Humminbird Side Scan 981c?

Humminbird Side Scan,

Anybody have any thoughts on Side Scan tech? It looks to be great at finding structure. It's almost cheating, I am thinking of getting my hands on a 981c so far the best price is about $1400 w/o transducer damn thats big bucks for a fish finder but after looking at the image quality I think it's a must have. At least I am trying to convince myself of this, so can anybody shed some light on side scan before I dump big bucks? Thanks

Titanic-recovery technology catches on with anglers

Associated Press

EUFAULA, Ala. - Side-imaging sonar, technology used to locate the wreckage of the Titanic deep in the North Atlantic, is now available to anglers who just want to find a good fishing hole.

Such systems have been used for years in naval warfare, scientific research and underwater mapping, but until recently they were far too costly and cumbersome for the average fisherman.

That has changed with the recent introduction of new "fishing systems" offered by Humminbird, a leading manufacturer of electronic fish finders.

The company hopes the new $2,000 side-imaging sonar systems will become as essential to serious anglers as the tackle box, fishing pole and can of worms. It also predicts the systems will be a hit among divers looking for sunken ships, recovery teams searching for drowning victims, underwater archaeologists and anyone else who needs a view of the depths.

"It is cutting edge," said Gary Caputi, editor of Saltwater Sportsman Magazine. "Nobody else has done anything like this."

Fish-finding technology had improved only incrementally since the mid-1980s, when sonar fish finders with liquid crystal displays were introduced, said Mark Gibson, Humminbird's global products manager.

Sonar fish finders project sound waves directly below the boat and produce two-dimensional images on a display that shows the contour of the water's bottom, the depth and blips representing fish or other objects in the water.

Humminbird's systems not only beam down, they also send sound waves to the side at a 30-degree angle. Their signals are fed into a microprocessor that produces three-dimensional images of objects up to 100 feet below the boat and 240 feet to either side. The images appear on a display similar to those found on laptop computers.

The systems also can be linked to global-positioning navigational gear so anglers can mark prime locations and return to them.

Structures are considered the most desirable spots because fish tend to congregate around them, either to hide from predators or to be predators.

"We were looking for something revolutionary," Gibson said. "We were thinking from the angler's perspective - 'What would I want my fish finder to show me?' I'd want it to show me an image of what's exactly under water.

"Side imaging provides both the high-resolution images and works in all water, whether it's clear or muddy," he said.

During a recent demonstration on Lake Eufaula, Gibson and Dave Betts, Humminbird's research and development manager, cruised slowly across the 45,181-acre lake as detailed images appeared on the display.

They saw a sunken barge and a pile of logs that had spilled out as the vessel went down.

Lake Eufaula, which stretches for 85 miles along the Alabama-Georgia boarder, was created in 1963 by damming the Chattahoochee River. The rising water covered buildings, trees, stumps and all other vestiges of human habitation.

Gibson and Betts have found a submerged swimming pool, a bridge foundation, the remains of a hydroelectric plant and scads of stumps and trees. They can also see schools of fish or larger fish individually.

In military and commercial systems, which can cost more than $100,000, the transducers are either built into a ship's hull or mounted in a torpedo-shaped "towfish" that is too heavy for the average angler to handle.

Humminbird's transducer unit, only six inches long and weighing only a few ounces, can be mounted to either the front or rear of a regular fishing boat.

Developed in the 1960s, side-imaging sonar provided some of the first images of the Titanic, the ocean liner that went down in 12,460 feet of water with 1,500 passengers and crew members in 1912.

The technology also was used to locate the wreckage of John F. Kennedy Jr.'s plane, which went down off Martha's Vineyard in 1999, and again in 2002 to produce some of the first clear images of the USS Monitor, the Civil War ironclad that sank off the North Carolina coast in 1862.

Chad Lewis, an aquatic biologist with Mainstream Commercial Divers of Murray, Ky., said his underwater construction and diving company uses commercial side-scan sonar systems routinely to locate sunken vessels. He was impressed by the quality of the Humminbird images.

"It can't do everything that a high-dollar sonar unit can do, but the image quality is up there with a $100,000 unit," he said.

Pat Hahs, who uses side-scan sonar to map the bottoms of popular fishing areas in western Kentucky, said the Humminbird system produced higher-quality images than his commercial system.

