getting better images on my depth finder??

[rww1977]

anyone out there got an good information on setting up a depthfinder? I have just your basic depth finder, Lowrance Mark 5x, and am wondering what I should do to get better imaging from it. Really having trouble distguishing the fish archs and shad groups, and so on. I've read the the manual that came with it, but it is fairly basic and haven't found much on the internet. Really wondering about the ping speed, sensitivity, and other stuff that I need to be using while longline trollling. Or would I be better off just setting everything to auto? Anything that you guys can share would be greatly appreciated.

[Willbreaku]

hey hope this will help you out look up this thread getting the most from your graph (sonar,sounder,fishfinder thangy,etc.)

[genec]

I never use auto,set sensitivity around 72 .but would like to see pics with shad,fish,brush to see how its looking

[Lonestar Proud]

Go to the Texas Fishing Forum site and send a PM to Jason Gilstrap, he's a field rep with Lowrance and he'll help you out.

[Lonestar Proud]

Go to the Texas Fishing Forum site and send a PM to Jason Gilstrap, he's a field rep with Lowrance and he'll help you out.

Actually Jason has been on this site as well so try sending him a PM here first but if you don't get a response go to the other site, he's on there all the time and answers his messages quickly.

[Crestliner08]

I've been playing with sonars since my first "Green Box" back in the '70's. I do a lot of deep, off-shore fishing for both crappie, smallmouth bass and white perch. Have spoken to a lot of good fishermen and professionals on proper sonar set-up. There is a lot of varying opinions, but generally, this will get you up & running pretty fast and effectively:

1) Fish I.D. - Do NOT use these "Fishy" symbols. This feature is available on a lot of sonars, but reduces the effectiveness of separating fish from cover. Fun to look at, but counter productive.

2) Ping Speed - Set to maximum setting and leave it there.

3) Chart Speed - If an available adjustment, set it at about 70%, so that Ping Speed can saturate the particular spot you are looking at for best detail.

4) Sensitivity - Depends on how fast you are moving. If slow trolling or anchored, best to have it around 70 - 80%. This is high if you are moving fast, but reduces the surface clutter. This must be adjusted so that the area you want to see (i.e.: lower third of the water column) has less clutter, but the upper third has a lot. Will insure you do not miss anything.

Now the newer, fancier sonars (with side and down imaging) will probably require different settings, but for sonars made up to about 3 years ago, these settings should work just fine for you. Hope this is of some help. :D

[rww1977]

thanks everybody for the help. I appreciate it alot.

[jimp]

on the Mark 5, the ping speed also changes the scroll speed on the display ie slower ping speed = slower scrolling of the info on the screen (on the Mark Pro 5 it does anyways)

Lots of people talk about the "arches vs the fish symbols" but I've never been able to get one adjusted to show a complete arch, just a partial, either the front or back side of the arch, which is annoying to me so I use the symbols. I've never had a high $$ FF either, and wonder if its even possible on the low $$ ones.

I would suggest you go out for some play time and troll/LL over the same structure with different settings to see which one you like/prefer the best. It takes time, but a few hours doing this will get it set to your preferences so you will begin to trust the picture you see on the screen. If you just try different settings and see what changes for the good or bad.

On the Pro 5, you have several different screens you can select from due to the dual beams (83/200) so you have a split screen for each freq, an old school flasher or either one of the frequency's that you select, either 83 or 200 or both.

[rww1977]

I never use auto,set sensitivity around 72 .but would like to see pics with shad,fish,brush to see how its looking

Thanks genec, I'll try to get some pictures of what I'm seeing on the screen and maybe you'll be able to me out more. It could very well be that I just don't understand what I'm looking at and the images are fine. After all, I am brand new to crappie fishing.

[rww1977]

on the Mark 5, the ping speed also changes the scroll speed on the display ie slower ping speed = slower scrolling of the info on the screen (on the Mark Pro 5 it does anyways)

Lots of people talk about the "arches vs the fish symbols" but I've never been able to get one adjusted to show a complete arch, just a partial, either the front or back side of the arch, which is annoying to me so I use the symbols. I've never had a high $$ FF either, and wonder if its even possible on the low $$ ones.

I would suggest you go out for some play time and troll/LL over the same structure with different settings to see which one you like/prefer the best. It takes time, but a few hours doing this will get it set to your preferences so you will begin to trust the picture you see on the screen. If you just try different settings and see what changes for the good or bad.

On the Pro 5, you have several different screens you can select from due to the dual beams (83/200) so you have a split screen for each freq, an old school flasher or either one of the frequency's that you select, either 83 or 200 or both.

Thanks alot. I just have the 5x and not the 5x pro. I can adjust ping rate but not scrool speed of frequency. At least not that I can tell. like I said earlier, it could just be that I'm not understanding what I'm seeing on the display, and the images are fine.