# Lowrance HDS-5 Fishfinder/GPS ?????



## fishdealer04

Well I am looking to upgrade my unit in my boat to something with a larger screen. I have been looking around and seem to have come down to the Lowrance HDS-5 Fishfinder/GPS unit.

Here is the link:

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_103484____SearchResults

They have a $50 rebate on it right now as well, and I would get 10% off using my BPS card on it as well, so that would take $130 off the price.

Just wanting to know any pros or cons.


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## Fishers of Men

I like to run separate units. If your unit goes down you will not be shot down.
JMO.


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## fishdealer04

Your saying a GPS unit and then a fishfinder seperate?


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## papaperch

1. I rarely buy anything in its first year. Let someone else discover that it does not live or does live up to its hype.

2. For same amount or near you might be able to pick up a side-imager. That
technology has proved to be a winner.

3. Lowrance has announced that side-imaging will be available on the HD-S series but not until the fall of 2009. Extra equipment will need to be purchased to enable the side-imaging.

4. Some of Lowrances top shelf products of the older models are getting price cuts. Since the HD-S series is going to be their new flagship model. If side imaging is of no interest to you. You might get a heck of a buy on the last years flagship.

Shoot, that 4 things to ponder and I hardly tried.


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## Shortdrift

Understand that the Lowrance HDS units are having problems and Lowrance is aware of it.


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## Fishers of Men

fishdealer04 said:


> Your saying a GPS unit and then a fishfinder seperate?


Yep, if I don't have room, I make room. Things can and will go wrong and out there is the wrong place for it to happen.
Fortunately I have had no issues with my units but I know plenty of other people that were stuck in a trick bag not being able to navigate home in restricted visibility, *doesn,t get it.*
If the gps went out and you only had a fishfinder, you could still ease home with that one aid and a compass knowing the area of course.
I have the room and am running duplicates also, thats how anal I am about it.
For example:
2 radios, 1 Sitexplotter/Cmap/wass, 1 garmin GPSWASS, 1 GPS/Loran combo (came with the boat), 1 radar, 1 Sitex fishfinder and 1 spare finder that came with the boat. And cant forget the compass.


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## fishdealer04

Hmmm all very good points...thats why I always ask here before I buy anything!! haha

I am mainly looking for the combo unit so that I can mark spots that I find. For the most part I am fishing bodies of water that I know very well, so me getting lost are not too likley. However thats not to say I wont fish bodies of water I dont know very well, so maybe 2 different units might not be a bad choice. Looks like I have some more research and looking around to do...


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## fisherman5567

Hey Brian... I am about upgrade my boat as well and have done quite a bit of research...um and im down to either the HDS or the humminbird side imagers. one thing that i heard about lowrance is that their customer service is not very good, but if you dont need that your fine. Doc uses a lowrance and loves it.... I dont know. I think i am going to go with the si myself. good luck.


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## Fishers of Men

fishdealer04 said:


> Hmmm all very good points...thats why I always ask here before I buy anything!! haha
> 
> I am mainly looking for the combo unit so that I can mark spots that I find. For the most part I am fishing bodies of water that I know very well, so me getting lost are not too likley. However thats not to say I wont fish bodies of water I dont know very well, so maybe 2 different units might not be a bad choice. Looks like I have some more research and looking around to do...


It's not just the lost part, If the finder goes down, you still can fish by your gps marks and vice versa. You are not sitting with your hands tied.


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## K gonefishin

fisherman5567 said:


> Hey Brian... I am about upgrade my boat as well and have done quite a bit of research...um and im down to either the HDS or the humminbird side imagers. one thing that i heard about lowrance is that their customer service is not very good, but if you dont need that your fine. Doc uses a lowrance and loves it.... I dont know. I think i am going to go with the si myself. good luck.



Lowrance is coming out with SI this year, the HDS units are SICK, blows HB away as far as I see it, the maps are better and they find and show fish much better. I know guys who returned HB's because they don't mark fish worth a darn Just my .02's 

Lowrance support and service is awesome IF you know who to contact.


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## Spaniel235

I hope you meant "slick"...........


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## 1roofmusky

1) FYI - SICK=SLICK 

2) Where are people coming up with Lowrance having bad customer support? I had to send in my x-102c (out of warranty) and they sent me a new one in a week for shipping costs. LOWRANCE ALL THE WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## fishdealer04

Well talked to some guys at BPS tonight as well as looked more online and it seems that Lowrance is bringing their version of the SI out in July, and it supposed to be pretty good. So now I am leaning again towards the HD series, now just need to decide on the size..


