Humminbird 581i DI Combo User manual

531966-1 N_A
581i DI Combo Operations Manual
581i DI Combo Operations Manual

Thank You!
Thank you for choosing Humminbird®, America’s #1 name in fishfinders.
Humminbird® has built its reputation by designing and manufacturing
top-quality, thoroughly reliable marine equipment. Your Humminbird® is
designed for trouble-free use in even the harshest marine environment. In
the unlikely event that your Humminbird® does require repairs, we offer an
exclusive Service Policy - free of charge during the first year after purchase,
and available at a reasonable rate after the one-year period. For complete
details, see the separate warranty card included with your unit. We
encourage you to read this operations manual carefully in order to get full
benefit from all the features and applications of your Humminbird® product.
To contact our Customer Resource Center, call 1-800-633-1468 or visit our
Web site at humminbird.com.
WA NING! This device should not be used as a navigational aid to prevent collision,
grounding, boat damage, or personal injury. When the boat is moving, water depth may
change too quickly to allow time for you to react. Always operate the boat at very slow
speeds if you suspect shallow water or submerged objects.
WA NING! Disassembly and repair of this electronic unit should only be performed by
authorized service personnel. Any modification of the serial number or attempt to repair the
original equipment or accessories by unauthorized individuals will void the warranty.
WA NING! This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause
cancer and/or reproductive harm.
WA NING! Do not travel at high speed with the unit cover installed. Remove the unit cover
before traveling at speeds above 20 mph.
ENVI ONMENTAL COMPLIANCE STATEMENT: t is the intention of Humminbird® to be
a responsible corporate citizen, operating in compliance with known and applicable
environmental regulations, and a good neighbor in the communities where we make or sell
our products.
WEEE DI ECTIVE: EU Directive 2002/96/EC “Waste of Electrical and Electronic Equipment
Directive (WEEE)” impacts most distributors, sellers, and manufacturers of consumer
electronics in the European Union. The WEEE Directive requires the producer of consumer
electronics to take responsibility for the management of waste from their products to
achieve environmentally responsible disposal during the product life cycle.
NOTE: Some features discussed in this manual require a separate purchase, and
some features are only available on international models. Every effort has been made
to clearly identify those features. Please read the manual carefully in order to
understand the full capabilities of your model.

WEEE compliance may not be required in your location for electrical & electronic equipment
(EEE), nor may it be required for EEE designed and intended as fixed or temporary
installation in transportation vehicles such as automobiles, aircraft, and boats. n some
European Union member states, these vehicles are considered outside of the scope of the
Directive, and EEE for those applications can be considered excluded from the WEEE
Directive requirement.
This symbol (WEEE wheelie bin) on product indicates the product must not be
disposed of with other household refuse. t must be disposed of and collected for
recycling and recovery of waste EEE. Humminbird® will mark all EEE products in
accordance with the WEEE Directive. t is our goal to comply in the collection,
treatment, recovery, and environmentally sound disposal of those products; however, these
requirements do vary within European Union member states. For more information about
where you should dispose of your waste equipment for recycling and recovery and/or your
European Union member state requirements, please contact your dealer or distributor from
which your product was purchased.
OHS STATEMENT: Product designed and intended as a fixed installation or part of a
system in a vessel may be considered beyond the scope of Directive 2002/95/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 2003 on the restriction of the use of
certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment.
500 Series™, Down Imaging™, Fish ID+™, Humminbird®, RTS™, RTS Window™, Structure ID®,
SwitchFire™, WhiteLine™, UniMap™, and X-Press™ Menu are trademarked by or registered
trademarks of Humminbird®.
Navionics® Gold, HotMaps®, and HotMaps® Premium are registered trademarks of Navionics®.
© 2011 Humminbird®, ufaula AL, USA. All rights reserved.
ATTENTION INTE NATIONAL CUSTOME S: Products sold in the U.S. are not
intended for use in the international market. Hummin ird® international units
provide international features and are designed to meet country and regional
regulations. Languages, maps, time zones, units of measurement, and warranty
are examples of features that are customized for Hummin ird® international units
purchased through our authorized international distri utors.
To o tain a list of authorized international distri utors, please visit our We site at
humminbird.com or contact our Customer Resource Center at [phone].

