Lowrance X-20 User manual

X-20
INSTALLATION ANDOPERATION
INSTRUCTIONS
LITHO INU.S.A. 988-0105-17 •LOWRANCE ELECTRONICS,INC.
12000E.SKELLYDR., TULSA,OK 74128
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TABLEOFCONTENTS
Allfeatures
andspecificationssubject tochange withoutnotice.
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INTRODUCTION
INSTALLATION
POWER CONNECTIONS
NOISE
TRANSDUCER
KEYBOARDBASICS
OPERATION
SENSITIVITY
CHARTSPEED
RANGE
ZOOM
DIGITAL
FISHI.D. FEATURE
AUTO
ALARMS
CHARTALARM
FISH ALARM
SPEAKER
LIGHT
MODE
TRANSDUCERS ANDCONEANGLES
SIGNAL
INTERPRETATION
FISH ARCHES
WATER
TEMPERATURE ANDTI-IERMOCLINES
SURVEYING ALAKE
BAIT FISH
HOWTOOBTAINSERVICE
SPECIFICATIONS
GLOSSARY
Copyright
© 1989, LowranceElectronics, Inc.
Allrightsreserved.
I
—— __J. S
—p.' .J.
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ACTUAL UNRETOUCHED PHOTOGRAPHS
TAKEN ON GRAND LAKE OFTHECHEROKEES,
OKLAHOMA.
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SENSITIVITY -Theabilityofasonar unit'sreceivertodisplay targets.
Increasing thesensitivity allowsweaker
targets
tobe displayed. Also
called "gain".
SCROLLSPEED -SeeCHARTSPEED.
SHOOT-THROUGH-HULL -Atransducer installation whichallowsthe
sonar
signals
topassthrough a
fiberglass hull without
cutting
aholein
thehull.
SUPPRESSION -Amethod used in somesonar unitstohelpeliminate
interference ornoise.
SURFACECLARITYCONTROL
-Reduces oreliminates
undesirable
signals displayed
nearthewater's surface. Alsocalled "SCC".
THERMOCLINE
-Alayerofwatercaused
bythemeeting
ofwarmand
cool layers ofwater. Thethermocline provides thetemperature most
fishprefer.
TRANSDUCER -The element of a sonar systemthat convertsthe
electrical energy from the transmitter into ultrasonic sound waves.
Whenareturnechostrikesthe
transducer, itconvertsthe
sound waves
intoelectrical energy whichisreceived and
displayedbythesonar
unit.
TRANSOM MOUNT - A method of mounting transducers or other
sensorsonthetransomoftheboat.
UPPER/LOWERLIMIT- These
arethe range limitsdisplayed
on the
sonar screen or paper. The upperlimit isshown at thetop of the
display, whilethelowerlimitisatthebottom. Forexample, a20to30
footrangehas20feet asthe
upperlimitand 30feetasthelowerlimit.
VIDEO GRAPH -Asonar unit that uses a CAT or television type
display.
WINDOW-Averticalsegment ofthedepth range. Forexample, an
upper limit of 20 feet and a lowerlimit of 50 feet creates a 30 foot
window.
ZOOM - A feature that enlarges targets on the display and shows
greaterdetail.
INTRODUCTION
Welcome tothe
worldofsportfishing sonar, YourLowrance X-20isa
high quality sonar designed for both professional and novice users.
These units have an automatic feature that finds and displaysthe
bottom
depth,
fish, andstructure. As youbecomefamiliarwithyourX-
20,youcan"finetune" theunittothe
surrounding
conditionstoget the
mostfromyoursonar.
C Youcanprogram
theX-20tosoundanalarmwhen
afishorothersus-
pendedobject
entersan alarm zone. Youcan zoom in and separate
fishfromstructureandother
targets.
Togetstartedwith
yourX-20,
firstreadtheinstallation section. Thisis
whereitallbegins, andimproper installationcancause
problems
down
theroad. Afteryou'vereadtheseinstructions and installed yourX-20,
readtherestofthismanual in detail. Themore
youknow
when
youget
tothewater, themore
yoursonar unitwilldoforyou. Takethismanual
forreference
when
youhead forthewater.
INSTALLATION
Mounting
Install the X-20inany convenient location, provided
thereisclearance
whentiltedforthebestviewing
angle. Holesin thebracket
baseallow
woodscrew or
through
boltmounting. Place apiece
ofplywood onthe
backofthin panels to secure themounting hardware. Makecertain
there is enough room behind the unit to attach the power and
transducercables.
You can routethepower and transducer cablesthrough
theone inch
holeinthebaseofthegimbal bracket. Thenpass
themthrough
ahole
inthemountingsurface. First passthetransducerconnectorand
cable
upthrough
the holeand gimbal bracket. Then pushthepowercable
wiredown
through
thebracket anddash. Afterrouting
thecables,
fill
thehole with silicone rubberadhesive (RTV). Offset the bracket to
coverthemajority ofthehole.
