# Is this a better deal than the X67



## J - Rod (Oct 27, 2004)

Cabelas has a portable eagle fishmark 480 for $199. It has 480x480 pixels and 1500 watts peak power whereas the x67 is $299 has 320 x 240 pixels and 800 watts peak power (if I remember right). Also, Cabelas has a Bottom line 480 (480x480 pixels, 3200 watts for $129, not set up for portability) Seems like a good deal, or are bottom line fish finders junk? Seems like you get more power/resolution for less money with the eagle/bottom line. You don't get the color display or the flasher mode, like you do on the X67.

What determines how well you can see your jig the deeper you get? Power? Resolution? 

Opinions?


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## Arin (Jun 2, 2004)

You can get the x67c for $230 here:
http://www.boatersworld.com/product/319392353.htm
You gotta use Google Checkout(link at top of page) before the 19th to get the $20 off of the original 250.. I was looking around with the same problem as you and many people said they would never go back to B&W, so I went with the x67c.. 
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## MSUICEMAN (Jan 9, 2002)

keep in mind mounting it for ice fishing and setting it up.


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## JJ Mac (Dec 29, 2003)

I run an FL-18 myself, however I have used the x67 several times. I also have an Eagle 480 that I rigged for ice fishing.

Does the Eagle 480 work...yes.

Does it compare to the fl-18 or the x67 for ice fishing...not even close. The resolution and target separation just isn't there in the Eagle 480. Seeing is believing. For a few extra bucks, the x-67 is waaaayyyy worth it. Go with the x-67, you won't be sorry. It's also less than half the price of an Fl-18 or 20 Vexilar. The link Arin gave you is a great deal.


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## MSUICEMAN (Jan 9, 2002)

the only thing about buying the x67 without the specialized ice machine package is 1.different transducer 2.no battery 3.no charger 4.no stand 5.no soft cover (which really isn't needed, but its nice).

matter of fact, you can get the x67c ice machine on sale at cabelas for 300 bucks right now:
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...ogle&cm_pla=x67c ice&cm_ite=netcon&hasJS=true


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## mnelson239 (Jan 29, 2001)

I have the 67 and it is awsome, I even tend to out fish my buddies with the vex. I bought the one portable from cabelas with the soft case then use a 12" bar clam to hold the transducer right at the surface so it doesn't take up hole space.


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## theeyes (Mar 20, 2004)

Musicman, 
Good eye, I was wondering how in the world they could sell it below wholesale price. Sort of takes that good deal right away. I believe you can find the X67C anywhere for 299.99.


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## bhorn (Jan 3, 2006)

Buy yourself a flasher. Vex or Marcum but go with a flasher unit.


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## MSUICEMAN (Jan 9, 2002)

i'd read a lot of the lowrances and almost bought one for ice fishing. i haven't heard any complaints really, and i see that they now offer the 332c.... pricey but thats a hell of a fish finder.


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## MrBluegill (Dec 8, 2005)

The x67 is a very nice unit i would spend the extra money and get the lowrance!


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## zx10r2004 (Sep 24, 2005)

what about the 68c with gps.


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## MSUICEMAN (Jan 9, 2002)

i believe the 68c has the same core functionality of the 67c, just with GPS (which is mapping).


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## zx10r2004 (Sep 24, 2005)

bhorn said:


> Buy yourself a flasher. Vex or Marcum but go with a flasher unit.


yep! my vex is the only way to go. i cant see anything else that would work better then a flasher. i like seeing whats happening down under without any delays.i like that you can see that your wax-worm is gone on a little jig or that you can shoot threw the ice and get a reading.flashers all the way.


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## Arin (Jun 2, 2004)

Pretty much all people that have had a 67 say that it's just as quick as vex's without any delays and you can see a little 'history'. You can use a sonar in the summer better and you don't have to get the special 'ice transducer', sfw has a nice setup w/ a homemade holder for his sonar and an arm that he mounted his summer transducer on to use on ice.. 67 is a lot cheaper than any vex, too.


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## zx10r2004 (Sep 24, 2005)

there are alot of people who like them because they own them.i know a couple of buddies that say they work great but had a split second delay that the vex dont have and wouldnt notice it unless you have fished with a vexilar. im sure they work alright but im not a big fan on any delays. i was going buy a 68c but just couldn't bring myself to spend the money on it. i like the whole gps thing but not sold on the delay. im sure they work fine but not as fast as a flasher. :evilsmile


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## theeyes (Mar 20, 2004)

I have the lowrance 19c, not good for ice, but now that I have mapping, don't think I could live without it. What a time saver.


