Hummingbird or Lowrance?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Russ Baker on January 13, 2011 at 7:34am

Ryan,

 

This is like a Ford or Chevy question, you are going to get all kinds of answers.

 

I find when I call Humminbird I get an answer right away and their service has been awesome.

 

I cannot comment on Lowrance havent had much experience with customer service dept there.

 

Ryan, one suggestion would be to see if you can take a closer look at the units you are looking into by asking around to see who has them and see how the units compare.

 

There are several guys on this forum who have SI units in Lowrance and Humminbird.

 

Also check out the forums on bbcboards.net about both brands of sonar units.

 

Good Luck,

 

Russ

Permalink Reply by Dave Massey on January 13, 2011 at 8:55am

I had a problem with my Humminbird and called their customer service.  They gave me the info I needed as far as where to send it for repair.  Process went smoothly and I was very happy with the experience.  Got it back and it worked like a charm.

Permalink Reply by Don Hogue on January 13, 2011 at 9:18am

Ryan,

I was a pretty avid Lowrance user for a number of years.  Humminbird had a less than stellar reputation back then.  Lowrance has never been real easy to use, and very few guys really ever got the most out of their units.  I took the time to learn them and was fairly happy with them....when they worked.  Problem was they often didn't work properly.  Then to get service on a Lowrance unit was very difficult.  If you do some serious research into it, you'll come to the same conclusion.  My personal experience with Lowrance customer service led me to give up on them.  I was also not a big fan of how units were introduced and then a year later were no longer made or supported.  Lowrance's support for those older units was very poor. 

I made a switch to Humminbird a few years ago.  The units are more intuitive, easier to operate.  The customer service for the Humminbird was far superior to any experience I had with Lowrance. 

I could add many stories from my experience at the Classic last year, but in short, a lot of the "pros" I talked to felt the same way, and went to great lengths to use a Humminbird, even when they were sponsored by Lowrance.

Permalink Reply by Don Hogue on January 13, 2011 at 9:22am

Also, you will want side-imaging.  Down imaging alone will not give you anywhere near the amount of information that side-imaging will.

Permalink Reply by Ryan Lamb on January 13, 2011 at 9:47am

I thought so...

thanks for the info and link I will check that out
Russ Baker said:

Ryan,

 

This is like a Ford or Chevy question, you are going to get all kinds of answers.

 

I find when I call Humminbird I get an answer right away and their service has been awesome.

 

I cannot comment on Lowrance havent had much experience with customer service dept there.

 

Ryan, one suggestion would be to see if you can take a closer look at the units you are looking into by asking around to see who has them and see how the units compare.

 

There are several guys on this forum who have SI units in Lowrance and Humminbird.

 

Also check out the forums on bbcboards.net about both brands of sonar units.

 

Good Luck,

 

Russ

Permalink Reply by Ryan Lamb on January 13, 2011 at 9:51am

Those are  the things I find helpful, and believe me I want a SI unit but then thats an extra $500-$1000 on top of the DI units

Thanks alot, will look more into the Hummingbird's now

Have you had any real problems w/ the setup of the units? I know its not quite as simple as a plug and play thing but I read that alot of people bring it somewhere to be installed?
Don Hogue said:

Ryan,

I was a pretty avid Lowrance user for a number of years.  Humminbird had a less than stellar reputation back then.  Lowrance has never been real easy to use, and very few guys really ever got the most out of their units.  I took the time to learn them and was fairly happy with them....when they worked.  Problem was they often didn't work properly.  Then to get service on a Lowrance unit was very difficult.  If you do some serious research into it, you'll come to the same conclusion.  My personal experience with Lowrance customer service led me to give up on them.  I was also not a big fan of how units were introduced and then a year later were no longer made or supported.  Lowrance's support for those older units was very poor. 

I made a switch to Humminbird a few years ago.  The units are more intuitive, easier to operate.  The customer service for the Humminbird was far superior to any experience I had with Lowrance. 

I could add many stories from my experience at the Classic last year, but in short, a lot of the "pros" I talked to felt the same way, and went to great lengths to use a Humminbird, even when they were sponsored by Lowrance.

Permalink Reply by Don Hogue on January 13, 2011 at 10:23am

Just being honest with my response.  Those are my experiences.  Neither unit is bullet proof, and both will take some effort on your part to understand, and even more effort to "master".  I've used both units extensively.   All things considered, my pref. is Humminbird.  

Down imaging units are cool to look at, and may help you understand what your sonar is showing you, but understand that what you are looking at with down imaging is the same thing that the sonar shows you.  If it helps you understand what's down there, then it will benefit you.

Ryan Lamb said:

Those are  the things I find helpful, and believe me I want a SI unit but then thats an extra $500-$1000 on top of the DI units

Thanks alot, will look more into the Hummingbird's now

Have you had any real problems w/ the setup of the units? I know its not quite as simple as a plug and play thing but I read that alot of people bring it somewhere to be installed?
Don Hogue said:

Ryan,

I was a pretty avid Lowrance user for a number of years.  Humminbird had a less than stellar reputation back then.  Lowrance has never been real easy to use, and very few guys really ever got the most out of their units.  I took the time to learn them and was fairly happy with them....when they worked.  Problem was they often didn't work properly.  Then to get service on a Lowrance unit was very difficult.  If you do some serious research into it, you'll come to the same conclusion.  My personal experience with Lowrance customer service led me to give up on them.  I was also not a big fan of how units were introduced and then a year later were no longer made or supported.  Lowrance's support for those older units was very poor. 

