Raymarine A50D vs Lowrance HDS5
Submitted by chris raff on Wed, 2011-12-21 11:47
Hi All...just hunting for small combo for the tinny was going to grab the lowrance... then silly me come across the raymarine and thought that looks alright as well.I presume both will do the job well in 30 - 40m tops...just thought I'd run it past you guys prior to biting the bullet ...just in case I'm missing something significantly between the specs ...
Hope the links work , thanks and best xmas wishes
Raymarine www.whitworths.com.au/main_itemdetail.asp?item=46176
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“Intelligence is like a four-wheel drive. It only allows you to get stuck in more remote places.”
scotto
Posts: 2474
Date Joined: 21/04/08
better than 30 - 40m,
Ive got the A50D in my dinghy, and its a mint little unit. its got a 600w tranny, and ive read the bottom awesomely in 70m, and at speeds of 20knots p/h, and i reckon it would read well in depths over 100m. it also comes pre-programmed with navionics silver, which gives you all the contours close to shore, up to around 40m. anymore than that, and you have to buy navionics gold. the plotter was a bit different to what im used to (lowrance) but it is still user friendly. the whole unit with a free transducer was $750 not long ago at whitworths.
The HDS5 that I have used was also a good unit, but sometimes at speed, the gps would cut out for a few seconds, then take a few more seconds to re-start. it also read bottom depths of 80m very well, and would almost definately get good bottom reads in over 100m. you do have to buy navionics for this unit.
till
Posts: 9358
Date Joined: 21/02/08
I had the old A65 (now A70D)
I had the old A65 (now A70D) and was very happy with it. It also came with good warranty support which I had the misfortune of using ;)
dodgy
Posts: 4588
Date Joined: 01/02/10
I have the a65 as well.
I have the a65 as well. Sounder is great but the gps takes a little getting used to. Ray doesn't lie.
I prefer lowrance plotters so I run 2 combos. Raymarine for the sounder and lowrance for the plotter.
Does anyone know where the love of god goes, when the waves turn the minutes to hours?
chris raff
Posts: 3257
Date Joined: 09/02/10
Thanks Guys
I didn't think the onboard navionics ,would've been much chop thats a big bonus not having to fork out the extra $300+ ...I liked the rectangular screen and the resolution was better on the raymarine as well...done deal me thinks ...have enough leftovers in the xmas pressie budget for a King mack T-curve as well ...HO HO HO it's off to the tackle I go...cheers
“Intelligence is like a four-wheel drive. It only allows you to get stuck in more remote places.”