fish finders

[Mark]

Alrighty boys and girls,

There are well over 300 members on this sight now and I assume some of you have opinions and experiences when it comes to fishfinders.

I've narrowed it down to Garmin and Furuno, specifically the Garmin 240 Blue and 320C Blue versus the Furuno 600L and 6100.

Please don't base your thoughts and opinions on simple reputation. I know that Furuno has a more prestigious name and longer track record, but I would like to hear from actual users of both. ( a Casio keeps far better time than a Rolex, I know).

If you don't own any of these units or have personal experience with them, please stay on the sidelines with me and read what others have to say.

I would like to hear the good as well as the bad please/
mark

[FELLOW-SHIP]

I OWN A FURUNO 600L FOR ABOUT 9 MONTHS NOW MOUNTED ON MY 23 WITH THE DUCER THROUGH THE HULL ABOUT 4 FEET FROM THE TRANSOM ON THE CENTER LINE (HAS THE SPEED AND TEMP). I LOVE THE UNIT BIG ENOUGH TO READ WELL AND YET SMALL ENOUGH TO FIT IN MY CONFIGURATION. YOU CAN READ IT WHILE YOU RUN THE BOAT AS 4000 RPM’S READS THE BOTTOM WELL AND I HAVE READ ALL THE WAY DOWN TO 1500 ‘ WITH NO PROBLEMS. IF I HAD TO BUY ANOTHER UNIT TODAY FOR THIS BOAT I WOULD NOT CHANGE A THING. I WENT WITH THE GARMIN 182 FOR MY GPS IF I HAD THAT TO DO OVER AGAIN I WOULD GET THEIR COLOR 182 NOW THAT THEY ARE AVAILABLE.
FELLOW-SHIP [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Mark]

Fellow-Ship, thanks for the report/
mark

[Scott]

Mark....

I'll admit right up front ....I'm Furuno biased...Its what I have been around all my fishing life and all the private and commercial boat I have been on and worked for (the private boats especially ... where money was no object and they could have anything they wanted and demanded only top of the line stuff) had Furuno units...

I too am interested in the sounders that you have made mention of above....with the addition of the Furuno 582.....A couple of weeks ago I looked at some machines (Furuno stand alone units and Garmin plotters with the “black box” add on fishfinder for the 2006, 2010) I liked the Furuno's (as I mentioned above) I really liked the Garmin plotters .... but when he switched the screen to the fish finder for the Garmin and I saw "fish" symbols all over the place simulating fish .....we'll I wasn’t to pleased .... He saw my displeasure in the symbols.... and of course there is a screen to get rid of stuff like that....once the "fish" were gone and showed as regular echo return I was much happier.... its really not a bad machine..in fact it’s a machine in the running. (the fishfinder on the 2010 was real nice [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] )

I’m telling you about the Garmin plotter as the "black box" is apparently, to some degree equivalent to what the stand alone 320 is suppose to be (they didn’t have a 320C set up yet)....I tried in vain to talk to the guys at the Garmin booth at the boat show but every time we went pass it wasn’t going to happen!!! I have heard from some electronics guys that sell both Furuno and Garmin that this new sounder , the Garmin 320C, will definitely be in the mix with the best recorders..

I did finally get to the Furuno booth as I had other things I wanted to discuss with them .... I have been hot on the trail of the 582 and I asked the Furuno guys about the two machines, the 600 and the 582...really thinking they would go right to the 582 (almost twice as much $$) and I was surprised they felt that the 600 was more than adequate for a boat of this size, They felt unless I was constantly in real deep water (canyon type water at least for us NE guys) that the other machine was not needed...

To compare them this is what I see...

Furuno 600: 3.5 x 4.75 screen, 350 watts power, 0-1500'depth scale, 2 year warranty, $700 (give or take) physical dimensions 8.9h x 8.7w x 4.1d

Garmin 320C: 2.9 x 4.0 screen, 500 watts, 0-1,500'depth scale, 1 year warranty $700 (give or take) physical dimensions 6.2h x 6.3w x 3.25d

Furuno 582: 4.0 x 5.3 screen, 600 watts, 0-4,000 depth scale, 2 year warranty, $1,200 (give or take) physical dimensions 9.5h x 9.0w x 4.6d

They all have TFT screens for better daylight vision, all sorts of different screen options , colors, alarms, speed and temp, dual frequency 50/200, “waterproof” and so on…..

I still must admit I'm always drawn to the Furuno 582 as the screen always seems brighter and it is larger... for wreck fishing and diving (finding wrecks) more power will ultimately yield better detail on the floor especially for deeper water….

