Lowrance X-15A User manual

To turnthis feature on,simply
pressthe2nd key, then press the
"4" key. Thepaper speed will im-
mediately slow down, signifying
thatthefunction isenabled.
ToturntheAlternateTransmit
and Print
feature off,simply press
the2nd key and then press the
"7" key. Thepaper speed will im-
mediately speed up, signifying that
thefunction has been turned oft.
When enteringany numberor
combination ofkeyson thekey-
boardand youmakeamistake,
pressthe2nd KEY then 0. This
willclearthe keyboard. Forexam-
ple, ifyouwanted toset a Lower
Limitof50feetandpressed 40
feet instead, before
pressingthe
LowerLimitKeypress 2nd-0
andthe keyboard will becleared.
You couldthen press 5-0-Lower
Limitforthe desired range.
TocausetheX-15Atoreprint
the level ofDisbrimination, SCC,
or PulseWidthatthebottom of
thepage, simplypress
2nd and
thenthe corresponding key(DISC,
5CC/MARK,
orPULSE) and itwill
be reprinted immediately.
PaperSaving Feature
APPROXIMATE PAPER SPEED
WithoutAlternateTransmitand Print
Minimum I Maximum
LOWER
LIMIT PaperSpeed PaperSpeed
Inches Hours Inches Hours
RANGE (feet)
10-120 Per Mm PerRoll Per Mm Per Roll
1.0 10 2.35 4.25
130-510 0.5 20 1.4 7.14
520-830 0.15 66 0.75 13.3
Below840 0.15 66 0.75 13.3
—
APPROXIMATE PAPER SPEED
WithAlternateTransmitand Print
Minimum Maximum
LOWER
LIMIT Paper
Speed PaperSpeed
Inches Hours
Inches Hours
RANGE (feet)
10-120 Per Mm PerRoll Per Mm Per Roll 0.5 20 1.4 7.14
130-510 0.20 50 0.8 12.5
520-830 0.15 66 0.75 13.3
Below 840 0.15 66 0.75 13.3
LITHO USA 988-0096-01
INSTALLATION AND OPERATION MANUAL
X-15A
COMPUTER SONAR
•LOWRANCE ELECTRONICS,INC.
12000F,SKELLY DR, TULSA, OK 74128
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INDEX
Lower Limit . level whereas thehighest
value
(4)isthestrongest
level and
should be used onlywhensevere
noise ispresent.
TousetheDiscrimination func-
tion, simply press the level of
noise
rejection desired, from1 to
4, then press the DISC (Discrimi-
nation) Key.There shouldbean
immediatechange in theamount
of noisepresent onthe paper.The
Discrimination settingisprinted
at
thebottom ofthe papereach time
thelevel isentered and atinter-
valsthereafter.
TheDiscrimination -functioncan
bedisabled atanytime by press-
ing0- DISC.
Example: Entera Discrimination
level of2.
Press:2- DISC
Figure 40
Transmitand PrintAlternate
When using
theX-15Ain deep
17 water,orifyou wishto simply con-
servepaper,it maybedesirable to
17 slowthe paper speedevenmore
thantheautomatic system allows.
However,whendoing so,you may
get"overprint' orverydark,
heavyprinting over an areathatis
difficult to read. Much detailcan
also belostdue tothis.
Afeature that isavailable on
theX-15A is the Transmit and
Print Alternatefunction which,
when activated,causes
thestylus
to print every otherrevolution in-
stead ofevery revolution. This
accomplishes
fourthings:
1. Sincethestylus only prints
every otherrevolution, the
recorded information doesn't
havethe"over
printt' problem,
therefore good records are
attainable at slower paper
speeds.Also, thescalenum-
bers are spread outmore,mak-
ingthem more legible.
2. Reduces the possibility of
"wrap-around". Thisis theun-
desirable occurrence ofthe
second orthird bottomecho
printed on the paper
atthetop
ormiddle ofthepage. Many
timesthiscaninterfere withfish
orother targets that you wish
tosee.
3. Reducesthereverberation ef-
fect. Thishappens mainly on
lowerfrequency units, but it
can happenon higher
fre-
quency models. Reverberation
isheavy,scattered noisemarks
caused bythetransmitted sig-
nalbecomingtrapped between
thesurface and the bottom,
usuallyscattered inheavy
plankton layers orbaitfish
schools. Thiscausesagreat
many lines
tobeprinted on the
page. Byenabling theTransmit
andPrint function, thetransmit-
teristriggered onlyhalf as
manytimesas normal, putting
less energyinto thewater
(same amount ofpower,just
notasoften) which reduces the
amount ofnoiseseen.
4. Slows thepaperspeed. A sig-
nificantamountofpapercan
besaved by using theAlter-
nateTransmitand Print
feature.
21
Specifications 1
Service Information 1
Introduction 2
HowItWorks 2
Installation 3
Transducer Selection 4
Basic Operation 4
Suppressor 5
PaperSpeed 6
GRAYLINE® 7
Range 7
8
9
9
9
10
10
10
11
..14
.15
.16
.16
Result:
2-——
--•- -- 2
2'I- -••--—______
Upper Limit
Lines
Marker
Scale
End Of Paper
Zero Adjust
HowTo Read
Graphs
Paper Loading
Stylus Replacement
Stylus BeltReplacement
Do's and Dont's
Troubleshooting
Advanced Operation
Surface
ClarityControl (SCC)
Feet, Fathoms, Meters 18
Transmitter PulseWidth 18
Discrimination 20
Transmitand PrintAlternate 21
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resolution.
