Best Fishfinder/GPS for the money?

[tapjr]

Picked up my new boat about a month ago so far very happy with it but I want to upgrade the the fish finder to a gps combo but want to get the best bang for my buck. I have seen alot of good posts on here and have only posted a couple times myself but would like some opinions from some of you guys who have more experience with sonar.
On a side note I'm also going to upgrade the trolling motor to an ipilot but it
will be awhile for that.

[Pookie]

Picked up my new boat about a month ago so far very happy with it but I want to upgrade the the fish finder to a gps combo but want to get the best bang for my buck. I have seen alot of good posts on here and have only posted a couple times myself but would like some opinions from some of you guys who have more experience with sonar.
On a side note I'm also going to upgrade the trolling motor to an ipilot but it
will be awhile for that.

You will find many varying opinions here on that topic. I believe the Hummingbird syncs with the i-Pilot, not sure about the Lowrance unit. All I can tell you is what I use. I have the Lowrance hds-8 at the helm, with side-imaging. I went to Randy Kuhens on the water class in Kentucky, and he runs Lowrance. That is what I learned on, and that is what my fishing buddy and I bought. My buddy has the 8 at the helm and the 7 at the TM. I have the 8 at the helm and nothing at the TM for now.

Whatever you buy, taking Kuhens' class is beneficial. He will have you operating the unit better than one of Ingram's Tow Boat pilots in a day. The link is: http://www.kentuckylake.com/fishing/reports/kicknbass/kicknbass.shtml

I don't think you can go wrong with either unit. It's like rods, reels, and tackle...all a matter of personal taste.

[Alphahawk]

One brands unit of similar capabilities is not necessarily better the the other. But if you have an iPilot or you are getting one, don't expect it to mate up with anything other than a Humminbird. More hardware is required with Lowrance if you want side scan....depending on the unit you get. One of the reasons I went with a Humminbird over a Lowrance was the hardware issue....I am in a kayak and only have so much room. The Humminbird side imaging units have everything integrated in the unit and you only have one transducer. The Lowrance has a dedicated transducer crystal for down imaging and many say it is a better image. One of the drawbacks that a Humminbird unit has is the so called "Donut" problem. If you slow troll...say at less than 1 MPH.....you will not get an indication arrow as to the direction the boat is pointed...you will get a big fat circle if you are less than 1 MPH. It can be a pain if you are trying to stay on a waypoint...or school of crappie.....without using a marker buoy. They have a solution to that if you purchase their heading sensor for 200 bucks.....which I am going to get...but ticks me off as that technology could have been easily...and cheaply built into the unit. My understanding is one can slow troll with a Garmin....Lowrance...and always know the direction the boat is pointed. Then you have CHIRP in the broad band sonar in some units. It shows a much higher definition 2D sonar picture than non CHIRPed units. But CHIRP really shines in very deep water situations. The imaging sonars from both Humminbird and Lowrance more than suffice in the fresh water situations we have here in Tennessee so CHIRP may or may not appeal to you. It is good to take classes with any of these units but I watched and studied a series of videos on Humminbird si units on youtube and when I got on the water I felt very comfortable with the unit. A guy named Doug Vahrenberg made them and they tell...and show you pretty much all you need to know. There are probably many tutorials for Lowrance on youtube as well. You haven't said what your budget is but I assume if you want an iPilot you are also talking upper end in sonar units. I have no clue how good...or bad......Lowrance customer service is. I can tell you how good Humminbird customer service is....it is very good. I have the Humminbird 899 unit and am very happy with it. It has already made for an extremely enjoyable past 4 months for me. I am able to locate any structure that is under water and bluegill and shell cracker beds in deep water cannot be hidden from you. When you find crappie you will know what you are looking at. Any brand of the imaging units will do the same for you. Just all depends how much money you want to spend. I will tell you that if you get a unit with side imaging buy as big a screen size as you can afford...and then make it hurt even more and get the bigger one...LOL. The bigger the screen the better the resolution which will make it easier to pick out fish. As much as I like my unit I will tell you if I had the money there would be a 10 inch screen on my kayak instead of the 7 inch. All of these units need to be tuned to the water you are fishing that day. But it only takes a few minutes of your time and your ready for the day.

Regards

[Travis C.]

First it depends on where your buck is to get them most bang for it.

Then, if you are eventually going to end up with an I-Pilot you will probably want to lean HB route and depending on where your buck is a color monitor at the very least.

[tapjr]

I'm leaning towards the hb 859 ci hd di. The side imaging seems tempting but the price difference is considerable and I don' t get to fish enough to
justify it with the wife plus the trolling motor upgrade will get here faster if I don't spend too much now.
Thanks all for the info and if anyone has the specific unit I mentioned I would like to hear your reviews also.