2 GPS units: Will front unit talk to the back unit? Help!

[Big Ed]

Please help;

I am very happy with my new Champion boat i bought at Anglers marine and only have one regret. Not having GPS/Mapping on the front unit. Im taking it back in for a little livewell pump fix on monday and intend to have Jordan install a new GPS unit up front.

Im going from a straight sonar LCX510 to the LMS520 GPS. I got tired of asking the non boater to help navigate me to a saved location or piece of structure from my console LCX27 unit. Does anybody recomend a different unit for this application? I ultimatly would like to see the same type of mapping on the front unit that i can see on the console unit and somehow share information back and forth. I dont even know if it is possible.

My question is will i be able to see on my new front LMS520 what i can see on the console LCX27 unit? They will be linked together via Lowrance network cables sharing the same module antenna.

Also i have a Navionics hot maps premium chip in the console. Will i need to purchase another chip for the front unit or is there a way to share info from that unit to the front unit? I would like to know if i can send waypoints from one unit to the other and visa versa? If i do need another chip what would be a good chip to go with my hot maps chip?

Thank you for your help.

[Bobby D.]

The Lms520 will be a great choice for the front of your Champion. By linking them together you will be able to share all waypoints, When you put in a waypoint on one unit it will show up on the other unit too. You can also share the same transducer as in having both units show the same sonar picture. You will not be able to share maps. You will need to have a mapping card for each unit. Hope this helps. Bobby D.

[Richard - Sonora]

*NM*

[NoCAL]

One little addition. You will not be able to see the transducer picture from the back on the front unit. You can overlay the depth or temp but not the actual bottom trace. There is a new technology that allows this (Lowrance Broadband Sounder) but it's pretty expensive and most boats don't have it yet.

I have the exact set-up you are talking about with a 28 HD at the helm and a 520 at the bow. They are linked with LowranceNet. I have one GPS puck and both units are able to set waypoints and navigate. If you have a mapping card it can only be used in one unit at a time and that data also cannot be shared over the network. Since I have the hard drive in my back unit, I bought a card for my 520 and use that most of the time.

NoCAL

[kopper_bass]

BobbyD & Big Ed,
I have been discussing this exact setup with guys who already have it just to learn and understand before buying new graphs for myself, and 1 thing that doesnt really make sense to me is why you would go and buy the 2nd Nav chip for the front?

I want a GPS graph up front for exactly the same reason; to find those secret spots i have marked on my unit at the console graph. When I'm up front, i don't care 1 bit about map details or such, just that waypoint location and what the sonar is telling me about whats underneath me!

So, as long as i have the Nav chip with contours and such on the back graph, and a simple pre-loaded map of the lake on the front graph, all i want more on the front is those waypoints.

No real reason to buy a 2nd Nav chip for the front.

Do you guys agree or am i missing something?

Kopper_Bass

[NoCAL]

I tend to agree with you kopper, but one explanation I've been given for having a map card up front is to follow exactly the contours of a break line. If you want to follow for instance a creek bed you could be on the lip of the creek and toss your lures into the creek to get an uphill retrieve. I've never been able to do it cause our lakes fluctuate so much in depth, the contours are practically useless sometimes. What might look like a break line on the map is now dry ground! Anyway that's what I have heard people do. I very rarely use the GPS function up front and mostly just for what you are doing.

NoCAL