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red_river_catsOP
Boat Owner
12 posts · joined Aug 2025
Fargo, ND
Sep 1, 2025 · 6:35 AM#1
most of my summer is channel cats on the Red below Fargo, but october and november i am on Devils Lake and the Van Hook arm of Sakakawea chasing walleyes, and every guy out there this year had a live sonar screen and i did not.
boat is a 2016 Crestliner 1850 Raptor, Merc 150, Helix 10 G2N at the console, Terrova 80 up front. budget is 3k, could stretch a bit. questions: does the Humminbird Mega Live plug into my Helix 10 or is the G2 too old. is Garmin still the one to buy if i am starting from zero. and pole mount or trolling motor shaft mount for a guy who mostly vertical jigs and pitches to timber.
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tourney_rick
Rigger
21 posts · joined Aug 2025
Spirit Lake, IA
Sep 1, 2025 · 12:10 PM#2
your Helix 10 G2N will not run Mega Live, that needs a G3N or newer Helix, or a Solix or Apex. so with Humminbird you are buying a new head unit either way, which puts you at the Helix 12 G4N around 2,000 plus the Mega Live 2 transducer around 1,500, so 3,500 before a mount.
Garmin from zero: LiveScope Plus is the GLS 10 black box and the LVS34 transducer, about 1,700 list, plus a head unit. an Echomap Ultra 2 106sv is about 1,800, the 122sv about 2,300. so 3,500 to 4,000. everybody i fish against runs Garmin for live and Humminbird for mapping and side imaging, that is the standard combo on the tournament trail and it is what i run on the Skeeter.
Lowrance ActiveTarget 2 is 1,500 with the box and needs an HDS. good picture, fewer guys running it, resale is worse.
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sd_glacial_lakes
Boat Owner
16 posts · joined Aug 2025
Watertown, SD
Sep 2, 2025 · 8:20 AM#3
on the mount. pole mount off the gunwale is cheaper, 150 to 300, and you can aim it independent of the trolling motor, which is what you want for vertical jigging over timber. shaft mount on the Terrova puts the transducer wherever the motor points, which is what you want when you are pitching to a target and want to watch the bait come back. i started with a pole on the port side and moved to the shaft mount after a season. for Devils Lake timber i would go pole first.
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marv_on_mille_lacs
Guide
33 posts · joined Aug 2025
Isle, MN
Sep 4, 2025 · 8:05 PM#4
guide perspective. live sonar changed my july on the Mille Lacs mud flats more than any lure has. but for a first unit do not go cheap on the screen. i tried LiveScope on a 9 inch at first and split screen with the map was useless, the arch is too small to read. 12 inch minimum if you want map on one side and live on the other, or run live full screen on its own head unit and keep the Helix for the map, which is what i do now.
and if you are on a budget, remember the lake maps. i see guys drop 4 grand on live and then run the base map with no contours. a LakeMaster or Navionics chip is 150 to 250 and worth more than the extra 3 inches of screen.
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red_river_catsOP
Boat Owner
12 posts · joined Aug 2025
Fargo, ND
Sep 7, 2025 · 7:45 PM#5
ok that is what i needed. going Garmin, Echomap Ultra 2 122sv plus LiveScope Plus, Scheels in Fargo had them at 4,150 together and i talked them into a free pole mount. yes that is 1,150 over my number. the Helix stays at the console for the map and side imaging, the Garmin goes on a RAM mount at the bow. first trip is Devils Lake on the 10th.
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lund_owner_since_99
Boat Owner
19 posts · joined Aug 2025
Bemidji, MN
Sep 19, 2025 · 6:55 AM#6
on marv's map point, for the Minnesota lakes you do not even need a chip to start. the DNR LakeFinder on dnr.state.mn.us has the contour maps for most of the lakes worth fishing as free downloads, i print the Cass Lake one and tape it to the console. does not help you on Devils Lake though, that is ND water.
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red_river_catsOP
Boat Owner
12 posts · joined Aug 2025
Fargo, ND
Oct 1, 2025 · 5:30 PM#7
two trips in. Devils Lake on the 10th and again on the 24th, Creel Bay and the flooded road beds off Six Mile. i can see the fish, i can see the jig, and i can see them come up and turn away, which is the part nobody warns you about, it hurts to watch. pole mount was right for the timber, i point it where i am jigging and leave the Terrova to hold the boat. 12 inch screen was right too, marv, i tried split screen once and went full screen live and never went back. the Helix at the console runs the map.
cost me 4,150 plus 40 for the RAM ball and a saturday of wiring. fish count is up, not double, but up. the LVS34 draws more amps than i expected, i added a second group 24 for the electronics so it does not pull from the cranking battery.