Forexample, ifa50 ps initial
transmitter pulselength is
selected, andtheSuppressor
control isrotated to maximum,the
transmitter pulse lengthwould be
850 ps. ReturningtheSuppressor
control to minimum will restorethe
unittoa50 ps transmitter pulse
length.
The X-15A willdisplay the initial
transmitter pulselength atthebot-
tom ofthe paper when
youover-
ride the micro-computer.To
distinguish the initial transmitter
pulse
fromtheotherinformation
printedon thepaper,thegraph
will print P-100 (ifthe pulse is set
to100 micro-seconds.)A50 us
initialpulse length would bedis-
played as P-SO.
Tosetthe initial transmitter
pulselength,simplypress on the
keyboard theinitial pulse length
desired and then press the
PULSE key. Forexample, to set
theinitialtransmit
pulse length to
150 micro-seconds, press 1 -5 -0
- PULSE. Thiswill overridethe
micro-computer's selection and
setthe initial transmitter pulse
length to150 micro-seconds.
P-iSO will be printed atthebottom
ofthe paper tosignify thatthe en-
tryhasbeen confirmed. (Note:
When an initial transmit
pulse
length is set, this length will be
fixedforall depth settings until
changed.)
To return control backtothe
micro-computer, press 0- PULSE
andthe micro-computer will select
the initial pulse length.
Example: Setthe initial transmit
pulselength to 100
micro-seconds.
Press: 1 -0-0 -PULSE
Result:
---—-bO-—-F-ILU-•-—--
Figure 39
Discrimination
Noise pulses are the largest
complaint mostoften received
aboutsonar units. Lowrance has
had the patented Suppression
system
for many years whichis
quiteeffective ateliminating noise
fromthe display. (SeeTransmit
PulseWidth.) Theonlydrawback
totheSuppression system isthat
it increases thetransmitter's pulse
length whichdecreases resolution
and causes
targets
that are close
together to merge intoone "blob"
instead oftwodistinct images.
Discrimination is a program
installed in theX-15A's
micro-processor that enables itto
process theoutput
fromthe re-
ceiver, determine whichsignals
are noiseand eliminate them,
then print onlythe legitimate
echoes.
Using this concept, thetransmit-
ted pulse doesnothave tobe
increased, therefore records with
high resolution and high noise im-
munity canbe achieved.
(The Suppressor Control may
beused withthe Discrimination to
cancel OUTheavyinterference or
noise whenever high resolution is
notrequired.)
Thereare four levels ofDis-
crimination thatcanbeused. The
lowest value(1) istheweakest
SPECIFICATIONS — X-15A
DepthRanges:
Feet, fathoms, meters.
Operating Frequency:
192 kHz(192,000cyclesper
second); accuracy iswithin0.6
percent.
Pulse Length:
(duration of pulse): 200-l000ps
(30-2000gsprogramable)
Operating Voltage:
Minimum: 10voltsDC
Maximum: 15 voltsDC
Operating Current:
0.7to1.8amps depending on
printing density
and output
power.
Output Power:
1600wattstypical peak-to-peak.
(200watts RMS)
Weight:
8.5 lb. (3.9Kg)
Dimension:
With Gimbal Mount:
Width -12¼"
Height -9"
Depth
- 6%"
Instrument Only:
Width -101/4"
Height-8¼"
Depth
- 6%"
NOTICE
Periodically wash the Trans-
ducer Facewith soapand water
to remove
anyoilfilm thatmay
collect Oiland dirtonthe face
willreduce
sensitivity ormayeven
preventsounding.
GOTAPROBLEM?LET US
HELP!
Ifyouhaveaproblem with your
sonar unit, please give us a
chance to helpbefore sending itin
forrepair.
Assistance canoften beex-
tendedbytelephone orletter.
Write orcalloneofourAuthorized
Service Centersorthe Lowrance
Electronics, Inc., Customer Ser-
vice Department in Tulsa, OK.
(Toil-free1-800-331-3889).
Please detailthe problem you
are experiencing. OurServiceDe-
partment may be abletosaveyou
theinconvenienceof returning
yourunit.
Ifit is determined thatyour unit
mustbe returned, full shippingin-
structions will be provided.
SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMAND
PARTS LIST
Should youdesire aSchematic
Diagram and Partslistforyour
Lowrance TRUELINE RECORD-
ER, send $1.00 to PARTS LIST,
Lowrance Electronics, Inc., 12000
EastSkelly
Drive, Tulsa,Okla-
homa 74128. Besure and give us
the Model Number and Serial
Number ofyourSONAR
INSTRUMENT
— Ia—-— —•---••-—- —.
2L1---——.-— ———- 29-—-
20
NOTE: ThissonarusesLPG-605Chart Paper.
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1.INTRODUCTION
TheLowrance X-15Aisahighly
sophisticated recording depth
sounder.Thanks toamicro-com-
puter, theX-15Acando more than
anyothersonar unit in its price
rangeplus many thatcostmuch
more. Thanks to awaterproof key-
board, full control ofthesystem is
atyourfingertips to meet the
changing demands ofvarying bot-
tomconditions, waterdepth, and
boatspeed. You canselectthe
unit'ssensitivity,suppression level,
upperandlower
depth range, pa-
perspeed, GRAYLINE, and many
morefeatures. Thepatented
Lowrance variable suppression
system
combined withthenew
Discrimination feature notonly fil-
tersoutfalsesignals withoutdis-
tortingthereal ones, butis
synchronized withthe GRAYLINE
function toprovide clearsignals
underallconditions.