Power Connections
TheX-20operatesfroma 12volt batterysystem. Attachthepower
cable to an accessoryor power buss. If you have problems with
28 1
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electrical interference, then attach the cable directlyto the battery. OPERATING FREQUENCY - Frequency of asonar unit'stransmitter
Electrical interference
shows as random dotsonthedisplaywhenever
theboat'sengine oran accessoryison.
The powercablehas twowires, red isthepositive leadand blackis
negative orground. Attachthein-linefuseholdertotheredwireonthe
power
cablewiththe
crimp
connector. Theotherend ofthefuseholder
attaches to the batteryor accessory
buss. If the cable is not long
enough, spliceordinary
#18gauge
wireontoit. Becertain thatthefuse
holderisas close tothepowersource (battery oraccessory buss)as
possible. Thisprotects
the
power
cableand
your
X-20intheeventofa
short. Use a3-ampfuse.
The X-20has reverse
polarityprotection. Nodamagewilloccurifthe
powerwiresare reversed. (However, the unitwill notworkuntil the
wiresareattached
correctly.)
andreceiver. (SeekHz.)
OUTPUTPOWER -Theamplitudeofelectrical energy transmittedfrom
the sonar unit to the transducer. Measured in wafts, thehigher the
outputpower,the deeper
asonarunitcanread,and moredetail canbe
displayed.
PIXEL-Thesmalldotsorsquares onaliquidcrystaldisplay orCRT.
PIXEL DENSITY -The number of pixelsper squareinch on a liquid
crystal display. Typically, thegreaternumber of verticalpixels, the
bettertheresolution.
PULSELENGTH -Theamountoftimethatthesonartransmits. Thisis
measured in micro-seconds. The shorter thepulselength, thebetter
theresolution. For
example, a30micro-second pulselengthisequalto
aone inch resolution.
RANGE- The section of water shown on the sonar display. For
example, a 60 foot range has zero forthe upperlimit and60forthe
lowerlimit.
REMOTE -Anintelligent "repeater" unitthat receivesdepth information
fromanothersonarunit. A remote doesn't have a transmitter or re-
ceiver. However, itdoeshave it'sown features thatareadiustable and
operate separately
fromthemaster.
RESOLUTION -The abilityof a sonar unitto separate targetsfrom
eachotherorfromthebottom.
SCALE-The markings on a sonar units display. To determine the
depth ofa target, simply comparethe target'slocationtothelocationof
thescalemarkers onthe
display.
SECOND ECHO -Anotherechothat registersat roughly twicethe
depthofa targetecho. Thisiscausedbythe
soundwaves
reflectingoff
thebottom, striking thesurface ofthewater, travellingtothe bottom
again, andreturning tothesurface.
SECOND FUNCTION KEY
-Abuttonthatconverts thefunctions ofthe
primarykeystootherfunctions.
2 27
FUSE
12VOLT
BATFERY
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The Discrimination feature on Lowrance sonar units removes many
falsesignalsfromothersonars, acoustic and electrical sources, and
more.
FISHALARM-Analarm thatactivateswhenafishor
suspendedobject
isdetected.
FISH ARCH-A sonarwithgood resolution anddefinition candisplay
suspended targets as upside down"Vees"or arches. Thesesignals
aretypicallyfish, hence thename "Fish Arch". Seepage 20 formore
information.
FLUSH MOUNT -Atransducer that is installed withthebottomofthe
transducer flushwiththebottomofthehull.
GIMBAL BRACKET- A bracket usedto install a sonar unit perma-
nently. Thesonarunitcan rotate inthe bracket forthebestviewing
angle.
GRAYLINE Thifeatureshows the relative strengthof signals dis-
played
onthescreen. Signals weakerthan theGRAYLINE setting are
displayed inblack, strongertargets
aregray. Italsogivescluestothe
composftion ofthebottom. Inotherwords, youcantellifthebottom is
softorhard. Ahardbottom returns astrong signal causing a
widegray
line. Asoft,muddy
orweedybottom returns aweaker
signalwhichis
emphasizedwithanarrow
grayline.
IN-DASH - Asonar unit installed through a holein the boat'sdash.
Usually, thefaceofthesonar isflushornearly sowiththedash.
kHz- Kilohertz. Ameasurement offrequency. Your Lowrance sonar
operates at192Kilohertz. (192,000cyclespersecond).
LCD-Liquidcrystal display. Thescreen or display ofaLiquidCrystal
Graph sonarinstrument.
LCG -Liquid Crystal Graph.
NOISE -Any undesired signal. Electrical noise iscaused by engine
ignitionssystems, radios, etc. Acoustic noise iscaused
bythe
vibration
of the engineor other mechanical sources. Noise appears on the
display as random dotsorlines.
