Vexilar or Humminbird

First off hi to everyone

I’m in the market for a new toy for the ice I’m just torn between FlX 20-28 or a Helix 7. The first question are there any differences between the helix g2 and g3 for ice fishing or are they basically the same. Everyone I fish with are vexilar guys so they are really no help I understand the differences between the flasher and graph on paper I’m just looking for real world opinions between them and I guess even the other players in the ice electronics games too if I’m missing something. Thanks

Welcome aboard!
I love this question.
When I picked up my Marcum 6 – 7 years ago. I went to the show and was going to buy a Vex. Never heard of a Maurum. Talked to the rep when I got there and walked away with a LX6 and never looked back. I can’t answer your Q about g2 vs g3 but someone else will.
It’s a Chevy – Ford situation.

But Marcums are much better then Vexitards.

G3 is one number higher. Everything I learned from Spinal Tap tells me it has to be better.

Well I have owned a FL8, FL18, FL22HD, and a FL28Ultra in the past. I purchased my first Helix 7 ice 2 years ago and ran it alongside my FL28 on a week long trip to LOW with my kid. After that trip we sold the Vex and bought another Helix 7. I like the screen clarity and the way you can follow and repeat your jigging patterns better on the Helix. I could see the jigs fairly equally between the two but we always wanted the Helix in our hole in lieu of the Vex.
The only downfault is that the helix uses more battery power. But you also have alot more features with the Helix which use that required power…
You can do the software upgrades to get you the same features as the latest models. I also run both of these units in the summer time in a boat which is nice.

The 2d on a vex is very simple, but also sensitive. The bird 2d does lots more filtering and data manipulation. My experience is all using helix g1 and legacy, so not 100% applicable. I personally like the non filtering for the bare bones 2D on my flashers. I like that I can fish over 200′ and under 5′ and track my bait the entire time, even until it whacks my ducer on the way out of the hole. I have an flx28 and two fl22s.

Other factors are run times, weight and durability. Then those other features outside of 2d and the graph display which is ideal for less attentive individuals.

Garmin has some unique offerings.

Another option for you. If you like the simplicity of a flasher only but like a smaller lcd unit consider the Marcum Showdown. Simplicity at it’s best and nothing fancy. Simple grey scale showing the bottom you’re lure and fish. It does have a dual cone, zoom and a screen that is heated for if you’re outside in cold temps. Put a good lithium on it and this thing will run a long time.

That being said I have the Helix Ice 7 Gen 3 and love it. I had the original Helix Ice 7 before this one. Lots of capability and now that you can go from boat to ice and back again with it it makes a excellent year round value.

I’ve had a Showdown for years and is what I started on and it still comes with me every time as a back up or put it in my dead stick hole.

Hey,

I ran a helix ice 5 G2 for a couple of seasons and it was good. I liked the using the split screen option but I ended up selling it to going back to a Marcum traditional flasher. I will be looking into getting a Marcum LX7 thou. It’s a unit that I have always wanted ha ha.

As for the difference between G2 & G3, G2’s have 1.5” target separation and G3’s have 3/4”. Also, the G3’s can also do mapping through the ice using the chirp ice ducer. That’s only thing I can remember off the top of my head..ha ha.

I hope that helps on some level ha ha.

What would you say is average runtime with continuous use is on Helix Ice? I have Helix 7 G2 on boat and also am considering which direction to go.

I have 2 Marcums lx6 and a tc3, both are great, but I lake trout fished with a bud that has a Vex 28.. impressed the heck out of me.

My Helix 5 G2 I could run all day with the battery mine came with but I know some guys with the Helix 7 G2 would only get half a day (5-6 hours at best) if they didn’t turn the screen brightness down. Most of them switched out the battery for a Dakota Lithium battery and then they could get a full day of use.

I thought that the one pitfall of the Helix units vs traditional flasher whether it be marcum or vexilar was the lag time in between your bait on screen and actual time. I know that in the 2D mode it was better but overall is there a noticeable lag in between flasher and Helix?