2.HOWITWORKS
When the unitisturnedon, an
electronically regulated motor
drivesalightweight beltlocated at
the right edge ofthe recording pa-
per.Thestylusis attached tothis
belt. When the stylusisatthetop
ofthe paperasmall mark is
made. Thisis called thezero
mark, and represents thesurface
ofthewater. Thestyluscontinues
Figure 1
tomovedownthe edge ofthe
paper
whilethesound pulse is
traveling through thewater, and
whenanechoisdetected, thesty-
lus makes another markon the
paper.Thedepth oftheobject
which reflected the echo canbe
readin feet bycomparing its loca-
tiononthepapertothe depth
scale printed on thepaper.
Thepaper speedis controlled
by avariable speed motor. During
onerevolution ofthe stylus belt, a
verynarrow markwillbe made by
theflexible stylus, butthepaper
will move asmall amount before
the nextrevolution. Each markwill
blendintothe onebefore so thata
composite "picture"ofthetarget
will bemade, onetinymark at
atime.
Due tothe many featuresthat
thisunit has,this manual hasthe
operation section splitintotwo
parts. Thefirstsection isentitled
"BasicOperation" andcovers
everything that isabsolutely
necessary to usetheX-1SA ina
widevariety ofsituations. Itwill tell
youhow to usethebasic controls
- Sensitivity, Suppression, Paper
Speed, GRAYLINE, Range, plus a
fewspecial functions. Thissection
Will beadequate formostsitua-
tions.However,onceyou have
mastered the basic operation of
theX-15A, youmay. wish to try
someofthe features described in
PULLEY
DRIVE
sTYLUs
DRIVE
BELT
STYLUS
the Suppressor control turned
downto minimum whenlooking
forfish.
However,it ishelpful sometimes
to have longerpulse widthwhen
resolution is notaconcern. When
using asonar in deeperwater,it is
easier forthe unitto detect along-
erpulsecoming backfromthe
bottom orfromfish. Thisis called
"Probability ofEchoDetection".
Theprobability oftheunitbeing
abletodetect an echo returning
fromdeep water isdiminished be-
causethefurtherthesound pulse
hastotravel, theweakeritbe-
comes. Bybroadening thepulse
length, in essence, alargersignal
istransmitted and itiseasierfor
the receiver to detect it.
Forthis reason, the micro-com-
puterin the X-15A automatically
increases the initial pulse
length of
the unitas deeper lowerlimits are
setby theoperator. (Note: Initial
pulse length isthe pulselength of
the unitwhen theSuppressor con-
trol isturned to minimum.)
INITIAL
TRANSMIT
PULSE
WIDTH
(micro-seconds)
110
From 210 feetto 600feet, the
initial pulselength increases atthe
same rateas the depth. Forex-
ample, withthe LOWER LIMITset
to260feet, the initial transmit
pulselength wouldbe260 paIf
theLOWER LIMITis setto390
feet, theinitialtransmit
pulse
would be 390 is. Finally, from
600 feet and below,the initial
pulselength remains at600
micro-seconds.
Thetransmit
pulselength can
be increased from the initial point
at any timeby rotating the Sup-
pressor control clockwise. The
maximum amountof pulse length
added tothe initial transmitter
pulse length is approximately 800
micro-seconds. In otherwords, if
the LOWER LIMIT issetto420
feet, andthe Suppressor control is
rotatedtothe maximum position,
thetransmitter pulselength would
be 1220micro-seconds. (420
initial + 800 = 1220.)
Earlier,wetalkedaboutthe rela-
tionship
between pulselength and
targetseparation. Aspulselength
increases, target separation
or
resolution isdegraded. However,if
the pulsewidth isdecreased, res-
olution becomes much better.
TheX-15Aallows
youtotake
advantage ofthisfactby making it
possible to override theinitial
transmitter pulse
length setting
from whatthe micro-computer
selects according totheLower
Limit.
Theinitialtransmitter pulse
length canbesetfrom30 sto
2000 ps by entering itonthe key-
board. Bysetting the initial trans-
mitter pulse width to 100 s,a
threeinch resolution isobtained,
50psisequivalent to an inch and
a half,and 30 sinitial transmit
pulse length isequaltooneinch
resolution! No othergraph re-
corderin themarket
todaycan
giveyou this feature. Aftersetting
the initial transmitter pulselength,
thesuppressor control canstill be
used tocancel outnoise
by in-
creasing thepulselength orthe
Discrimination functiondescribed
below canbeused to eliminate
noiseand still have good
LOWER
LIMIT
(feet)
10
20
30
40-200
GRAPH
PAPER
130
160
200
PULLEY
TRAVEL 2 19
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Feet,Fathoms,Meters
TheX-1SAwill displaythe depth
in feet, fathoms, ormeters. Al-
though
the unitwillrevert backto
thefeet mode whenever power is
turnedoff, itissimpletochange to
anymode youwishby pressing
the2nd keyand then 1 forfeet,
2nd -2forfathoms, and 2nd -
3for meters.
When the unitisintheFeet
mode, only one Uwill be dis-
played. In the Fathommode, two
I.!U'swillbedisplayed. Three
I.!I.!U 'swill bedisplayed inthe
meters mode.
Example: Display Fathoms
Press: 2nd -2
Result:
o -u
H ---—-—-- —----- H
lb lb
20 I -- 20
Figure 38
Bylooking atthe number of
U's, onecandetermine thedepth
display modethattheunitis in,
i.e.,Feet-, Fathoms-, Meters.
TransmitPulse Width
Thenoise suppressionsystem
intheX-15Ais a patented pulse
length discrimination suppression
circuit, and isthesame as theone
used on all theLowrance's vari-
ablesuppression flashers and
graphs. Basically,itworks onthe
principlethat mostnoise pulses
are ofrelatively shortduration. If
the receivercircuit canbead-
justed
so that itwill accept only
long pulses, thentheshortpulses
willbe canelled
out,and only the
desired information (fish, bottom,
structure, etc.) will be displayed.