Power On 1
How Sonar Works 2
Down Imaging™ Sonar............................................................................................ 4
How GPS Works 5
What’s on the Sonar Display 6
Understanding the Sonar Display .......................................................................... 8
Real Time Sonar (RTS™) Window .......................................................................... 8
SwitchFire™ ............................................................................................................ 9
Freeze Frame and Active Cursor.............................................................................. 9
Bottom Presentation .............................................................................................. 10
What’s on the Down Imaging™ Display 12
Understanding the Down Imaging™ Display ...................................................... 14
Interpreting the Display ........................................................................................ 14
Down Imaging™ Sensitivity .................................................................................. 15
Freeze Frame and Active Cursor............................................................................ 15
Views 16
Sonar View ............................................................................................................ 18
Sonar Zoom View .................................................................................................. 19
Split Sonar View .................................................................................................... 20
Down Imaging™ View .......................................................................................... 21
Down Imaging™/Sonar Combo View ....................................................................22
Big Digits View ...................................................................................................... 23
Bird’s ye View ...................................................................................................... 24
Chart View.............................................................................................................. 25
Chart/Sonar Combo View...................................................................................... 26
View Orientation .................................................................................................... 27
Viewing Cartography.............................................................................................. 27
Table of Contents
i

ii
Introduction to Navigation 30
Waypoints, Routes, and Tracks ............................................................................ 30
Save, dit, or Delete a Waypoint .......................................................................... 32
Navigate to a Waypoint or Position...................................................................... 34
Add a Waypoint Target or Trolling Grid ................................................................ 35
Save, dit, or Delete a Route ................................................................................ 36
Save or Clear a Current Track................................................................................ 37
dit, Delete, or Hide Saved Tracks........................................................................ 37
Add Maps to Your Fishfinder ................................................................................ 38
xport Navigation Data.......................................................................................... 39
What’s on the 500 Series™ Control Head 40
Key Functions 41
POW R/LIGHT Key ................................................................................................ 41
VI W Key................................................................................................................ 42
INFO Key ................................................................................................................ 42
M NU Key.............................................................................................................. 42
4-WAY Cursor Control Key .................................................................................... 43
MARK Key .............................................................................................................. 43
GOTO Key................................................................................................................ 44
ZOOM (+/-) Key...................................................................................................... 44
XIT Key.................................................................................................................. 44
SD Card Slot 45
The Menu System 46
Start- p Options Menu 47
Normal.................................................................................................................... 47
Simulator ................................................................................................................ 48
System Status ........................................................................................................ 48
Table of Contents

iii
Self Test .................................................................................................................. 49
Accessory Test........................................................................................................ 49
GPS Diagnostic View ............................................................................................ 50
X-Press™ Menu 51
Main Menu 52
Quick Tips for the Main Menu .................................................................................. 53
Note for all Menu Settings .......................................................................................... 53
User Mode (Normal or Advanced) .............................................................................. 54
Sonar X-Press™ Menu (Sonar Views only) 56
Sensitivity .............................................................................................................. 57
Upper Range (Advanced: Sonar and Big Digits Views only) .......................................... 58
Lower Range .......................................................................................................... 58
Chart Speed............................................................................................................ 59
Bottom View .......................................................................................................... 59
Cancel Navigation (only when navigating) ................................................................ 59
Down Imaging™ X-Press™ Menu (Down Imaging™ Views only) 60
Imaging Sensitivity ................................................................................................ 61
Upper Range (Advanced) ........................................................................................ 61
Lower Range .......................................................................................................... 62
Chart Speed............................................................................................................ 62
Imaging Palette ...................................................................................................... 62
Navigation X-Press™ Menu (Navigation Views only) 63
Waypoint [Name] (Only with an active cursor on a waypoint) .................................... 64
Cursor To Waypoint (Chart or Combo View only) ...................................................... 64
Save Current Track ................................................................................................ 64
Clear Current Track ................................................................................................ 65
Save Current Route (only when Navigating) ............................................................ 65
Table of Contents

