Looking for your advice as to which LiveScope setup would work best for me

[Nitz]

Good Afternoon All,
So I may have a little windfall coming my way.  Should that happen, I am considering pulling the trigger on a LiveScope setup (potentially the LiveScope™ Plus Ice Fishing Bundle LI– Garmin PN 010-02342-65).  I have been researching this tech and admittingly I am a bit confused.

I am seeking input from those of you with real-world experience with these systems.  I ice fish as much as I can when we have decent ice.  I mostly tip-up fish - primarily for walleye or northern.  I also sometimes jig for panfish.  I fish lakes mainly, very seldom rivers.  Most lakes in my area are less than 20 feet deep.  One nearby lake is ~230 feet at its deepest.    I do not have a fishing boat, but I would like to own one someday.  A few of my friends have nice fishing boats.

-Am I on the right track looking at the LiveScope™ Plus Ice Fishing Bundle LI - Garmin PN 010-02342-65?
-Is the LVS34 the best transducer for me?  Is it worth the cost above the LVS32?
-Say I acquire this ice fishing setup, what would it take to use this on my friends’ boats?
-Would the 9” screen (ECHOMAP™ UHD 93sv) be OK in the boat?  Is there any great reason to consider a larger screen for LiveScope ice fishing?
-While ice fishing with this bundle, could I still run a traditional ice fishing transducer (such as the GT10HN-IF) with the head unit?  Or, would I have to disconnect the LiveScope unit to change transducers?  My thought process is that it might be nice at times to have the digital “flasher” mode – but perhaps not needed.
-How effective are these LiveScope setups for tip-up fishing (as opposed to jigging for panfish, which I do less often)?

Any other related thoughts/concerns/q’s for me would be great too.  Your time and input is much appreciated, thank you!  -Nitz

[greenbackhunter]

Imo, the bundle is not worth it. The shuttle, bag, battery and pole are substandard. Only buy the pkg if you’re the type that isn’t interested in doing a bit of work to put together a good setup.

The 93 is a perfect size for the ice, it’s what I use.

32 vs 34. I’d go 34 since you’re buying new.

Using on a boat is no biggie, lots of guys buy a second gimbal and power cord and just swap out the head unit.

You can run a gt8 or 10 you leave it plugged in and switch sonar on screen.

Tip up fishing. Interesting. I think I would use it in forward mode and scan several tip ups in an area. Might be interesting. I’ve used it in forward mode to scan for lakers chasing bait against a rock wall.

[Homewrecker]

Maybe its time to take your windfall at place it towards a boat 

[Nitz]

greenbackhunter - Great insight, thank you so much.  That was helpful.

[lowaccord66]

Ive used lvs34 and ps22 and still use them all aside from the newest ducer ($1500) but my buddy has it.  Each has its place.  Will tell you, not so much fun on the boat using a ram mount and summit pole.  If you are jigging vertically you will be moving the summit pole all day to see your jig.  (Using spot lock)

[wirehairman]

I agree with greenbackhunter and would not recommend the bundle.  I still have the Garmin bag and shuttle but upgraded the battery and got a Summit pole.  There are a lot of nice, custom shuttles out there and am considering upgrading them as well.

I upgraded to the LVS34 this year after using the LVS32 for the last few seasons.  It is worth the extra money.

I have the ram mount to use the Summit pole on our boat.  Forward mode was super effective last summer finding schools of buegill and crappie, and I'm looking forward to playing with it more this year.  I think the perspective mode in shallow water for spawning pike could be deadly.

The 9" screen has worked well for us, and I did not see a reason to get a larger head unit when I upgraded this year.

One can connect the GT10HN-IF and the black box to the head unit.  Then, it's just a matter of switching between the screens.  I started out with the GT10 but sold it as I ended up never using it over the LiveScope view.

The LiveScope shines for jigging, IMO.  However, we use it a lot for setting up tip-ups as one can quickly find the toe or top of drop offs, weed edges, rocks, etc. with the forward view.  It has really helped dial in our tip spreads.

[billybob851]

don't buy the bundle you'll get everything cheaper and better quality piecing it together.  I have the lsv32 and it will do everything you want it to but if you have the extra $$ get the 34.  Also the spring sales will be starting and the echomap 106 will be on sale again for 999. that is a better head unit as it has a faster processor, bigger screen and more pixels for better resolution. but the 93 will also work good but dont go smaller that that

[beerduck]

don't buy the bundle you'll get everything cheaper and better quality piecing it together.  I have the lsv32 and it will do everything you want it to but if you have the extra $$ get the 34.  Also the spring sales will be starting and the echomap 106 will be on sale again for 999. that is a better head unit as it has a faster processor, bigger screen and more pixels for better resolution. but the 93 will also work good but dont go smaller that that

i agree with this very much

[Boglake]

I agree with greenbackhunter and would not recommend the bundle.  I still have the Garmin bag and shuttle but upgraded the battery and got a Summit pole.  There are a lot of nice, custom shuttles out there and am considering upgrading them as well.

I upgraded to the LVS34 this year after using the LVS32 for the last few seasons.  It is worth the extra money.

I have the ram mount to use the Summit pole on our boat.  Forward mode was super effective last summer finding schools of buegill and crappie, and I'm looking forward to playing with it more this year.  I think the perspective mode in shallow water for spawning pike could be deadly.

The 9" screen has worked well for us, and I did not see a reason to get a larger head unit when I upgraded this year.

One can connect the GT10HN-IF and the black box to the head unit.  Then, it's just a matter of switching between the screens.  I started out with the GT10 but sold it as I ended up never using it over the LiveScope view.

The LiveScope shines for jigging, IMO.  However, we use it a lot for setting up tip-ups as one can quickly find the toe or top of drop offs, weed edges, rocks, etc. with the forward view.  It has really helped dial in our tip spreads.

No need to switch screens, you can run both ducers on the same screen.  Works great, best of both worlds.

[Skywagon]

Definitely the LVS 34.  If your windfall is large enough you might consider the ArcLab pole and boat mount, it is a higher quality pole compared to the Summit (I have had both) it is far more robust, but there is a cost to quality.

[lowaccord66]

I have the garmin shuttle it works fine.  The summit pole is a piece of crap....I had them send me the part eith the ram ball a coupme of times becayse the 3d printing was extremely sloppy.  The hardware isnt stainless so its all rusted and frozen.  Going to add a thru hull to the boats vs the pole.