Humminbird 798 Si Help

[DavidOlsen1975]

Hey guys, I bought a second hand Humminbird 798c Si combo unit and I have some questions about the setup. I noticed there are two leads coming off the main unit but the Transducer that came with it only has one connection. The two leads are labled Side Imaging and the other is Dual Beam. When I connect the Transducer to the Dual beam I get sonar fine but no side imaging. If someone knows the details of this unit I would appreciate some help. I am willing to spend some money if I get some real help with this. I don't know if I need another transducer or what. I also need some help getting the unit dialed in. Thanks

[DavidOlsen1975]

Humminbird Transom Transducer XHS 9 HDSI 180 T 710201-1 This is the transducer that I have

[lcookie]

The humminbird transducers have the 2d DB and SI all in one package so there should only be one transducer connection for both. Now if the person you purchased it from had a splitter so that they could run the 2d DB with an inside the hull puck to get high speed readings that could be the culprit. If you have the splitter, set it aside and hook the transducer cable directly to the unit. This will require you to take the bracket inside of the base apart to get to the splitter. Once done; you should have both 2d DB and SI on the screen. If not I would be glad to help you trouble shoot some more. Also, if this is not the case can you send some pictures of your unit and the cables that came with it? No need for money to get help. I am more than willing to share my knowledge. Send me a PM if you like. Also, the transducer you have is designed for the larger units. It is suppose to give a clearer picture than the original one that came with your unit since it has a bigger footprint. I really never could tell the difference. You will not be able to use the 800 frequency either but I never use it on mine. 455 gives you the best range vs depth vs definition. The 800 is good but more limited. Let me know if this helps any.

[DavidOlsen1975]

well holy cow...that was the answer....I didn't realize that the splitter was added afterwards by the previous owner. I thought that they were original. I did what you said. Took out the splicer and put the single transducer cable directly into the quick connect and all is working properly. I really appreciate the help and hope to see you on the lake with reels screaming.

[lcookie]

No prob. Glad to help. See ya on the water.

[DavidOlsen1975]

well now that I have that figured out...I think I need some help dialing in my sonar on the Humminbird and on my Lowrance....I need to know the best setting for each in my search for stripers on the lake.

[lcookie]

In deeper water you need to scale down the viewing window so that you have better definition for what is in your vicinity. Set your max bottom to just below the tree tops and focus more on your down imaging and 2d sonar versus side imaging. You can use side imaging to search for particular structure/cover (humps/ledges/trees/etc) but once you find it switch over. The smaller screen makes it really hard to detect small targets (fish) in side imaging. On the bird set your 2d sonar to max mode so that the bait and fish stand out more. You will have to play with the sensitivity until the picture looks good to you. Also, you can set your color scheme to match the standard lowrance setting so that both your units look the same. For the down imaging you will have to crank the sensitivity way up to get a half decent picture. No matter how much you crank it up it will never look as good as the Low down imaging. Keeping your scroll speed at or near your over the water speed gives the best picture. Now when things change and you start going into the shallow water (less than 50 ft) you can use the side imaging to your advantage. Open up your range and start searching. The general rule is to set the side range 2-3 times your depth. This is where the bird will stand out more. It gives you 180 degree coverage from surface to bottom. Change your side imaging color scheme often as the suns position changes to keep the best images. You can mess around with the side imaging enhance sharpness mode to help bring out the fish. Most importantly, no one setting is going to work all day. Go out one day and leave your poles behind. practice playing with the different settings I mentioned until you get familiar with how each affects your picture. This one day of sacrifice will increase your fishing for all future trips b/c you will not be banging around trying to figure out how to get the best picture.