I like the features and the fact you can use in boat and ice fishing so I would pull the trigger if I knew that the unit functioned identically to the flasher models.

Thanks for the response. I have a FL8 now that works but I find myself wanting more I hate the 20ft depth increments I like the speed of set up, battery life and the fact I can toss it around and it doesn’t care. At the end of last ice season I was borrowing a helix 5 g1 and wasn’t happy with it but i hear the g2 and g3 are much more refined I really like watching the graph though. I’ve eyed the lx 6-7 but I’ve heard of issues with them. I’m started to think the best way to decide is to sit down with a case of Busch light and scroll the internet until I buy something and live with my decision haha.

I use my Helix 7 for ice fishing and in my boat. I really like it for for both.
For ice fishing there is a flasher view if one prefers which is in real time, but I like to use the traditional Sonar View with the Real Time Sonar(RTS)Window displaying Color A-Scope instead.

Busch light What the ….?
The other thing I like about my LX6 is you can move the target area anywhere in the water column and that can come in awful handy at times.

I’m still running a vexilar fl18. It suits my needs and is all a guy really needs. That being said there are far better options out there. It’s all preference. I really don’t think you can go wrong with any brand, they all make good products.
Some guys like the 2d sonar units like a helix 7 for the mapping capabilities and the ability to see the past on your screen.
I prefer a flasher because it’s real time, no lag like you’ll have to deal with on a 2d sonar setup.

lrott2003 wrote:

I thought that the one pitfall of the Helix units vs traditional flasher whether it be marcum or vexilar was the lag time in between your bait on screen and actual time. I know that in the 2D mode it was better but overall is there a noticeable lag in between flasher and Helix?

I like the features and the fact you can use in boat and <strong class=”ido-tag-strong”>ice fishing so I would pull the trigger if I knew that the unit functioned identically to the flasher models.

I reduced most of the lag in my original Helix Ice 7 by manually adjusting the bottom 2 to 5 feet below actual depth so the ducer would not try looking past that depth. You have to go into menu settings and take it out of automatic to manual and then adjust it. If you’re fishing in 18′ of water adjust the depth to 20 to 23 feet.

I have had vexilar, Marcum and now a Helix 7 for ice. I have Humminbird on my boat. The big (huge) difference for me is the GPS on the helix. I can put in a lakemaster chip and find all kinds of structure. Also can transfer waypoints from card in my boat to ice unit. I used to carry a handheld GPS. This was a game changer.

I run a Helix 7 G2 and have used fl8, lx5, lx6 and you would not be able to tell the response time difference from the bird compared to any of these units. Main reason I switched from my LX6 was the gps capabilities from the bird which I love. Lithium battery is a huge upgrade for runtime and cutting the weight also. You can also move the zoom to any target area you want like the lx 6/7.

Justin R Van Buren wrote:

What would you say is average runtime with continuous use is on Helix Ice? I have Helix 7 G2 on boat and also am considering which direction to go.

Depending on screen brightness and other display settings, you can get 3-5 hours with a standard 12v. Lithium will give you 14-16 hrs.

The Helix 7 G2 is the best ice fishing graph I’ve ever laid hands on. I was disappointed with battery life, but adding a 12amp Energized Outdoors (now Amped Outdoors) lithium battery was a game changer. Shaved about 3 lbs off, which makes it feel like there’s no battery at all, and tripled or quadrupled the battery life. It was only 5-6 hours tops on the stock battery, even with the screen dimmed. Now you can fish it all day and then some.

I can’t recall off the top of the head what the difference between the G2 and G3 was, but I remember not being impressed with the ‘upgrades’ when I read about them. None of it was useful to me. Bluetooth something or other.

I know I sound like a broken record, but take a solid look at a 73cv Plus Garmin ice bundle.

I’ve fished it head-to-head with a Helix 7 g2 and it’s hands down a better unit.

B-man wrote:

73cv Plus Garmin ice bundle.

