Nick3 Posted June 13, 2007 Share Posted June 13, 2007 I need some help in deciding on a sounder for the new boat coming? I was going to put a Navman 8120 in the boat but I'm not sure if is as good as I want for that sort of money(Maybe it is as i don't know that much about sounders). I don't want to start a which brand is better than the other topic as I know people can get quit passionate about the brand they own. I would like to know if any one has Navman 8120 or any other brand and what makes them there choice of sounder. cheers Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netic Posted June 13, 2007 Share Posted June 13, 2007 Mate i beleive most sounders are quite good....but i have owned 2 Navmans before and never been happy with them....I would stick to the SOunder names like Furuno, Humminbird, Garmin or lowrance....will give you much better service Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Loops Posted June 14, 2007 Share Posted June 14, 2007 Funny - just this morning I was quoted on a Navman 8084 (GPS/Fish/Radar) for a little over 8k. This is about 2k less than an equivalent Raymarine unit. Apparently the Navman units are very easy to use and pretty much do the same job... Nectic what sort of issues did you have with the units? What unit do you use now? Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netic Posted June 14, 2007 Share Posted June 14, 2007 Well for starters im not looking at the top end stuff.....im looking at the 1k mark units..... Compared to other brands in the same price range they just did not show you the same defanition of the sea floor etc...I also dont like the new raymarines, My mate has one which set him back 3k and my $1300 garmin unit shows more detail..... The best thing to do is search and find reviews on the net....thats what i mdid when buying a unit..although the 8120 looks flashy it may not be the best unit for the price..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick3 Posted June 14, 2007 Author Share Posted June 14, 2007 Thanks for your inputs Guys. What do you think of Lowrance LCX 112 or the old 110? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njsconst Posted June 14, 2007 Share Posted June 14, 2007 Navman in my opinion are over priced and over rated. I have got a Furuno GPS and Sounder. Both are great units and never caused me one second of problems. They aways perform very well when used properly. My sounder before this was a Raymarine and it too was a good unit, but became out dated quickly as technology advances very quickly, as with all electronic equipment. My advice is to spend as much as you can afford today because tomorrow there will be something heaps better on the market. You can't go past Furuno or Raymarine, they both have some great products on the market. Stay away from Navman....thats my thoughts anyhow. Nathan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Reely Posted June 14, 2007 Share Posted June 14, 2007 Andy Loops, definitely look at Furuno or Koden if your spending in that price range. Forget the rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CR@ZY OS@M@ Posted June 14, 2007 Share Posted June 14, 2007 i agree,navman are crap ,i used to own one, i own a raymarine a65 which im thinking of selling soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reel Addiction Posted June 14, 2007 Share Posted June 14, 2007 I also think you should steer clear of the Navmans i currently have Navmans and i am unhappy with them and will be replacing them when possible. I will be looking at theLowrance and the Furono. Also same as nettic i am not using or looking at the top of the range sounders Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a boat Posted June 15, 2007 Share Posted June 15, 2007 Hi Nick, we sell Navman as well as most other brands so take what I say anyway you like. If you are looking at the 8120 I think at this moment in time for the price there is not a better unit. For under $4k you get a 12 inch screen with 800 x 600 pixel count and upto 1Kw transducer, which is pretty hard to beat. We have fitted a couple to boats and the owners are happy with the unit. We have not seen any more dramas with Navman than the other brands we deal with and they have been resolved quickly by Navman-maybe people having dramas could be related to where you bought the unit from. Andy if you were quoted $8k for only the 8084 then you are been overcharged. The unit sells for about $3K with GPS and Sounder while a 2KW Radome is about $2,400. I get reps in here all the time and what I look at is power / pixels and screen size. We fitted a Furuno the other day and yes it was good unit but for less money if it was my boat I would fit the Navman 8084 becasue of the bigger/better screen. Just my opinion, Huey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netic Posted June 15, 2007 Share Posted June 15, 2007 (edited) Hi Nick, we sell Navman as well as most other brands so take what I say anyway you like. If you are looking at the 8120 I think at this moment in time for the price there is not a better unit. For under $4k you get a 12 inch screen with 800 x 600 pixel count and upto 1Kw transducer, which is pretty hard to beat. We have fitted a couple to boats and the owners are happy with the unit. We have not seen any more dramas with Navman than the other brands