Of course, thetransmitter's pulse
lengthwouldhave tobeincreased
atthesame timeso thatthe re-
turnechoes would beaccepted by
the receiver.
Thisisexactly whattheLow-
rancesuppression system does.
Thetransmitter's
pulselength is
increased by thefrontpanel sup-
pression control, and the receiver
"tracks" the amount ofincreased
pulse length, cancelling out any
narrow noisepulses, and display-
ing only thereturn echoesfrom
fishorthe bottom, etc. (Note: Re-
ceiver sensitivity is notdiminished
atall bythis process.)
Theonlydisadvantage tothis
system isresolution, orthe ability
toseparate targets,is diminished
whenthepulselength is in-
creased. A200 s(micro-second)
transmitter pulselength used on
theX-15A whenpower is first
turned on, will allowtheunitto
display twofishortargets
thatare
only 6 inches apart. In other
words, iftwofish that are 6 inches
apartare displayed onthegraph
paper,theywillshowupastwo
separate arches whenthetrans-
mitter is operating witha200 ps
pulselength. Now, ifweincrease
thetransmitter's pulselengthto
400jis, (byrotating theSuppres-
sorcontrol clockwise) those same
twofish arches will blend together
andshowupas one fishor pos-
siblyeven a"blob" onthe paper.
With a400 ps transmit
pulse
width, thosesametwofish will
haveto beatleast12 inches
apartbefore they will show up as
twoseparate archesonthegraph.
Thisiswhy itisimportant toleave
thesectionentitled "Advanced Op-
eration". Thischapter will describe
several otherfeaturesthatwillen-
abletheserious
operator
toget
themaximum benefit fromthis
equipment.
Weurgeyoutoreadthisman-
ual thoroughly andfamiliarize
yourself with thecontrols. Al-
though thisis a veryadvanced
unit,it is easyto use, thanksto
thepowerofthe micro-computer
and thefrontpanel controls.
Shouldyou require extra help, or
justhaveaquestion, please call
ourCustomer Service Department
tollfree1-800-331-3889. (Okla-
homa residents call collect
-
1-918-437-6881.)Orchecktheen-
closed listfor aservicecenterin
yourarea. A representative will be
happy to help you.
IIINSTALLATION
Mounting—
Thedepth sounder
maybe in-
stalled in anyconvenient area,
provided the unitcan be tilted for
the bestviewing angle. Holes in
the bracket baseallowwood
screw orbolt mounting. Awood
stiffener maybe required onthe
backofthinfiberglass panels
to
support
theunit.
Ifthedesired location is closer
than 18" toamagnetic compass,
atrial runshould
be madewith
theunitinoperation to besure
thatthecompass readings are
notaffected.
Power Connections —
TwelvevoltDC power forthe
depth sounder should be supplied
bythe boat's 12voltelectrical sys-
tem.Thepower cable
maybeat-
tached to an accessory orpower
buss, butifyouhave problems
with electrical interference, the
cable should beattached directly
tothe battery.
Ifa longer cable isrequired, use
ordinary #18 lamp cord available
atanyhardware or electrical sup-
plystore. Splices should besol-
dered, however,ifthisisn'tdone,
then usecrimp-type splices. Tape
allsplices withelectrical tape.
Anin-linefuseholderwithfuse
issupplied with the X-15A. Becer-
taintoinstall this asclosetothe
power source (such as theboat
battery orpower buss) as pos-
sible. Thiswill protect both the
sonar unitandthe power cablein
theeventashortoccurs. Crimp
connectors are supplied toattach
thefuseholdertothepower
cable. Thered wire in thepower
cableis thepositive conductor.
Theblack wireisthegroundor
negative conductor.
Thegraph is protected from ac-
cidental polarity reversals and no
damage willoccurifthe wires are
reversed. Theunitwill not operate
untiltheproper polarity isapplied.
9 —-—--——--.--—-— 8
2 - 2
Figure2
18 3
Ground
(Negative)
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TRANSDUCER SELECTION
Lowrance offersyouthechoice
oftransducers Witheither an 8de-
greeor20degree coneangle that
will interchange withanyofour
192 kHzsonarunits. Inother
words, anyLowrance sonar instru-
ment canbe used with any Low-
rancetransducer ofthesame
frequency withoutretuningofany
kind, and no loss ofperformance.
However,theuseofanyother
manufacturer's transducer will re-
sult in a loss ofperformance.
Nowyoucan select the trans-
ducer design and cone angle to
bestfityour specific needs. Gen-
erally,wideconeangle transduc-
ers(20 degree) are ideally suited
foroperating in shallow wateror
atmedium depths. The20degree
coneangle allows
youtosee
moreofthe underwater world. In
15feetofwater, the20 degree
coneangleallows
youtoseean
areaofthe bottom that's approxi-
mately
6feet across. The8
degreetransducer covers only
abouta2footcircle.
Figure 3
Thus, youwouldusea20 de-
greetransducer when looking for
fish orstructure, toeasily find
drop-offs, andtoseefishthatare
around you.. . notjustbelow you.
However,the20degree trans-
ducerwon'tpenetrate togreater
depths aswellas the8 degree
transducer, norwill itshow a
sharp drop-off
as well.In a
deep-
waterenvironment (100feet or
deeper) thenarrowcone angleis
moredesirable because itcan
moreaccurately detect theloca-
tion ofthefishordrop-off in
deeper water. Since thesound
energy
isconcentrated in a
smaller area, itcanreach to
deeperdepths.