NOISE
Minimize electrical noiseby routing thepowercable away fromother
possible sources ofelectrical interference. Oneofthelargest noise
generators isthe engine's wiring harnessthat runs fromtheengine to
the instrument panel. This harness usuallycontainsa wire for the
tachometer which radiatesRF (radiofrequency) energy. For best
results, keep the powerand transducer cablesawayfromthe engine
wiring. Also, bilgepump wiring can sometimes radiatenoiseso tryto
keeptheX-20's cables awayfromthosewires.
VHFradio antenna cables typicallyradiate RF energy
at higherpower
levels thantheengine'swiring harness. It isimportant tokeepthe X-
20's powerandtransducercables as faraway as possible
fromVHF
radio cables.
Ifinterference begins atslowboatspeeds, worsening astheboat speed
increases, thena probable
causeisacoustic noise, orcavitation. This
noise isnot
electrical, but rather mechanically induced noisefromthe
transducer. Stop theboat, puttheengineinneutral,
and increase the
Rpm. Ifthenoisedoesnot
increase onthe
display,
thenitiscavitation.
Usually,air bubbles passing over theface of thetransducercreate
acoustic noise. Thefasteraboattravels, themoreairbubblesincrease
andgenerate noiseonthe
display. Toeliminatethisproblem, readthe
transducer installation section
forpropermountingtechniques.
TRANSDUCER
Transducerinstallation instructions are packaged separately with the
transducer. Please readtheinstructions carefully
before
youinstallthe
transducer.
Periodically wash thetransducer's facewithsoapandwatertoremove
anyoil filmthat maycollect. Oil and dirt on theface will reducethe
sensitivity ormayevenpreventoperation.
Paint transducers on saltwaterboatswith a thin coat of anti-foulant
paint
toprevent organisms fromgrowing. Ifunchecked, barnacles and
othermarine growth willcauseadecrease inthetransducer's sensitiv-
ity. Donotuseametal based anti-foulant paintasitwill decreasethe
transducer's sensitivity. Thereare special anti-foulant paints specifi-
callydesigned fortransducers. They'rereadily
available atmostmarine
dealers
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KEYBOARD
BASICS
This section gives a brief explanation of the keyboard. Readthe
Operation
sectionforadetailed description ofeachkey'soperation.
ON OFF
L J Thesekeys
turntheunit's
poweronandoff. Toturniton,
simplypress
theONkey. Toturnitoff,presstheOFFkey.
[JPressinganykeygenerates atoneor"beep."
Thistells you
________ thattheunithasaccepted acommand.
UPand DOWN ARROWS
Thesekeys are usedto adjustvirtually everyfeature and
_________ function ontheunit. Use these
keys
toadjust
thesensitivity,
chart speed, range, zoom andchartalarm.
Operating Current 200ma(lightsoff)
500 ma(lights on)
Operating Voltage 9-15vdc
Number ofpixels 50x 27
(vertical x horizontal)
1350Total
GLOSSARY
.5"perminute (minimum)
32"perminute (maximum)
180 feet
400feet
ANCHORWATCH - A sellingof the sonar unit's alarm. Thealarm
activates whentheboatdrifts intoshallowerordeeperwaterthanthe
alarmsetpoints.
BACK-LIGHTED
-Adisplay
orkeyboard illuminated frombehind by a
light. Back-lighteddisplays areessential whennightfishingornavigat-
ing.
CAVITATION
-Airbubbles created by the highspeedmovement ofa
boatortransducer through water.
CHARTSPEED -(1)Thespeed ofthechartpaperon apapergraph
recorder. (2) The speedof an image acrossthescreen of a liquid
crystal graph. (Also
called "scrollspeed").
CONE ANGLE-Angleofthetransducer'sconeofsound. Lowrance
hastransducers available withconeangles from8to45
degreestosuit
the
varying
needs offishermen.
CRT
-Abbreviation forCathode flayTube. SeeVideo Graph.
DEFINITION -Theabilityofa sonar unit'sdisplayto show detail. A
displaywith high definition can show more detailthan one with low
definition.
DISCRIMINATION - A feature available on Lowrance L.C.G.'s and
papergraphs
thatseparates falseechoes fromtrue
targetinformation.
4 25
Display Scroll Speed
Maximum Chart Range
Maximum Digital flange
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BAIT FISH
Theimportance ofbaitfishtosuccessful fishing can'tbeover-empha-
sized. Theyarethe
principal
foodofallgame fishinmost
waters.
Baitfish are theplankton feeding forage fish, such as minnows and
shad. Baitfishcanalsobetheyoungofgame fish,suchas crappies,
bluegill, andbass.