iv
Skip Next Waypoint (only when Navigating) ............................................................ 65
Cancel Navigation (only when Navigating) .............................................................. 65
Remove Target (only if Target is Active) .................................................................... 65
Remove Grid (only if Grid is Active)............................................................................ 66
Sonar Window (Combo View only) .......................................................................... 66
Waypoint [Name] (Most recently-created waypoint) .................................................. 66
Alarms Menu Tab 67
Depth Alarm .......................................................................................................... 68
Fish ID Alarm.......................................................................................................... 68
Low Battery Alarm ................................................................................................ 68
Temp. Alarm .......................................................................................................... 69
Off Course Alarm .................................................................................................. 69
Arrival Alarm .......................................................................................................... 70
Drift Alarm.............................................................................................................. 70
Alarm Tone ............................................................................................................ 70
Sonar Menu Tab 71
Beam Select .......................................................................................................... 72
Imaging Frequency (Down maging™ Views only) .................................................... 73
Surface Clutter ...................................................................................................... 74
SwitchFire™ .......................................................................................................... 74
Fish ID+™ .............................................................................................................. 75
Fish ID Sensitivity .................................................................................................. 76
Real Time Sonar (RTS™) Window ........................................................................ 76
Zoom Width .......................................................................................................... 76
455 kHz Sensitivity (Advanced, Down maging™ only) .............................................. 77
Depth Lines (Advanced) .......................................................................................... 77
Noise Filter (Advanced) ............................................................................................ 77
Max Depth (Advanced) ............................................................................................ 78
Table of Contents

v
Water Type (Advanced) ............................................................................................ 78
Imaging Palette (Down maging™ Views only) .......................................................... 78
Navigation Menu Tab 79
Current Track .......................................................................................................... 80
Saved Tracks .......................................................................................................... 80
Waypoints .............................................................................................................. 81
Routes .................................................................................................................... 82
Chart Orientation.................................................................................................... 82
Lat/Lon Grid............................................................................................................ 82
Chart Select............................................................................................................ 83
North Reference .................................................................................................... 83
Waypoint Decluttering (Advanced).......................................................................... 83
Grid Rotation .......................................................................................................... 83
Trackpoint Interval.................................................................................................. 84
Track Min Distance (Advanced) .............................................................................. 84
Map Datum (Advanced) .......................................................................................... 84
Set Simulation Position (Advanced) ........................................................................ 85
Set Map Offset (Advanced)...................................................................................... 85
Clear Map Offset (Advanced) .................................................................................. 85
Course Projection Line .......................................................................................... 86
xport All Nav Data................................................................................................ 86
Delete All Nav Data (Advanced) .............................................................................. 86
Chart Detail Level .................................................................................................. 87
Map Borders .......................................................................................................... 88
Spot Soundings...................................................................................................... 89
Setup Menu Tab 90
Units - Depth.......................................................................................................... 91
Units - Temp ( nternational only) .............................................................................. 91
Units - Distance...................................................................................................... 91
Table of Contents

vi
Units - Speed ........................................................................................................ 91
User Mode.............................................................................................................. 92
Language ( nternational only).................................................................................... 92
Triplog Reset .......................................................................................................... 92
Restore Defaults .................................................................................................... 92
Select Readouts (Advanced, Sonar View only) .......................................................... 93
Depth Offset (Advanced).......................................................................................... 94
Temp. Offset (Advanced).......................................................................................... 94
Speed Calibration (Advanced, with Temp/Speed only) .............................................. 94
Local Time Zone (Advanced).................................................................................... 94
Daylight Saving Time (Advanced)............................................................................ 95
Position Format (Advanced) .................................................................................... 95
Time Format (Advanced, nternational only)................................................................ 95
Date Format (Advanced, nternational only)................................................................ 95
Digits Format (Advanced) ........................................................................................ 96
NM A Output (Advanced) ...................................................................................... 96
Sonar ...................................................................................................................... 97
Demonstration........................................................................................................ 97
Sound Control ........................................................................................................97
Views Menu Tab 98
Troubleshooting 99
Fishfinder Doesn’t Power Up ................................................................................ 99
Fishfinder Defaults to Simulator with a Transducer Attached............................ 99
Display Problems ................................................................................................ 100
Finding the Cause of Noise..................................................................................101
500 Series™ Fishfinder Accessories 102
Specifications 103
Table of Contents

