Opinions: Lowrance HDS5 Gen2

[Tony123]

Hi guys I'am about to purchase my first yak (hobie revo) and most of my fishing will be out on the shallow areas on the bay..

I wanted to suss out the scope of fishfinders today so I walked into ch marine and talked to one of the guys there, which highly recommended me this fishfinder for about 900 (gold maps and ram mount).


I was wondering if anyone could give me some insights / directions for this or possibly another fishfinder.

Tony

[shane]

It seems a bit of a strange choice to be recommending to you. The HDS5 Gen2 is a couple of years old and is now a discontinued fishfinder. The current model is the Elite 5 CHIRP, which includes DV and CHIRP technology making it a much better buy.

They may have been trying to sell you run-out stock. However if they quoted you $850 + $50 for the RAM, it's a bit odd as they sell the Elite 5 CHIRP including Gold maps for $689. If the price includes structure scan you should question if you need it and even if you can fit the transducer anywhere. On the Revo you also have to consider where you will be mounting the sounder and whether you need a 5" or can do with the 4". The Elite 4 CHIRP costs $449 with gold maps and has the same functionality, just a smaller screen, which can be OK if mounted closer.

CH Smith is usually very good o price for sounders but I've found some of there staff to lack in some knowledge. Maybe do a bit more research then go back and ask some pointed questions.

[Widsa]

Hi Tony,

I'm thinking the HDS is a bit of overkill for a yak, I would look at an elite 5 HDI instead.
you can still get the navionics gold and it has the downscan and normal broadband scanner in the single transducer.
You will save money on this.

I think the HDS has extra features that you are unlikely to use on a yak.
I could be wrong but I'm sure others will chime in.

I have the Elite 7 HDI on my boat and it's fine, I've used the HDS on squizzies boat a lot as well but I don't think there is a lot of difference for the basics you will use. Sounder and maps pretty much work the same.

[Widsa]

Beat me to it Shane.

[bjspinner]

Hi guys I'am about to purchase my first yak (hobie revo) and most of my fishing will be out on the shallow areas on the bay..

I wanted to suss out the scope of fishfinders today so I walked into ch marine and talked to one of the guys there, which highly recommended me this fishfinder for about 900 (gold maps and ram mount).


I was wondering if anyone could give me some insights / directions for this or possibly another fishfinder.

Tony

For that price you can get the sounder $539 a platinum card $309 and your ram mount for around the same money.

I had that sounder on my PA for a while, it was good however it developed a problem after a software update.
I could work around it but CH Smith sent it back and I updated.
I was very happy with the outcome in the end, as for overkill on a yak it depends on your personal requirements and what you can afford at the time.
As Shane said the Elite 5 chirp is a good start..

[MrTall]

Hi Tony welcome to VYak. Congrats on the revo, great yaks imo.
I have the sounder mounted on a ram mount in the side pocket and personally think the 5 would be too big to mount there, but the elite 4 is about the right size.
Make sure you check out the safety section, plenty of good info there.
Dave

[Jordo]

As others have said $900 is a bit much. You should be able to get a suitable sonar/downvision/chartplotter combo with navionics for around $400-500 (for a 4" model). Both the lowrance and raymarine have models with all those features for about that price, and I think garmin has some good fishfinders in that price range too.
And welcome to vyak, its a fantastic fishing community

[Tony123]

Thanks guys! Didn't expect such active feedback,what a great forum.

I bought the yak home today and cannot wait to head out..

The guy said that ch bought out all stocks of the hds5 therefore their price was very competitive.

In the beginning I called up and asked about the raymarine dragonfly 5 pro, as it looked very user friendly and has a clear display.
They told me to come in and pretty much didn't even go through the dragonfly to me..

The points that he pushed for on the hds5 was the:

sounder beam width for shallow areas

Pinpoint markings on maps

The amount of signals that it sends out and retrieves, &

The warranty factor of Lowrance

For all these reasons he didn't bother with the dragonfly..

I suppose the warranty is a big factor and if that is true then I probably am more drawn to Lowrance.

[Dognut]

It seems a bit of a strange choice to be recommending to you. The HDS5 Gen2 is a couple of years old and is now a discontinued fishfinder. The current model is the Elite 5 CHIRP, which includes DV and CHIRP technology making it a much better buy.

They may have been trying to sell you run-out stock. However if they quoted you $850 + $50 for the RAM, it's a bit odd as they sell the Elite 5 CHIRP including Gold maps for $689. If the price includes structure scan you should question if you need it and even if you can fit the transducer anywhere. On the Revo you also have to consider where you will be mounting the sounder and whether you need a 5" or can do with the 4". The Elite 4 CHIRP costs $449 with gold maps and has the same functionality, just a smaller screen, which can be OK if mounted closer.

CH Smith is usually very good o price for sounders but I've found some of there staff to lack in some knowledge. Maybe do a bit more research then go back and ask some pointed questions.

The elite is a lower speced unit. The Hds gen 3 is the current model in that line and carries onboard stucture scan, chirp, go free wifi, autopilot, and heaps of other stuff you won't ever need.
Otherwise, Shane's advice is sound.

[Jordo]

Thanks guys! Didn't expect such active feedback,what a great forum.

I bought the yak home today and cannot wait to head out..

The guy said that ch bought out all stocks of the hds5 therefore their price was very competitive.

In the beginning I called up and asked about the raymarine dragonfly 5 pro, as it looked very user friendly and has a clear display.
They told me to come in and pretty much didn't even go through the dragonfly to me..

The points that he pushed for on the hds5 was the:

sounder beam width for shallow areas

Pinpoint markings on maps

The amount of signals that it sends out and retrieves, &

The warranty factor of Lowrance

For all these reasons he didn't bother with the dragonfly..

I suppose the warranty is a big factor and if that is true then I probably am more drawn to Lowrance.

I have a raymarine dragonfly 4 pro on my yak, it is a large unit for only a 4" display. On the plus side it is an exceptional combo. The sonar and down veiw are crisp and clear, the chartplotter is great. It is also easy to read in the sunlight and doesnt drain much battery. I will be doing a proper review soon in gear review, but I hope that helps a bit.