Active Target Setup Steps

[@jtl101347]

You are ingenious,patient,and very grounded with all your instructions and tips. I can only wish I could be as intuitive as to all your work. Keep filming and helping all of us out here trying to understand these different ways to accomplish the many situations we find ourselves fixing.

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thank you for the kind words. Your comments provide me the incentive to keep putting in the work to give something back to a sport that has given me so much! And thank yoiu for watching and commenting.

[@johnvanhelvert8879]

Hello Marc, this is John van Helvert from the Netherlands Europe. Thank you very much for your clear explanation in the above video. You have a very pleasant voice and relaxed way of explaining things! Appreciated! John

[@marcmarcantonio7131]

Thank you, John. I appreciate your comment, and hope to fish the Netherlands some day!

[@johnvanhelvert1746]

@@marcmarcantonio7131 Hello Marc, You're welcome! And if you are ever going to the Netherlands, drop me an e-mail ([e-mail]) and I will try to get you on the water to fish. Where in the US are you located? I have traveled to the US fishing for stripers (lures), salmon and bonefish (fly fishing). As to the Active Target, yesterday, I was out the first time and everything seemed to work properly. I understand how this combined transducer is set up out of 3 transducers and producing stitched images. It is reasonably easy to get the 2D feeling in down and forward what area the Active Target sees, but there is also the width of the beam left and right to be considered. I haven't found any info on that yet. And I would say this is important to know because if you see a fish in forward mode say 40 feet from the transducer/boat, and you don't know the width of the beam, then you still don't have a clue where to cast. Of course you will make a +/- 40 foot cast but that fish could be dead center or to the left or right in that beam. So you would depend on the eagerness of that fish to actually start chasing your lure. Of course, apart from this kind of variable, there is also possible movement of the boat. I often fish in salt water shorelines so there is also the current to take into account. That often means that your cast needs to be very precise. I compare this way of Active Target fishing to sight fishing on the flats for bonefish. More often than not you would be moving around, looking for fish and if you see one or more bonefish, your cast has to be precise and you most often don't get a second chance. So I'm interested in your thoughts and/or the thoughts of any serious fisherman reading this thread. Regards, John

[@marcmarcantonio]

John, I live about an hour below Seattle, WA in a Town called Steilacoom. The Active Target has an 18 degree beam, so it is very narrow. When I use it to find pilings in the water, if you move the transducer even the slightest amount you lose the image of the piling. If I cast and retrieve a lure, it is sometimes hard to keep it in the beam of the Active Target, so you would need to cast directly where the transducer is pointed. Hope this helps. Marc.

[@johnvanhelvert1746]

@@marcmarcantonio Hello Marc, You live in a beautiful part of the USA! Did you know that Jacques Cousteau once named the waters in this estuary of Puget Sound his second favorite place to dive in the world? If I look and see correctly, your town is directly situated on the Carr Inlet. This means salt or at least brackish water with this body of water connected to the ocean. Of course, that would be maybe 50-60 miles by boat from Steilacoom to Juan de Fuca to reach pure salt water. I notice you have a Ranger Bass boat with a Ghost trolling motor (very good electric engine but not salt water protected) so I suspect that you don't fish in salt or even brackish water? Apart from the wind and waves affecting bigger water, these conditions are also not so suited for a Ranger Bass boat. Where do you fish, in some inland lakes and do you mainly fish for Largemouth Bass? Or do you also go out on the Carr Inlet under mild sea conditions? As a photographer, I traveled from Seattle to Portland a few times for travel reportages for Dutch magazines, also shooting the Pendelton Roundup Rodeo land inwards. I really love the USA, Westcoast and Eastcoast (Cape Cod area fishing for stripers) Fishing possibilities seem to be endless. As to the Active Target: Thank you very much for pointing out to me that the beam is 18 degrees. I did find this out also from Lowrance in the mean time and was out on the water a few times to test it myself. I live in the small town of Den Helder in the Netherlands on the seaside and I fish mainly in salt water with a lot of wind and current. When I look at the you tube promotion/demonstration video's by Lowrance, I see ProStaffers on windstil freshwater bass lakes or even ice fishing. Especially the ice fishing situations are ideal to demonstrate the Active Target or Garmin Livescope. Probably no current in these situations and very easy to retrieve your lure accurately in the 18 degree cone angle. So in these situations the Active Target really shines!!! But fishing in salt water with waves and especially a strong current, it is practically impossible to keep your lure in sight in this narrow cone angle. Garmin Livescope is 20 degrees, not a whole lot of difference so equally difficult! I would suggest using the scout mode in situations where there is a lot of boat movement due to current and/or wind. Then you have 135 degrees horizontally and the 18 degrees will work vertically for you, only scanning the upper layer of water. If you fish surface lures, then that would be a good situation and no problem keeping the lure in the cone angle. But if you fish vertically or cast out and let your lure sink to the bottom and fish it back to the boat in a deeper layer of water, the the Active Target will not work for you when there is boat movement, waves and current. In that situation, you would only use the Active Target (as you say) to find and pinpoint pilings or in my case a reef or a wreck. Conclusion: Active Target and Livescope are great techniques but it is very important to understand what CAN or CANNOT realistically be expected from these techniques. And as with 'normal' 2D sonar: in the hands of a good fisherman, it can be a great help to catch more fish but when a not so good fisherman invests in these kind of sonar techniques, nothing really changes :-)