"Fishermen will find it extremely valuable," said Hahs, who produces detailed underwater maps on CDs to help anglers find productive fishing sites.

http://www.humminbird.com/products.asp?ID=511

Check out these 3d pics, what do you think?

http://www.humminbird.com/generic.asp?ID=514

I have a Humminbird Matrix 37, you can get something similar to the side scan called Wideside bank scanning. This works on the 37, 67 and 97 units. I have thought about buying this transducer and a switch to hook up both transducers together. I like the big units but they also come with a big price tag. I am really considering a 97 for the back of the boat. I think you could get one of those units and another transduer and switch cheaper that 981c.

Two quick observations and comments on both this new technology and Humminbird.

First check out http://www.kentuckyhydrografx.com/ and see what Pat Hahs has done with sidescanning equipment. He is currently mapping Jonathon Creek on KY lake and has finished mapping other sections of KY lake such as Blood River and Big Sandy North and South. He combines the sidescanning images with his gps plots and depth plots and overlays them on top of each other and using engineering software to estimate the lines of equal elevations. These contour lines can be manipulated and interpolated to make them any size necessary using his data points. These are by far the most accurate maps availalbe for KY lake although they are not as accurate as I would like to see them be. In the future with better accuracy on the GPS units these maps will truely be as accurate as they claim to be now. We need GPS accuracy in the 1ft range horizontally to get 3D accuracy of 1ft contour levels.

Second I paid out over 800 bucks for a Humminbird LCR 8000 when they first came out. A very good investment back in the early 1980s. Today that unit is still working and being used every time I go fishing. That says something about the quality of the Depth Sounders that Humminbird made and sold. Also Humminbird has a very good service dept if you ever need help. For a fixed fee they will either fix your old unit and ship it back or ship you a newly rebuilt unit with another guarantee. Now that is why I always check out the Humminbird brand.

My past depth sounders are as follows:

Lowrance Little Green Box. worked great for many years and was still working when I sold it.

Humminbird Super 60 flasher. Worked great and may still work today. Not sure what I did with it.

Humminbird LCR 8000 still being used today. Once it was sent to factory for repairs and it's been working good every since. Still works even though on super cold days I can see water vapor condensing on the inside glass of the unit. It still helps me located structure and I can see the fish and get their depth. I can see thermoclines an zoom in on the bottom. It's lacks some of the modern depth sounder features but still works for me.
Now for the sidescanning technology of the new 9XXX series. I would get one in a heart beat if I had the money. Combine that thing with a good gps and a computer and you could make your own maps.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Chicagobullshoals

Humminbird Side Scan,

Anybody have any thoughts on Side Scan tech? It looks to be great at finding structure. It's almost cheating, I am thinking of getting my hands on a 981c so far the best price is about $1400 w/o transducer damn thats big bucks for a fish finder but after looking at the image quality I think it's a must have. At least I am trying to convince myself of this, so can anybody shed some light on side scan before I dump big bucks? Thanks

Titanic-recovery technology catches on with anglers

Associated Press

EUFAULA, Ala. - Side-imaging sonar, technology used to locate the wreckage of the Titanic deep in the North Atlantic, is now available to anglers who just want to find a good fishing hole.

Such systems have been used for years in naval warfare, scientific research and underwater mapping, but until recently they were far too costly and cumbersome for the average fisherman.

That has changed with the recent introduction of new "fishing systems" offered by Humminbird, a leading manufacturer of electronic fish finders.

The company hopes the new $2,000 side-imaging sonar systems will become as essential to serious anglers as the tackle box, fishing pole and can of worms. It also predicts the systems will be a hit among divers looking for sunken ships, recovery teams searching for drowning victims, underwater archaeologists and anyone else who needs a view of the depths.

"It is cutting edge," said Gary Caputi, editor of Saltwater Sportsman Magazine. "Nobody else has done anything like this."

Fish-finding technology had improved only incrementally since the mid-1980s, when sonar fish finders with liquid crystal displays were introduced, said Mark Gibson, Humminbird's global products manager.

Sonar fish finders project sound waves directly below the boat and produce two-dimensional images on a display that shows the contour of the water's bottom, the depth and blips representing fish or other objects in the water.

Humminbird's systems not only beam down, they also send sound waves to the side at a 30-degree angle. Their signals are fed into a microprocessor that produces three-dimensional images of objects up to 100 feet below the boat and 240 feet to either side. The images appear on a display similar to those found on laptop computers.

The systems also can be linked to global-positioning navigational gear so anglers can mark prime locations and return to them.

Structures are considered the most desirable spots because fish tend to congregate around them, either to hide from predators or to be predators.