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## uplander56

I have a good friend who is a tourney bass fisherman.... a few 3, 5, 7 months back, he bought the hummingbird SI unit.

He was always a diehard Lowrance guy, but wanted to use the side imagining... As of a week or two ago, he still hadn't installed it, and I think he may not. As soon as he heard about Lowrances SI, he wasn't too happy.

I have the HDS8, and I'll say, this unit is incredible! I think there are 15 color palette choices, the quick buttons along the bottom of the screen are awesome.... entering waypoints is easy, ext ext.

One of my favorite features so far is the ability to adjust the split screen sizes. You can adjust the two screen to any percentage of the total screen... say 80% of screen will be sonar, and the 20% map, or visa versa. 

It's an incredible unit. I've had it out a handful of times, zero issues, zero trouble with the internal antennae, and haven't had the boat out without the full canvas enclosure up yet.

Randy


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## Net

Used my new HDS-5 for the first time yesterday. All I can say is WOW! Bottom hugging saugeye show up as a bright orange "rock" against a blue-ish background. I know this because I jigged up a pair of plump Alum saugeye yesterday afternoon in bright sunlight -- 17" & 22". Actual rocks on the bottom take on a different color hue. The sonar menu lets you choose from a number of different color contrasts & backgrounds to make the most of your HD experience. 

I personally found the 5" screen to be more than adequate, given the high pixel count. Also, the HDS-5 lets me import all of my old waypoints from my LCX-15mt. I haven't really played with the GPS yet, other than a few basic functions.


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## sixtyminutes

I am about to upgrade my electronics and the comments have been very helpful. Glad to hear you like the new unit "NET". I've been looking real hard at the new Lowarance HDS GPS /Sonar combo unit for the console. How deep were those eyes ? The best prices I have found btw have been at Reed's Sporting Goods website. Can anyone recommend which transducer would be best for Ohio inland lakes and the occasional Erie trip ? The choice is 83/200KHZ and 50/200KHZ ? How about the map chips? Would Insight USA be enough ? And does anyone know what it means when it says " Base Unit W/O XD ? What is XD? I can't find it explained anywhere including the manual online at Lowrance. Thanks.


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## OSU_Fisherman

sixtyminutes said:


> And does anyone know what it means when it says " Base Unit W/O XD ? What is XD? I can't find it explained anywhere including the manual online at Lowrance. Thanks.


I might be wrong... but I would assume that 'W/O XD' is the lazy way of typing 'Without Transducer'. That might also be where the good price comes from.


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## Net

sixtyminutes said:


> How deep were those eyes ? .... Can anyone recommend which transducer would be best for Ohio inland lakes and the occasional Erie trip ?


19 fow. 
I'm using the dual frequency US2 transducer that came with my new minn kota terrova.


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## fishdealer04

Well I gave in and bought the HDS 5 the base map one, with the 83/200khz transducer. I got the basemap because I fish mainly rivers, so maps really would not do me that good. I got it for $699 shipped to my door. Had it out on the GMR yesterday and it is so clear, I am very happy with it so far. It was raining too and it held up nicley in the rain. I can't wait to get it out more and really start to play with all the functions. GPS seemed to work very well, pin pointed very fast. Pretty easy to install as well.


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## bman

I own the HDS-5 with Lake Insight and think it's very good. It's better than the older 520C I've used many times in my father's boat over the past 8 years. I do have one tip - make sure you have the latest operating software loaded on your unit. Lowrance has released at least 2 updates, and the latest was just within the past few days. It's a simple update with a SD card and SD card reader.

The only thing I haven't been able to figure out yet is what the Navionics Premium inland lakes maps SD chip will do for me given I have Lake Insight. Will the Navionics Maps show rock piles? Weeds? Rocks? Etc? Or is it just depth contour & navigation makers (like my Lake Insight mapping pre-loaded on my HDS-5)?

I'm just wondering what I get over and above what I already have if I get the 2009 Navionics Premium maps. Anyone know?


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## Net

bman said:


> I'm just wondering what I get over and above what I already have if I get the 2009 Navionics Premium maps. Anyone know?