Most baitfishconcentrate withinfivefeet ofthe
surfacewheresunlight
promotes the growthoftheplankton onwhich
theyfeed. One method
offishingistousetheunittofindthebaitfish first. A
school ofbaitfish
will look like a cloud"ontheunits display. Usually, gamefishwillbe
nearby, often directlybeneaththeschool ofbaitfish.
HOWTO OBTAINSERVICE
Ifyou havea
problem
withyour sonar
unit,pleasegiveus achanceto
helpbefore sending
itin forrepair. Callorwrite the Factory Customer
Service
Department at 1-800-331-3889,extension 401, toIlfree. Okla-
homa residents call918-437-6881, extension 401, collect.
Please detailtheproblem you are experiencing. Theservicedepart-
ment may beabletosaveyouthe
inconvenience ofreturning your
unit.
Iftheunitmustbereturned,packitcarefully
so itwon'tbe
damaged. It
isadvisabletoinsuretheunitin caseit's lostordamaged during
transit.
Mail To:Lowrance Customer Service
12000 E.Skelly
Drive
Tulsa, OK74128
r 1 SENS.
_______ Thiskey and thearrow keys adjust
thegraph'ssensitivity.
(The digital'ssensitivity is adjustedby the unitautomati-
cally.) Thereceiverhas32
steps
ofadjustment.
r - CHARTSPEED
t Varythespeed of the chart with this key andthearrow
keys. There
are5stepsofchart speed adjustment.
_____ RANGE
_______ The depth rangeischanged
with this key andthe arrow
keys. Therangesvaryfrom0-5 feetto0-180feet.
Transmitter
frequency
Output Power(typical)
Receiver Sensitivity
24
192kHz
275wattspeaktopeak
34.4 wattsRMS
82dbtemperature stabilized
CHARTALARM
Usingthiskeyactivatesthechartalarm. Abarappears on
theleft side ofthedisplaywhenthechart alarm is ad-
justed. Any
target
thatappearsonthescreen between the
topand bottom
ofthechartalarm bar
triggers thealarm.
5
SPECIFICATIONS
Dimensions
Weight 5718"Hx7314"Wx3
7/16"D
1 3/4pounds
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1 MODE
_______ The X-20hasfive different screens"ormodes ofopera-
tion. Usethiskeytoswitch
betweenmodes.
fl 1 FISHI.D.
• j Thiskeyturns theFish l.D.featureoffandon.
r 1 FISHALARM
I • 1101 Pressboth theFish ID. and the AUTOkey at
L. IL. thesametimetoactivate theFishAlarm. Thisis
anaudible fishalarm.
AUTO
Turning
theunitonenables theautomatic mode. Toswitch
tothemanual mode, press theAUTO
key. Youcanreturn
theunittoautomatic atany timebypressing theAUTO
key
again.
stay. Schooling fish suspended overdeepwater lie atthelevel that
provides
thistemperature. Weassume
theyarethemostcomfortable
here.
The temperature ofwaterin thelake is seldom constant fromtopto
bottom. Layers of different temperatures form, andthejunction of a
warmand cool layerofwateris called athermocline. Thedepth and
thickness ofthethermocline can
varywiththeseasonortimeofday. In
deeplakestheremay
betwoormoreatdifferent
depths. Thermoclines
are important to fishermen because they are areas where fish are
active. Many timesbaitfish willbeabove thethermocline whilelarger
game
fishwillsuspend in or
justbelowit.
TheX-20candetect this invisible layer inthewater, butthesensitivity
willprobably havetobeturneduptoseeit.
SURVEYING A LAKE
Themost successful anglers onanybody ofwaterarethosewhofish it
dayafter
dayand yearafter year. Eventually,theylearn thehotspots
that producefish consistently. They discoverthrough experience
where, and atwhatdepth, theycan expect tofindthefishtheywantat
any season. And they realize that these productive areas change
throughout
theyeardepending onwaterlevel, temperature, food, and
otherfactors.
Withthe
X-20,
anyone caneliminate guesswork andconcentrateonthe
areaswherefisharelikely tobe. Even ifit'sthefirsttimeonthe lake!
Themost efficient
way
tobecome acquainted withabody ofwateristo
surveyitwithyourunit. Startwith a mapofthe lake,ifpossible, and
indicatethepromising spots inrelation tolandmarksonshore.
Asyougoabout yoursurvey,your
unitwilltellyouthe
depthand type
of
bottom. Itwillalso reveal suspended fish.
Keepafew marker buoys intheboat, ready
totoss overboard. When
theunitindicates aschool offish,throwthebuoyout. Withtheschool
thusmarked, youcanmake your
turnand comebacktofishinexactly
theright spot. This is essential whenyou'refar fromshore ona big
lake. Unless youmarktheschool offish whenyou're overit, you may
notbeabletofinditagain.