we deal with and they have been resolved quickly by Navman-maybe people having dramas could be related to where you bought the unit from. Andy if you were quoted $8k for only the 8084 then you are been overcharged. The unit sells for about $3K with GPS and Sounder while a 2KW Radome is about $2,400. I get reps in here all the time and what I look at is power / pixels and screen size. We fitted a Furuno the other day and yes it was good unit but for less money if it was my boat I would fit the Navman 8084 becasue of the bigger/better screen. Just my opinion, Huey. Hi Huey...love reading your posts....thanks In relation to the above post i uderstand where your coming from but from all the charter fishos and pro fishos i have spoken to they have told me to steer clear of Navman... Allthough on paper there specs are good it practice its a completely different story....specs are not a true way to look at a product..specs are important but not everything....it must be field tested and tested well...i have a friend who runs a charter...mainly fishes offshore at places like browns...he said the navman was very poor...although all the specs indicated it would be good....The furuno on the other hand was very good... I have had better spec models be outperformewd by by $500 units.....I understand that Transducer placement, hull configuration can effect a sounders performance but i still feel that sounders like the top end furuno's are hard to go past.....thats why nearly all of the Sydney based offshore charters use them and recommend them........ I would be interested to get Tony's or Ross Hunters feedback on this thread, they run charters and im sure they have tried many brands..... 3k is a big investment and you want to make sure your getting the best product for your buck but most of all you wanna get great readings, i can only presume that Nick will be using this unit at places like browns and there you need nothing but quality. Crazy John bought a Raymarine A65....3k at the time and it has turned out to be a shi.t unit....i get better soundings on my Garmin 178c........I have seen the furuno's in action and now john is buying one of them....not as flash as his A65 but it gives you much better readings......and in the end thats what you want.....for the unit to give you an accurate reading on the floor and fish... Edited June 15, 2007 by netic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Reely Posted June 15, 2007 Share Posted June 15, 2007 Oz you could not have put it better! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick3 Posted June 17, 2007 Author Share Posted June 17, 2007 Thank you all for the help. It's like talking about cars.We all get very passionate about what we drive. I ended up going for a Furuno FCV585 sounder and 7000 chart plotter/GPS It sounded like a good unit. Cheers Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njsconst Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 Good choice Nick. You won't be dissappointed. Very nice unit. Hopefully it will put you onto some good fish soooner then later! Nathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
netic Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 Great Choice Nick....you will be very happy with them.....just make sure you place your Transducer in the correct location Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick3 Posted June 18, 2007 Author Share Posted June 18, 2007 Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Loops Posted June 26, 2007 Share Posted June 26, 2007 Hello all, Apologies for resurrecting an old thread. Huey thanks for enlightening me on the pricing of the Navman - you're advice is invaluable as always. We were quoted on the following; Navman 8084 with fishfinder and radar - a little over 8k installed... Also, this was with a 600W transducer which we were not happy with (looking for 1kw) I think I will investigate the Furuno brand as they receive such great write-ups from all who have used them. It is disturbing to be contemplating spending over 5k on a brand that many say they would never own again. thanks, Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick3 Posted June 26, 2007 Author Share Posted June 26, 2007 Andy there is nothing wrong with resurrecting an old thread. Especially since it is one that I started.Just like you I was thinking about spending all this money on a unit only to find out that 1)It wasn't as good bottom definition as I would hope for the money 2)And there was a cloud over there reliability. I would have to say that I have not heard any thing bad about Furuno. Actually all I have been told and read has been absolutely positive. Cheers Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Loops Posted June 26, 2007 Share Posted June 26, 2007 600W vs 1Kw Anyone had to choose between these transducers in the past... Any tips for someone in a similar situation? The fairing block to deflect the water over the 1kw unit is almost half a meter long and requires a certified shipwright to install. The 600W unit does not require as much work to the boat to mount it... What I want to know is how people view the scales... More power - vs - more work on the boat (possibly affecting performance?) Cheers Raiders! Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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