"We were looking for something revolutionary," Gibson said. "We were thinking from the angler's perspective - 'What would I want my fish finder to show me?' I'd want it to show me an image of what's exactly under water.

"Side imaging provides both the high-resolution images and works in all water, whether it's clear or muddy," he said.

During a recent demonstration on Lake Eufaula, Gibson and Dave Betts, Humminbird's research and development manager, cruised slowly across the 45,181-acre lake as detailed images appeared on the display.

They saw a sunken barge and a pile of logs that had spilled out as the vessel went down.

Lake Eufaula, which stretches for 85 miles along the Alabama-Georgia boarder, was created in 1963 by damming the Chattahoochee River. The rising water covered buildings, trees, stumps and all other vestiges of human habitation.

Gibson and Betts have found a submerged swimming pool, a bridge foundation, the remains of a hydroelectric plant and scads of stumps and trees. They can also see schools of fish or larger fish individually.

In military and commercial systems, which can cost more than $100,000, the transducers are either built into a ship's hull or mounted in a torpedo-shaped "towfish" that is too heavy for the average angler to handle.

Humminbird's transducer unit, only six inches long and weighing only a few ounces, can be mounted to either the front or rear of a regular fishing boat.

Developed in the 1960s, side-imaging sonar provided some of the first images of the Titanic, the ocean liner that went down in 12,460 feet of water with 1,500 passengers and crew members in 1912.

The technology also was used to locate the wreckage of John F. Kennedy Jr.'s plane, which went down off Martha's Vineyard in 1999, and again in 2002 to produce some of the first clear images of the USS Monitor, the Civil War ironclad that sank off the North Carolina coast in 1862.

Chad Lewis, an aquatic biologist with Mainstream Commercial Divers of Murray, Ky., said his underwater construction and diving company uses commercial side-scan sonar systems routinely to locate sunken vessels. He was impressed by the quality of the Humminbird images.

"It can't do everything that a high-dollar sonar unit can do, but the image quality is up there with a $100,000 unit," he said.

Pat Hahs, who uses side-scan sonar to map the bottoms of popular fishing areas in western Kentucky, said the Humminbird system produced higher-quality images than his commercial system.

"Fishermen will find it extremely valuable," said Hahs, who produces detailed underwater maps on CDs to help anglers find productive fishing sites.

http://www.humminbird.com/products.asp?ID=511

Check out these 3d pics, what do you think?

http://www.humminbird.com/generic.asp?ID=514

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i have a humming bird wide view that is 10 years old it has wthe side view . had it on the troling motor . but it didnt show down . when wal-mart built a new store and had a sale i bought a eagle trifinder . it had a troling motor transducer i use it for troling . it showes fish to the side . last time i was at the lake i pulled up next to a RR piling that is open underneath and it showed fish under it . it was showing to the right . when i turned the motor around it showed fish to the left . couldnt git non to bite:D

Side finders have been around for a long time. I used to have one made by Bottom Line. My fishing partner still has 2 of them and still uses it. They are great for looking under piers or into brush on the bank. I'm sure today's technology is a lot better but at those prices it better be.

I have a Fishing Buddy II that has a "sidefinder" feature and it works great. I recently bought a Hummingbird Matrix 37 that will handle a "sidefinder" transducer but I just got the Hummingbird and I am still mastering the features it offers, so it may be next year before I invest in the sidefinder transducer. From what I understand, you can easily switch from one transducer to another. I did get my free barometer attachment to my 37 but I doubt if I attach it until I decide which way I want to attach a GPS unit to my depthfinder and then I will "daisy chain" both attachments into my unit.
I will say I have spotted a number of fish with my new 37, now if I could get them to bite! LOL. The water temperature is only about 45 degrees, I am sure that affects the slow bite. I haven't tried troling yet.

my hummingbird has a switch that mounts on boat dash that changes it to side view . the eagle is all in one transducer.it is mounted on the troling motor . i like it very much. both has worked great . even that i havent learned all the functions on either one i just use them fot depth and see if fish is there i i also have a smart cast i use it ti se under docka and to pinpoint brush piles . papasage

My Matrix 37 also hooks into a Smart Cast accessory if I want to hook one into it. I am not sure if they are cost effective and if independant Smart Cast unit would be better.

With your help and reading all I can find about side scan (thanks for the link Mr. Moose) I was able to justify spending $1600 for a fish finder so I placed a order for the Humminbird 981.

BTW this is a great site when it's working.