Garmin Live Scope - Let’s talk

[dancer4life]

I have decided to take the plunge and purchase the Garmin Live Scope and I know a few of ya’ll have and are using the Garmin LIve Scope now. I would love to hear your experiences, good and bad before I go forward. This is going to a fall project for me and hope to have everything I need and installed by spring to start using it.
I have watched numerous YouTube videos and I can’t wait to get started.

Some of the things I will need advice on:
1. Which unit is best for the LIve Scope (ECHOMAP, GPSMAP)
2. 10 inch or 12 inch unit
3. Which transducer is the best (LVS 32 or LVS 34)
4. Best mount for the LS transducer (TM shaft mount, Pole mount)
5. Best way to hook up to battery. (Trolling motor batteries, cranking battery, designated LS battery)
6. Anything else that would be useful would be appreciated.

I know that when I get it installed and on the water, I will need advice on settings to get it all dialed in.

 

[Glocktogo]

GPSMAP has better resolution than ECHOMAP and has additional features. 8XXX units support additional non-Garmin monitors (such as the NBT Destroyer & Battleship monitors). The question is, do you really need it?

ECHOMAP 10" monitors have better pixel rates (resolution) than 12" ECHOMAPS

The LVS34 is better than the LVS32. Again the question is, do you need it better for the cost?

Pole vs TM mount depends on how you plan to use it. If you're going primarily for crappie, I think pole mount is better. If you're fishing stumps and structure for bass, TM is better. Keep in mind that if you're using autopilot or spot-lock, you're gonna get frustrated losing what you're trying to look at. In those cases I think the Humminbird 360 is better, though it isn't "live".

Also, some aftermarket mounts are superior to the factory mount, but the good ones are really spendy for what you get.

A designated lithium battery in the 12-18V range is superior to hooking up to the cranking battery. Next would be the TM battery if it's compatible in voltage range. If you hook up to cranking battery, keep in mind you might lose the screens when cranking the main engine and Garmins don't reboot quickly.

The most useful things I've seen so far are The Bass Tank and Facebook Garmin groups. The Bass Tank is in Sapulpa, OK and one of the top rated one-stop shops in the country. They frequently offer great deals on Garmin bundles and can assist with optimal setup and installation.

The Bass Tank: America's Experts in Marine Electronics

Shop our selection of premium fishing electronics, trolling motors, chartplotters/fish finders all from the top brands in fishing and marine tech.

thebasstank.com

The Facebook groups are a treasure trove of tips and tricks on setup, settings, troubleshooting, etc. Well worth the hassle of using Facebook IMO and one of the few reasons I have to use it at all.

 

[dancer4life]

Wow! Thanks so much @Glocktogo for the information. This will really help me on this journey. I will definitely check out The Bass Tank. Thaks for the link.

 

[Oklahomabassin]

I can't give better information than GTG did.

 

[kirk1978]

I have only used mine for crappie so I would have no idea how to bass fish with one. I had a home made pole mount on the boat when I bought it and replaced it with the Seelite pole ($400). From the deck to the "lip" on my little Tracker is 8" and several mounts would just barely cover that so I had to find one that had a taller option (Seelite 14"). I really like the pole, it will fold up, swing into the boat...

You are more than welcome to swing by some evening and check it out before you dive off into one.

 

[Oklahomabassin]

I have only used mine for crappie so I would have no idea how to bass fish with one. I had a home made pole mount on the boat when I bought it and replaced it with the Seelite pole ($400). From the deck to the "lip" on my little Tracker is 8" and several mounts would just barely cover that so I had to find one that had a taller option (Seelite 14"). I really like the pole, it will fold up, swing into the boat...

You are more than welcome to swing by some evening and check it out before you dive off into one.

View attachment 510342

Take me fishing so I see how it works. Lol

 

[kirk1978]

Take me fishing so I see how it works. Lol

I'll show you how it works if you show me how to catch a fish!

 

[Oklahomabassin]

I'll show you how it works if you show me how to catch a fish!

We'll can we watch a football game on the screens. Lol

 

[dennishoddy]

GPSMAP has better resolution than ECHOMAP and has additional features. 8XXX units support additional non-Garmin monitors (such as the NBT Destroyer & Battleship monitors). The question is, do you really need it?

ECHOMAP 10" monitors have better pixel rates (resolution) than 12" ECHOMAPS

The LVS34 is better than the LVS32. Again the question is, do you need it better for the cost?

Pole vs TM mount depends on how you plan to use it. If you're going primarily for crappie, I think pole mount is better. If you're fishing stumps and structure for bass, TM is better. Keep in mind that if you're using autopilot or spot-lock, you're gonna get frustrated losing what you're trying to look at. In those cases I think the Humminbird 360 is better, though it isn't "live".

Also, some aftermarket mounts are superior to the factory mount, but the good ones are really spendy for what you get.

A designated lithium battery in the 12-18V range is superior to hooking up to the cranking battery. Next would be the TM battery if it's compatible in voltage range. If you hook up to cranking battery, keep in mind you might lose the screens when cranking the main engine and Garmins don't reboot quickly.

The most useful things I've seen so far are The Bass Tank and Facebook Garmin groups. The Bass Tank is in Sapulpa, OK and one of the top rated one-stop shops in the country. They frequently offer great deals on Garmin bundles and can assist with optimal setup and installation.

The Bass Tank: America's Experts in Marine Electronics

Shop our selection of premium fishing electronics, trolling motors, chartplotters/fish finders all from the top brands in fishing and marine tech.

thebasstank.com

The Facebook groups are a treasure trove of tips and tricks on setup, settings, troubleshooting, etc. Well worth the hassle of using Facebook IMO and one of the few reasons I have to use it at all.

The bass tank installed mine. Did a great job hiding all the wiring.
That being said, I don't have room in the battery compartment for a designated live scope battery as there is a cranking battery and two trolling motor batteries and a fuel tank.
I may have to upgrade the cranking motor battery that the live scope is hooked to.
For the record, I've not had much time to use it as our travel schedule keeps us on the road, so it's a new learning curve every time I get into the boat.
The forward looking beam is narrow the closer it gets to the transducer. On windy days, it's hard to control the boat and fish while moving the transducer to see the target. I have the Motor Guide XI-5 with position lock, but it's not precise in keeping the exact location. A pontoon boat would be more difficult.
All that being said, when netting shad, it's amazing to watch the cast net hit the water, form and envelope a school of shad. Eliminates a lot of throwing the net.
I'm new to it as well. These are my observations.
I've see a lot of objections to using it because it's cheating they say.
The same group that said the dash mounted depth locators of the 80's were cheating. The same group that said side scanners were cheating and so on, while big fish records keep getting broken.

 

[dancer4life]

I have only used mine for crappie so I would have no idea how to bass fish with one. I had a home made pole mount on the boat when I bought it and replaced it with the Seelite pole ($400). From the deck to the "lip" on my little Tracker is 8" and several mounts would just barely cover that so I had to find one that had a taller option (Seelite 14"). I really like the pole, it will fold up, swing into the boat...

You are more than welcome to swing by some evening and check it out before you dive off into one.

View attachment 510342

That is a nice set up for sure. I will mostly be using mine for Crappie as well but I do a lot of bass fishing as well and I am going to try to figure the bass fishing angle out.
Are you in the OKC area? I would love to come by some time and check it out.