vii
Glossary 104
Contact Humminbird® 112
NOTE: Entries in this Table of Contents which list ( nternational Only) are only
available on products sold outside of the U.S. by our authorized international
distributors. To obtain a list of authorized international distributors, please visit
our Web site at humminbird.com or contact our Customer Resource Center at
[phone].
NOTE: Entries in this Table of Contents which list (with Temp/Speed only) require
the purchase of separate accessories. You can visit our Web site at
humminbird.com to order these accessories online or contact our Customer
Resource Center at 1-800-633-1468.
NOTE: Some features discussed in this manual require a separate purchase, and
some features are only available on international models. Every effort has been
made to clearly identify those features. Please read the manual carefully in order
to understand the full capabilities of your model.
Table of Contents

1Power On
Power On
Follow the instructions below to power on your Humminbird® control head.
1. Press the POW R/LIGHT key.
2. When the Title screen is displayed, press the M NU key to access the
Start-Up Options Menu.
3. Use the 4-WAY Cursor Control key to select Normal (if there is a
transducer attached to the control head), or Simulator (if there isn’t a
transducer attached to the control head).
NOTE: See Start-Up Options Menu for more information.
•If a functioning transducer is connected, Normal operation will be
selected automatically at power up, and your Fishfinder can be
used on the water.
•If a transducer is not connected and you wait too long to select a
Start-Up Option, the system will default to whichever menu is
already highlighted.
• In Simulator you can learn how to use your control head and save
settings in advance for later use.
581i DI Combo Title Screen

2
How Sonar Wor s
How Sonar Works
Sonar technology is based on sound waves. The 500 Series™ Fishfinder uses
sonar to locate and define structure, bottom contour and composition, as well
as depth directly below the transducer.
Your 500 Series™ Fishfinder sends a sound wave signal and determines
distance by measuring the time between the transmission of the sound wave
and when the sound wave is reflected off of an object; it then uses the reflected
signal to interpret location, size, and composition of an object.
Sonar is very fast. A sound wave can travel from the surface to a depth of
240 ft (70 m) and back again in less than 1/4 of a second. It is unlikely that your
boat can “outrun“ this sonar signal.
SONAR is an acronym for SOund and
NAvigation Ranging. Sonar uses precision
sound pulses or “pings“ which are emitted
into the water in a teardrop-shaped beam.
The sound pulses “echo“ back from objects
in the water such as the bottom, fish, and
other submerged objects. The returned
echoes are displayed on the LCD screen.
ach time a new echo is received, the old
echoes are moved across the LCD, creating
a scrolling effect.

3How Sonar Wor s
When all the echoes are viewed side by side, an
easy to interpret “graph“ of the bottom, fish, and
structure appears.
The sound pulses are transmitted at various
frequencies depending on the application. Very
high frequencies (455 kHz) are used for greatest
definition but the operating depth is limited. High
frequencies (200 kHz) are commonly used on
consumer sonar and provide a good balance
between depth performance and resolution. Low
frequencies (83 kHz) are typically used to achieve
greater depth capability.
The power output is the amount of energy
generated by the sonar transmitter. It is commonly
measured using two methods:
• Root Mean Square (RMS) measures power
output over the entire transmit cycle.
• Peak to Peak measures power output at the
highest points.
The benefits of increased power output are the
ability to detect smaller targets at greater
distances, ability to overcome noise, better high
speed performance and enhanced depth capability.