Both the 8degreeand the20
degree Lowrance transducers give
accuratebottom readings, even
though
the bottom signal ismuch
wideronthe 20degree model be-
cause
youare seeing more ofthe
bottom. Remember,the shallow
edgeofthesignal shows youthe
truedepth. Therestofthesignal
tellsyou thecomposition ofthe
bottom, i.e. whether you are over
asoft or hard bottom, etc.
III BASICOPERATION
On-Off andSensitivity
Control —
Rotate the Sensitivity knob
50' clockwise toturnthe unit on.The
Sensitivity knobworks much like
thevolume control onaradio, that
100' is, weaker
signalswillbedetected
with highersettingsofthe knob.
When cruising, oratothertimes
when
justsimple bottom contour
information isdesired, the Sen-
sitivity setting
can be low. Indeep
wateroroversoft, muddy bot-
zoo' toms,(which produce weak
8°at3db echos), thesetting will have to
be higher.
into theunitandthetransducer is
in contactwiththewater.
Symptom
Theunitis "ON",butpaperdoes
not move.
WhatTo Do
Tape papertocardboard spool
on
take-uppost.
Symptom
Recorder marks arefaintordim.
* WhatTo Do
Clean viewing door;replace the
stylus; checkbattery
connections.
Symptom
Recorded marks arevery heavy;
paper istornby stylus.
WhatTo Do
Bend thestylusslightly to reduce
pressure onpaper.
VI ADVANCED OPERATION
SurfaceClarityControl (SCC)
Thesurface markings atthetop
ofthechart paper can,attimes,
extend many feet below thesur-
face.Thisoften interferes with fish
signals orothertargets. Thisis
called SurfaceClutterand is
caused by algaeand plankton, air
bubbles caused bywaveaction or
boat wakes, baitfish, or tempera-
tureinversions.
Thesurface clutter markings
canbe reduced or eliminated by
usingthe MARKJSCC control key
onthefrontpanel keyboard.
To usetheSCC, presskey1
thru4and thentheMARK/SOC
key. 1 hasaminimum effect on
surface clutter, 4 hasthemax-
imum effect on reducing surface
clutter.2 and 3 have intermediate
effects.TheamountofSCC that is
used isprinted atthe bottom of
thechartpaper. Ifone level of
SOC is used, thenS-i isprinted.
Twolevels, S-2, etc.
Theeffectonsurface clutter
should immediately beseen. Use
only the amount ofSOC required
to reduce theclutter, asfishsig-
nals canbeeliminated by using
this method, also.
Ifyouwishtoturnthe SOC
function OFF, simplypress
0-MARK/SOCandtheSOC
functionwill be disabled.
Example: ENTER ASOC
LEVELOF 2.
Press: 2 -SCO
Result:
(SeeFigure 37.
4 _17
Depth C,,,
Angle I
Diameter I
L. it gI
0:- gt I
1,0, 14 30 I
It" it 53 I
12,0 20 70 I
20'at:
l2-----—-I—
Figure 37 SCC "2"
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wheels byreversing
theproce-
dureusedto remove the old
one. BESURE
thefingers of
the new stylusarepointed UP.
6. Close thefrontofthecase.
Latch both catches atthetop
ofthe unit.
MAINTENANCE
NOTE: Thestylusmaybe
damaged ifitis in frontofthepla-
tenwhentheplaten assembly is
pulled down. Alwaysmove the
stylustothebacksideofthepla-
tenwhen
changing thepaper
rolls. Remember tomovethebelt
down to remove thestylus.
Black carbondustis created dur-
ingthe recording process. Use a
soft, oil-free
rag tocleanthe
viewing doorand metal platen be-
hindthepaper. Lowpressure
compressed airmaybe used to
blow dustout ofthecaseand
away frommoving parts iftheair
isdryandfreeofoil.
All mechanical connections
should bechecked periodically to
besuretheyhaven'tworked
loose.
HIGHVOLTAGEispresent
in the
transmitter sectionwhentheunit
is ON. No attempt
should be
made by any unauthorized per-
sonto modify or repairtheelec-
tronic section.
Allelectrical connections should
bechecked periodically and
cleanedas necessary.
Thefaceofthetransducer, if
mounted onthetransom
should
bewashed periodically with mild
soapy watertoremove anyac-
cumulated rod grime oroilyfilm.
This isessential to havegood
contact between thetransducer
16
and the water.
DOSECTION
Do carryaspare fuse, stylusbelt,
and roll of paper.
Dousethe empty cardboard core
fromthe last roll ofpaperonthe
take-up post.
Dokeep therecorded graphs
for
futurereference.
Do clean thestylusbelt,wheels,
andthe rubber rollerafterevery
fiverolls ofpaper.
DON'TSECTION
DONTOPEN THECASE WHEN
THEUNITISON.
Don't
pull theplatenassembly
downwhenthestylusisatthe
front.
Don'tstore anyobjectsinsidethe
caseor behind theviewing
win-
dow. (Exceptforsmall pieces of
tape.)
Don't
forgettotapethe paper to
thetake-up core.
Don'trotate the stylus beltup.
Don'tuseoilycloths, strong sol-
vents, orabrasive cleansers.
TROUBLESHOOTING SECTION
Symptom
On/Off switchis 'ON", butthe
stylus and paper
don't move.
WhatTo Do
Check fuse;checkconnections at
battery fortightness and
corrosion.
Symptom
On/Off
switch is "ON",havezero
mark, butnoechoesor bottom
signal.