I can’t see you going wrong with any of them and there are lots of others out there too (Si-Tex, Lowrance etc) you get the idea…..personal preferences, features, what your going to use it for, physical size of the unit and space to mount it in (I forget what size boat you have)

Consumer Marine had nothing bad to say about any of them , they liked the 320C(felt it would be very strong competition for other units in the same price range, the 600 has been around and proven itself…..and said if I was willing to pay the extra for the 582 it was a good mix of both getting higher power and a larger screen

All boils down to how your going to use it [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[Mark]

Scott,

Thanks for taking the time to go into such detail. It's going into the electronics box in a t-top on a 20'CC.

I've had Furuno (DGPS) as well as Garmin (fishfinder) products in the past, and have actually been rather pleased with both.

The price tag and the dimensions on the 582 probably put it out of the running for a 20' foot boats needs.

I guess the next logical step for me is to go find a place that has the 600L and 320C in stock and running side by side. As you said, they are right around the same price.

Thanks again/
mark

[Reel Smoker]

I have the Furunno 667 it has been a great unit the only draw back is when the sun hits it straight you cant see it. I just ordered the 188c from Garmin its a chart plotter and a fish finder, the colors are great, plus Ill be able to see it in direct sunlight.I like the Furuno 582

[Scott]

Mark
Not a problem....It was easy since we're looking at the same stuff and the boat shows always offer great opportunities to get some good info on the stuff.

I think either unit would be great for the 20' and with space constraints in a radio box that Garmin seems like a front runner. I would definitely look local to get my hands on both units then I would suggest giving Consumer Marine a call ..... they are extremely helpful and can answer questions on both units (and many more) and unless you ask for their personal favorites they have never played games (this ones better than that) with me at least....they feel that there is something to fit everyone’s taste, budget, size constraints etc...
PLUS Boat show prices are in effect I think until Sunday (as they have just come off the Atlantic City show and are heading down to Miami on Wednesday . I have called them during shows in the past, that I didn’t even realize were going on, and received the show price) I'm not sure, as I haven’t asked, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they came down about hundred on either of those units....I purchased a Standard Horizon Fuel sensor (catalog lists for $198 there was a rebate already available for it for $75 then they took another $23-30 off of that....cost to me $95….they have good prices all of the time but during shows that they are attending …. Wow you have to be careful in that store !!!! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Jon G]

To make a long story short I will be getting the Furuno 6100 this spring. I checked around and people that have them like them.

[deepsushi]

Mark,

You have a wide selection of fish finders from different price levels -- a bit like comparing apples to oranges. However, I think your choice of fish finders depends a lot on whether you are a hardcore fisherman or just a person who occasionally wets a line. You didn’t specify which category you fit in but if you are a hardcore fisherman I would definitely stick with Furuno (another biased furuno person). A friend of mine has the Furuno 582l and it’s a very impressive machine and if I was purchasing a new fish finder this is the unit that I would purchase. I have also heard very good things about the Furuno (6100?) and it seems to be viewed as the best lower priced unit on the market.

Currently, I have a monochrome Raytheon CRT unit on the boat that works fine and I am happy with. I use the machine primarily to find specific bottom structure such as humps/ muscle beds/ holes/ where the stripers like to hang out- seeing actual fish is secondary. However, I wish my unit was a color unit as I find the color screens really helps me to determine the fish type/size, bottom composition, as well as seeing the fish laying up tight against the bottom. When I find my seacraft it will definitely be getting a color machine! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

I am leery of those Garmins since I wonder if the engineers/ designers at Garmin have ever spent any time out riding around on a small boat? A boat is stressful environment and the wiring /mount/transducers that Garmin utilizes IMHO are complete pieces of crap. I can see myself breaking that flimsy Garmin plastic mounting bracket trying to install the thing never mind when someone accidentally bumps the unit while you are running. The Garmin fish finders may work fine but I don’t want something that’s going to fall apart in a year on my boat.

Bottom line (no pun intended) is that whatever fish finder you choose, once you learn how to interpret what the screen is telling you a sounder becomes an extremely valuable tool.

p.s when I have had the chance to fish on other boats where money is no object ( Merritt, Blackfin, Hatteras, Bertram) they have all had Furuno sounders....

[cSickNick]

Looks like a good place to tack on some more Furuno questions, since I was also looking at the 600L.

After talking to the Furuno rep at the Boston Boat show, he talked me out of the 600L and the 582L. He said in direct sunlight they would be difficult to see.

He did state that the 1650F all-in-one unit would not be a problem in direct sunlight. Not sure why, something different in this color TFT LCD screen?

It appears to me that the 1650F is a 582L powered fishfinder with the 600L sized screen all-in-one priced less than the 582L. Since I could use a chartplotter and have limited deck space an all-in-one unit makes sense.

Am I missing something? Does anyone have this 1650F unit? Recommend or others I should be looking at in this price range?

THANKS in advance - Nick