 Here's something I found on youtube that might help. Personally, I'm happy with the Lowrance charts that came with my HDS-5. I'm not a traveling pro or an ocean going vessel...lol


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## bman

Thanks Terry. Yeah, the Lake Insight maps are decent. However, I did look at my Lake St. Clair map last night and noticed a few holes (humps?) with no depth markers. Could be a great rock hump; could be a hole - who knows?

I still need to do some additional research . . . still interested in learning more about the Hotmaps premium series.

I shot an email to Navionics . ..hoping they will provide me with a good answer.


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## Gill

bman

What brand sd/mmc card did you buy for your 5hds upgrade? Can't find any info anywhere. Read they all may not work properly.

Thanks, Gill


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## bman

Gill said:


> bman
> 
> What brand sd/mmc card did you buy for your 5hds upgrade? Can't find any info anywhere. Read they all may not work properly.
> 
> Thanks, Gill


I used a Kodak 1G SD card. Bought it along with a card reader at Wal Mart. Worked fine. Honestly, I would expect any SD card to work provided it's large enough to hold the update. 1 G was more than enough from memory . . .think the upgrade was only 175MB. It might be hard to even find an SD card that small nowadays. Just get a 1G and you should be good to go.


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## Net

I agree with bman. Any SD should work as long as its big enough. Here's what they look like.


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## Gill

Thanks for the reply. I'm getting a sandisk 1gb. Hope it works. I'm fishing in the morning and installing the new unit on my return to the dock. Want to do the upgrade tonight.

Thanks again, Gill


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## Gill

Installed my hds 5 and I am getting vertical lines on the screen when I speed up. Faster the speed, the heavier the lines. Installed the transducer per instruction manual. Anyone have a similar problem? Does the transducer need to be lowered farther into the water? Bottom is still showing on the screen and the depth is displayed. Works fine at speeds up to 5 mph. Also mounted where the old transducer was before, so it is away from the outdrive.

Thanks, Gill


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## bman

Gill said:


> Installed my hds 5 and I am getting vertical lines on the screen when I speed up. Faster the speed, the heavier the lines. Installed the transducer per instruction manual. Anyone have a similar problem? Does the transducer need to be lowered farther into the water? Bottom is still showing on the screen and the depth is displayed. Works fine at speeds up to 5 mph. Also mounted where the old transducer was before, so it is away from the outdrive.
> 
> Thanks, Gill


Gill - I did get this on occassion too the last time I was out. I figured it had to do with my trim and how much of the boat was in the water for the transducer to work properly. FYI, I have a "thru the hull" transducer - ie, it's not mounted externally.

I'll have to see if I can nail down the exact conditions I get the vertical lines but I do think it has alot to do with where the water is hitting the hull area where the transducer is mounted. Excessive bubbles/air would likely interfere a bit with the transducer's ability to get a good read.

Where/how is yours mounted?


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## Gill

bman
My transducer is mounted on the transom where my old transducer was mounted.I have had two different fishfinders on my boat and the transducers were in the same location and I never had any problems with them. 

Waiting to hear from Lowrance on this. Just thought someone may have encountered this with there unit.

Thanks for the reply, Gill


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## djhowser

Net:

Was interested in you note about being able to transfer info from your LCX-15 MT to your HDS-5. I have recently purchased the HDS-5 and also have the LCZ-15 MT, but I can't figure out how to do the transfer. Can you help?
By the way, I'm not quite as happy with my new unit as you...one problem I see is the inability to place Icons on the screen without making it a new waypoint. By the end of my first season using this unit I'll have hundreds of waypoints using their new system.

Any help you, or anyone else, can provide is greatly appreciated by this Minnesota fisherman.

Thanks


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## bman

djhowser said:


> Net:
> 
> By the way, I'm not quite as happy with my new unit as you...one problem I see is the inability to place Icons on the screen without making it a new waypoint. By the end of my first season using this unit I'll have hundreds of waypoints using their new system.


What do you mean by icons? This is peaking my curiousity . . . I would love to be able to just put some sort of icon that indicated a spot on a lake with say, "rocks" or "weeds". Right now, I am just making waypoints and labeling them. It's not terrible, but I think I would rather be able to just add supplemental info about the lakes/res. I fish vs. making a waypoint for every info enhancement. Is this what you mean by "icon"?