[@marcmarcantonio]

@@johnvanhelvert1746 Yes, I live on the Puget Sound which is salt water. I catch King, Silver, Chum, and Pink salmon, dungeness crab, shrimp, and much more near my home. I don't use my Ranger for the salt water, but the lakes here (including Lake Washington in Seattle) have both smallmouth bass and largemouth bass. There are also walleye (Zander) and lots of other fishing opportunities. I prostaff for Lowrance, and I fish a lot of tournaments all over the west coast. I did stop in your country when flying back from Malta a few years back, but never left the airport!

[@thomasfielder3972]

Great video. Followed to a tee with success. Thanks Marc!

[@marcmarcantonio]

Glad it was helpful, and thank you for watching and commenting!

[@tylercizek2670]

You are doing God's work my man. Consider myself fairly tech savvy and this stuff frustrates me like no other. THANK YOU

[@marcmarcantonio]

Glad to be of help! Fishing has been great to me, so glad to give something back!

[@williambarrett6796]

great detail, keep posting Mark......when ever i need to learn about this stuff , you are the first look. TY sir

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thank you William!

[@carlostellez7957]

THE BEST EXPLANATION I HAVE SEEN OF INITIATION. THANK YOU

[@marcmarcantonio]

Wow, thank you!

[@geneclance3491]

Thanks Marc for your instructional videos on performing updates on the Lowrance Active Target transducer etc!

[@marcmarcantonio]

You bet!

[@brucesmithoutdoors]

Nice mount. I did the same thing at first but the module kept getting way hot and shutting down when I was out fishing ledges in summer. I remounted it under the console and it works great because air can get to it and keeps cooler. Thank you for your video. Good luck!

[@marcmarcantonio]

Adequate cooling is important. I mount my AT2 boxes with the cooling fins oriented vertically to allow the heat to rise and escape. I don't put life jackets or other items other than rods near them. My rod lockers actually stay cooler than ambient temperatures when fishing on extremely hot days. Not sure if that is a function of how well insulated my rod lockers are, or the color of the boat, or combination of factors. Glad you figured out that relocating yours fixed your problem and will help others with the same! Thanks for commenting!

[@achristianson4059]

Nice set up , good vid brotha sir.....just bought my FS9 so playing with the million settings on it now

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thank you!

[@geneclance3491]

Marc. Your the best. Thankyou for your educational videos on Lowrance products. Especially the updates how to on tve Active Target. Thanks again.

[@marcmarcantonio]

I appreciate that!

[@letun3481]

Thank you so much! Very helpful!

[@marcmarcantonio]

Glad you found it useful!

[@grazzasfreshwaterfishing]

Great Video Marc - Cheers Grazza from Australia

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thank you...hope to fish your country one day!

[@tomguertin7713]

Great job Marc. You are a good teacher.

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thank you, Tom. I am an outdoor writer and I taught in the Army for 25 years; thank you for saying so.

[@mikejacobs4652]

Excellent Video sir. The information you provided as well as your installation of the system were top notch! Thank You.

[@marcmarcantonio]

Glad it was helpful!

[@DaleWyman]

Great job as always Marc. My boats are both in storage for the winter here in New England. Looking forward to installing my own in a month or so. Your video will help lots of folks! 👍🏻

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thanks Dale; I grew up in Delaware and can tell you I don't miss having to winterize my boat! Thank you for watching and commenting.

[@69Bowhunter]

Great video Marc thanks I’m hooking my 3D system up with the Active Target this way. Keep the videos coming. 👌

[@marcmarcantonio]

You will like how it interfaces with your 3D Structure Scan! Works great.