WhatTo Do
Besurethetransducer isplugged
— GRAYLNI
/ -
rrIviv
Han
'nan
an--•a. r
Figure4
When highSensitivitysettings
are used, asecond bottom echo
will appear.Thisis normal and is
caused bythe returning signal re-
flecting
offthe surface ofthe
water, making asecond tripto the
bottom and back.
Ifdetailed information about
brush piles, individual fish, orthe
I
thermocline is desired, the Sen-
sitivity knob shouldbe rotated to
approximately the ¾ point. Refer
tothe illustration below tosee
Figure 6
2
'1
SENSITIVITY: TOO LOW
whateffect the Sensitivity control
setting hasontherecorded
information.
Recording individual fishwith an
"arched" signature can usuallybe
accomplished attrollingspeed
with theSensitivity
knob atthe¾
point, orhigher. Refertothesec-
tion"ArchedSignatures" formore
information about thisimportant
function ofyourrecorder.
Suppression Control
TheSuppression Control is
used to reduce interference from
noise. Noise, in electronic terms,
is anyundesired signal. Itcanbe
caused by an electrical source,
(such astheengine's ignition sys-
tem) orby airbubbles in disturbed
waterwhichis call cavitation. In
both cases, the noise could
pro-
duceunwanted marks onthe
paper. (SeeFigures 7 &8.)
Fortunately, noise pulses arerela-
tivelyshortintimecompared to
real sonarsignals. Advancing the
Suppression knob will cause the
system to reject theseunwanted,
shortpulses withoutreducing the
5
Figure 5
SENSITIVITY: PROPER SETTiNG
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sensitivity in anyway.
Thispatented design isexclu-
sivewith Lowrance. However,with
highsuppression settings, the
graphrecord becomes coarse and
the ability
toseparate fishfrom
the bottom orfromother fishwill
bedecreased. (SeeFigure
9 &1O.) Therefore, thelowerthe
suppression selling,thebetter.
Advancethe knob setting onlyas
faras necessary to remove theer-
I 'wtrM4QWteI1*Ltts4vna JMPI
•' { ISiM •••. 3
,.vcvi iif4L'
Figure 35
STYLUS BELT REPLACEMENT
CAUTION —High voltage ispre-
sentintheelectronic section
when theunitisturned on.
1. TURN
THEUNITOFF.
2. Release both catchesonthe
topofthecase. Pull outand
down onthetop ofthecase
front and the platen to expose
thestylusbelt.
3. Thestylus beltridesover two
wheels located attheright
edgeoftheplaten assembly.
Refer to Figurel onpage2.
Movethefrontofthe belt
DOWN toposition thestylus at
the center
oftheplaten.
4. Grasp the beltatthestylus
holderwith thethumband
forefinger
and move itgently
ratic, unwanted noise marks. Most
ofthe timeat lowortrolling
speeds,
no suppressionwill be
necessary.
Figure 7
ppj P Vp fl
'a L2
Figure 9 suPPRESSION:
TOOHIGH
Figure 33 Figure 34
1L1
as
42
Figure 8
Figure 10 PROPER SETtING
PaperSpeedControl
Thisknob adjusts tospeed of
thechartpaper. Forgood detailed
graphs, in shallow tomedium
depths, turnthepaper speed con-
trolupto atleastthe¾position
when
trolling. Thiswillshowprop-
APPROXIMATE PAPERSPEED
Without
Alternatefransmitand Print
LOWER
LIMIT
Minimum
PaperSpeed Maximum Paper
Speed
Inches Hours Inches Hours
RANGE (feet)
10-120 Per Mm Per Roll Per Mm Per Roll
1.0 10 2.35 4.25
130-510 0.5 20 1.4 7.14
520-830 0.15 66 0.75 13.3
Below 840 0.15 66 0.75 13.3
N-
Figure 36
tothe leftwhilepushingthe
beltoffthewheels withthe
otherforefinger. (See
Figure
36.)
5. Position thenew beltonthe
15
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800'& Below
14 7
RANGE
thecontrol toofar oritwill gray
line onthetargetcompletely,
showing no black,whichmakes
thetargetdifficult tosee.
- 12
p
C
At
t 4.
.a'
(t p.
/. ,. (•
t,a
STYLUS REPLACEMENT erfish arches atlowspeeds
and
CAUTION—High voltage ispre-
sentintheelectronic section
when theunit isturnedon.
keeps high speed information from
being comprçssed. Thepaper
speed should beturneddown
when usingthe unitin deep water.
1. TURN
THEUNITOFF. This will prevent gapsfromap-
2. Release both catcheson the
top ofthecase.Pull outand
downonthetopofthe case
fronttoexpose thestylusbelt.
(SeeFigure25.)
3. Thestylus beltridesovertwo
wheels located attheright
edge oftheplaten assembly.
Move thefrontofthebelt
,
:
pearing in the record. Infact, the
microcomputerwillautomatically
slowthemaximum speedofthe
chartpaper when
operating in
deep water.Thechartbelow gives
thepoints where themaximum
speed ofthe paper isslowed.
RANGE PAPERSPEED
10'llO' Fastest Paper
DOWN to position thestylusat
thecenterofthe platen.
4. Hold thestylusbeltstationary
with one finger, and remove
the oldstylusby starting atits
leftedge and moving itout
fromunderthetabs onthe sty-
lus holder.
Speed
120'-490' Medium Fast
PaperSpeed
500'-790' Medium Slow
PaperSpeed
Slowest Paper
Speed
Thechartpapermaybe slowed
5. Before installing thenewsty-
lus, besure itis bent properly
by camparing itto Figure 33.
