Gee - I don't know about that, but thanks much for the kind words!

thanks for the kind words. that's a sweet ride, and i think you'll be very happy with the fishfinder. if i had to do it all over again, it would still be Garmin.

You're welcome. Yes - I had to buy 3 fish finders before I got the right one.

I love comments like this one. It tells me I'm hitting the mark. Thank you.

glad you found it helpful. i like the Garmin fish finders, as well as their other devices.

Thanks.

hi, if you do any kind of salt water fishing, i'd steer you toward the salt models. the contour lines are invaluable, in addition to having the extra xducer punch. also, there is no guarantee that your particular freshwater bodies are going to be included in the maps.

@@honeybadgervoodoooutdoors7305 I'll probably lean primarily towards saltwater while I'm living near the coast of Virginia, but it would be mostly the inshore regions and rivers, not so much open ocean. I do like the idea of the better quality maps, but I worry the more narrow cone would hurt me in the shallow conditions. That could be a sacrifice worth making though.

When I read comments like these, I know I'm doing something right. Thanks man. Hit me up if you want to fish together.

wow how much time you drive every day?

Hi, I don't think I can make a recommendation based on River versus Lake versus ocean. I think a better way to think of it might be shallow water versus deep water (100 feet plus). I am primarily an ocean guy, and what I have noticed is that the lower tier Lowrance units like the "Hook" units appeared to struggle in deeper water. I don't think their transducers have enough punch in those conditions. As you may know, I am primarily a kayak fisherman, which limits me in terms of screen size. If I had to choose one unit today, I would probably go with this: Garmin ECHOMAP UHD 74Cv, or if you want the side view, Garmin ECHOMAP UHD 74SV.

I don't mind at all. Yes - make sure you pick up the "Plus" variation. The ability to draw your own contour maps is worth the extra price of admission, imo.

Glad to hear that you found it helpful.

Glad I could help.

well, i would keep the 63cv over the Striker 5cv, and probably over the Humminbird and Lowrance units. that extra 1" of screen real estate is nice to have, believe it or not. it allows you to split the screen into two parts: navigation and sonar - so the more real estate you have, the better off you'll be. i'd pay an extra $100 for that alone. also, where do you fish? strictly shallow? strictly freshwater? if you fish deep water (maybe 100'+), the low to mid-range Lowrance units really struggle. that UHD transducer is a kick-ass one, from what i'm reading and hearing. i'm primarily an ocean guy, so the side imaging is the feature that i'll use the least - it doesn't make sense for me when i'm fishing 200' of water.

and the built-in maps are really nice to have. when fishing new water, nothing is more important than understanding the lay of the land. and if you ever decide to go ocean fishing, you could just buy the older oceanic maps on eBay for like $40 and enjoy the benefits of having the contour maps - huge advantage. make sure the older maps are compatible with your unit first, tho.

@@honeybadgervoodoooutdoors7305 live in Texas, fresh water bass guy. Most lakes I fish are less than 70ft. Really don’t fish deeper than 20ft. But that can change now that I have a fish finder. And I agree the screen is nice to have. But I would of been okay with the 5. Shoot when I started looking I was just thinking of the striker 4 plus cv. Somehow I ended up with the echo map. Lol. Maybe that’s why I’m not sure how to feel cause I stretched so far. I also already have navionics on an app on my phone that gives me the same thing the echo map does. Though I understand having that in my unit and marking way points is what I want. Guess I’d feel better if it had SV or was on sale or just flat out cheaper. Does the QuickDraw on the other units look as detailed as the navionics? And can you mark way points on them? Thanks so much for taking the time to answer. Much appreciated!!

@@jasonhiatt2426 if all you're going to do is fish fresh shallow water, then i'd agree that having the SV might trump having better electronics (transducer / GPS). i'd imagine the Quickdraw is pretty darn accurate - you're getting it straight from the unit itself. i've not used Navionics before - i refuse to put my expensive phone at risk out on the ocean, and having to bounce my eyes back betw two devices is a no-go for me. i want to see everything on one screen. navigating back to a spot is hard enough when everything is on one screen, let alone two. and the ability to mark waypoints on your ff is one feature i would never, ever, give up. i know some of the Lowrance units don't have GPS built-in, and that makes zero sense to me. outside of the traditions 2D sonar, navigation is the second most important feature, imo. good luck!

Well, to be honest - it was a lot of hit n miss before I realized what model was right for me :)

Honeybadger VooDoo Outdoors lol, this is the issue I'm having right now. These things are expensive and trying to figure out which unit to buy is doing my head in :/

@@officialWWM Yes, it can be pretty dizzying. Check the video description - I have a summary of recommendations.

Honeybadger VooDoo Outdoors Thanks, in the end I just went with a Lowrance 9 Ti. I haven't installed it yet but I'm sure it will do everything I need it to :)

@@officialWWM Not too shabby :)

hi, to the best of my knowledge, all recent Garmin units have GPS built-in. that's essentially what they are famous for. the little button that looks like a teardrop (next to the power button) is the button that drops the GPS marks, i believe. and if you switch over to the navigation screen (or split the screen into Navi and Sonar), you should be able to see the GPS marks that you've dropped.

Thanks for the feedback!

