New fish finder, which one?

Hey all, I'm in the market for a new ice unit. I am currently using an hds 7 touch but it is pricey and I'm worried about breaking it on the ice. Also the touch screen is finicky when run off a 12v and becomes a pain. I have been looking at the helix 5/7 chirp and converting to ice. I heard the helix get ALOT of inference from nearby units which kind of scares me. I was wondering if anyone has any experience with the Helix on the ice and can chime in on interference problems.

I run a Marcum LX6 and have been for a couple years now. Love it to death. It has a 10-stage Interference system and has no problems running beside or near other units. Tons of other features and patents. Worth the money for sure!

I have been using the Helix 5 for a couple of years now. It is a compact unit and works very well for ice fishing. The display is clear, bright and the menus are fairly easy to navigate once you get on to it. They make great use of a 5 inch display. As for disturbance, I am good as long as I am no where near a Vexilar. They really seem to affect my Helix 5. I have fished with two people in a hut with two fish finders (both humminbird and lawrance) running with minimal interference.

I have had a helix 5 for a couple years now only have used it on the boat but am going to rig it up for ice fishing. Like above post mentioned the 5" screen is bright and easy to see.

Love my helix as well.I've fished with abuddy in the same portable and he has a fl18 vexilar and I didn't have any issues with interference. The fl28 is a different story. That one jams it up good but I tell my friend to change frequencies and it becomes much better.

X3 on the Helix 5. Great size and does everything you will need.

I have a Vexilar FL20 Ultra pack and had it 5 years now and love it. All I can say is do your reasearch and buy what's best fits you and how much you want to spend. It's like you have Chevy guy's, you have Ford guy's and Ram guy's for trucks . Each one is going to say their brand is the best. I think what 's important is that you keep your battery charged all the time and keep it warm. Again do your reasearch .....

If not connected to a 12v power source, than what would you connect it to? its the same power in a boat, a 12v battery. Do you connect it through a 120v wall outlet? It shouldn't be finicky because of this reason.

I run a Helix 5 and have no issues with interference so far.

If you run the same 2 units beside each other you will get a lot of interference. I ran my hummingbird right next to a marcum and there was no problem. Then I ran my hummingbird ice 55 beside a hummingbird helix 5 and got a bunch of interference.

Thanks for the replies going to look at the 5 and 7 today.
The problem with the touch screen is its not probably grounded when not connected to the boat. People say the ice transducer being in the water will complete the ground but its still a pain. You have to hold the power cord or hold the transducer cord for the touch to work. I've done my research with the HDS 7 and everyone running them has the same issue. Its not that bad its just annoying when you want to do something quick.

If not connected to a 12v power source, than what would you connect it to? its the same power in a boat, a 12v battery. Do you connect it through a 120v wall outlet? It shouldn't be finicky because of this reason.

I run a Helix 5 and have no issues with interference so far.

Yeah, i was wondering about that too!

I am assuming he means an small ice fishing 12v battery as opposed to a full size battery on the boat. If that is the case it could simply be a case that your ice battery is dying and not keeping charge or is too low on amp hours to properly run your fish finder for any length of time. They can come from puny little 1ah units up to about 12ah before you start getting into noticeably larger sizes. With the big display and touch screen characteristics of your unit, I would expect you would need at minimum a good 9ah battery, but higher would be better.

hey buy a vexilar and be done with all the make dues,trust my experience on this you will one day see this as well.they are the number 1 units out there and have always been the original very durable and work great.ive been hauling 2 around my sleds and quads for years now in sub freezing temps and never let me down.iam at the point where i will not go ice fishing without a vexilar.and i use it in the summer off the bow of my boat.

I run a brand new 12ah battery. Battery isn't the issue. I've done my research and its nothing i did wrong. Google it.

it makes me wonder why anybody would buy a l e d screen in this province lmao.

How about preference ?

You like your unit and I like my led.

I can't stand the whirring and flashing lights.

been there , done that...ended when disco was over