thoughts on best fishfinder GPS with side imaging?

I'm in the market and have been looking at the usual brands and models but wanted to get a feel from guys who have used these units first hand. Currently using a humminbird 97 matrix and its been ok but i want to update. I usually fish kempenfelt so lots of deep water looking for trout and whities but i also run north to cooch for pike every now and then. Right now i'm leaning towards Lowrance elite Ti. but i also like the humminbird Helix 9

I use Lowrance at the helm and hummingbird at my trolling motor but both are older units. I have had great success with deep water fishing. I just had an experience with the Helix 10 were both the owner of the unit and I were unable to properly set it up for deep water jigging. I watched my tube video to help but they were not deep water really. I saw a ton of complaints on line from people downrigging with the helix 10. Funny thing is I have two friends who use the helix 5 and 7 on the ice for deep water and they work great.

I think you will find either will work if you really know either brand. I prefer the Lowrance though.

I have a Garmin echomap 95sv and no complaints. If I had more money I would of went bigger but 9 inches is plenty for me. I use it out in 70-200 fow of water trolling with downriggers and then for shallow water bass and perch fishing on Simcoe and smaller lakes. I can see the thermocline if I turn up the sensitivity, I can see my cannon balls. I can see lakers right near bottom in deep water. The side imaging on my unit with the stock transducer is only 400/800 hz I believe which is lower than the newest units (1600 maybe?) but it shows things in good detail and is handy for finding rock piles around here in Georgian bay. In the winter I have the ice fishing kit for it and I take it off the boat and use it as an ice ducer with panoptix. It records the bottom as I go and updates the stock map to exact depths as I drive over them. I can access my map on my phone they sync up with each other. When I am on a friends boat I can pull out my phone and see my waypoints, bottom contours etc anywhere I am.

I saw the panoptix last year, very cool unit!! pretty pricey tho no? Is it a navionics card that you use for your charts and would that be the app you use on your phone? In deep water if you're travelling at a moderate speed do you still read bottom accurately? i find if i'm in water deeper than 80' if i'm going even 25MPH my graph wont read bottom anymore. Big fan of potentially using it in winter with the panoptix. i currently run a humminbird ice 55 unit but not loving it anymore..

Garmin and you can take it ice fishing too

I have a Helix 9 si at the bow and a Helix 10 si mega at the console, and they both work fantastic. I can easily see a bait in deep water while jigging, as well as my downriver ball when the blowback isn't too bad due to speed. The side imaging is super clear and very useful for shallow water, I use it all the time. No complaints from me on the Helix units.

i guess between the lowrance elite ti, the humminbird helix and the Garmin echomap they're all good units and pretty comparable performance and feature wise. From what i've read online and whats been posted i dont think theres a clear advantage of one over the other except the option for the panoptix with Garmin. So i suppose it comes down to price and what i can find on sale! I know Gerry Heels is speaking about electronics at the show coming up next weekend so i will pick his brain a bit as well!
Thanks for the insight.

Gary will probably have some great input. I got the Echomap plus 95sv for like 900 or something and bought the panoptix ice fishing kit separate, you can break up the cost this way into two purchased. The whole package with the 75sv for the same price as splitting it up and getting the bigger 95 unit. It reads bottom fine at full throttle in my 14 footer ( 21 mph) unless it gets SUPER wavey and im bouncing and coming out of the water. I think hummingbird and lowrance are coming out with their own panoptix soon but don't quote me on that.

Managed to sneak out tonight for an hour before dark. I tried to take a photo at speed for you to see, its kind of blurry but that's at 18-19 mph, we were shallower when we came in and I have it in down imaging, not side imaging but you can see how much detail I get with my 15 hp spraying all over and a rooster tail on my transducer, it will read the same detail at 100 fow as 15.

Nice! Thats a good price on that unit, you got a deal. Thanks or the insight. I really like the idea of using it in the winter as well. too much too choose from!!!

Sent you a PM.

I got 9inch sv plus's for 40% off last bass pro spring classic in march they usually put bargain fish finders on sale if you can buy them the first day of sale while still in stock. If side imaging was my end game id go mega. I went garmin because I felt I could get my hands on a used panoptics or livescope transducer easier and cheaper than any end game lowrance or humminbird.

I have an original elite 7ti with side scan. This is my 3rd season with it. I have to say that I’ve been very impressed. I’d buy it again! Sonar quality is excellent and the GPS is really quite good as well. I own raymarine, and lowrance on my boat, and a humminbird for ice fishing so I have no particular loyalties, I just think the elite ti is a good unit.