Sounder Issues

[advTHXance]

Having issues with my sounder...

Brand new Lowrance Hook reveal 9 chartplotter/sounder, with what I believe to be a Lowrance HST-DFSBL 50/200kHz transducer. At first it was barely getting any readings at all no matter how I fiddled with it, towed it back up to CR and had my builder relocate the mounting bracket which helped to some degree, but its still having issues.

Main issues:
-on startup, "sonar stopped" every time, so i have to manually go into settings and start the sonar
-cannot find bottom at speed, finds bottom okay while trolling
-seems to have some kind of echoing going on
-doesnt (or hasnt yet) shown any bait or fish marks
-inconsistent sounder scroll speed

Heres what I see on startup:


Here is how I have to manually fix it:


This is right afterwards:


And here are some random pics of what I see on my screen, using a few different settings for the transducer and frequency:


I didnt mess with the noise cancelling or sensitivity too much for these pics, but in past attempts it hasnt helped fix things. Sensitivity is on auto for these pics I believe, and im not sure about noise cancellation.

Transducer bracket is mounted on the bottom edge of the starboard side of the stepped pod, sits parallel to the water and is always submerged.

 

[kingblazer84]

Having issues with my sounder...

Brand new Lowrance Hook reveal 9 chartplotter/sounder, with what I believe to be a Lowrance HST-DFSBL 50/200kHz transducer. At first it was barely getting any readings at all no matter how I fiddled with it, towed it back up to CR and had my builder relocate the mounting bracket which helped to some degree, but its still having issues.

Main issues:
-on startup, "sonar stopped" every time, so i have to manually go into settings and start the sonar
-cannot find bottom at speed, finds bottom okay while trolling
-seems to have some kind of echoing going on
-doesnt (or hasnt yet) shown any bait or fish marks
-inconsistent sounder scroll speed

Heres what I see on startup:
View attachment 65320

Here is how I have to manually fix it:
View attachment 65321View attachment 65322

This is right afterwards:
View attachment 65323

And here are some random pics of what I see on my screen, using a few different settings for the transducer and frequency:
View attachment 65325View attachment 65324View attachment 65319View attachment 65318View attachment 65317

I didnt mess with the noise cancelling or sensitivity too much for these pics, but in past attempts it hasnt helped fix things. Sensitivity is on auto for these pics I believe, and im not sure about noise cancellation.

Transducer bracket is mounted on the bottom edge of the starboard side of the stepped pod, sits parallel to the water and is always submerged.

That is some interesting stuff! lol I’m gonna assume that unit has chirp? Any chance turning it off might help? Have you checked for firmware update?

 

[Speyside]

Does the noise happen when running engines that are charging the battery? I get some similar noise on my Simrad with a P66 that seems to change with kicker RPM so I assume it is electrical noise from the kicker rectifier. Try shutting engines off for a for a bit if you haven't already. You may also be getting electrical noise from another cable near the transducer cable so you could try isolating the cable from any others.

 

[KMay]

I would return it back to factory settings. As for "mode" i would used "general use" instead of slow troll or deep water or anything like that. 200 khz will read bait better with more detail. 50 khz will hold bottom better with less detail. You may have to go into advanced settings to fix the "stopped sonar" issue but that should be fixed by restoring factory defaults. Also keep your "range" on auto.

 

[advTHXance]

Some good suggestions so far. Ill tinker with things a bit and see if anything changes. If I cant get it sorted out eventually Ill probably get a 2nd screen and a shoot thru transducer if I can get one for a tin boat.

 

[ryanb]

Some good suggestions so far. Ill tinker with things a bit and see if anything changes. If I cant get it sorted out eventually Ill probably get a 2nd screen and a shoot thru transducer if I can get one for a tin boat.

I've tried a shoot thru hull transducer on an aluminum boat I had a number of years ago, and while it worked for showing bottom you won't ever see much of what's going on fish or bait wise.

 

[ericl]

With a brand new unit this forum is the last place you should seek advice - have you tried support?

A guess would be bad transducer/cable/connector.

 

[CBsqrd]

I can't help with the "Sonar Stopped" issue, but that noise on the screen when its firing looks like electrical interference to me. As someone mentioned above, could be from motor or kicker, or any other electrical device on the boat. Definitely not a mounting issue.

FYI, the cone at 200 kHz on that transducer is fairly narrow and will cover less of the water column than when on 50 kHz (or using a wide-angle transducer from Airmar). You might try running both at the same time on split-screen.

 

[RiverBoy]

With a brand new unit this forum is the last place you should seek advice - have you tried support?

A guess would be bad transducer/cable/connector.

i agree totally; i too would be taking it back but sometimes it’s a simple quick fix. i had a nite mare of a time getting my old Lowrance elite to work. for example one time my chart maps were super generic; lacking any detail. someone mentioned taking chip out and putting it back in. voila problem solved. btw my vote is for electrical interference of some kind

 

[ship happens]

You have 2 or more issues here

Sounding while on plane. Thats really tough for a stern mounted transducer. All you can do is move it around

Take the unit off auto sensitivity, Manually adjust it. Set the unit for 200hz. Can play with a bit of noise adjustment to see. Usually a minimal setting is good from what I always found.

If the unit stops after that then might try an update or compatibility with your transducer

these guys might be onto something with some interference.. engines off does it do the same thing?

 

[macro]

on the noise front.. try running it off a separate battery. Some guys run theirs off of power tool battery's with a little sled adapter.. 12 v DC (10.8-17VDC)

 

[advTHXance]

Progress update:

Fiddled with the connections and moved the transducer as far down on the mounting plate as I possibly could. I even drilled new holes in the transducer bracket so it actually hangs a bit below the mounting bracket and pod now. Hit the corner of the bracket with a grinding wheel to make it more hydrodynamic.

Sounder now shows a lot more detail while trolling, and a lot less noise. Still some surface noise but I can eliminate most of it with the surface noise settings. Bottom appears how it should now, and I even marked a few fish and some bait balls so its def working a lot better than it was.

Still having trouble getting a reading while on a step. Holds a reading briefly while accelerating but wont hold it once Im up. I may move the transducer bracket even lower and see if that helps.

 

[ship happens]

Ive only seen a stern mounted transducer work while on plane flawlessly one time.

Get yourself a thru hull of you want that kind of functionality