4
How Sonar Wor s
Down Imaging™ Sonar
Your 581i DI Fishfinder uses Down
Imaging™ technology. The Down Imaging™
transducer scans the water with razor-thin,
high-definition beams. The beams are wide
(side to side) but very thin front to back.
The Down Imaging™ beams can be operated
at two frequencies: 455 kHz (75°) or 800 kHz
(45°). Select 455 kHz for the best overall
image quality and depth. Select 800 kHz for
the sharpest image. See Down Imaging™
X-Press™ Menu: Imaging Frequency for more
information.
The transducer also uses conical beams to
provide data in traditional 2D format (see
What’s on the Sonar Display). Select 455 kHz
for a narrowly focused 16° center beam, or
select 200 kHz for a wider 25° beam (see
Sonar Menu Tab: Beam Select).
Depth capability is affected by such factors
as boat speed, wave action, bottom hardness,
water conditions, and transducer installation.
75 Degree Total Coverage
16°
75°
25°
455kHz
200kHz
455kHz
45° 800kHz

5How GPS Wor s
How GPS Works
Your 500 Series™ Fishfinder also supports GPS (Global Positioning System) and
chartplotting. It uses GPS and sonar to determine your position, display it on a
grid, and provide detailed underwater information.
GPS uses a constellation of satellites that
continually send radio signals to the earth. The
GPS receiver on your boat receives signals from
satellites that are visible to it. Based on time
differences between each received signal, the GPS
receiver determines its distance to each satellite.
With distances known, the GPS receiver
mathematically triangulates its own position. With
once per second updates, the GPS receiver then
calculates its velocity and bearing.
GPS was originally intended for military use; however, civilians may also take
advantage of its highly accurate position capabilities, typically within +/- 10
meters, depending on conditions. This means that 95% of the time, the GPS
receiver will read a location within 10 meters of your actual position. Your GPS
Receiver also uses information from WAAS (the Wide Area Augmentation
System), GNOS (the uropean Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service), and
MSAS (the MTSAT Satellite Augmentation System) satellites if they are
available in your area.
The following GPS functionality is currently supported by the 500 Series™
Fishfinder when it is connected to the included GPS receiver:
• View current position
• View current track (breadcrumb trail)
• View precision speed and heading from your GPS receiver
• Save tracks, waypoints, and routes
• Travel a route and navigate from one waypoint to the next.
See Chart View and Introduction to Navigation: Add Maps to Your Fishfinder
for more information.

6
What’s on the Sonar Display
What’s on the Sonar Display
The 500 Series™ Fishfinder can display a variety of useful information about
NOTE: Entries in this view that list (with Temp/Speed or GPS Receiver) are available if either
the information from the GPS receiver will be displayed on the view.
Depth - Water depth; can e set to alarm when
the water ecomes too shallow.
Temperature - Water surface temperature.
Timer - Elapsed time with Temp/Speed
Accessory or GPS Receiver.
Distance - Distance traveled with Temp/Speed
Accessory or GPS Receiver.
Average Speed - Average speed reading with
Temp/Speed Accessory or GPS Receiver.
Second Sonar Return - When the sonar signal
ounces etween the ottom and the surface of the
water and ack again. Use the appearance of the
second return to determine ottom hardness. Hard
ottoms will show a strong second return, while soft
ottoms will show a very weak one or none at all.
Cursor Dialog Box - Indicates cursor depth on
the display and the depth of the ottom directly
elow the cursor. The Latitude and Longitude of
the cursor position, the distance to travel to the
cursor position, and the earing to the cursor
position are shown with a GPS receiver. A
waypoint can e marked at the cursor position
for later retrieval and use with a GPS receiver.
Speed - If a Temp/Speed accessory or GPS
Receiver is attached, the Fishfinder can display
the speed of the oat and can keep a Triplog of
nautical or statute miles traveled.