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## MSUICEMAN (Jan 9, 2002)

i like seperate GPS and finder units just cuz i can take my etrex legend gps anywhere. i got a FL18 propack (not propackII) for 299 last year, so i jumped on that. otherwise i might very well have gotten the x67c


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## theeyes (Mar 20, 2004)

With mapping you have depths, contour, you can get to the sunkin islands without looking for them. On new lakes its important, if you allready have them marked GPS would work fine.
I almost forgot there's GPS's that can do mapping, that would work too.


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## jbird68 (Dec 8, 2005)

Well. I got the new VPG from Aqua Vu. It's not in color but you can really see the jig/fish separation. It's only $229.


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## 1fish (Oct 2, 2006)

zx10r2004 said:


> there are alot of people who like them because they own them.i know a couple of buddies that say they work great but had a split second delay that the vex dont have and wouldnt notice it unless you have fished with a vexilar. im sure they work alright but im not a big fan on any delays. i was going buy a 68c but just couldn't bring myself to spend the money on it. i like the whole gps thing but not sold on the delay. im sure they work fine but not as fast as a flasher. :evilsmile


Ditto here, I have the M68c and have/had a vexilar FL-18 (it was stolen last year). I bought the M68c for the boat and love it for the open water applications. After my vex was taken, I spent the $150 bucks to by the ice fishing package for the Lowrance, thinking that it would be cheaper than the $400 for a new Vex.

However, after using it for most of last season, it does NOT work as well in "flasher mode" as the Vexilar's (even the FL-8, had one of those too). 

Will it work for ice fishing, yup. Does it work well for ice fishing, sure. Does it work as well as any of the actual flashers, NO. Having used both units quite a bit, the Lowrance does have some noticable lag and does not have the target seperation that the Vexilar's do. 

The big advantage (to the Lowrance) is that it is a much more versatile unit if you want to put it on a boat. Now if you were thinking about the 67 (the one w/out GPS), that would be a different story since the GPS capabilities, in my mind, is the biggest asset I see with the Lowrance vs. a vexilar. With the 67, I'd rather have a vexilar and a $100 etrex GPS.

IMO, there's a big enough difference and advantage to a Vexilar vs. the Lowrance that I'm currently shopping for a new Vex. To me it's worth the $400+ for a new one.

However, couple other tidbits.

The battery on the Lowrance lasts forever (days) instead of hours with the vexilar.

The screen on the lowrance is much easier to view in bright daylight.

I think that the Vexilar is much easier to "fine tune".

You have to be much more careful with the Lowrance due to the LCD screen.

Even though they say the Lowrance LCD is good to -30 degrees, I've had it "freeze" (slow down, distort, etc.) in temps as high as 10 degrees if it gets left in the truck overnight.

The Lowrance is lighter in weight.

The Lowrance seems to be able to filter out interference better.

With the GPS, I can mark areas out of the boat and they're still in the unit come ice fishing.


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## J - Rod (Oct 27, 2004)

Thanks for all the replys. 1 Fish - nice comparsion!

JJ You say the X67 has better resolution, shouldn't the eagle with its 480 x 480 pixels have the better resolution? X67 is 320 x 240. Isn't that the resolution or am I missing something? I'll take your word for it, but how's a guy supposed to compare that spec if it doesn't translate into better resolution. And what does the higher power do for you? Anything?

I will probably get through the season with the green box and look for deals on the Marcum lx-3 or x67 at the end of the season or off season. This will be used on my kayak also, and the split second delay with the x67 won't matter to me - my reactions are slow anyway, so what's another 1/100th of a second.


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## MSUICEMAN (Jan 9, 2002)

i do not think that the eagle has the pseudo-flasher mode.


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## J - Rod (Oct 27, 2004)

MSUICEMAN said:


> i do not think that the eagle has the pseudo-flasher mode.


You are right, it doesn't. Nor the color. Maybe JJ was reffering to the good target separation and resolution in the flasher mode - I can understand that.


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## bhorn (Jan 3, 2006)

You can buy the Marcum VX-1 for $199. That would save you a couple of bucks and not have to shell out for a full priced vex. For that kind of money I would want the adjustable zoom and all the extras you get with the Marcums.


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## JJ Mac (Dec 29, 2003)

J - Rod said:


> Thanks for all the replys. 1 Fish - nice comparsion!
> 
> JJ You say the X67 has better resolution, shouldn't the eagle with its 480 x 480 pixels have the better resolution? X67 is 320 x 240. Isn't that the resolution or am I missing something? I'll take your word for it, but how's a guy supposed to compare that spec if it doesn't translate into better resolution. And what does the higher power do for you? Anything?
> 
> I will probably get through the season with the green box and look for deals on the Marcum lx-3 or x67 at the end of the season or off season. This will be used on my kayak also, and the split second delay with the x67 won't matter to me - my reactions are slow anyway, so what's another 1/100th of a second.


