Any Panoptix Updates?

[Chuck Enwinde]

So, now that some have had some time with the Panoptix units on ice can anyone share their opinions on its usefulness or limitations?  I think I'm in the market for a new ice machine this year and thought there would have been a little more chatter about these units from the folks that used them last year.  Kind of has me wondering if they came up a bit short of expectations?

[Gunflint]

I also used mine all summer and the fact that they are simply awesome is so "self evident" that it seems like bad manners to rub it in.

However, they are expensive and not everybody can afford one. That is the beauty of ice fishing is that it is affordable at its basic level - all you really need is a pole and a hole to catch fish. BUT, there are tools that make a difference and Livescope makes fishing into something more like a real life video game where you catch lake trout when you win. There is no parallel because it truly changes the game. If you can afford one, buy one. If you can't, you can still catch fish (lots of them) with a flasher or even with just a hole and a pole if that is all your budget can handle.

[pboer]

Well said Gunflint, ditto.

Seems there's always one more item needed when fishing but this can be a large anchor. It's incredible. 
The battery for the unit needs to be very strong as it uses a lot. Cold and battery affect behavior.  It's fragile, it's heavy.

I really like it since you can watch behavior once fish are found. If fish are hugging the bottom, they are hard to view. Noise matters.

[Gunflint]

Well said Gunflint, ditto.

Seems there's always one more item needed when fishing but this can be a large anchor. It's incredible. 
The battery for the unit needs to be very strong as it uses a lot. Cold and battery affect behavior.  It's fragile, it's heavy.

I really like it since you can watch behavior once fish are found. If fish are hugging the bottom, they are hard to view. Noise matters.

I power mine with a 12 AH Milwaukee drill battery which is fairly light and lasts all day without issue.

[Gator800r]

I enjoyed having livescope in the boat this summer. If it wouldn't be such a pain in the a** to take it out It would be fun to see how it performs on the ice. I pulled up the floor in my Alumacraft Competitor to route and hide all the cables. However I do have easy access to the black box and the transducer would be easy enough to remove. I have thought about buying another set of cables and network cord to have just for the winter. I need to price it out and see if I want to give it a try. The size and cost to do it is a bit of a deterrent for me right now. However I already have the most expensive pieces of the puzzle so..........maybe.

[Big_Al]

I have the PS22 and love it. We drilled our holes in a line in our hub and had three guys using it simultaneously. You could see how fish were reacting to the different baits. At one point we had a walleye come through our spread which went and checked out all 3 baits before coming back and committing to mine which was the first one it looked at. You can also gauge size of the fish by the size of the blob on the screen. It does take practice to identify bottom hugging fish (moving slightly elevated mounds on the bottom) and it would be hard to locate fish in structure/weeds with the PS22 although I don't usually fish structure - more open basin walleye fishing.

I used it for open water fishing this summer, which it is still stellar at vertical fishing methods (jigging, drop shotting etc.). I'm struggling with it in sidevu trying to locate my bait when cast to suspended fish. I would still buy again if I had to do it over but would probably go with Livescope now and am considering upgrading to it anyway due to better target/bottom separation and the ability to locate fish in structure for the random time we do fish weed beds for early season walleyes and bass.

[kayl]

I used a ps22 last year and sold it and upgraded to Livescope this summer. Both are incredible technology and make finding fish a ton easier. Livescope is absolutely jaw dropping to fish with. I find it mesmerizing to watch the fish and there's nothing better than targeting a specific fish, watching your bait fall to it, and catching it.

Yes, it's expensive, but people waste a lot of money on things like new cellphones, cable, video games, etc. I just choose to spend my money on fishing! 

[markinohio]

We drilled our holes in a line in our hub and had three guys using it simultaneously. You could see how fish were reacting to the different baits. At one point we had a walleye come through our spread which went and checked out all 3 baits before coming back and committing to mine which was the first one it looked at.

I don’t think this gets enough press! We have a blast sharing the Panoptix, it is a multi-player video game on the ice.

[Gunflint]

I don’t think this gets enough press! We have a blast sharing the Panoptix, it is a multi-player video game on the ice.

Ditto - and one finder takes up far less space in the pop-up of flipover.

[winterbuddy]

It's also pretty much a fishTV that is easier to aim, so maybe you could do without a camera to negate the added girth of the Livescope?

[Seamonkey84]

I absolutely love fishing with panoptix. I got the ice package (with PS22) a year ago, and have used it through the ice and open water. Ice fishing, it’s really handy in finding the exact spot you want to drill your holes, and seeing which direction the fish are moving, how they interact with your lures.
  Open water, I have it on a pvc pipe that I put in a trolling motor mounting bracket, so it’s still portable between boats. I can scan around and switch from forward to down view.
As mentioned, it takes practice to keep the lure on the screen when casting, but your really just need to pinpoint spots to cast to. It really helps troll on a unmapped lake/pond, you get to see the depth of the water ahead of you so you can stay at a certain depth. Very helpful finding schools of fish, baitfish, and depth fish are hanging at before your boat goes over them. fish dive as the boat passes overhead, and only about 1/3 of the fish ahead of the boat actually shows up on traditional sonar, they usually move to the sides before your boat pass over them.
It shows that structure is there, but not what the structure is and if there’s fish in it. that’s where I wish I waited for the livescope.

[sra61]

I love my Livescope! I mounted it on a pole at the bow of my boat and used it a lot for jigging for Whitefish, and it was awesome! I'm just about ready to set it back up in my Todd Dye Shuttle again for icefishing. It was so valuable last season for locating crappie, I wouldn't want to go out on the ice without it again. I'm going to upgrade the double 12Ah LiP04 batteries to the 30Ah Amped Outdoors battery though. It does eat juice! Don't Care! It is heavy! Don't Care!

[Skywagon]

I fished with Livescope from December through April this last season. I would hate to have to go back to a flasher, or graph ever again for ice fishing.

[mboss13]

I fished with Livescope from December through April this last season. I would hate to have to go back to a flasher, or graph ever again for ice fishing.

+1.....after the first time with Livescope I never looked back, in fact sold my flasher and boat fishfinder to help offset the batteries cost. I usually already pull a sled out no matter what so adding the clam bag with the livescope unit to that is rather simple.

[mattymn80]

I also run a Todd Dye (Summit Fishing) shuttle and 30AH Amped Outdoors Battery. Great setup and so much versatility. I got mine with a glow cup as well as the arm for holding my transducer.