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WATERTEMPERATURE ANDTHERMOCLINES OPERATION
Watertemperature has an important-if not controlling-influence upon
theactivitiesof all fish. Fish are cold blooded and their bodies are
always thetemperature ofthe surrounding water. During thewinter,
colder waterslows downtheir metabolism. At thistime, they need
about afourthas muchfoodastheyconsume inthesummer.
Most fish don't spawn unless the watertemperature
is within rather
narrowlimits. Asurface temperature metersuchas Lowrance's LDT-
3000 helps identify
thedesired surface waterspawning temperatures
forvarious
species. Troutcan'tsurvive in streams
that get toowarm.
Bass andotherfisheventually dieoutwhenstocked in
takesthatremain
toocoldduring thesummer. Whilesome fish haveawider temperature
tolerancethanothers, eachhasacertain rangewithinwhichittriesto
22
SENSITIVITY
Whenfirstturnedon, theX-20 isin the AUTOSEARCH mode. The
micro-computer automatically adjusts thesensitivity and rangeto find
and
lockontothebottom. The
digital depth flashes
"0"untilitfindsand
locksonto the bottom. You can leavethesensitivity in the automatic
mode ormanually adjust ittosuit conditions.
Youmay needtoincrease the
sensitivitytoshowfishsymbols when
the
unitisinautomatic. Todo
this,firstpresstheSENS. key. The letters
"SENS"willflashontheright sideofthe
display. Averticalbar
appears
ontheleftsideofthescreen. ( See below.) Thisindicates thesensi-
tivitylevel. Toincrease thesensitivity,pressand holdtheuparrow key
until thesensitivity is at thedesired level. The down arrow key de-
creases sensitivity in thesamemanner. Notice how thesensitivity bar
moves as youchange settings. Itwillmoveupwhenthesensitivity is
increased. You'll also seethechange on the display. After you've
finished setting thesensitivity level,theletters 'SENS" and
thesensitiv-
itybarwill disappear
aftereightseconds.
WhentheFishl.D.featureisoff, thesensitivity canbeincreased more,
eveniftheunit'sautomatic feature
ison. Thiswillhelpdisplay
fishand
othersmalldetail. Whenautomatic isturnedoff, thesensitivity level can
be increased toitsmaximum level.
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Withhighsensitivity settings,asecond bottomecho(second echo) may
appear. Thisisnormal. It'scaused bythereturning signal reflecting off
thesurface ofthewater. Thenitmakes asecond trip tothebottomand
backagain.
Remember, whentheunit'sautomatic feature ison,thereceiver's sen-
sitivityautomatically adjusts tothesurrounding
conditions. Themicro-
computerplaces itatalevelslightly
abovetheminimum required topick
up the bottomsignal. However, it's possible to change thesensitivity
levelwhiletheunitisin
automatic. Thismay bedesirableifthesensitiv-
itylevelisnothighenough toshow fishorothersmall detail. Theunit
willincrease thesensitivitytopickup
thebottom
signal, thenaddin the
level youprogrammed.
Toadjust thesensitivity whiletheunit is in automatic, simplypressthe
SENS. key. Thenpress eithertheup arrow keyto increase it,orthe
down arrow key to decrease it. As you pressthe arrow key, the
sensitivity bar moves up or down, according to the sensitivity level
chosen.
Youcanadjust the
sensitivity in
thesamemannerwhentheunitisinthe
manual mode.
Verysmall fishprobably
willnot arch atall. Medium sizedfish willshow
a partialarch, or a shape similar to an arch ifthey're indeepwater
Large
fishwillarch,butturnthesensitivityup in
deeper
watertoseethe
arch. Becauseof waterconditions, such as heavy surface clutter,
thermoclines, etc., the sensitivity sometimes cannot be increased
enough
toget fisharches.
One of the bestwaysto get fish archesisto expand or "zoom" a
segment
ofthewater. For
example, from45to60feet. Thesmallerthe
segment,
thebetterthescreen resolution willbe. Forthebest results,
turnthe
sensitivityupas highaspossible without
getting
toomuch noise
onthe screen. In medium todeepwater, thismethod should workto
display
fisharches.
8 21
<— BOAT'SDIRECTION OFTRAVEL
.
A
•
.• :z
.U• U •
U U U
B C
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r
ci
3.;
ZOOM
11
flSH D
i
El
Fish arches are created whentheconeofsoundpasses over afish.
Thedistance toafishwhentheconefirst strikes itis shown as "A"on
the next page. When thecenter of the cone strikes the fish, the
distanceisshorter, as shown in "B". As thecone leaves thefish, the
distance
increases again as shownin"C".
Whenthe Fish l.D.featureisoff,thedepth ofthewaterwillaffectthe
size and shapeofthe fish arch duetotheconeanglediameter. For
example, if thecone passes over a fish in shallowwater, thesignal
displayed
ontheunitmay notarch atall. Thisisduetothenarrowcone
diameterandtheresolution limitations ofthedisplay.
