Garmin LSV32 vs LSV34

[mvsmith]

Old member, new account. I haven't posted in a while and never get the email for a password reset and I tried several times. Anywho...

I'm an old school kinda guy and have never really used electronics to fish. I do have a Lowrance HD9 on my boat that I use for water depth and temp but have never really gotten the hang of fish finder although the sonar is nice to find structure at times.

Last fall I went fishing with a friend that had the Lowrance Active target and I gotta say that the technology was pretty sweet. So last month I was at Cabelas upgrading my cheap trolling motor with a MinnKota terrova and picked up a Garmin Echomap on sale. I collected over $300 in points and $125 in gift cards to use in their March sale. I was intent on using my savings to get the Garmin LSV34 for $1699 but they have the LSV32 on sale for $999.

That's quite a price difference so now I'm torn and since I really have zero clue about the difference, is the 34 $700 better or is the 32 $700 less usable? Going new a 2-3 hundred dollar difference is a no brainer, just spend the money once, but to me, $700 is worth considering.

So, my question is; Going in new, would you spend the extra for the 34 or is the 32 good enough. It will be mostly used for crappie on open and flooded timber lakes.

Thanks in advance,

Mike

[BuckeyeCrappie]

I have the 32 and am completely satisfied. Upgrading didn’t make sense financially since my LS isn’t my main method of fishing. There are lots of YouTube videos on you inquiry. Here’s one I found

[parratt1]

I started with the 32, then upgraded to a 34 when a buddy decided to sell his boat. For me personally, it was a waste of money. I can see no discernable difference between the two. Had I known beforehand, I'd never had upgraded to the 34. That's my take and of course ymmv

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[Grainraiser]

I have heard that a 34 shines when you need to scan out further or deeper to your targets. For me a 32 works just fine since I seldom fish water more than 25ft. Never heard anyone with a 34 say it provided a clearer picture.

[mvsmith]

This is encouraging. during the sale using my points and gift cards, I can pick up the 32 unit and transducer for a llttle less than $550. This means I can get into the game with less cold shoulder from the missus. I'm really anxious to put my new Terrova and the livescope to use.

[bamahound]

I have used both. The 32 is best for crappie to me. The 34 is better for offshore, water over 50', and scanning fish over 20lbs at 100' out. I dont think garmin was trying to market the 34 to fisherman looking for 12" 1.5lb fish IMO

[NIMROD]

Big difference when the 32 is zoomed into 30'

[mvsmith]

Big difference when the 32 is zoomed into 30'

You mean as opposed to being zoomed out to 100’ or more?

[slabbandit]

Several of the top guides and competitors that have tried the 34 have gone back to the 32. Personally, I’m running the 34 now but still have my 32. Really didn’t see any improvement for me except in casting a small jig at 40 to 50 feet on suspended schools.


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[Charman03]

Going to have to run it on a separate pole probably or buy a special mount for that terrova. I think you will be happy with the 32