6. Refer toFigure34to besure
the new stylusis positioned
correctly under thetabsonthe
holder.Be sure itmoves freely
inthetwoslots. Ifnot, bend
thestylusaway fromthe edge
it isrubbing on until itdoes
move freely.
7. Afterinstalling, ifthestylus
won'tprint allthe
way down
thepaperas shown in Fig-
ure 35,bend the right legdown
.
'
even furtherby adjusting the pa-
perspeed control. Remember, if
gapsin therecord appear, turnthe
paper speed down until asolid
record is achieved. Thepaper
speed mayalso beslowed when
notlooking forfishortosimply
conserve paper.Formoreinforma-
tionabout saving paper, readthe
AlternateTransmitand Print func-
tionintheAdvanced Operation
section.
GRAYLINE CONTROL
TheGRAYLINEfunctioncanbe
used tooutline thebottom contour
Therangefunction utilizes the
keyboardtoselectanyrange be-
tween0-10' and 2540'-2550'.
Please readthissectioncarefully
togetthe most outofyourX-1SA's
range capabilities.
sothat more pressure is ex-
erted against thestainless
steel plate. If itstill doesnot
print alltheway, bend the left
leg downmore(butnotso far
that itdigs intothepaper).
which might otherwise behidden
beneathtrees and brush; itcan
also give clues tothe composition
ofthe bottom. A hard bottom re-
turns averystrongsignalcausing
awidegray line. Asoft, muddy or
LowerLimit
When youfirst turnonthe
X-15A, the range will be0-60feet.
(SeeFigure13.)
Tochange to adeeperrange,
8. Closethefrontofthe case. weedy bottom returns aweaker simply press thedesired depthon
Latch both catches on thetop
ofthecase. signalwhichis emphasized witha narrow gray line. Do notadvance the keyboard, and then pressthe LOWER LIMITkey.
Figure 12 GRAYLINE "ON"
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12
— -36---
MB
—U—I --L'-- —----611--U—l -
Figure 13
Example: Change range to0-80
feet.
Press: 8-0 - LOWER LIMIT
Thedepth willthen bedisplayed.
16-— --——-——6--—----
LI0_ -_________
6M
U11-----D-I-— — -
Figure 14
Anydepth inamultiple often
(10,20, 30, 500, etc.) may be
usedas alowerlimitdisplayed at
the bottom ofthechartpaper.
Example: Change rangeto 0-150
feet.
Press: 1 - 5 -0- LOWER LIMIT
Thedepth willthen be displayed:
(SeeFigure 15.)
Note thatthepaperspeed
slows automatically atthisrange
setting.
UPPER LIMIT
Many timesit is desirable toex-
--30 -—-----—————- —-——— an—
-- 60 ——-—-—---—---——-—--- 60
-- 90—- —-—-—------——— 90—
—12n —120—
Figure 15
pand asectionoftheareathat is
displayed onthe graph recorderto
showmore detail. Thisis made
possible bytheX-15A to show
segments oftheunderwater world
by using
the UPPER LIMIT func-
tion.Using theUPPER LIMIT key
allows
youtodisplay any depth
range in multiplesof 10atthetop
ofthe chart paper.
Example: Turnon unit and set
range
to20-60feet.
Press: 2- 0 - UPPER LIMIT
Thedepth willthenbedisplayed.
- -
—26 --
- ——-— —-- -
—92 - -52
- 62-—fl-
L-hB B-I-
Figure 16
Example: Set range to40-60feet.
Press: 4— 0 - UPPER LIMIT
The range willthen be displayed:
(SeeFigure17.)
The Upper and. Lower Limits
canbe used in various combina-
squarely tothetake-up
core.
(See Figure 30.) Small pieces
oftapemaybe stored inside
the housing forthispurpose.
Closethe topoftheplaten
assembly by pressing thetwo
tabstogether onthe paper
retainer andreturning there-
tainerbacktothe operating
position. (SeeFigure31.)
9. Turnthe small knobatthe
upperleft hand sideofthe
platen assembly toput a
smallamountoftension on
the paper. Itshould be snug
against
theplaten. (Figure32.)
10. Push the platen assembly
backtoitsoperating position.
Besureitengages thecatch
inside thetop ofthe case.
11. Close thefrontofthecase.
Latch both catches onthe
top
ofthecase.
12. Turnthe uniton. Move the
ChartSpeed knobfullyclock-
wise.Watch the paperlong
enough to besureit ismov-
ingsmoothly and evenly
across the platen. Ifthepa-
per flutters orbegins to run
'uphill", repeatstep8.
8 13 Figure 29
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4. Pull out and downon thetab
atthetopcenteroftheplaten
assembly toexpose
thepa-
perspools. (SeeFigure25.)
5. To remove thefulltake-up roll
and theempty supply spool,
press thetwo metal tabsto-
getheron thetopofthe platen
assembly,and pull outand
down onthe paper retainer.
(SeeFigure26.)Thefurl take-
uproll can now beeasilly
re-
movedfromthepapercore
shafts. (SeeFigure 27.)
6. Pull theempty supply core
fromthe right side in the
samemanner. Install
theemptycore onto the
take-up
shaft. (SeeFigure2a)
Align thetwo.notches in the
core withthetabsonthe
lower
take-up spool.
7. Slideafresh roll of paper in
position
onthe supply side
shaftontheright sideofthe
platen assembly.Thepaper
mustspooloffthe bottom of
the roll. (SeeFigure29.)
8. Draw the end ofthepaper
acrossthe faceofthe platen,
around thefriction roller,over
thetake-up core, andtape it
tionsto show segments fromthe
surface tothebottom and any-
where inbetween. Representative
samples ofchart paper are shown
in thebackofthis manual.