Nope, wasn't referring to the flasher mode, although that is a good point. The 480 would not have a flasher. However, most x67 users I know find in time they like to use the regular sonar mode vs. the flasher mode.

Great question, and I'm certainly no authority on this. Wow, so much that makes up resolution in sonars. A few things to consider. First, as far as pixel count goes, what you are most concerned with is vertical pixel count for the most part. Horizontal pixel count would just give a longer history I guess. You probably won't be icefishing or kayaking at 70+ miles an hour. Also, you need to consider screen size and break it down to pixels per square inch. On the x67 I believe its a 3.5" (diag) screen and on the Eagle 480 its a 5" (diag). The point is, it takes less pixels on a smaller unit to give the same pixel density. And finally, there are many other factors that make up overall sonar "resolution" other than just pixel count. And now with color added to the equation, I think it even adds a new twist. 

Here's a couple good links on the subject that explains this better than I can:

http://pattiandken.com/gonefishing/Sonar/Sonar.htm
www.lowrance.com/Tutorials/Sonar/sonar_tutorial_03.asp

So, back to my comment from before, "Seeing is believing." All I can really say is that when I use a 480 it looks "fuzzy" and the x67 looks "sharp." Also, if there's any delay on the x67, I sure haven't been able to see it. It is right on with the movement of your jig. And that's coming from an Fl-18 guy! Now, I'm not gonna get into the sonar vs. flasher debate. There are enough threads out there to go around the world twice. I'd just say that if you are considering something for both icefishing and for the kayak, the x-67 is about the perfect choice. I'd also agree on only worrying about having a handheld gps for icefishing. With the M68, what are ya gonna do, whip that baby out when your travelling on the quad at 35 mph looking for your spot? 

The other thing about the color is this. When you are icefishing even more than on the boat perhaps, you are staring at your graph sometimes for hours. It just allows your eyes to go "Ahhh..." when you get to look at color.

If your still not convinced, well, I have an Eagle 480 with a screen cover, 
wire adapter connection to a minnkota trolling motor, the box and manual, heck, I'll even throw in a used 12 volt interstate battery and 40 bucks for a brand new x67.  

Good luck on whatever you choose.


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## William H Bonney (Jan 14, 2003)

1fish said:


> Ditto here, I have the M68c and have/had a vexilar FL-18 (it was stolen last year). I bought the M68c for the boat and love it for the open water applications. After my vex was taken, I spent the $150 bucks to by the ice fishing package for the Lowrance, thinking that it would be cheaper than the $400 for a new Vex.
> 
> However, after using it for most of last season, it does NOT work as well in "flasher mode" as the Vexilar's (even the FL-8, had one of those too).
> 
> ...


My buddy has the Lowrance and FL-8 and he says pretty much the same as you do, with the comparisons. He doesn't even take the Lowrance out on the ice. About your battery though,, your Vex only lasts a few hours I think you might have a problem with your battery. I've let my FL-18 run for 6 days STRAIGHT,, in my basement( I was curious). Also,,, your Lowrance weighs "less" than the Vex??? My Vex weighs next to nothing, all the weight is in the battery.


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## triplehooked (Dec 26, 2004)

I agree with 1fish, the lowrance is pretty versatile. My x67 gets very little time on the charger compared to my buddy's FL-8. Six days in a basement is alot different on a unit than one on the ice. The color options are fun to play with, but all in all I'd rather have the vex. I noticed a big difference side by side with the FL8. Going through the menus to change settings is inconvenient to say the least,vs a turn of the gain on the vex. Great for the combo setup, not for hardcore ice.


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## The Whale (Jan 12, 2001)

Interesting in people's evaluations and observations on different units. I've purchased the x67c. Wouldn't trade it on a Vex for the world. Vex's are a sure bet, been around for years and have earned their stake. I believe once the 67's have been out for a few years and people become accustomed on how they operate and the benefits they offer, they will definitely gain a huge share of the ice market for sure. My opinion on a "side-by-side" Vex shootout was there was no speed lag at all that would effect ANYONES fishing abilities and NO clear winner until you brought the versatility of the adjustments (Lowrance), color (Lowrance), option of graph or flasher (Lowrance), silent running (Lowrance), price (Lowrance), :lol:  :lol: .....shall I continue ? :lol: :fish2:


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