why use side imaging

[cliff n york]

what is the purpose of useing side imaging, is supposed to replace a regular depth finder :confused2:

[ShilohRed]

To allow you to find structure you may not ever find with a standard unit. I can cover 15 miles of river in a day and find about everything on it. And with a standard unit. Your going to still be looking while I am ready to fish the new water that I have never been on before.
One of the Guides and catfish Tournament fisherman. Told me he covered 15 or so miles of the Ohio River pre fishing for a Tournament there. And the other guys were still trying to find stuff the next day.
So ask your self. Is the time worth it to find log piles say 200ft away from you on both sides of the boat. 480ft total is what your covering at one pass. Cuts down on time you would spend on looking for structure and fish.
Look at this shot of a hump with crappie beds all over it. How long would it take you to find all of these? I can and did mark each one while freezing the frame on that spot.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/ShilohRed/Sidescan/yellowcreekjune009hump.jpg
Or these trees in the water?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/ShilohRed/Sidescan/Sidescanriverjune008.jpg
Or this school of fish.? see the ball of bait fish? Then the fish around them feeding on them? Think you would see that on a standard unit?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/ShilohRed/Sidescan/pickwicklake006.jpg
Pete

[Seth]

Those side imaging units look awesome. So is the line in the middle what is directly below the boat?

[Mr.T]

On a typical sonar unit, the transducer can "see" a circle on the bottom that's about 10 ft in diameter when you're in 30 ft of water. In 10 ft of water you're seeing about 3 ft. Like looking at the grand canyon through a straw.

With side imaging, you're seeing basically everything on both sides of the boat, up to 60 or 100 ft away.

Seems like a no-brainer to me.

The only barrier for most folks is the ridiculous price - it costs about $2000 to play the side imaging game. I've been slow to get on board the "side imaging" train, but there are enough folks using them successfully now to convince me that it's the way to go.

And if I had to choose between a $5000 boat with a $300 sonar or a $3000 boat with a $2000 sonar, I'd take the cheaper boat.

[ShilohRed]

Those side imaging units look awesome. So is the line in the middle what is directly below the boat?

The center line is the travel of the boat. Top of the shot is the new stuff And back toward the bottom is the old stuff.
From that center line to where it shows the bottom on each side is the water under the boat. Pull that shot together and block the water out. And both sides under the boat will match. Look at this shot of the single log sticking out.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/ShilohRed/Sidescan/sidescantree01.jpg
Also a few years ago. When I bought the unit(First one on the BOC). Lots of folks laughed and told me that I was crazy for spending that kind of $$ on the unit. But just goes to show that they did not know half as much as they thought they did.
Pete

[BKS72]

I have the smaller 797 unit with side image, but I'm usually looking 50' to either side for a 100' total "scan" window. As Pete alluded to, if you see some interesting structure, you just put your cursor over what you see and get distance and heading to it. With SI the days of wondering if it's a rock, tree, or hump in the bottom are over. As you can see by Pete's pix, a tree looks like a tree. I didn't trust mine 100% until I saw a brushpile in the channel, anchored by it, and got snagged and dragged up a piece of brush.
After that, I don't doubt it any more.

[Seth]

The center line is the travel of the boat. Top of the shot is the new stuff And back toward the bottom is the old stuff.
From that center line to where it shows the bottom on each side is the water under the boat. Pull that shot together and block the water out. And both sides under the boat will match. Look at this shot of the single log sticking out.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/ShilohRed/Sidescan/sidescantree01.jpg
Also a few years ago. When I bought the unit(First one on the BOC). Lots of folks laughed and told me that I was crazy for spending that kind of $$ on the unit. But just goes to show that they did not know half as much as they thought they did.
Pete


Wow! That is awesome! I wish I had the cash to buy one of those dudes.

[Plowboy411]

That would be a dream come true.one day????LOL:wink:

[cumberlandcat]

I was talking to a few cattin guys yesterday that had the side imaging unit and they said they actually use the regu;lar sonar on the unit more than anything, they said it was great for seeing structure but as far as the rest goes they use the sonar for 95% of there fishing, kinda bummed me out cause I have been wanting one of these bad boys but I guess its better to find out now than later.

[oh no]

Can't a person just turn your transducer somewhat sideways and get the same effect. Just on one side of the boat??

[BKS72]

Jim, nope. Most of the "magic" is in the software that translates the images. The SI technology is similar to ultrasound technology. If you turn your transducer sideways on an regular depthfinder all you've done is moved your sonar picture 90 deg to your boat. You're not going to see much moving forward except a thin "slice" of the bottom. Side imaging is pretty much a brand-new technology for the depthfinder market.

Chris, the SI isn't the greatest for me picking up cats on the bottom, but if you look at some of the pix Pete posted, they're a great tool for finding structure and bait. I'd bet if you see a bait ball and fish feeding on them like the one image Pete posted, the blues are going to be right below them:wink:

[oh no]

What I was thinking was, I have 2 new Bottomlines, same model, thinking of mounting 1 transducer straight down and the other at an angle sideways.

My thinking is, with a little practice, I should be able to judge whats off the one side by studing both screens.

[ShilohRed]

I was talking to a few cattin guys yesterday that had the side imaging unit and they said they actually use the regu;lar sonar on the unit more than anything, they said it was great for seeing structure but as far as the rest goes they use the sonar for 95% of there fishing, kinda bummed me out cause I have been wanting one of these bad boys but I guess its better to find out now than later.

I use the side iminging more. And if they learn how to use the unit. They will also.
This shows all the fish that the guys that does not us both sides of the unit are missing out on.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/ShilohRed/Sidescan/Octblues09015.jpg
Here is a ball of bait fish and fish feeding on them
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/ShilohRed/Sidescan/pickwicklake006.jpg
Here is one more
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/ShilohRed/Sidescan/pickwicklake007redo.jpg
This school of fish off to the side. They would never know was there .
Pete

[ShilohRed]

Can't a person just turn your transducer somewhat sideways and get the same effect. Just on one side of the boat??

Jim it would be more like the Side scan that Humminbird had been using for years. Theres shoot off to the side. I have one. And it will find what is up in the water. but nothing like the SI unit.
Pete

[wylie catter]

How good is the regular wide side view. Not side imaging, the other one you referred too. I was thinking about buying one of those.

If it will mark fish in 2' of water near the bank that's all I need.

In the manual that come with my humminbird it looks decent.

[ShilohRed]

How good is the regular wide side view. Not side imaging, the other one you referred too. I was thinking about buying one of those.

If it will mark fish in 2' of water near the bank that's all I need.

In the manual that come with my humminbird it looks decent.

It will mark fish. but I did not have any luck in water under say 10ft. It it good for going along a bluff and seeing fish.But that is about it.
The Side Imaging is light years ahead of that unit. And where the side View just shows blimps. The side Imaging shows what is there for sure.
Pete

[zappaf19]

I have been looking at those real hard but the price! Sure would be nice to find structure fast tho.
Bill