7What’s on the Sonar Display
the area under your boat, including the following items:
device is connected to the 500 Series™ Fishfinder. f both devices are connected, then only
RTS (Real Time Sonar) Window™
Structure - Where fish may e hiding.
Thermoclines - Layers of water with different
temperatures that appear at different depths
and different times of the year. A thermocline
typically appears as a continuous and of gray
levels moving across the display at the same
depth.
Bait Ball
Cursor - Availa le in Freeze Frame and can
e positioned in the Sonar View to provide
depth of a sonar return and ottom depth elow
the cursor.
Hollow Fish Symbol (See Fish ID+™)
Shaded Fish Symbol (See Fish ID+™)
Fish - The Fishfinder displays fish as arches
and/or fish icons, and can e set to alarm
when a fish of a certain size is detected.
When a target is detected, a Fish ID+™
sym ol appears on the display with the
depth displayed a ove it. The size of the
sym ol indicates the intensity of the sonar
return. The unit will clearly show schools of
Bait Fish as "clouds" of different shapes and
sizes, depending on the num er of fish and
oat speed.

8
What’s on the Sonar Display
nderstanding the Sonar Display
It is important to understand the significance of
the display. The display does not show a literal
3-dimensional representation of what is under the
water. ach vertical band of data received by the
control head and plotted on the display represents
something that was detected by a sonar return at
a particular time. As both the boat and the targets
(fish) may be moving, the returns are only showing
a particular segment of time when objects were
detected, not exactly where those objects are in
relation to other objects shown on the display.
The returned sonar echoes are displayed on the screen. As a new echo is
received, the historical data scrolls left across the view.
Real Time Sonar (RTS™) Window
AReal Time Sonar (RTS™) Window appears on the right side of the display in
the Sonar View only. The RTS Window™ updates at the fastest rate possible for
depth conditions and shows only the returns from the bottom, structure, and
fish that are within the transducer beam. The RTS Window™ plots the depth
and intensity of a sonar return (see Sonar Menu Tab: TS Window™).
The Narrow RTS Window™
indicates the sonar intensity
through the use of grayscale.
The grayscale used matches
the Bottom View grayscale
setting (Inverse, StructureID
® ,
WhiteLine™, Bottom Black).
The depth of the sonar return
is indicated by the vertical
placement of the return on the
display depth scale.
The Wide RTS Window™
indicates the sonar intensity
through the use of a bar
graph. The length of the
plotted return indicates
whether the return is weak
or strong. The depth of the
sonar return is indicated by
the vertical placement of
the return on the display
depth scale. The Wide RTS
Window™ does not use
grayscale.

9What’s on the Sonar Display
SwitchFire™
SwitchFire™ controls how the sonar returns are displayed in the Sonar Views.
SwitchFire™ settings are available in the Sonar Menu Tab.
To see the maximum sonar information available within the transducer beam so
more fish arches and better jig tracking are shown, choose Max Mode.
To see less clutter and more fish size accuracy interpreted from the transducer
beam, choose Clear Mode. See Sonar Menu Tab: SwitchFire™ for more
information.
Freeze Frame and Active Cursor
Freeze Frame & Active Cursor - Press any arrow on the 4-WAY Cursor Control key,
and the screen will freeze and a cursor will be displayed. Use the 4-WAY Cursor
Control key to move the cursor over a sonar return, and the depth of the sonar
return will be displayed at the bottom of the screen in the cursor information box.
The RTS Window™ continues to update in Freeze Frame. Pressing XIT will exit
Freeze Frame, and the display will start to scroll. Freeze Frame is available in the
Sonar and Sonar Zoom Views.
Instant Image Update - You can change a variety of sonar menu settings (such
as Sensitivity or Upper Range), and the adjustments will be shown instantly on
the screen.

10
What’s on the Sonar Display
Bottom Presentation
As the boat moves, the unit charts the changes in depth on the display to create
a profile of the Bottom Contour. The type of bottom can be determined from
the return charted on the display. A Hard Bottom such as compacted sediment
or flat rock appears as a thinner line across the display. A Soft Bottom such as
mud or sand appears as a thicker line across the display. Rocky Bottoms have
a broken, random appearance.
The sonar returns from the bottom, structure, and fish can be represented as
Inverse,Structure ID®, WhiteLine™,orBlack (Bottom Black). See Sonar
X-Press™ Menu: Bottom View to set the bottom view.
Bottom Contour Profile with TS Window™
Hard Bottom
Rocky Bottom
Soft Bottom