Lowrance HDS Live review

[58Johnson]

So, I went over to the dark side and purchased a Lowrance HDS Live. I previously had Humminbird then a Garmin. I went to Lowrance because next years BBP (Big Boat Project) will be adding autopilot and Lowrance has one of the less costly/well reviewed options to get there.
I am acutely aware of the naysayers that do not like the "L" brand. It was a big leap for me to try them. So far (about 3 months), I can only say WOW, I am really impressed by the HDS Live. The sonar and chartplotter are great. I added a Navionics+ chip and am delighted with it.
One note is that on top of the high cost of the fishfinder you need to purchase a map chip to go with it. There was a promo for a free C-Map chip that I sent in for, but that was not delivered for well over a month.  I also lose bottom at speed, but I am a troller so that does not bother me. I could possibly play with transducer placement, but I had to sandwich the giant transducer between my trim tabs and motor so there is a lot of turbulance that can not be avoided.
I am not using many of the advanced features (Livesight, etc) that require further accessories, but the basics are far superior than the Humminbird or Garmin. I map out a "highway" on the map that highlights in white a certain depth zone (I call it the highway). This has been incredible. Right now the Brown Trout are in 45-60 foot of water on bottom. I just stay on the "highway" - you can see it with a glance - that shows the entire zone of 45-60 ft depths.
I thought it was important to give credit where credit is due.
I will post more in the future if issues arise. I welcome any feedback or info from others.

[croaker stroker]

Be sure to update your Navionics chip and turn on the "Relief Shading".

I really like this feature for locating structure.

[Bigfish1!]

58J,
     Thanks for the info.  I have a 10 year old HDS and while it is now a little glitchy and slow I am still very happy with with the operating system, maps, and depth finder functions.  You mentioned that you are planning to install auto pilot.  My 19 SR has one and I have used it quite a bit.  While it seemed like a great idea when I bought the boat I haven't found that it works that well for me.  I fish only on the ocean and find that auto pilot doesn't really maintain a course very well at trolling speed.  The auto pilot works when running on a flat ocean but has a hard time keeping up with the movement of such a small boat in wind or a bumpy ocean.  The response time of the autopilot is adjustable, but when trying to troll,  the little boat often very quickly gets side ways to the wind or waves so downrigger lines and fishing lines in the prop are always a worry.  Just my experience,   Good boating BF1

[DevMah]

I have owned 4 Lowrance units ( Elite 3X, Elite 5 , HDS 9 gen 3 and HDS live 12) I have been lucky and not had any issue with them, I do run a fair amount of accessories :
-Autopilot
-Hand free remote (WR10)
-G3 radar
-3D structure scan
-NMEA 2000 engine interface
-Point 1 and Pont 1AP GPS
-P66 and TM165HW transducers ( simultaneously P66 at 50 kHz and the TH165 at High Chirp)

I have no issues with my autopilot works great trolling and up to 20kn, it dose struggle when it gets bumpy or windy but IMO I would not have the autopilot on.
BF1 your issue may be that its time for your to upgrade your head unit as it may be responding fast enough to the AP unit.
FYI
My HDS Live is amazing and fast as it has quad core processors, I can notice a big difference from my Gen 3.


Dev

[Koopa253]

If you ever get around to upgrading the transducer I would look at the TM-165. Small 600W transom Mount high chirp transducer. I have the HDS3 so I'm running the TM-150 (300W), but would run the TM-165 if my HDS unit recognized the transducer like your unit does.

[flatwater]

I'm glad to stumble across this thread. Been thinking about upgrading from my Garmin unit that came with the boat, and I have a friend that has a Lowrance Elite 7 that seems to do everything I need/want. Particularly like the bottom contours (via Navionics chip) that assist trolling at a consistent depth.

58Johnson - I am curious about the reputation you mentioned for Lowrance - is there a reason that they had a bad reputation in your mind? Any particular models or features that are glitchy? I'm just not familiar with the history there but would appreciate your insights.

Any specific recommendations for sonar/plotter that make sense for a boat that will be trolling for salmon from the helm in 50-500' of saltwater 90% of the time? I'm willing to spend for easy-to-use but not necessarily dumbed-down; e.g. one touch to mark and ID where I'm dropping a crab pot or where I trolled through a bait ball. Could be nice to be able to interface with my phone for sharing marks or tracks, but that's a nice-to-have.

