tedroost wrote:

Please explain how you eliminate interference and your settings. My buddy has a helix 5. It seems his screen is full of clutter whether by a my marcums or vexilars the whole time and pretty sure he can’t see the bottom six inches. I’ve noticed this on two hum ice graphs. Yes way better lakemaster contours than navionics by phone. But I am not impressed by the helix ice units. I don’t have one so I’ve put zero effort in trying to figure out there settings for them.

Does your buddy have this years Model Helix 5 G2 ? or does he have the first generation Helix 5? Have you seen a New Helix G2 in action on the ice?? They are a big difference from the first generation Helix’s and I’m pretty sure you would be impressed. On the Helix 5 G2 version you can easily get rid of interference by going thru the Six chirp interference rejection settings.

I thought it was only the G2N that had autochart?
I just ordered the G2 and didn’t think I saw autochart.
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The regular G2 has autochart as well as the G2N, check it out its listed right under the G2 on hummingbird.com

I have yet to use my new Helix 7 G2 on the ice but am patiently waiting for the ice to form here so I can get out. I cant wait to stop playing with it on the kitchen table and get it out there to do some real world testing. I will let you know my findings once I have been out with it a few times. For now here are some of the differences between the Gen 1 and Gen 2 Helix’s.

This new Ice Helix Chirp G2 is quite abit different compared to the Gen1 series Helix, It has the new chirp transducer, includes much improved preloaded basemap VS old uni map, has more screen(view) choices more tailored to ice fishing VS only basic ice views, much better IR (due to chirp), a better resolution screen, autochart live (make your own lake maps)

The Ice Helix Gen1 – no autochart live, basemap old uni map(much less detailed maps), no chirp transducer, less screen resolution, only basic ice views, and only(3)IR settings low/med/high.

glenn-d wrote:

You can save,add,delete a waypoint on your phone W/Navionics no problem.

This is just my 2cents worth but for me Navonics on the phone isn’t that good, its better than nothing, but that’s it. I’ve been out a quite few times in Northern Minnesota, Northern Wisconsin and South Dakota where signal is so poor phone cant locate where you are and put you on the map, plus this will drain your phone searching. Navonics maps don’t have close to the detail of the Lakemaster Chips and don’t show the holes & humps in alot of places. My old lowrance h2oc or my H-Bird with lakemaster chip do a much better job of this and run all day without using up the battery on your phone to.

adubs11,
-Sounds like you cant go wrong with that deal at your local Scheels!

Though I think your gonna wanna keep that Helix7 G2. If anything next year buy the Lx7 and have both! A guy can dream right!

The New Helix 7 G2 has the New chirp transducer 15-21 degree adjustable anywhere from 15to21. It is not 20-60 degree like on the old Helix series, versus the Lx7’s 8-20 degree transducer, on the LX7 its either on narrow 8 degree or wide beam 20 degree.

Pailofperch wrote:

I was in the same position. I got talked into the lx7 by a couple guys at the show who had tried/owned both.I also liked that for any service i would need on the marcum would be done in Minneapolis.

I question weather the couple guys you talked to at the show have used the New Helix G2 Ice Series that is New this winter, last years Helix was a quite a bit different than this years Helix7 G2 Ice with chirp, this new Helix G2 has a whole new platform just for ice fishing.

This years Helix 7 G2 has Chirp transducer, includes much improved preloaded basemap vs old uni map, has more screen (view) choices more tailored to ice fishing vs having a simple circular flasher view, includes a customizable ice views vs fixed, better IR (due to chirp), better resolution screen, includes offer to download a free chartselect map upon purchase, has autochart live (make your own lake maps)

Last years Helix 7 Ice – no autochart live, no chirp transducer, less screen resolution, only basic views, low/med/high IR (you can tune out some interferences)

I’ve had both the LX7 and now have this years New model Helix 7 G2 Ice Series and will say after playing with it for awhile I think this is gonna be one nice unit, reminds me of the LX7 but with a Gps and now with Lakemaster maping, seems like a pretty sweet unit.

The Sportsmans Guide doesn’t charge any out of state tax or any sales tax on shipping!? The only time you pay tax there is if your from Minnesota too just like they are, then you pay tax on the item only, never tax on the shipping!? I live in Wisconsin and have bought quite abit of stuff from them & have never paid any tax. Yes there is shipping but it is only $20 and that still puts the entire Helix 7 Ice G2 unit to your house for only $ 499.00 I was just putting it out there for info for anybody looking for one, cause I think its a pretty good deal.

The Sportsman Guide just had a sweet deal on the New Helix 7 Ice G2 units when members bought them on there member “double discount promo” There normal price for members was $539 before the double discount, but under the double discount promo they were 20% off which brought them down to $480 + shipping for the Helix 7 Ice G2 Unit, that’s a pretty good deal! They do offer the double discount pretty regularly, just thought some people might like to know.

Lx7 by a mile, Flx 28 is nothing innovative, it isn’t even a digital unit. The Lx7 you can change the display so many more ways. There are many posts on these two do a search and I’m sure you’ll find lots of info. I am sure you will like whichever you choose.

