Matt! Ill check that out.

you said that you run the 93 and 73 SV’s. if you could do it over again would you change anything? My cousin runs the same two units on his boat. Ive only ever run one unit. whats the advantage of having two? Map on one and livescope on the other?

Also do you find 9″ to be a big enough screen or would you recommend 12″. I know the price increase is steep

I don’t need 2. I put the 73 on the bow but mainly fishing the river I’m in the back of the boat so rarely use it. Go with one 12”….that’s what I should’ve done. The 93 is big enough but one graph is good enough and I could’ve fit 12” on the dash.

Just a deal I saw but over black Friday week cabelas has the Echomap UHD 93vs for $600. Im considering it….

I know you said you were looking to order with your boat but this is a pretty significant savings right now.
The 93sv UHD (sv= side view), the Gt54 summer boat transducer and then the livescope package.

$1900 after MIR.

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Netguy, helpful video as that is the package I have coming to me on the mail.

Crappie, before I made a decision I called up to Reeds and actually spoke to Craig (in the video) about Garmin products. He spent 10-15 minutes educating me on what I wanted. Very informative. Garmin actually took the Staff out on a field trip to demonstrate livescope.

Shout out to Reeds, everyone i spoke with was knowledgeable and friendly.

Fyi- the Walker store is where you want to go, the satellite stores probably won’t have these units.
The Walker store also said these units fly off the shelves and won’t last long.

thanks everyone! awesome feedback! Reeds is a great store. I think ill give Craig a call. Thanks for suggesting Eelpoutguy. Also good to see you back online

I’m teetering back & forth on Do I or Don’t I make a Livescope purchase right now, with all of these sales and the Garmin rebate you know they are just clearing out existing inventory before they release new versions of everything…with the technology jump they made from Panoptix to Livescope, I’m really curious what the Livescope to ? upgrade looks like???

If we’re already willing to spend $2k+ on electronics, it probably makes sense to wait a bit and see what’s next, the $ premium buying the new stuff won’t be as much and if the new products don’t impress you, the Livescope prices will probably drop to the floor as others upgrade.

I really like the idea of utilizing 1 system for the boat and ice fishing by just swapping the head units out of the cradle, with these high prices, Reeds and others are smart to market them that way!

Just my 2c

Joe,
The 93sv UHD is only on sale because they have released the new summer transducer which from what I’ve heard is closer to the quality of Mega+. The new ducer p/n is GT56 I believe. That’s why you’re seeing all the GT54 ducer packaged 93sv on sale right now. The livescope package is still selling at MAP pricing and they’re offering the same $200 MIR they offered last year.

I’ve been on the fence as well trying to hold out for HB’s Mega Live but no ETA on that and their ice Mega360 kit is $1300 on top of the fact I’d have to upgrade my Helix 7 to a Helix 8 Mega+ which is another $1100. I’m going to try Garmin this winter as I can piece my livescope package together for about $1800. I’m sure HB will have growing pains with Mega Live the same Garmin did with Livescope. Thinking I’ll give it a season or two to iron out those bugs and then reevaluate.

Where can a guy find the Cabela’s black friday sale on the 93?

travelNFish wrote:

Where can a guy find the Cabela’s black friday sale on the 93?

Is this what you’re looking for?
https://blackfriday.com/ads/black-friday/cabelas?page=29

I’d just call Reeds and place a pre-order for it for the same price and avoid trying to chase one down from Cabelas. Plus if you’re out of MN, Reeds won’t charge you sales tax or shipping.

The video I posted was live on Zoom yesterday at 3:00 and 4:00 pm. I bought an ice fishing bundle last spring and a separate pole mount for the boat. I already have a Humminbird Helix 12 3GN so I didn’t see the need for adding another transducer since I will really used the Livescope for forward looking and vertical jigging.
I only used it a couple of times since I got the pole mount late summer but Livescope is amazing. I was checking out some crappie holes in late September. I marked one school 100 feet away (I didn’t try any farther) and drove right to them. One time I stopped short of the school, zoomed in on the school using the touch screen, casted past the fish and watched my 1/8 ounce jig fall to their depth and I worked it right over the top off them. Looking forward to using it in the winter to find the schools quicker.

that reeds all season bundle looks like a pretty nice package. awesome that garmin has a $200 rebate going on too.

The Marine General bundle is much better IMO and cheaper!

JoeMX1825 wrote:

The Marine General bundle is much better IMO and cheaper!

it does look to be $200 cheaper for the same bundle but i did notice Marine General doesn’t throw in a free garmin towel. so….. decisions….

crappie55369 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>JoeMX1825 wrote:</div>
The Marine General bundle is much better IMO and cheaper!

it does look to be $200 cheaper for the same bundle but i did notice Marine General doesn’t throw in a free garmin towel. so….. decisions….

The other major difference is the Marine General bundle includes the King 18AH Marcum lithium vs the Brute 10AH battery

I think i’m going to wait on my Livescope ducer/black box purchase, continue to use Panoptix…I have a gut feeling the next Livescope version is going to be alot better than 1.0

JoeMX1825 wrote:

I think i’m going to wait on my Livescope ducer/black box purchase, continue to use Panoptix…I have a gut feeling the next Livescope version is going to be alot better than 1.0

Have they said when the next livescope version is going to be released?

crappie55369 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>JoeMX1825 wrote:</div>
I think i’m going to wait on my Livescope ducer/black box purchase, continue to use Panoptix…I have a gut feeling the next Livescope version is going to be alot better than 1.0

Have they said when the next livescope version is going to be released?

Nothing but rumors, but the current Livescope is 3+ years old and Marine tech typically changes every 3-4 years, of course I could be wrong, but i’m betting new models will get released in early/mid 2021. Then all of the current tech value drops a ton as everyone sells to upgrade…I don’t think there will be completely new technology released, but I do think Garmin will heavily refine Livescope with a clearer picture, more range, probably call it Livescope HD or something cheesy…

My biggest question to the Guys at Reeds was
“Has the Garmin Rep tipped his hand on if they have something better coming out in the near future?”
Unfortunately they had no response.

My guess is they would like to announce anything major that’s new at iCast 2021 in July, but we’ll see if COVID allows that…

i called and spoke to both Marine General and Reeds. I cant remember which one but one of the reps (i think reeds) told me this unit when equipped with the ice fishing package weighs a whopping 21 lbs! is that true?

I cant imagine wanting to carry around a 20 lb unit on the ice

i might call them back and confirm my ears weren’t playing tricks on me. i just cant imagine a 21 lb flasher

yep that quote is accurate, and the overall size of the case is HUGE, price to pay for the big screen and power needed to run it and the transducer… This is why i’m trying to retro-fit the Livescope pieces with my existing Panoptix case, not sure it will work though as the black box is huge..

For comparison sake, my Panoptix Ice Bundle with a 10AH Dakota Lithium is 12.6 lbs

Check out Jay Seimens latest video, it gives a good perspective on the Livescope Ice Package size..

Looks like Humminbird has something coming.

https://www.facebook.com/russellmarineproducts/

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