I have a Lowrance X510c Fishfinder with a 200kHz Skimmer transom mount transducer. Just bought it in the Spring of 2010..it worked great for the first month......than i started to lose bottom/unit froze at times . It didn't matter if i was running 18 mph or stationary...today it kinda went crazy on me. blank screen...no bottom...and at the dock the bottom depth went from 2 feet to 12 feet and everywhere it between.Bottom returned after some time.Last week i had the boat out of the water and checked the transducers' installation...everything looked great..even cleaned the transducer. Today i checked the wiring/connections and transducer cable extension..looked okay..everything is new.Taking it back to the dealer here in town is not an option... i would be lucky to hear back from them next summer.Was thinking on ordering an Airman P66 transducer and trying it to see if the original transducer was the problem. Other than that i not sure what to do....any suggestions would help. Thanks Tug
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Transducer Problems
- Thread starter Tug
- Start date
B2........i have the transducer cable routed on the Port side away from the main cable run on the Starboard side. The Fishfinder is wired directly to the batteries......i have tried/used the factory default settings but that didn't seem to help. I will check the battery connections again. Thanks Tug
I didn't end up going fishing/woke up too late.Went and bought two new batteries and installed them on the boat, i will go for a ride tonite and see if my fishfinder works any better. The other batteries were 2006, i will keep them charged and place them in the back of my truck..may come in handy for myself or some-one else.Tug
You might contact Lowrance Tech Support by email or phone
http://www.lowrance.com/Support/
I expect they can troubleshoot it or replace it since it is new
http://www.lowrance.com/Support/
I expect they can troubleshoot it or replace it since it is new
Brought the boat home around 6:00 PM and lowered the transducer. Washed the slime off the boat and transducer and brought it back to the marina.Tried the fishfinder from the launch ramp to my slip...all seemed to work perfectly..i was getting a very clear/colorful picture with an actual bottom reading. Hope this solves the problem...will see when i go fishing tomorrow.Tug
Chris Bulovsky
New member
On occasion mine freaks out as well. When underway I'll get a vague reading of the bottom(faster than 12MPH). It may need to be adjusted a little lower. Also when I have really warm surface water it sometimes shows just the first six feet of water even when i know I'm in 100 to 130 Ft. of water. That lasts a couple of irritating minutes then reverts back to normal. I just chalked it up to an old tired transducer. I could be wrong. I understand they do wear out. I will say it was much more sensitive when new.
I never had a blank screen however. That would suggest a bad wire / connection to the transducer IMO.
I'd do what B2 says and call Lowrance. Mornings are the best time to get through to them. I do just hate waiting on the phone for tech. support. But like the Duke says "A mans gotta do what mans gotta do."
A new one will likely solve your troubles.
Good luck TUG!
Chris Bulovsky
I never had a blank screen however. That would suggest a bad wire / connection to the transducer IMO.
I'd do what B2 says and call Lowrance. Mornings are the best time to get through to them. I do just hate waiting on the phone for tech. support. But like the Duke says "A mans gotta do what mans gotta do."
A new one will likely solve your troubles.
Good luck TUG!
Chris Bulovsky
C spot swim
New member
Hi Tug,
My wife recently discovered that a cell phone (turned on) and placed near (within 2 feet) our sounder's display panel appears to disable the depth reading. Only the depth is affected, not the plotter or other displays. I'm open to others' opinions for that matter.
I've experimented with phone placement a few times and I'm drawing that conclusion though I can't say for sure if it's placing the phone near the display, cables, or roof puck. I am also not sure which phone it is or the physical process of how interference might occur with these particular electronic signals.
Just a thought in your troubleshooting.
I am picking up a backup hand held sounder in the near future and considering a through-hull sounder to be placed in the bilge. :gift
Good luck,
Mike
My wife recently discovered that a cell phone (turned on) and placed near (within 2 feet) our sounder's display panel appears to disable the depth reading. Only the depth is affected, not the plotter or other displays. I'm open to others' opinions for that matter.
I've experimented with phone placement a few times and I'm drawing that conclusion though I can't say for sure if it's placing the phone near the display, cables, or roof puck. I am also not sure which phone it is or the physical process of how interference might occur with these particular electronic signals.
Just a thought in your troubleshooting.
I am picking up a backup hand held sounder in the near future and considering a through-hull sounder to be placed in the bilge. :gift
Good luck,
Mike
C-Pup16 in Los Angeles
New member
I have an old LX-16 Lowrance unit. What I am about to tell started a few months ago after a few years use and is true, not joking. When powering on, it starts its display upside down and with letters reversed and words spelled backwards. It still displays fish, but I have had no luck casting upward to catch them. Lowrance staff said I'm out of luck and time to buy a new unit. Since the disturbed unit seems to fix itself after 30 minutes or so, I've kept using it for this summer. I'll be asking Santa for a new one this Christmas.
I have two Lowrance units side by side and two transducers on the transom. That lets me run one at 50 and the other at 200 at the same time. There is a speed limit after which they fail to function underway, about 16 knts or faster depending on depth. When you loose the bottom and it blinks or shows incorrect data like 1 ft depth, first, stop the boat and look down in the water. Then if the bottom is not staring back at you, either reboot the unit or give it time to restart sonar signals on its own when the boat stops or slows.