Ifyouwishtodisplay your depth
settings atanytime,simply press
either the UPPER LIMIT or
LOWER LIMIT keys. Thecurrent
rangewillbe printed onthepaper
immediately.Thiswill not change
the depth setting.
LINES
When the X-15A is firstturned
on, depth lines will be printed on
thepaper. Ifyoudesire toturnthe
Lines
off, press theLINES key. To
turnthelinesbackon, press the
LINES key again.
Example: Turn lines off:
Press: LINES key
Result:
MARKER
Aneventmarker function isin-
cluded in theX-15Aso thatevents
maybemarked whendesired. To
usethemarker, simplypressthe
MARK key and averticalline will
be displayed across the entire
page. Hold theMARK keydown
andaverticalline willbe printed
foras long asthekeyisheld
down.
Figure 19
SCALE
Lw
:i.bU...I..
Thenumbers thatindicatethe
depth orscale maybedeleted if
desired. Pressing theSCALE key
oncewillstop theprinting ofthe
scalenumbers. Thescale maybe
displayed again by pressing the
SCALE key.
Remember,thescalemaybe
displayed at anytime by pressing
eithertheUPPER LIMITorthe
LOWER LIMIT key.
Example:
Press: SCALE
Result:
(SeeFigure2O)
'II ————HO—
'UI
Figure23 Figure24
02
-—
6 —— bfl——fl—I—--L'—--- - hO--
Figure 17 Example:
Press: MARK
Result:
2----- —---- --—- 12
—HE
bU
-—-2-I
Figure26
2
- 29
D—I U EQ lI—I Ii
12 Figure 18 9
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Figure20
END-OF-PAPER MARKER
Thegraph paperin theX-1SA
hasaredlineprintedatthe bot-
tom ofthepaperto signifywhen
thereis only 2to3feet before the
end ofthepaper.
ZEROADJUST
Occasionally, when changing
thestylusorstylusbelt, thezero
linedoesnot print atthesame
placenearthetopofthechart
paper.
Azeroadjust control hasbeen
placed
onthe backinsidewallof
theX-15Anearthe upperleft
hand corner so thatthezero line's
position maybe adjusted on
the paper.
Open thecasefrontand look
forthedecalmarked 'ZEROAD-
JUST".You may haveto pull the
paper transport assembly
downto
seethedecalforthefirsttime.
Push thetransport
closed andturn
ontheunit. (Caution —Keep
hands away fromthestylusbelt
and stylus. High voltage is
present.)
Insert a6"-8" longscrewdriver
with a1/s" blade intothe zeroad-
justhole and rotatethecontrolon
the circuit board until the zero line
isatthe desired position. (Note:
Thismayalso be adjusted with
the unitturnedOFF. Adjust the
control, then remove the screw-
driver and turnpowerbackON.
Repeatuntil thezero line is in
thedesired position.)
IVHOW TO READGRAPHS
"ArchedSignatures"
A remarkableadvantage ofthe
X-15Aisthatitcan record indi-
vidual fishwithacharacteristic
arched mark thatseparates them
fromtheirstationary surroundings.
Thereason forthisis shown be-
low. The distance toafish whenit
moves intothesonar'sconeof
sound isshown as "A".
When thefish hasmoved to
the center ofthecone,thedis-
tanceto itwillbeshorter, (line
"B"),and as it moves outofthe
cone, thedistance will increase
again asshown in line "C".
50 —
so—
Figure22
If apartial arch occurs mostof
thetimeon yourunit, (themark
curves up, butnot backdown, or
vice-versa) it isbecause thetrans-
ducer isnotpointed straightdown.
Ifyour transducer ismounted on
thetransom, adjust thetransducer
untilthefish showthe distinctive
arched signature. Thismaytake
sometrialand erroruntil thecor-
rect mounting is achieved.
Sharp, welldefined signatures
willoccurmostoften whenthe
Sensitivityknobis set atthe¾
point, orhigher. Remember, that
theremustbesomemovement
between theboatandthefishto
develop the arched mark. Usually
thismeans trolling at veryslow
speeds withthe main engine in
gearatminimum throttlesetting.
THERMOCLINES
Thetemperature ofwaterin the
lake isseldom constantfromtop
to bottom. Layers ofdifferenttem-
peraturesform, andthe junctionof
awarm and cool layerofwateris
called athermocline. Thedepth
and thickness ofthethermocline
canvary withthe season or time
ofday.Indeep lakes theremay
be two ormore, atdifferent
depths. Thermoclines are import-
anttothefisherman because they
are areas wherefishareactive.
Many times baitfishwillbeabove
thethermocline whilelargergame
fishsuspend justbelow it.
YourLowranceX-15Acande-
tectthis invisiblelayerinthe
water, buttheSensitivity knob will
probably have tobeset atthe 1/2
point, orhigher.
PAPERLOADING
CAUTION—Highvoltage is pre-
sentintheelectronicsection
when theunitisturned on. -
1. TURN THE UNITOFF.
2. Release both catches onthe
topofthecase. Pull outand
downonthetopofthecase
fronttoexposetheplaten as-
sembly. (See Figure23.)
3. Move thestylus beltDOWN,
toposition the marking stylus
onthebackside ofthe pla-
ten. NEVER move the beltup
—thestylus may be
damaged. (SeeFigure24.)
SPECIAL NOTE: Thestylus
maybedamaged iftheplaten
assembly ispulled downun-
lessthestylus has been
moved tothebacksideofthe
platen.
0—
10 —
20—
30 —
40—
-4 -v-,
Figure 21
10 11
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