Hds 10 help
I have a hds 10 with the 50/200hz transducer and need some help ironing out a few issues and understanding how to get the full benefits from it. My first question is what depths suit the alternate 50/200hz? I think that the 50 is better in shallow water and the 200 in deeper but not 100% sure.
Also I seem to be getting a rather unclear picture, especially in the top third of the water column. What is the cause of this and how do I eliminate it?
I'm also unsure if what I think is fish and good ground is actually that. I read it as though thick red is solid coral, yellow as softer ground such as sand and blue as weed beds. I haven't changed any settings from installation, so would this be on the money or am I giving myself false indications?
I'm sure there are a lot of different options to gain maximum benefits from it, but more than anything I'm too unsure about it to start pressing buttons for the sake of it and throw the settings out altogether. It was a pretty expensive unit so I want to understand it properly to maximize its purpose and catch more fish.
Any help would be great :)
milsey
Posts: 1462
Date Joined: 22/08/07
200 is for shallow, More
200 is for shallow, More definition. Years ago when i first go into boat fishing i didn’t have anyone to show me the ropes so i learnt from reading the full Manual and just fiddling on the water. I had a hds 5 which im assuming has a few different settings than the 10 but the main controls are as follows and ill try quickly explain what ive found to be the best setting keeping in mind this is for a 5.
Ping speed, You want this as low as you can whilst keeping signal, the shallower you are the lower this can be and the lower it is the more detail you will see. I think from memory in the 30-60m i would have this around 6.
Sensitivity, fairly basic but is one of the most important controls. You want this as high as possible without having clutter, You might find as you speed up you get feedback and clutter. Just drop the sensitivity back till the screen clears up. Sounding at around 6-8kn i would have this around 80-90% and once you slow down to sound a spot pump it up to around 90-95 to get a stronger show of fish ect.
Bottom lock, very simple. Basically flattens out boat movement and i find more helpful than the actual bottom show itself. I also like to have an A-scope which shows what the tranny is pinging immediately under the boat.
When looking for bottom i will generally have BL on the bottom 10-5m and the actual bottom showing 20m but everyone is different i just like a zoomed bottom.
Colour, I like nightview because i find the colours easier to read but that’s personal pref also.
Other settings like clutter erase can be helpful but will deplete some sensitivity and i never have any of these higher than low. But like i said, read the manual, read anything you can find on the net and get out there and fiddle. Once you know what your looking at your catch rate will sky rocket.
C.P
Posts: 345
Date Joined: 04/01/12
HDS 5
Thanks Milsey. I have a HDS 5 & have stuggled to drive the damn thing. All pretty flat ground where I fish so its difficult to know what I'm looking at. I'll try your suggestions. I'm pretty impressed with this site & how helpful people are. Thanks Again
milsey
Posts: 1462
Date Joined: 22/08/07
Little secret but the last
Little secret but the last report i put up, We were in my mates boat with a 5x. Big contrast to the 295 in my tub but goes to show you dont need exxy units to find the fish once you know what your looking at.
AlwaysFishin
Posts: 644
Date Joined: 13/11/11
Thank milsey. Appreciate
Thanks milsey. Appreciate your input.
Tomcat
Posts: 614
Date Joined: 24/02/11
Hds1O
When I had one I allways made sure I was running latest software and ran a 1 kl tranni makes big difference