[@captainstevespatafora4185]

Thanks for the info , will be hooking mine up tomorrow.

[@marcmarcantonio]

Hope it went well!

[@westonhunt2294]

Good video! Just took delivery of a brand new boat. I ordered it with HDS 12 Lives, Active Target, Sea Clear power, Ghost, Point 1, and sonic hub,, thinking the installation done all at once at the factory would help. Wrong,,,I’m still troubleshooting. Active Target transducer is clicking with only the battery cut-off switch on in rear compartment. I can then turn on Lives individually, but still haven’t touched my power or accessory switches. I like the yellow wire on accessory switch idea, but mine is obviously not. Software is 20.1, so will work on updates after I get a smaller than 64gb microSD. Heck, the AT module is mounted upside down, and does not have a 10 or 12 awg dedicated ground installed. Lots of other issues, but won’t get into it here.

[@marcmarcantonio]

You are not alone. I quit having the factory install ANY of my electronics. I always do a better job, and then know exactly how my boat is wired. Ciao!

[@ThePichin21]

Verry helpful videos senor marco thanks

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thank you for watching!

[@ThePichin21]

@@marcmarcantonio mr marcos u know how long the active target takes to turn off? i hook the yellow wire to my hds live yellow wire the unit turns on the ducer on but wont turn it off ones i turn of my graffics

[@marcmarcantonio]

@@ThePichin21 There is a problem with the Active Target software that prevents the Yellow Wire turning off the Active Target box. It will likely be fixed in the next software update for Active Target. In the meantime make sure you turn off the power where the red wire is connected.

[@ThePichin21]

@@marcmarcantonio thank u sr 🙏

[@craigpeters3165]

Great stuff Marc!

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thanks!

[@1Timatin]

Thank. Clear and useful.

[@marcmarcantonio]

You are welcome!

[@mvsHaTCHeT]

how did you connect the black box power cable to the power on your hds 16?

[@marcmarcantonio]

You connect the AT2 black box power cable with the red wire to positive, black to negative, and the yellow wire to an accessory switch. If you have two AT2 units you connect the blue wires from each power cable together to synchronize the pings. Your power cable for your HDS unit is connected entirely separate from your AT power cable (but can be connected to the same positive and negative sources, yellow and blue wires not connected or needed.

[@Rivlee10]

Great video man!

[@marcmarcantonio]

Glad you liked it!

[@jimdenny5340]

Very helpful thank u

[@marcmarcantonio]

Glad it helped! Thank you.

[@lamontvernon757]

Very informative

[@marcmarcantonio]

Glad it was helpful!

[@barrybell100]

Great video

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thanks!

[@jamesgracyk1257]

Mark, just watched your video and it was clear and concise. However I too looked at Lowrance website under support, software updates, transducers, and found lots of install manuals but no updates. Can you enlighten me how better to find it?

[@marcmarcantonio]

On the Lowrance website, go to Help & Support, then Software and Manuals Download (www.lowrance.com/downloads/), then enter the model of the unit you wish to update! Hope this helps.

[@jamesgracyk1257]

@@marcmarcantonio Thanks Mark, Lowrance has moved the software update for Active Target from the Transducer section to the Active Target section. Please share your thoughts on turning your Sonar off when doing something on your MFD and your boat is not in the water. It was not addressed in your video. Can you update AT software and have Sonar turned off, or unplugged?

[@marcmarcantonio]

@james gracyk Not sure what you mean when you say turning off your sonar? Are you meaning 2D (regular sonar) or Active Target live sonar? You should always stop any transducer from pinging out of water, though they are very resilient and often are not damaged when out of water for short periods. Some high-powered transducers like models of AirMar can quickly be damaged from heat when operated out of water. I stop my Active Target transducer when removing it from the water to prevent damage.

[@jamesgracyk1257]

@@marcmarcantonio Mark, by "stopping sonar" I mean either physically unplugging it from back of MFD, or going to Features page and clicking the box to turn sonar off. Which way do you stop your AT transducer? Next question, if one uses the Features page, will that turn off all three transducers (Active Target, 3 in 1, and 2D)? And finally, will the black box accept software update for Active Target if the AT transducer stopped, turned off or disconnected? I say turn off, you say stop. I think we mean the same thing. Thanks, you are very helpful.

