More blody sounder probs.

[castamasta]

Hi all
Im going to do my best to explain this so please bare with me.Ive currently replaced my old Eagle 500c combo with a newer 652c seacharter combo I picked up 2nd hand.All I had to do was replace the head unit with my old one,using the same ram horn mount and power supply.Then I fitted the transducer and ran the cable on exactly the same route as the older one.I will add that at no stage did I have issues with the old sounder,ran fine.Running in 2mtrs or less leaving the ramp,all I got was a bright yellow screen.While motoring out of Moolooha river as the water deepened the first 2mtrs remained yellow,below that was just red streaks showing the bottom,sounder was on auto depth at 5mtrs.After exiting the harbour and getting into deeper water,the same picture appeared for the first 2mtrs,then the screen was just either dark blue or black streaks all the way to the bottom,the bottom structure however was clear.I dropped the sensitivity down to 80% but only helped slightly,I also adjusted Noise reduction etc but again only helped slightly aswell.Frustrated I kept fishing.Once I started drifting in about 15mtrs [Cant remember exactly] the picture cleared,For example 2-5 mtrs=bad surface clutter [yellow] 5-15 mtrs=serious interference [blue/black streaks].15mtrs and above seemed fine.Would have taken pics but never thought of that till I got home.......now remember I set this sounder up in the exact same position as the last,so I cant understand why I would be getting what seems like bad interference.Obviously the transducer is differant to the last,not sure if that should make a difference,seems to sit were it should.Should they sit differant to the older ones,deeper in the water maybe? Also,when I got home and disconnected the unit I noticed the plug wasnt as tight as I thought it should have been,but everything was powered up so dont think it was a problem otherwise nothing would work at all.Now I no im not the brightest spark in the fire when it comes to electronics,but I have set up an almost identical unit the same and the last one ran fine.
I can re route the transducer cable,but for reasons ive mentioned this shouldnt be the issue.Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers,Gav.

[Micadogs]

Hi Gav

Check to see if the sensitivity is on "auto" when motoring around, especially in shallow water.

Transducer location will be important, you may be getting aerated water, not deep enough in the water etc.

Some pics may help as to the location on the boat??

Cheers Adam

[castamasta]

Hi Adam
I did adjust the sensitivity,didnt help much.The transducer is sitting about the same as the last one,and others ive had before,but maybe this being a larger [ in physical size ] transducer it needs to be deeper,ill give it a try.Also,although I didnt have issues with the last one,do you think it would be better to run the transducer cable under the floor?
Cheers,Gav.

[Micadogs]

Hi Gav

It could be a possibility that another cable is interfering with the transducer cable. At this stage, is it easier to run the cable in the middle of the boat?? This will eliminate cable interference, and also avoid time consuming set ups until you getting it running ok.

Did you have a picture of the transducer set up on the boat? It is preferable to have the transducer on the drivers side of the boat (or to the right of the motor when standing at the back. This helps eliminate inetrference caused by aerated water and the prop.

Cheers Adam

The transducer also needs to be submerged in clean flow, so sometimes a little deeper is better. (when comparing to the last one).

[marto78]

Maybe the guy you bought it off was selling it because it was stuffed, just a thought.

[tunaticer]

Whack it onto simulator mode and see if it reads ok. If it doesn't disconnect the transducer cable and run again. If it still plays up the head unit is rooted.
When you routed the transducer cable, did you run it beside any other cables esp flouro lighting cables or battery charging cables?
Sounds to me your likely problem may be a fault in the transducer cable itself. Did it kink during the install or during the removal from the other boat?? Has it been barked and exposed some of the foil sheilding letting water in?

Does the transducer have any impact injuries visible?

[castamasta]

Maybe the guy you bought it off was selling it because it was stuffed, just a thought.

Hi Marto
Always a risk when buying 2nd hand i suppose,but I really beleive its an instalation issue.Im just a bit baffled when its set up exactally the same as a very similar unit that was in it previously.
Cheers,Gav.

[castamasta]

Hi Jack
Theres no apparent damage,no more than the usual wear and tear,I am absolutely convinced the unit worked fine before I purchased it.
I ran it in simulator mode before I got on the water,it worked fine.I have re routed the transducer cable and dropped the transducer a few mil,ill give it a run tomorrow and see how she goes.
Cheers,Gav.