Best Transducer for GP1971F to use in shallow water

H

Hitham

New member
Hello.. im looking to purchase GP1971F but im so confused when i have to pick transducer to get full capabilities of the gp1971f that suits my needs as im freediver doing spearfishing so depths wont exceed 50m i dont understand much about TruEcho CHIRP or Rez boost and bottom discrimination can you have both or u have to pick one as i understood from another forum post..
with some research i found that 525T-BSD transducer as most common. ist perfect for me needs ?
 
The best place to look for transducers is under the accessories page of the GP1971F on our website. Under transducers it breaks out which transducers support BD and which ones don't. BD requires a "suitable" DUAL FREQ transducer to function. SINGLE FREQ Chirp will not provide BD or Accufish. Because you don't need deep waters, I would recommend a wide beam HF single beam Chirp or a standard suitable dual freq transducer. You will have to decide which feature(s) are most important for your needs and fits your boat.
 
Thanks for the quick reply.. after some reading i think i don't need BD.. for me my first priority to see as much bottom structure as possible to find best diving spots.. seeing some fish on bottom or close to it is winning jackpot but its not a must to me.. based on this could you recommend me a good value for the money transducer..
 
I purchased a GP1971F last September and so far I really do like it. There a few things that I’m struggling with. But, it’s mostly trial and error to figure out the best results for our fishing.

We bottom fish, typically in less than 160’ of water. Bottom reading and target separation were most important to us as well. We went with a 1kw chirp TM185M transducer. It’s a beast and the resolution and clarity is awesome.

But, we were also interested in capturing bottom readings while underway. So, we recently installed an FCV628 with the 525T/LTD20 (Airmar B60) thru Hull transducer which is a 50/200 conventional dual frequency. It does have rezboost and bottom discrimination. The rezboost is nice. But, it’s definitely no substitute for chirp in my opinion. And I found that the bottom discrimination is less than reliable when compared to good old fashioned second echo readings. For example, I was directly over a wreck in 120’ of water and the bottom discrimination insisted on mud or sand. So, my faith has been shaken And I will trust the second echo moving forward.

Edit:

Also note, bottom discrimination will not work once you start going more than about 9-10 knots.

My recommendation for you is the Chirp TM185M- it is pricey. But, i think it’s about the best you can marry to that GP1971F

If that price point scares you, drop down to the 600w Chirp.
 
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