Toview
thechart
speed without
changing it, presstheCHARTSPEED
key. Thechartspeed barwillappearforeight seconds.
At timesit isdesirable
to stopor "freeze"thedisplayto examine an
echobefore itscrolls offthescreen. Pressing theSENS. and CHART
SPEEDkeysatthesame
timewill freezethe
display. Press theSENS.
andCHARTSPEED keysagaintostartthe display moving atthe last
chart speedsetting. Ifthedigital sonar is on,thebottom
depthwillstill
bedisplayed. Thedigital doesnotstop
whenthechart isin the
"freeze"
mode.
20 9
CHARTSPEED
At
poweron,thechartspeed scrollsatapresetspeed. Tochange the
speed,press
theCHARTSPEED key. Theword"CHART"
willflashon
therightside ofthedisplay. Avertical barwill also appearontheleft
sideofthescreen. Thisindicatesthecurrentchartspeed. Next, press
theup arrow key ifyouwishto increase thechart speed. Press the
down arrow keytodecreaseit. When thechart reachesthedesired
speed, releasethe key. Thereare five steps
ofchart
speed. When the
chartspeed reachesitsmaximum orminimum level,theunit
willsound
atone.
57L_J
Big rocksorstumps
bottom level signal.
height. Asyou pass
lineextending above
onasmooth bottom send backsignals above the
The heightofthe signal depends on
thetarget's
overapost, itshould beclearly visibleas ashort
thebottom signal.
A steepslope returns a wide signal, thesteeper
thewider. Signals
returned fromahighunderwater cliffare usually
thewidestofall.
Brush usuallyliesonthebottom andshows upas clumps
rising
above
the bottom
signal. Brush signals looksimilarto large rocks;however
theirsignal is not asstrong asrock.
FISH ARCHES
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RANGE Both 8 degree and 20degree transducers giveaccuratebottom read-
The rangeautomatically changes to keepthebottom signal on the
displaywhentheunitis in automatic. The range cannot be manually
changedwhentheunit is in the automatic mode. The rangecan be
changed
in manual mode. Therearesixranges available:
0-5,15,30,
60, 120,and180 feet. Tochange therange,firstmakecertaintheword
AUTOisoff. ThenpresstheRANGE
key. ThewordRANGEwillflash
ontheright side ofthescreen. Next,press the
uparrow key
toswitchto
ashallower
range
orpressthedownarrowkeyfora
deeper
range. The
range
annunciator willstopflashing eight seconds afterthelastkeywas
pressed.
ZOOM -Automatic
operation
Press theZOOM keytodoublethesizeofthe
targets
onthe
display. It
works byenlarging thebottom halfoftheselected range. Forexample,
ifthe range is0 -60feet andthezoomkeyispressed, thenew range
willbe30-60feet. Iftheunitisinautomatic,thebottomwillbetracked
inthis30footwindow. Therearetwoexceptions tothisrule: 1)If
you're
onthe0-15'range andpress thezoomkey,thenewrangewillbe 10-
15'. 2)Thereis nozoomonthe0-5'range.
ings, even though
thebottom signal is much wideronthe 20 degree
model. Thisisbecause youareseeing moreofthebottom. Remem-
ber,theshallow
edge
ofthe
signal shows youthetruedepth. Therest
ofthesignal tellsyouwhether
youareoverrocks,mud, etc.
50'
100'
150'
200'
8°at3db
SIGNALINTERPRETATION
Yourunit
givesanaccurate pictureofthebottom that
your
boatispass-
ing. A bottomoffirmsand, gravel, shell, orhardclay returns a wide
bottom
signal. Iftheautomatic feature isoffandthebottom signal nar-
rows, then it means that youhave moved over a mudbottom. Mud
absorbs thesound waveand returns a weak signal. Turn up the
sensitivity toseeabetterbottom signal.
10 19
20°at
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iii
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TRANSDUCERS ANDCONE ANGLES
The sound wavesfromthe transducer spread outintothewater in a
cone shaped beam. Thislooks much likethe beam fromaflashlight.
Theangle between theoutside edges oftheconeistheconeangle.
Lowrance offers achoice oftransducers witheither an 8or20 degree
cone angle. Typically, widecone angle transducers (20 degrees) are
idealforoperating inshallow to medium waterdepths. The20degree
cone angle allows
youtoseemoreoftheunderwater world. In15feet
ofwaterthe20degree conecovers anarea
about sixfeetacross. The
8degreetransducer covers onlyabout atwofootcircle.