[DevMah]

If you ever get around to upgrading the transducer I would look at the TM-165. Small 600W transom Mount high chirp transducer. I have the HDS3 so I'm running the TM-150 (300W), but would run the TM-165 if my HDS unit recognized the transducer like your unit does.

You can run the TM 165 just select high chirp on the settings.

Dev

[Koopa253]

If you ever get around to upgrading the transducer I would look at the TM-165. Small 600W transom Mount high chirp transducer. I have the HDS3 so I'm running the TM-150 (300W), but would run the TM-165 if my HDS unit recognized the transducer like your unit does.

You can run the TM 165 just select high chirp on the settings.

Dev

You most definitely can but since the HDS 3 was released prior to the TM-165 the unit does not recognize the transducer so you have to select some generic type transducer selection which only runs the unit at 300 W so essentially your better of sticking with the TM-150 if you have HDS 3. There are no updates for HDS 3 to fix it to be able to recognize TM-165.

[DevMah]

If you ever get around to upgrading the transducer I would look at the TM-165. Small 600W transom Mount high chirp transducer. I have the HDS3 so I'm running the TM-150 (300W), but would run the TM-165 if my HDS unit recognized the transducer like your unit does.

You can run the TM 165 just select high chirp on the settings.

Dev

You most definitely can but since the HDS 3 was released prior to the TM-165 the unit does not recognize the transducer so you have to select some generic type transducer selection which only runs the unit at 300 W so essentially your better of sticking with the TM-150 if you have HDS 3. There are no updates for HDS 3 to fix it to be able to recognize TM-165.

Koopa253

The max outpost of a HDS Gen 3 is 500w

https://reviewmarine.com/model/lowrance-hds-7-gen3/

Most guys run a P66 600w with no issues...

FYI
I run mine on high chirp as the update still dose not have the TM165HW.


Dev

[Koopa253]

No doubt you can run the P66 but that is not a chirp transducer. If you run the TM-165 on the HDS 3 the unit limits output to maximum of 300 Watts.

[58Johnson]

58Johnson - I am curious about the reputation you mentioned for Lowrance - is there a reason that they had a bad reputation in your mind? Any particular models or features that are glitchy? I'm just not familiar with the history there but would appreciate your insights.

I'm not one to say bad things about a particular brand without much first hand experience. Others report poor customer service as a major issue. Lots of opinions out there. It may be somewhat of a Ford vs Chevy debate. I think most of the major manufacturers make a good product. Time will tell how the L brand works. So far I am happy.

[flatwater]

58Johnson - I am curious about the reputation you mentioned for Lowrance - is there a reason that they had a bad reputation in your mind? Any particular models or features that are glitchy? I'm just not familiar with the history there but would appreciate your insights.

I'm not one to say bad things about a particular brand without much first hand experience. Others report poor customer service as a major issue. Lots of opinions out there. It may be somewhat of a Ford vs Chevy debate. I think most of the major manufacturers make a good product. Time will tell how the L brand works. So far I am happy.

Right on, I'm sure people have had good/bad experiences with every brand. I see lots of recommendations for Lowrance as "good value for the money" so hopefully that holds up!

[headduck]

This software seems like a benefit of Lowrance.

External mapping tool that uses sonar/side scan tracks and GPS to do cool stuff.

https://reefmaster.com.au/

Have folks seem software like this for other brands?

[Mooch]

This software seems like a benefit of Lowrance.

External mapping tool that uses sonar/side scan tracks and GPS to do cool stuff.

https://reefmaster.com.au/

Have folks seem software like this for other brands?

Garmin introduced Relief Shading a few years ago in their Vision software and they now include it in Navionics for Lowrance.  Amazing software that uses NOAA's high definition scalable multi-beam sonar data, rather than having to process self-generated sonar logs like Reefmaster apparently does.  Underwater contour mapping and access to community data with overlay is also available on Garmin, which I assumed was common in most newer models of most brands; maybe not.  Sure seems like a lot of nav differences between Garmin and Lowrance have disappeared over the years since Garmin's purchase of Navionics. 

[headduck]

Mooch.

I scrolled through your gallery and checked out the garmin stuff. Can you manipulate troll logs and other info outside of the unit aka on a pc?

Sometimes I'd like to go back and rerun some of the day.

[Danno]

Use a desktop power supply:

http://www.arimaowners.com/index.php?topic=18904.0

[Mooch]

Mooch.

I scrolled through your gallery and checked out the garmin stuff. Can you manipulate troll logs and other info outside of the unit aka on a pc?

Sometimes I'd like to go back and rerun some of the day.