I made a switch to Humminbird a few years ago.  The units are more intuitive, easier to operate.  The customer service for the Humminbird was far superior to any experience I had with Lowrance. 

I could add many stories from my experience at the Classic last year, but in short, a lot of the "pros" I talked to felt the same way, and went to great lengths to use a Humminbird, even when they were sponsored by Lowrance.

Permalink Reply by Don Hogue on January 13, 2011 at 5:03pm

Ryan,

You are better off learning how to set up the units yourself.  You can always have a dealer install for you, or someone else, but then you will not be familiar with what's involved, what hooks to what, and what is wrong when something goes wrong. 

Between the manual and all that's out there on the 'net you can easily learn a lot about it pretty quick.

 

These units (Lowrance or 'Birds) are not "plug and play" things - you're right.  It is pretty amazing what you can do with a comination of the side-imaging, mapping chips, GPS, and computer software out there.  Yeah, you can have them installed, turn them on and go fish, but you might as well stick with a very basic unit (no side imaging) for that.

Ryan Lamb said:

Those are  the things I find helpful, and believe me I want a SI unit but then thats an extra $500-$1000 on top of the DI units

Thanks alot, will look more into the Hummingbird's now

Have you had any real problems w/ the setup of the units? I know its not quite as simple as a plug and play thing but I read that alot of people bring it somewhere to be installed?
Don Hogue said:

Ryan,

I was a pretty avid Lowrance user for a number of years.  Humminbird had a less than stellar reputation back then.  Lowrance has never been real easy to use, and very few guys really ever got the most out of their units.  I took the time to learn them and was fairly happy with them....when they worked.  Problem was they often didn't work properly.  Then to get service on a Lowrance unit was very difficult.  If you do some serious research into it, you'll come to the same conclusion.  My personal experience with Lowrance customer service led me to give up on them.  I was also not a big fan of how units were introduced and then a year later were no longer made or supported.  Lowrance's support for those older units was very poor. 

I made a switch to Humminbird a few years ago.  The units are more intuitive, easier to operate.  The customer service for the Humminbird was far superior to any experience I had with Lowrance. 

I could add many stories from my experience at the Classic last year, but in short, a lot of the "pros" I talked to felt the same way, and went to great lengths to use a Humminbird, even when they were sponsored by Lowrance.

Permalink Reply by Ben Holten on January 13, 2011 at 5:51pm

Here is a question. Can you interlink Hummingbird units like the Lowrance so your way points match up?

Permalink Reply by Don Hogue on January 13, 2011 at 5:59pm

Yes.  You can choose to share waypoints between units, or lock certain waypoints so they don't show on the other unit.

Ben Holten said:

Here is a question. Can you interlink Hummingbird units like the Lowrance so your way points match up?

Permalink Reply by troy kelly on January 13, 2011 at 6:44pm

I too had been a lowrance guy since I started bass fishing.  I have since gone with a new humminbird and so far I love it.  If you check bass boat central you can find some of the smaller side imaging units pretty darn cheap on there. 

Permalink Reply by Jon Werner on January 13, 2011 at 7:59pm

Ryan -

 

       I've had a Hummingbird 997SI now for 2 yrs and it's great.  As mentioned, the BBC board has two nice Hummingbird pages that will help with your ability to use the unit.  I feel my SI is easy to use as well as easy to navigate through the pages of options.  One thing i would highly recommend is to get the largest screen unit for RAM mount by the steering wheel.  You SI helps you scout a lot of ground.  I feel it's easier to decipher on a larger screen.  I find more than a few people trying to sell yr old units so they may upgrade in screen size.  Get an SI unit if possible.

       I've also been on a few boats with the Lowrance HDS units.  They are super nice as well.  If I were to compare the two here's what I'd say.  The Lowrance boot up MUCH more slowly than the HB.  When it comes to the SI abilities, I thought both units were pretty similar.  I thought the HDS was a bit more crisp, but I don't use the SI as a fish finder, I use it to find structure.  Humminbird or HDS will find your rockpiles and weedlines.  SO in regard to SI, I feel it is equal between both units. 

       When it comes to Down Imaging/ Structure Scan/Sonar - The HDS units are more detailed... easily.  No contest when it comes to this.  For me though, I don't vertically fish that much. 

       When I was in the process of deciding which unit to get, I was reading too much about problems with Lowrance support.  At the same time I was hearing good reviews coming from the Hummingbird users.  As mentioned the BBC Hummingbird forum has 2 pages - super helpful.  You might do a search on www.westernbass.com  This is where I read much of my info re: customer service.

       Last for me was price.  Hummingbird provides as MUCH more affordable unit that in some areas, IMO, is better than HDS and in some areas (Down Imaging/Structure Scan/Sonar)HB is behind Lowrance.  For an 8"  HDS - your loking at $1800 ish PLUS another $600 ish for the Structure Scan.  Hummingbirds similar unit the 898c SI is $1500.00 which includes Down Imaging.

       Hope this helps a bit.  I've been happy with my bird units and others I know are happy with their HDS.  Good Luck -

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