The 20 degreetransduceris almostalways thebest to use in fresh
water,the8 degreemostly in salt water. Ina
deep
waterenvironment,
(300feet-fresh
water,100 feet -saltwater)
thenarrowconeangle is
more desirable. Since thesound energy is concentrated in asmaller
area, ftcanpenetrate
tomuch deeper
depths.
18
ZOOM -ManualMode
Zoom operates differently whenthe unit is in the manual mode. The
rangedoesn't changewhenthe zoom key is pressed. Instead, press
thedownarrow key
toshiftthe
range
downin one
footincrements.The
uparrow keyshiftstherangeupin one footincrements. For
example, if
theunitisonthe0-60tootrange, andthemanual mode ison, pressing
thezoomkey, thenthe
downarrow keyoncewillmove the0-60'range
to1'-61'. Thebestwaytousethisfeature istochange
therange toa
smallerone, then press thezoomkey, shift therangeuntil the areais
displayed that you
wantzoomed. For
example, ifthebottom
depth
is50
feet, and you
wishtoenlarge thearea
immediately above
it, firstchange
the rangeto0-15feet. Nowpress thezoomkey. Finally, pressthe
downarrow keyuntilthebottom
appears. Nowyou haveafifteentoot
zoomwindow around thebottom
signal.
-. in
iLl
AUTO
F1D
En
I rn
DLI
DIGITAL
Built insidetheX-20isacomplete digital sonar. Itworksautomatically
todiscriminate between thevalid
bottomechoes andfalseechoes from
fish, thermoclines, orothersignals. Thedigital displaywill showonly
thebottom
depth.
At power on, the digital will flash "0" until it has "lockedon"to the
bottom signal. Onceithasacquiredthebottom depth,
itwilldisplayftin
thelowerleftsideofthedisplay.
11
MODE5-Allchart, HighSpeed
Scroll. In thismode thechart
scrollsathighspeed. Thechart
speedcan beadjusted withthe
CHART SPEED keyifdesired.
a) Chartusesfullscreen.
b) No digital depth indicator.
c) NoFASTFRAK.
d) No automatic operation al-
lowed.
e) No Fishl.D.featureorFish
Alarm
f) Chart alarmisallowed.
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FISHI.D. MODE 3
-Big digital.
TheFish1.0.featureisautomatically onwhentheunitisfirstturnedon.
Thecomputer insidethe
unitanalyzes allechoes, filtering outunwanted
signals. Ithelps
eliminatesurface clutter, thermoclines, and otherun-
desirablesignals. The remaining suspended targetsare usuallyfish.
Targetsthat are identified by the unitas fish are displayed
as small,
medium, or large fish symbols on the display. These symbols are
shownaccording totherelativesizeofthefish asseen
by
theunit. The
Fishl.D.feature can
onlybeusedin automatic. Ifyouwishtoturnitoff,
orbackonagain,presstheFISH l.D.key.Ifyoupress
theFISH l.D.key
whentheunitisin manual, itwillput itinautomatic andenabletheFish
l.D.feature.
To showfish symbols, youmustbetraveling at aslowtrollingspeed.
Thereshouldbesomemovement oftheboat fortheFishl.D.featureto
workproperly.
If
youhave difficultyshowingfishsymbols,tryincreasing the sensitivity.
NOTE: TheFish l.D.fea-
ture cannot distinguish
between fish and other
suspendedobjectssuch
asturtles, treebranches,
trotlines, submerged
floats,
orotherinanimate
objects.Themicro-com-
puter in this unit is so-
phisticated, butitcanbe
fooled. Themost difficult
challenge is individual
treebranchesextending
out from groups of
branches. Thesecanbe
mis-identified as fish by
the Fish 1.0. feature.
Also, large amounts of
noise can fool the Fish
l.D.feature. Thisisusu-
ally caused by a poor
transducer installation.
Although the Fish l.D.
feature isn't perfect, it
canbea valuableaid to
thefisherman.
MODE 4- -Depth onlydisplayed in
large digits. No chart is displayed.
U
• - AUTO1
•RANGE
- 31$
-. 4•
I uu
— urn —
Cfla.
12 17
a) The digital depth numbers use
the lower quarterof the display.
Thedepthis displayed in tenthsof
a foot to 99.9 feet, then it is dis-
played inwhole numbers.
b) NoFASTRAK
••aNanu__a..n. I I
AUTO
C
•C.
15
• ZOOM
FISH ID
iii
gui C I
26
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MODE
TheX-20hasfivedifferentscreenmodes. Tochange modes, press
the
MODE key. Keeppressing theMODE key until the desiredscreen
appears. Asummary ofthe
differentscreen modesfollows.
modeused
whentheunitisfirstturnedon.
p
'in
—H-I
AUTO
When the unit is first turnedon, the automatic featureis enabled. It
works automaticallytofindand
display
thebottom
depth. Thesensitiv-
ityand
rangeare also adjusted tokeepthebottom
signalonthescreen
atalltimes. Toturntheautomatic featureoff, simplypress
theAUTO
keyonce. Theword"AUTO" willdisappear
fromthe
display, signifying
the automatic sensitivity and chart rangefeaturesare off. This also
turnstheFishl.D.featureoffatthesametime. Thedigital remains on.