Previously, I used Garmin's Homeport legacy software on my mac for trip planning etc., but it doesn't currently support latest Mac OS.  PC only, I believe.   I currently use the Active Captain app on my iOS devices (phone, iPad, etc).   Mostly I just review info in the boat and log my trip data and tracks at the end of the day with my phone to minimize swapping out or losing those pesky micro SD cards.  Every couple months, I'll merge waypoints between units using AC when I have more time to review, edit and clean-up at each device.  AC app seems to be the direction Garmin is headed, offering much better interconnectivity between all devices, info and maps.  Not too sure about AC support for saved tracks, routes and boundaries between units however.  Not sure if that helps.

[headduck]

That's great Mooch. It is helpful.

Thanks also Danno.

[Liberty Call]

So I've heard talk about how great an autopilot is.  What are the advantages? Pros and cons?

[headduck]

58johnson.

Which transducer are you running? The 3 in 1 or did you go the 2 in 1 plus traditional 2d?

Would you make the same choice again?

[58Johnson]

I have the 3 in 1. It works adequately for my needs.
I agree the 2 in 1 with traditional 2d will allow for a better 2d.
I fish to 120 ft or so. The 3 in 1 does that Ok at 83khz.
(a 50khz will do deep water much better)

[Mooch]

So I've heard talk about how great an autopilot is.  What are the advantages? Pros and cons?

Pros:  You can take a nap while underway.   https://youtu.be/mtZJ__8PVDU   (Yes, that really is the boat's actual name.)

Cons:  Crab buoys and deadheads.

[headduck]

Thanks 58J.

Do you think the 3d Structure scan is something you'd upgrade to eventually? Supposedly it enhance side vu as well as improve imaging at depth.

But it fills the slot an additional 2d would fill...and is about the same price as the tm185 (1k single band chirp) but a bit less than the 1k dual band chirp tm287.

I fish mostly 300' and less, but sometimes 500 feet of water but only fishing the top 100'. No electric reels so the deepest I really care about great bottom detail is probably 300'

I currently have a older entry level furuno 7"...and although its served me well, I find that as I become more obsessed with catching rather than just fishing, the information is a bit too course. I thought i was stepping up at the time with the p66 and couldnt imagine the need for more.

[DevMah]

Thanks 58J.

Do you think the 3d Structure scan is something you'd upgrade to eventually? Supposedly it enhance side vu as well as improve imaging at depth.

But it fills the slot an additional 2d would fill...and is about the same price as the tm185 (1k single band chirp) but a bit less than the 1k dual band chirp tm287.

I fish mostly 300' and less, but sometimes 500 feet of water but only fishing the top 100'. No electric reels so the deepest I really care about great bottom detail is probably 300'

I currently have a older entry level furuno 7"...and although its served me well, I find that as I become more obsessed with catching rather than just fishing, the information is a bit too course. I thought i was stepping up at the time with the p66 and couldnt imagine the need for more.

I have the 3d structure scan so ask away... it work great in fresh water, with my HDS live I can view 3D, bottom and both side scans simultaneously, the 3D structure scan gave me way more detail than when I had the LSS2. Works well in salt water in bays, inlets up to 300'.

I run a P66 at 50 Hz and a TM165HW, the TM165HW has a "Q" of 3 compared to 30 for the P66. The TM165hw is amazingly more detailed I can actually see the independent fish in the school vs a large pool.

For fishing under 600' I would recommend the TM165HW if you finder is able to power and chirp.

Now for the autopilot, its been 2-3 seasons, I mainly use it for trolling and it works awesome. I also have the hand held remote and it works well. I have used it up to 20kn speed and under mild to glass conditions. Took me a while to set it up and fine tune, I'm satisfied. Dose not work well in high winds or moderate seas, as it try's to over correct.


Dev

[headduck]

Thanks dev...

More questions.

On the hds live. Your running 3 ducers?

The 66, 165 and ss3d? Do they all wire to the ss3d black box or additional networked units?

Do I have this right: No 2-in 1 or 3-1 for down vu/side vu. The ss3d does it all? Then the 165 for wide chirp, with the 66 filling in the frequency gap or was it just around and still useful?

What do you lose past 300' depth? Do you still get useful  water column info for trolling but lose bottom detail in the ss3d. I imagine the strength of the 165 comes through here.

Does the 165 enhance the ss3d at all or are the totally independent?

Are they all transom mounted?

The autopilot lives on the kicker or the main?