Help .... which combo for $2,500 ?

[smclaren]

Hi All

I am going out of my brain trying to settle on a GPS/Sounder combo with a $2,500 budget.

It seems that all the major candidates (HDS 8/10, Raymarine A70D) have been bagged out on in various posts.

Other combo's are around the 5" screen size and I am told they are just too small to be effective in a split screen display.

Help ....

Are Humminbird 898 or 958 good options to add to the list ? I have an older Humminbird Wideview sounder which I have found to be a very average sort of unit in terms of performance.

Any advice appreciated.

[sporty1]

Hi Mate

I am not a fan of combo units due to the fact if it breaks you loose both functions. However a mate of mine has done a lot of research and is going the HDS. All new style units from the major brands are inherently good, to get very good you are looking at significantally more money, for equipment that may be overkill or highly technical to use.
Look at the product history , the price, the after sales service, warranty and choose the best fit for your circumstances. You basically cannot go wrong with the popular brands. Everone will to some degree bag out the brands they do not use as they are not familiar with their workings. Some people will have horror stories about just about any brand because it is possible to buy a dud.
Do your research, know what you want to use the gear for, be confident in your final selection and work hard to understand how to get the best out of it.

[leelee]

Do yourself a favour and contact Grand_Marlin from this web site.

He supply’s and fits most brands and can help you out with your decision.

Pete is extremely knowledgably about his products and is the best i have ever come across. He has done installation work for me and i have bought several units from him.

You can't go wrong if you talk to Pete.

Personally I run a HDS8 and prior to that I ran a HDS7. I also have a LMS525 and used to run a LCX27c. I have not had any major issues with any that have not been resolved within 5 working days and that is great in my eyes. Some people have had some bad issues but in the grand scheme of things units sold versus issues encountered is very minimal.

Cheers

Lee

[snodger 08]

Hi All

I am going out of my brain trying to settle on a GPS/Sounder combo with a $2,500 budget.

It seems that all the major candidates (HDS 8/10, Raymarine A70D) have been bagged out on in various posts.

Other combo's are around the 5" screen size and I am told they are just too small to be effective in a split screen display.

Help ....

Are Humminbird 898 or 958 good options to add to the list ? I have an older Humminbird Wideview sounder which I have found to be a very average sort of unit in terms of performance.

Any advice appreciated.

Hi,
I have a 798 and find it very hard to read the SI even in full screen and zoomed to 10m. Save up and get the bigger screen if you want a combo.
Cheers
Steve

[MackerelMan]

Hey Mate, Not sure what room you have but why not something like a dedicated sounder like a FCV-620 and a dedicated Garmin 550 Chartplotter. Should come in under 2.5k I would think. IMO, a 5" screen is enough if the unit is either a sounder or plotter. Similar to a 10" combo I guess.

[sporty1]

Mackerel Man

that is the exact setup I am running and I agree I wouldn't want either to be split screen at this size. But as stand alonew units they are great.

[siegfried]

Forget the combo and grab a furuno585 and a budget plotter. Plotters all get you where your going but when it comes to finding and cathing a good sounder is the most important thing on the boat after the engine. You will get anything you need from the US for 2500 clams