Hi Mate,
disclaimer. - i own a marine outfitting company that retails/installs/services and trains for Humminbird, Garmin, raymarine, simrad, lowrance, furuno
Right with that out of the way.
There are a few things worth considering when entering the top tier of MFD's .
Know that pretty much all brands have some good hero units. they all have some very groovy features etc. what it often comes down to is
1. usability...........if you cant use something confidently it doesnt matter how good the system is. So look for something you feel comfortable with
2. Performance. . .. having the horse power to back up the biscuits the unit costs.
3. Futureproofing..... because this is an investment, and whislt no investment in boat MAKES money, you would want to minimise loss, and thefor not feel like your system will be obsolete in a few years.
4. Cost...................Obviously has to meet your budget
SO!! thats the head unit
THEN There is the transducer SLASH sonar modulator/computer
The big issue with getting good performance out of sonar modulators is HEAT.. most brands really do limit the full power and processing time of their sonar to reduce heat "as in the same plastic housing is also the processing for the rest of the MFD, the gps, the "often" touch screen etc.. and they have to jam all that into in some c ases a 7" housing...
As such sonar processors offer better performance.. .so thats simrads S5100, raymarines CP570, Garmins GS26, FURUNOS dff3, and so on.
They also offer the ability to punch out 3kw of energy should you opt to go big.
The transducer is the other half of the equasion. in a world of CHIRP and AIRMAR pretty much being the only c hoice for high quality sonar its important to udnerstand frequencys and beam width.
Cutting to the chase.... Low frequency and Medium frequency CHIRP 1kw transducers are the go for you
In terms of positoning.. depends on the type of boat you have for sure.. transom mount offers a cost effective with the ability to go with a 265LM in one transducer. however thru hull and In hull often produce better images based on Hydrodynamic effects of the water moving under the hull * not always
Between the Garmin and the simrad,, they have a few pros and cons
Simrad NSS12 E3. Pros
- been out for a while, so price has lowered
- Has physical keys as well as touch screen
- has a rather indepth networking ability etc
- Xsonic pluged Airmar transducers are slightly cheaper
- intergrates well with mercury
Cons
- Build quality is average
- processing speed esp with multiple screens is average
- Mapping is fine but not the best
Garmin GPSMAP 8412XSV (the 86xx series is the USA domestic version that can be preloaded with US maps, otherwise its no different to the 84xx series which is the international version)
- Best quality screen on the market. Full HD IPS
- up to 3x 1kw sonar channels that do produce a very very crisp image
- easy as hell to use
- best mapping available
-best autopilot options
cons
New so therfor more expensive
no physical buttons, "grid10 OR GRID20 required for buttons"
Transducers cost more
Hopefully thats a bit of an introduction.
More than welcome to shoot through any questions you have
Moose