To return the unittotheautomatic mode, presstheAUTOkey again.
Thiswillresetthe
sensitivity, soyou may
wishtoincreaseittoseefish
orotherdetail. Thiswillnot
turntheFishl.D.featureon. Youwillhave
topress
theFishl.D.keytoturniton.
ALARMS
The unithastwodifferent alarms, achartalarm and Fish Alarm. The
chart alarmconsists
ofabarthatdisplays
ontheleft sideofthescreen.
The alarm "chirps" whenever the unit detects an echo inside the
boundaries ofthebar.
Fish Alarm sounds an audiblealarm when fish or other suspended
objects
aredetected. Itworksin
conjunction
withtheFish ID. feature.
To separatethealarms, thefishalarm's tonesoundsdifferentthanthe
chartalarm. Both alarms maybeusedatthesametime.
13
•13
AUTO
I
RANc
213
4.
R1D
tin
-'U
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AUTO
J
.rjr RA?4&E
"p Cu
MODE1 -Thisisthedefault
Ithasthe
following features:
a) Small digital depth dis-
play in lowerleft corner. It
does not show tenths of a
foot. Normalchart
display.
b) No FASTRAK.
MODE 2 - This is the
same as mode 1 except
it has FASTRAK. This
displaysontherightside
of the screen. It con-
vertsall echoes to hori-
zontal bars when they
first appear on the
screen. This gives a
rapid update of condi-
tions directly under the
boat. Echoes are also
scrolled normally across
the display. The Fish
l.D. feature is not avail-
ablewiththismode.
I I
t V
AUTO
IL!
ZOOM
I
FisI-l to
—---i2:
—
6"
16
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CHARTALARM
n
Li
g RANGE
1 20
/
When the"ChartAlarm"
signalison,thealarm isactive. Ifyouwishto
viewtheChartAlarm bar,simplypressthe CHART ALARM
key. The
barwill bedisplayed foreight seconds. Anytarget
that appears onthe
leftside ofthe screen in theareacoveredby the chart alarm bar will
triggerthealarm.
Iftherangeischanged, theChartAlarm mayneed tobechangedalso
since itdoes nottrackrangesettings.
14 15
TosettheChart
Alarm, presstheCHARTALARM key onthekeyboard.
Thewords
"ChartAlarm"flashesinthelower
rightcornerofthescreen.
Averticalbaralso displays
ontheleftside ofthescreen. Itwill stayon
thescreen foreight
secondsorfor
eight
secondsafter
youhavefinished
adjusting it. ThisistheChartAlarm's"window" Any
echothat
appears
between thetopand bottomofthis barwillsoundthe alarm. Adjust
deependofthisbartomakeasmallerorlargeralarm "window." The
shallow endisautomatically adjusted bytheunitsoitwon'tbetriggered
bysurface clutterorotherfalsesignals. Next,press
thedownarrowto
move thebottomof the bardeeper, orpress theuparrowto move it
shallower. Eight secondsafterthelastbuttonispressed,thealarmbar
willdisappear.
ToturntheChartAlarm
off,press
theCHARTALARM key, then move
thebottom ofthebarallthe
waytoits shallowestposition using
theup
arrow key.
FISH ALARM
Use theFISHALARM foradistinctiveaudiblealarmwhenfishorother
susupended objectsare detectedbytheFISH 1.0. feature. Press the
FISH l.D. and the AUTOkeys atthesametime. The words"FISH
ALARM"displays atthebottomright side ofthe screen. Theaudible
alarm sounds each timethe Fish1.0. featuredetects a fish orother
suspendedobject. There isadifferent toneforeach fishsymbol size.
Toturnthe Fish Alarmoff, press theFISH 1.0.and AUTO keys atthe
same time.
SPEAKER
The speaker canbeturnedon and offby pressing the up and down
arrow keysatthesame time. The speakeris represented by a note
symbol abovethearrowkeys. Wheneveritis enabled,anote symbol
appearsontheright centersideofthe display. Thespeaker
isenabled
whentheunitisturnedon. NOTE: Thisappliestothealarmsonly. The
unitwill still sound a tone whena key ispressed and the speakeris
turned
off.
LIGHT
Alight allows
operation oftheunitat night. Turning theunitoncauses
thelights toflashfor sixseconds. PresstheRANGE and ZOOM keys
atthesame timeandthelightswill
stayon. Toturnthelightsoff,press
theRANGE andZOOM keys again. Thelights willalsogooutwhenthe
unitisturnedoff.
a Jr .---
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