[@marcmarcantonio]

@james gracyk First an important message... never unplug or plug in any transducer to a unit while the unit is powered on. This is called "hot swapping a transducer" and it can damage the unit or the transducer. Always turn off the unit prior to attaching or removing any transducer. "Stopping" the Active Target transducer is accomplished by going into the AT menu and on the second page of the menu is the choice to Stop Sonar. This keeps the transducer from pinging and protects it from overheating while out of water. Hope this helps.

[@1hovermale]

I see you decided to hook up the extra ground on the module box. Where exactly do you have that grounded to ?

[@marcmarcantonio]

I ran the ground wire to under the console and connected it to my Ranger negative buss bar. It is working great and no corrosion anywhere even after fishing brackish water.

[@franktiboni8610]

Great video, thanks...

[@marcmarcantonio]

You're welcome!

[@larryd.collins7996]

Thank you. Excellent.

[@marcmarcantonio]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@greigbw]

Marc, nice job. Very clear instructions. Does the latest tducer software update fix the yellow wire sleep issue?

[@marcmarcantonio]

Not yet, that will be in the next update I believe.

[@greigbw]

@@marcmarcantonio In the meantime, would you recommend wiring the yellow separately to a fuse block connected to main power? I have my head units wired directly to the battery so I am hesitant to connect the yellow that way too since it won't sleep when the unit is off. 2nd question, should I consider going directly to the battery with the black box? I have heard that it needs nice, steady power like the head units.

[@marcmarcantonio]

@@greigbw I would wire yours now like you want it after the software update; it doesn't hurt anything. I am a strong proponent of wiring the yellow wire to an accessory switch on your boat if you have one available. If not, I would consider adding a switch to your boat. The accessory switch can be wired to your main boat power panel under your console because it only uses a small amount of power to activate or wake up the module. Which brings us to your second question. Yes, I recommend you connect the red and black directly to your battery, and in your case since your head units are already directly to the battery you are likely fine to connect the red and black to the same wire that goes directly to your battery. In other words connect the red and black to the red and black of your head unit, and the yellow to a boat accessory switch. That is how mine is wired except that I use a fuse box for connecting my head unit, my 3D StrutureScan, and my Active Target box, and together the fuse block goes directly to my battery. Thank you for watching and stay tuned for many more videos.

[@dbigs7033]

Great Video but I have a question. Does active target require “network sonar” to be enabled on the HDS Live unit where the module connects via Ethernet? Bow HDS Live->Ethernet->Active Target. I currently have “network sonar” disabled to keep temps, depths,.... local to that unit.

[@marcmarcantonio]

I will have to check on that, because I keep mine on network sonar and multisource all the time. I don't like to have each unit only use the transducers hooked to that unit, so I don't program each unit to be only local. There is no advantage to me to have them local only. That is a subject probably for another video, but if you look at my video that shows Transducer Tips and Tricks you will see how I setup my boat with transducers. I can view any transducer I want on any unit this way, and even two at the same time on any unit (front and back sonar on the bow graph for example at the same time).

[@BodeknockerBrumbill]

Marc, I do not see the .54 transducer update anywhere on the Lowrance website. Where?

[@marcmarcantonio7131]

It is not listed under "Active Target" but instead is listed under updates for "Transducers", then Active Target.

[@BodeknockerBrumbill]

@@marcmarcantonio7131 OK, got it. Thanks.

[@marcmarcantonio]

Now you need the .59 update!

[@boydda1111]

Marc did you just connect the ground on the top of your box to a negative on your fuse block?

[@marcmarcantonio]

Yes, that is all that you need to do. Thanks for watching.

[@leroykrippendorf7066]

Trying to figure out the angle adjustment for active target under sonar installation? What is this for and how does it work?

[@marcmarcantonio]

It allows you to make small adjustments of the sonar beam angle.

[@randymolloy3016]

Hello Mark. Do you run your electronics on a separate battery?

[@marcmarcantonio]

Yes I do. You can read about my setup here: storage.westernbass.com/mag_wb/wb_mag_winter_2022/page34/index.html

[@luizfishing7438]

Hi Marc, hope you are well! Thank you for the great video! Quick question: is it an issue / damaging the transducer when you are running it and not being in the water? On Saturday I will install mine :). Thx Br, Martin

[@marcmarcantonio]

Not that I know of, but I will find out. So far I have not noticed the transducer getting hot, but it is 42 degrees each time I have used it. I will certainly keep my eye on it during the summer, and likely will turn it off from pinging when it gets hot outside. I do this now with my Airmar transducer when not using it.

