Seriously though, are these things really the shit? I've never used one or been fishing with anyone that's had one.
I watched a guy using one on a little lake in SE ND and he was systematically picking off fish left and right. It was pretty amazing to watch.
Fished in my uncle’s boat last Monday. He just put in the new Garmin setup. I have to agree with you. Even more than catching fish in a particular outing, it will help a guy learn fast. It reminds me of how much a guy can learn from using an under water camera when ice fishing.This is my first year for me using Birds Mega Live. It's pretty dam amazing. It actually probably ups the frustration level even more as you know without a shadow of a doubt if fish are in the area, and yet you'll still find you can't get them to bite! I can't say for sure it's put more fish in the boat, but it's a great tool for any presentations under 1 mph or so. I love it for jigging and jig raps and it's pretty decent trolling or drifting live bait. you can also see how fish react or don't react to your bait or presentation which is pretty neat. at least it lets you know if your on the right track.
You see fish hugging bottom better than you do with a flasher.I am still waiting for a nda community member who has one to post videos or pics of how it works when fish are hugging the bottom. I do like the idea though of being able to look for schools of active fish 100+ feet away. That would be ideal for me since I prefer to run and gun in my pickup.
Ps you can post videos directly to the nda website now no more third party apps
After watching the Bass Masters in Mobridge last summer, I can see they are the future. I'm not sure exactly how they have them rigged on trolling motor but they have it pointed forward and are casting to fish.I’m still trying to figure out, for sure, if this is as amazing on open water as the YouTubers will make you think.
For ice fishing, I am sold. Still debating between livescope and Mega 360 for the boat.
How soon do you want to buy either for your boat? The reason I ask is I bought the mega 360 ice bundle with the helix 9 last year. I still would like to play around with it more but have been thinking of selling it and buying a livescope. I'd sell just the mega 360 transducer or the whole thing. I think you'd rather run it on a bigger display in a boat but the 9 is just fine for ice fishing. Its awesome for seeing the bottom and the structure. It took me a while of adjusting the contrast and sensitivity to be able to see fish but once I did its pretty cool.I’m still trying to figure out, for sure, if this is as amazing on open water as the YouTubers will make you think.
For ice fishing, I am sold. Still debating between livescope and Mega 360 for the boat.