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## djhowser

You are experiencing the same thing I am. My LCX 15 MT allows me to put an Icon, such as a fish or whatever, on my GPS map without giving it a waypoint. I have asked Lowrance about this issue but they say their icons are the same as waypoints.


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## roger23

djhowser said:


> Net:
> 
> Was interested in you note about being able to transfer info from your LCX-15 MT to your HDS-5. I have recently purchased the HDS-5 and also have the LCZ-15 MT, but I can't figure out how to do the transfer. Can you help?
> By the way, I'm not quite as happy with my new unit as you...one problem I see is the inability to place Icons on the screen without making it a new waypoint. By the end of my first season using this unit I'll have hundreds of waypoints using their new system.
> 
> Any help you, or anyone else, can provide is greatly appreciated by this Minnesota fisherman.
> 
> Thanks


I went to the Waypoint page and select the Icon I want,I also turn off the routs and trails so I don't have a lot of lines ,,there is no simple way,like on the old ones,I delete the ones I don't want each trip


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## djhowser

I guess that's what I'll have to do, too. I've made my feelings known to Lowrance hoping that they may develop another update with a new icon feature. I've added two updates already so perhaps they'll continue to get comments and look into improving that features. 

Thanks for your suggestion.


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## 1roofmusky

Fishers of Men said:


> Yep, if I don't have room, I make room. Things can and will go wrong and out there is the wrong place for it to happen.
> Fortunately I have had no issues with my units but I know plenty of other people that were stuck in a trick bag not being able to navigate home in restricted visibility, *doesn,t get it.*
> If the gps went out and you only had a fishfinder, you could still ease home with that one aid and a compass knowing the area of course.
> I have the room and am running duplicates also, thats how anal I am about it.
> For example:
> 2 radios, 1 Sitexplotter/Cmap/wass, 1 garmin GPSWASS, 1 GPS/Loran combo (came with the boat), 1 radar, 1 Sitex fishfinder and 1 spare finder that came with the boat. And cant forget the compass.



......and 16 batteries!! Just kidding fishers. You are definately prepared for anything!


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## SCfishing

1roofmusky said:


> 1) FYI - SICK=SLICK
> 
> 2) Where are people coming up with Lowrance having bad customer support? I had to send in my x-102c (out of warranty) and they sent me a new one in a week for shipping costs. LOWRANCE ALL THE WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Same here. I had a bad LCX-27C, sent it off, got a replacement about a week later (within the one year warranty of course).


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## Net

djhowser said:


> Net:
> 
> Was interested in you note about being able to transfer info from your LCX-15 MT to your HDS-5. I have recently purchased the HDS-5 and also have the LCZ-15 MT, but I can't figure out how to do the transfer. Can you help?
> By the way, I'm not quite as happy with my new unit as you...one problem I see is the inability to place Icons on the screen without making it a new waypoint. By the end of my first season using this unit I'll have hundreds of waypoints using their new system.
> 
> Any help you, or anyone else, can provide is greatly appreciated by this Minnesota fisherman.
> 
> Thanks


 Hello DJ. 

Sorry, I haven't been checking the forums much this summer. You can transfer your X15 waypoints to your HD by using the "Import" feature on the manage waypoints screen. The user manual is pretty useless so I found this by trial & error. PM me if you get stuck and I'll power up my unit and try to step you thru it.

I honestly haven't tried just dropping icons with my HD like I could with my X15. My thoughts are I'd rather drop a waypoint just in case some day I want to go back and use it in a route. I don't think the icon by itself can be used in a route.

Good luck.


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## djhowser

Net:

Thanks for the reply...I left the lake this AM and won't be back until Friday or so. I'll give it a go then. Do you import them to a card and then transfer to the HD-5?


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## Net

djhowser said:


> Do you import them to a card and then transfer to the HD-5?


 Save your old waypoints to a card like you normally would by using the gps transfer screen on your X15. Pop the card into your HD and use the import function. The import will ask you what format the old waypoints are in. I just specified the default and it worked fine.


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## djhowser

Thanks again! I was working on getting info transfered this morning, but couldn't locate the systems you mention. I guess I'm not into the Lowrance systems as you are.

Came back from the lake today and won't be back there again for two weeks, so I'll give it another go then...Unless I decide to go back tomorrow or Wednesday....fishing's pretty good right now.
The information you are providing is greatly appreciated.

Thank You


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