I sometimes have to check the depth range feature on the menu and be sure it is appropriate. It sometimes falles on its own into a setting for 1,500 ft depth. When I'm over just 75 feet of water, that's means it's not working. I often tweak the display by using the menu, and I get generally good performance. Lowrance is not perfect in quality or endurance, but it is a good product fot the price. I love the color details on Lowrance!
Does anyone get the feeling these fish finder makers program their units to show a non-existing fish now and then, just to keep us from giving up?
Keith
C-Pup16
I have two Lowrance units side by side and two transducers on the transom. That lets me run one at 50 and the other at 200 at the same time. There is a speed limit after which they fail to function underway, about 16 knts or faster depending on depth. When you loose the bottom and it blinks or shows incorrect data like 1 ft depth, first, stop the boat and look down in the water. Then if the bottom is not staring back at you, either reboot the unit or give it time to restart sonar signals on its own when the boat stops or slows.
I sometimes have to check the depth range feature on the menu and be sure it is appropriate. It sometimes falles on its own into a setting for 1,500 ft depth. When I'm over just 75 feet of water, that's means it's not working. I often tweak the display by using the menu, and I get generally good performance. Lowrance is not perfect in quality or endurance, but it is a good product fot the price. I love the color details on Lowrance!
Does anyone get the feeling these fish finder makers program their units to show a non-existing fish now and then, just to keep us from giving up?
Keith
C-Pup16
Well the transducer is still acting up...called Lowrance Support today.They suggested that it may be a problem with the transducer...i may of hit something and damaged the crystal in the transducer thus causing the weird readings. They said i should try another transducer and if that didn't fix the problem i could ship the unit back to them for repair. I ordered a Airmar P66 today and will try that...hope it does the trick because i still want to go on my planned cruise...will need a reliable sounder for that. Tug
I have my Fish sonar transducer mounted on the Port side....would that be causing some of my reception ( reading ) problems....back pressure from the clockwise rotating propeller...i am reading that transducers should be mounting on the Starboard side............and does anyone know what the transom angle ( degree's ) of the 1985 C-Dory Anglers .
search the archives on transducer, it shows using a piece of Starboard mounted to the transom then installing the transducer which is useful if you need to adjust and protects the transom.
I have a Garmin transducer and followed the instructions and it is mounted on the starboard side
I have a Garmin transducer and followed the instructions and it is mounted on the starboard side
Hi,
One other thing to check is make sure that the tranducer is mounted in an area that has a clean path of water flowing by it. They don't like bubbles. Sometimes with perma trims and other devices that are designed to lift the rear of the boat to enable planning at lower speeds cause the transducers to lift too far out of the water. Sometimes irregularities on the bottom (krinkles in bottom paint etc.)of the boat can cause bubbles at speed make sure the bottom is smooth. Maybe hooking up a voltmeter while running at different speeds to the power feeds on the Lowrance unit would show low power or spikes that could cause problems. Just throwing stuff at the wall maybe something will stick. I have been told by an electronics guy to only have one transducer turned on at a time. I run a Garmin 4208 multifunction unit which has it's own sonar transducer and radar. Because I also have a Lowrance multifunction gps sonar with a transducer as a backup I leave the Garmins sonar off and have the Lowrance's sonar on networked to the Garmin's display via my network cable. That way I always have depth showing on my Garmin and use it for nav duties and radar and use the Lowrance screen for looking at the bottom if I'm fishing or zoomed in on a nav screen.
D.D.
One other thing to check is make sure that the tranducer is mounted in an area that has a clean path of water flowing by it. They don't like bubbles. Sometimes with perma trims and other devices that are designed to lift the rear of the boat to enable planning at lower speeds cause the transducers to lift too far out of the water. Sometimes irregularities on the bottom (krinkles in bottom paint etc.)of the boat can cause bubbles at speed make sure the bottom is smooth. Maybe hooking up a voltmeter while running at different speeds to the power feeds on the Lowrance unit would show low power or spikes that could cause problems. Just throwing stuff at the wall maybe something will stick. I have been told by an electronics guy to only have one transducer turned on at a time. I run a Garmin 4208 multifunction unit which has it's own sonar transducer and radar. Because I also have a Lowrance multifunction gps sonar with a transducer as a backup I leave the Garmins sonar off and have the Lowrance's sonar on networked to the Garmin's display via my network cable. That way I always have depth showing on my Garmin and use it for nav duties and radar and use the Lowrance screen for looking at the bottom if I'm fishing or zoomed in on a nav screen.
D.D.
Captains Cat
New member
Will-C":3jrulj7z said:Hi,
I have been told by an electronics guy to only have one transducer turned on at a time. D.D.
I've been told the same thing but routinely run the Garmin 545S sounder and the Raymarine DMS300 (with the E-80 display) at the same time. The Garmin has an airmar P66 shooting through the hull on the starboard side and the Raymarine sensor is outside on port hull. No problems or interference. I like the Raymarine better though, the Garmin loses the bottom a lot and we are routinely in water less than 75' deep.
Charlie