Understanding Fishfinder Technology - Types, Specs & Everything That Matters

The marine world is full of risks, adventures, and the unexpected. You never know what you might come across on your way and that’s the reason it’s always wise to be prepared for everything. Fishfinders help anglers view a graphic representation of whatever is below their vessels so they can detect the fishes and identify them.

For picking a fishfinder, you must consider different factors, including the type of unit first, whether or not it has GPS, if it’s part of a boat wide network, size of the footprint, display resolution, transmitting power you require, and what frequencies are perfect for the coastal, inland, or deep-water environment where you will do fishing.

Choosing Between Standalone, Combo or Network Fishfinder


You have three choices of fishfinders available to you -
  • Standalone fishfinders that work on one basic function
  • Combo fishfinders that additionally have a Chartplotter
  • Fully-networked systems that offer a smorgasbord of potential functions, that are viewable via one or more multifunction displays.

Here is a brief info about each:

Standalone Fishfinders: When all you want to see is what’s down there, dedicated standalone fishfinders are the best, giving the biggest display & highest performance at the lowest cost. For small boats used for fishing small inland lakes or for those who don’t want to spend too much, a standalone fishfinder is an ideal option. On the other hand, when your pilothouse has enough space for multiple displays, or you just purchased a new GPS, you can opt for a better, big-screen fishfinder. One can anytime upgrade a GPS sensor later to multiple units, converting them into chartplotter combos.


Combo Fishfinder/Chartplotter: The combo units are ideal for people with mid-sized boats. You can use GPS for navigation to the fishing grounds, see both on a split screen, or just view the fishfinder. The Black Box sounder module can convert most chartplotters into combo units, by only installing a transducer. You can consider options like Garmin fishfinder GPS combo and check reviews to decide which one is best for you.


Networked System: You will find fully networked systems from most of the popular suppliers. It generally supports a majority of data sources such as raster, radar, and vector GPS charts, SiriusXM satellite radio, and more. Some units even allow Bluetooth/WiFi, so you can control them through your Android or iPhone. The fishfinder, which is often an external “black box” module, is one of the data sources. Multiple-display network systems are perfect for mid-sized or bigger vessels.


Display - Colors, Pixels, & Size


LCD screens are a combination of a grid of picture elements, which are small dots that darken as electrical current is applied. They are commonly termed as pixels. More vertical pixels imply higher depth resolution, which each pixel representing less depth. The total number of pixels in a display horizontal axis tells how long the objects stay on screen before scrolling out of view. They play a key role with split-screen displays and show narrow columns of side-by-side info.

Getting a unit that offers higher number of pixels for every square inch will offer more detailed display of structures, implying a clear representation of everything below you with enhanced images on a split-screen. More pixels equals to higher screen resolution. Given that, a big screen will let you view the air bladders of the smaller fish, fish near the bottom, differentiate between closely spaced targets, and view fish on the edges of the bait balls.

The majority of quoted screen size options represent the diagonal distance (in inches) across a screen. Fish finders with widescreen displays enable you to view more meaningful data as you split the screen to show more than one form of data. It can show your radar screen, GPS chart, or returns from multiple transducers.

Transmit Power, Frequencies

  • Watts
The fishfinder power, i.e. the power of the ping is represented in the form of watts (root mean squared (RMS). The power is directly linked to how clear you can view in water, see in greater depths, and fix separate targets & bottom structure. A 500-watt (RMS) Garmin fishfinder should have enough power for coastal applications. However, the commercial anglers should opt for GPS fishfinder with 1,000 watts or above. Those fishing on Inland lakes can easily view the shallow bottom with a fishfinder having 200 watts.
  • Transducer Frequency
Fishfinders can work with a single frequency, dual frequencies, multiple frequencies transducer, or even a broadband CHIRP system. Generally, higher frequencies means finer detail resolution, the lowest background noise on the screen along with the best view from a fast-moving boat. However, it won’t penetrate as deep as the one with lower frequencies. Anglers who fish in shallow-water inland usually prefer higher frequencies of 200/400/800 kHz. You should use lower frequencies for maximum depth. The suggestion is to pick 200 kHz or higher (up to 800 kHz) for water depths for 200' water & 80 kHz or 50 kHz for deeper depths than that.

Is Transducer Included?


The fishfinders that are meant for using with small-boat, freshwater angler normally come with a transducer on a purchase, that is a transom-mount type in most cases. A few prefer to buy transducers separately for added features.

Style and Shape


Thru-Hull: Being the toughest to install, but probably providing the best signal quality - thru-hull transducers from brands like Garmin, Lowrance, Raymarine, and more are used widely for marine purpose. Displacement power and sailboats usually use thru-hull transducers for most applications. A thru-hull triducer comes with dedicated depth and temperature sensors, and a speed paddle wheel.

Transom-Mount: This category of transducers has an adjustable-angle bracket that is screwed or bolted to the transom. The transducer generally hangs below or behind the hull. Easiest to install, but these may suffer more turbulent water flow.

In-Hull: There’s no need of direct water contact in case of in-hull transducers since they are attached to the inside of the hull using epoxy or silicone. These units do not function on steel or cored hulls and are meant only for fiberglass. Both transom-mount and in-hull styles are used in boats that are trailerable in nature.

Trolling Motor: Such units are attached to the exterior or installed inside propeller hub of a trolling motor permanently. You can also find Minn Kota Universal Sonar & MotorGuide Sonar Ready models that come with inbuilt 200 kHz transducers to fit most of the popular fishfinders from Garmin and other brands.

When you buy a fishfinder GPS combo, you are most likely to get more options, features, and capabilities to sail confidently. Depending on what level of fishing you wish to do, how much you want to spend, and what’s your skill level, you can invest on a decent GPS fish finder or fish finder combo to satisfy the angler in you.

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