[@luizfishing7438]

@@marcmarcantonio Hi Marc, thank you! I am also not sure about these things. I hear from time to time in videos that transducers should be in general not activated when they are not in the water. Don’t know how true that is.

[@johnvanhelvert1746]

@@luizfishing7438 Hi Luiz and Marc, I installed the active Target this weekend and put a on/off switch in the wiring to the transducer in order to shut the power off to the transducer when I move a few miles at top speed to another spot. When I only move a few hundred yards, I will keep the transducer in the water and move slowly. I haven't read anything about a possible problem of the transducer getting hot but just to be sure.

[@luizfishing7438]

@@johnvanhelvert1746 Hi John, thx for letting me know. Are you from Netherlands? Cheers

[@johnvanhelvert1746]

@@luizfishing7438 Yes that's right Luiz, I am in that little European country on the West coast! As to the transducer, I installed the on/off switch just to be sure.

[@616_overlanders9]

Hey Marc I have a problem trying to do the update on my Active Target. The problem I have is once I downloaded the latest version onto my SD Card, once I insert it into my slot, my fish finder isn’t reading my card. Any suggestions?

[@marcmarcantonio]

The update does not load automatically like updates for HDS units. You have to manually upload it like the steps in my video on updating: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4rOgnehbdqGoJY If it still doesn't work try a different SD card and make sure it is 32gb or lower in size.

[@luckyleelopez3147]

Nailed it thank u

[@marcmarcantonio]

Thank you.

[@travellingpiker9897]

Perfect thanks

[@marcmarcantonio]

Welcome 😊

[@FalconsATL]

Hi Marc, I had active target installed at my local boat dealer, and the transducer is mounted on the trolling motor shaft. But my transducer is mounted opposite from most that I have seen because my propeller is stored outward on the trolling motor so the transducer is turned the other way. I’ve went through the set ups and have done the updates but still can’t figure out why the Lake bottom on the screen is not flat and is running up at about a 45° angle… Any thoughts? Anyone?

[@marcmarcantonio]

First thing to try is turn off Stable View in the menu. Without seeing a photo of your transducer I can't be sure, but usually this happens when the transducer is tilted up too high. Check the reference lines on your AT mount. Lastly, check that your trolling motor shaft is vertically plumb when deployed. If it is angled forward or backward, it throws the transducer angle off as you rotate the shaft

[@FalconsATL]

@@marcmarcantonio Yea, it’s a mystery to me! The shaft appears straight and the transducer is in the correct notches for forward view. I have the Elite FS 9 unit and I’m wondering if I should just restore back to factory settings and start over.

[@FalconsATL]

@@marcmarcantonio Also, I wonder, is there a setting in the unit that should be switched on or off or to flip the transducer since it’s mounted on the opposite side of the shaft from normal?

[@marcmarcantonio]

@@FalconsATL Make sure you have Stable View turned off in the AT menu. This often fixes your issue. Failing that, go to Settings, Sonar, Active Target Installation, and hit Restore Defaults.

[@FalconsATL]

@@marcmarcantonio Thank you! I’ll try that and let you know!!!

[@FishingWithHood]

What kind sd card is that?

[@marcmarcantonio]

SanDisc 32gb.

[@LukeMooney-z6k]

I don’t have the option to turn on active target at all. It’s just not there

[@marcmarcantonio]

Pages, Settings, Advanced, scroll down to Active Target and turn it on.

[@LukeMooney-z6k]

@@marcmarcantonio yessir I’ve seen videos on it but it’s not there. There all the other options but active target is no one of them

[@marcmarcantonio]

@user-lw4du3pe3t So more info may help to diagnose the problem. I think you are saying you do not have Active Target icon on the tray. What unit do you have? Is it updated with 23.3 update? When all else fails save your waypoints then perform a hard reset.

[@mellowman8695]

Lowrance is ridiculous. I can't hardly get their crap to work together. I hope an update is the magic bullet. When all else fails, update Adobe and restart.

[@marcmarcantonio]

The current updates work great. If you still have problems after the updates and hard reset, then you have other reasons for the problems (except there is still a problem with using the Airmar transducer).

[@larryd.collins7996]

Thank you. Well done.

[@marcmarcantonio]

You are welcome!

[@squatking1]

Great video, thank you.

[@marcmarcantonio]

You are welcome!

[@saratoga1956]

Thanks very much

[@marcmarcantonio]

You are welcome. Thanks for watching.