I own both and they are both nice units. The LX5 has better Target separation and a real zoom on it. The LX5 in schools of fish is better for picking out the different sizes of fish and not making them all blend together and NO I have no affliation with Marcum whatsoever, Thats just my 2 cents worth. As they all say any flasher is better than having NO flasher!

FYI – MarCum has already sold through their first production forecast on the LX9.

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So what does that mean they didnt plan well enough for demand? maybe they could have sold even more if it was made with a GPS to?

They should offer the LX7 series in a couple configurations. One with the LX7 platform with a GPS(the LX8) and one with the LX7 platform with camera(the LX9)Seems to me Marcum is not listening to what a good number of consumers want, I know Lowrance has got to be very happy Marcum wont design the Gps into there units cause all the sales of the Elite 5 ice machine last year and again this coming winter. I work for a major sporting goods store in the Northern Midwest and I know for sure we would have sold alot more Marcums if they would have had the GPS integreted in the LX7 last year already. All I would ever here out of half of the guys in shopping for a new ice fishing flasher “does this new Marcum have a GPS in it?” The price of a GPS integreted into the LX7 flasher unit alone shouldnt raise the price much more than a couple hundred bucks more than a regular Lx7.

You guys dont seem to understand that if they would just put a GPS in this head unit you would be able to mount the 8 inch head right to your atv/ snowmachine/ truck with a quick detach RAM bracket and take it back off once to fishing hole and then use as flasher/camera in the case. I surely would much more prefer the LX’s 8 inch screen for navigating from spot to spot over looking at my little 2.5″ handheld GPS screen or little smart phone screen. Now thats what I’m talkin about.

I dont think Marcum asked many of the Ice anglers there input, almost all the ice anglers I know, ask, or talk to on the internet keep saying they want a flasher with a GPS like lowrance offers, I would say Marcum didnt listen to many ice anglers and just did whatever they wanted. I have both an LX7 and VS825sd and by no means want them in the same unit, doesnt really make a whole lot of sense to me what are you gonna do have the camera down the same hole as your transducer? That isnt gonna work very well when catchn fish wrappn your line around the cord, plus markin the tranducer on your flasher all day sucks to. Oh yea you could put the cord for the camera a few feet over in a different hole and look back towards your bait, but I bet your gonna still mark the camera head on the flasher if your in deep enough water. Plus when you buy both of these units separately someone else can use the one your not using, makes more sense. I bet the battery life isnt very good on this baby unless they put an entirely different battery setup in them, those cameras use alot more battery than the flasher does. You can only use a VS825sd at best all day for 6 to 8 hrs on a full charge on a 9amp 12volt now your gonna run a flasher too at the same time on the same single battery? Whats that gonna last out in the field about 4or5 hours? No Thanks, I’ll stick to purchasing the 2 units separately and keep hoping someday Marcum will really listen to the the consumer and make a flasher with the GPS integreted into it.

James,

You seem to be in the know, when are we gonna be able to get this update somewhere? Isnt it available yet? I mean if you can buy a new one with ver 2.9 on it already how come they havent released it to all of us who bought these first and were the guinea pigs per say.
Thank you for any light you may be able to shed on this matter.
-skiman

Sent my 2nd one back on Friday, very disappointed in the LX7. Depth was always reading wrong, thing would always lose my settings, the target adjust was terrible, no super fine line, no dynamic depth, screen flickering, no updates from Marcum in a timely fashion. Couldnt read in direct sunlight I dont care what they say, huge glare off screen in direct sun.

Glad I bought from Cabelas so I had 60 days to return. Now to try to get another LX5 like I had, that unit is a much better unit than the LX7, from my own hands on experience. Marcum really dropped the ball on this one. I will not buy another LX7 period.

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Just got off the phone with Marcum customer service. Try this…

If the unit is not powering on. Disconnect the Red (positive) lead from the battery for at least 15 seconds. After the red lead has been disconnected Hold down the power button and continue to hold it down while re-connecting the red lead. Continue to hold the power button until the LX-7 logo appears. (this could take 15 seconds). This is a hard re-set of sorts, and should resolve the issue.

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OK I tryed that, it also did not work. No power up.

I just tryed it again, believe me we held the button down for like 30seconds maybe even a minute long, everybody here did, still nothing lights her up. We had the unit completly disconnected from everything out of the shuttlecase reconnected everything good, turned over & flipped upside down checked it all over and still know go! Checked for output at power cable right before it goes into powerhead and it is at 13.1 volts going into unit. Were pretty sure we got a bad one

Mine also came today from Cabelas, and it also would not power up, brought to the electic shop at work here and tested with ohm meter battery is good, powerhead on unit is junk. Not to impressed. Not only that but I get on this website tonight and here i’m the 3rd one already reporting a DOA on arrival. Whats up with that? They cant even test these things before they ship? and Im leaving for a fishin trip tomorrow without a flasher. Nice, Huh? Just great