Thanks - I know what you mean about choosing your first fish finder. I had to go through three iterations before I figured out what I needed, and why.

solid fish finder. that model is very close to what i run, and i'm completely happy with mine. the "4" in "64cv" implies it's a model that's geared for the ocean - it will come with contour maps of the ocean.

so i started with the 64cv g2 with the CV23 Transducer, then upgraded the Transducer to the GT23. as i mentioned, very happy. screen is just the right size for my kayak (although 7" is good, too), and it's not touchscreen, which i prefer.

Thank you for replying I watched most of your videos and have garnered a better understanding of ocean fishing. I’m going to be fishing the Newport and Dana point area once my kayak arrives. This is my first kayak so I am just trying to learn as much as I can. Again your videos are very informative.

@@rockyfeathers Enjoy your new fish finder!

For transparency's sake, I should state again that Garmin is not sponsoring me in any way, shape, or form. I just don't get it...I have in upwards of 1K subscribers - why haven't I made it onto their radar??? Lol.

Gosh darnit - not sure what happened to my first reply. I think my math may have been off - I'm still learning. I think the right formula for projecting cone diameter is =DEPTH*(2*(Tan(RADIANS(BEAM_ANGLE/2)))). It would work in Excel or Google Sheets.

I think you'll like it. If you're fishing the ocean, the GPS accuracy will likely be negligible - you'll have zero obstructions of the sky. A lake that's hidden away under steep peaks may favor Garmin, but who knows. Garmin's version of the social maps is called the "Quickdraw community", and it's pretty sparse too. But the ability to create your own maps is pretty invaluable for small bodies of water that aren't part of the map system. And if you're putting slime on your screen, it means you're catching fish, lol.

How do you like it?

@@officialWWM I'm pretty happy with the lowrance elite 7 ti. Though, sometimes when I see Honeybadger's screen shots I feel like his CHIRP image is slightly better than mine possibly due to a better/upgraded transducer? I need to try looking at the same spots as him side by side. Touchscreen hasn't been an issue at all. I've been able to do sick google maps overlays with my lowrance so I'm pretty stoked on that.

cheethoe thanks for the feedback. I need to buy a new unit and it's a minefield out there!

@@officialWWM I should also mention, one feature I really like with my lowrance is I can do a split screen bottom lock so I can zoom in on the bottom structure as well as view the entire water column at the same time so I don't miss bait balls or mid column/top water fish

Thanks for the kind words. I'm a Garmin guy and I've bought into their ecosystem: hiking, biking, fishfinders, etc. I use a product called "Duct Seal" to situate my fishfinder transducer. Here is video link: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/hd6PZpl6v67Je6M.html

Also, choosing the right fishfinder can be daunting. Here is video that shows what to look for. I have to warn you though - it's long and maybe boring: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/qamqd7FztaqomZs.html

@@honeybadgervoodoooutdoors7305 Thanks for the info. I absolutely thought that the transducer wouldn't work through a material like the plastic hull but apparently I was wrong. Good to know.

@@jimkern7922 You are welcome. Get out there and have fun, man.

Thanks for the kind words. Are you primarily a fresh or salt guy?

Echomap Plus G3 94SV: bit.ly/30xju4p

hi, the contour maps you're referring to are just examples coming from a website, i believe. in any case, i believe the newest iteration of maps is G3, although i couldn't tell you if they are any more detailed than the G2. if your unit has a microSD slot, you should be able to buy the G3 maps and use them on your unit.

According to Garmin, the "UHD" will provide better resolution for the ClearVu and SideVu imaging, and doesn't impact the 2D sonar.

I have not used the vivid series, but I have used the striker series before, and they are good units. If you need and built in maps, the eggo map series is the way to go.

@@honeybadgervoodoooutdoors7305 thanks. Trying to know the different btw these two and purchase one of em.

@@HiJack0501 the "Plus" in Garmin lingo typically means you can draw your own underwater contour maps. i think it's worth the premium.

@@honeybadgervoodoooutdoors7305 I just double check the vivid version. It also has quickdraw contours function. I guess i need to call Garmin to find out the difference. Ordered 2 Old Town Salty PDL 120 with my friend. Hopefully getting them soon and meet you on the water. Cheers

I just seem the PLUS series belong to MARINE | FISHFINDERS | PREVIOUS MODELS.....so VIVID could be the upgraded version of PLUS. when i open Garmin official web, i cannot find PLUS shown on the page, gotta search the model # to view spec page.

I'll be completely honest - I may be working with outdated data. Everything I say should be taken with a grain of salt :)

@@honeybadgervoodoooutdoors7305 That's cool. Actually, I moved to China some years back and there, until perhaps 6-7 years ago, the GPS was really out of whack. As much as a 200m. They have since stopped messing with it.

In general, I'm very happy with the 64cv. It comes with ocean maps and no freshwater maps, but virtually all the lakes I go to are in the Eastern Sierra area, and I doubt that the freshwater series would have maps for them either. The narrow cone angle isn't ideal for shallow water - for example, in 40' of water, my cone diameter would only be about 26' (as opposed to 80' with freshwater model like the Echomap 53cv). Actually, now that I think about it, I think an 80' cone in 40' of water is too big. I think the smaller beam angle begins to pay dividends after about 30', and many of the Eastern Sierra lakes are glacial-formed lakes that are 40'+++.