Curious why you think the Garmin is better, as I don’t hear much about it? I just purchased a Marcum LX6 Lithium (my first ice fishing finder), but thought about the Humminbird and ow the Garmin 73cv.

THe maps are nice on both units, but don’t really need them since I use my GPS and phone too. Thanks!

In nutshell, the Echomap PLUS line is a step above the Helix. (I own some Helix’s).

The screen is crisper.

The detail is better.

It’s more intuitive.

It has a Touchscreen, which is awesome for changing settings on the fly. A “pinch and a flick” changes your zoom size and zoom area in 1 second. No need to hit buttons and go into a menu.

You just raised a fish out of your zoom range? No problem. Simply slide your finger on the screen, that’s it.

Fishing side by side with a Helix, my buddy would struggle finding his bait in weeds, I have no problem.

The ability to add Panoptics.

It has Favorites buttons (like the Helix) that are extremely handy.

Overall more refined and advanced. It has WiFi and Bluetooth to connect to your phone for updates etc.

Not that you need or want it, but you can even have your text messages pop up on the screen lol

It’s next level schitt….and for the same or less money (less than $600 online for a 7″ Plus)

I’ve used it it 5′ of water with weeds, to over 200′ with solid rock bottom. It flat out performs.

Make sure to look at a “Plus” unit. If it doesn’t say Plus, it doesn’t have the touchscreen/wifi/Bluetooth.

About the only thing I think is better about the Helix, is the ability of using Lakemaster. The Bird is a nice unit (not bashing them at all), but an Echomap plus is simply better.

The Helix is more on par with the features of a Garmin Striker series, which are even less money yet. They offer a 5″ ice bundle for around $300.

B-man wrote:

In nutshell, the Echomap PLUS line is a step above the Helix. (I own some Helix’s).

The screen is crisper.

The detail is better.

It’s more intuitive.

It has a Touchscreen, which is awesome for changing settings on the fly. A “pinch and a flick” changes your zoom size and zoom area in 1 second. No need to hit buttons and go into a menu.

You just raised a fish out of your zoom range? No problem. Simply slide your finger on the screen, that’s it.

Fishing side by side with a Helix, my buddy would struggle finding his bait in weeds, I have no problem.

The ability to add Panoptics.

It has Favorites buttons (like the Helix) that are extremely handy.

Overall more refined and advanced. It has WiFi and Bluetooth to connect to your phone for updates etc.

Not that you need or want it, but you can even have your text messages pop up on the screen lol

It’s next level schitt….and for the same or less money (less than $600 online for a 7″ Plus)

I’ve used it it 5′ of water with weeds, to over 200′ with solid rock bottom. It flat out performs.

Make sure to look at a “Plus” unit. If it doesn’t say Plus, it doesn’t have the touchscreen/wifi/Bluetooth.

About the only thing I think is better about the Helix, is the ability of using Lakemaster. The Bird is a nice unit (not bashing them at all), but an Echomap plus is simply better.

The Helix is more on par with the features of a Garmin Striker series, which are even less money yet. They offer a 5″ ice bundle for around $300.

Any idea what the target separation is on the Garmin unit?

I don’t know if they even have a spec for it, but it’s good

Amazing detail, even in deep water. You can make out the 1/2″ twitches clear as day on the graph in 32′ of water.

Attachments:

1. 

   IMG_20190125_194543.jpg
   

Here’s the only video I have of it in action.

You can see in the history the fish was actually scared by the bait coming down.

Keep in mind everything is easily customizable, gain, zoom range and zoom location are right there with a finger tip. Scroll speed and cone degrees (including chirp) are easily found and edited in the menu.

I like having the scroll set slow like in the video, mainly when using a split screen (it’s in full screen in the video, typically I’d have it set a little faster if just using that screen).

The speed it’s at in the video shows about a full minute of history.

You can have it flying by or slow as a snail, it’s all up to you.

Thanks again for all the replies I’m still torn haha I guess having so many good choices is a pretty good problem to have.