Setting up the Humminbird 565 (or most any other FF)

[peguinpower]

Cant wait to go out fishing, so I spent the weekend home putzing around with my gear preparing for the "day".

Ive had my Humminbird 565 FF out only a couple of times. Its a replacement for a Garmin FF that broke a connector when it got hit by a big wave while launching in the surf. The 565 has just come back from the factory for replacement of a defective housing. The tech told me that they "tuned" my unit after replacing the display too. I'm pretty stoked about that. Anytime any of my electronic toys have come back from the manufacturer "tuned", its usually for the better.

From what Ive learned using my Garmin for 2 years, there are a few things you can do to maximize your FF. Some people may be happy with a just a bottom reading and thats fine. However, some guys just like to get the most out of their gear, so here it goes...

1) DO NOT USE AUTO! Usually, these auto settings are just to wimpy to get the most out of your FF.

2) Turn all FILTERS OFF. On the 565 this means "surface clutter" and "noise filter". Filters generally weaken "weak" signals. Unless youre in a really bad situation, such as multiple FFs working a small area, you dont need this stuff.

If "surface clutter" bugs you, you can set the "upper limit" of the 565 FF to just below the surface clutter. That way, your not filtering the signal, youre just "cropping" it out of the screen.

3) Reduce the "max depth" from auto to a few tens of feet over the actual max depth of your fishing area. Its a waste of computing power for your FF to be searching for signals and a bottom at 200, 300, 600 feet when in fact you wont be over 150 feet fishing inshore in Malibu.

Setting the "max depth" is different from setting the "upper range" and "lower range" The upper and lower range just defines whats on the screen. This is similar to "cropping" a picture. The max depth tells the onboard computer which signals to process, and rejects info outside of that parameter.

4) What screen to use?

This is a matter of preference. Personally, I prefer using "Inverse" or "White Line". Thats "Gray Line" to you Lowrance users. These will produce black for the weakest signals and light shades for strong signals. You want to see the weakest signals, if you want to see fish on your FF. Otherwise, "Structure ID" will give you the best definition for bottom contour.

5) Chart speed?

This too is a matter of preference. A fast chart will give the user the most up to date information. That is good. A slow chart will compress a small signal such that it might be dismissed as debris or screen clutter. Set the chart speed as fast as youre comfortable with.

6) Setting the max amount of gain/sensitivity possible.

This is where you really get the most from your machine.

Locate an area thats clear of kelp or other floating things.

Note the depth. Then set the meter's range to a little over twice the known depth. This means that if youre in 30 feet of water, set it at 65 feet.

Then bump up the gain/sensitivity as high as the point where you will see two bottoms on the screen. That second bottom is an echo. Note the gain/sensitivity setting where you just get that second bottom. Thats where you approximately want to set your FF.

Then reassign the lower limit of your FF to just over the actual depth. If youre in 30 feet of water, set it at 35-40. Reduce the sensitivity a click or two if you need to reduce screen clutter and noise.

You have now set your FF for its maximum potential in the water you are in.

You will need to re-do the steps above or reassign the lower limit from time to time, when depth, water temp and other factors change. But thats what it takes

NOTE: I wouldnt use Fish ID with this set up

Just sayin.

/bing