Eagle Electronics 245DS manual

Pub. 988-0143-832 www.eaglesonar.com FishEasy 245DS, FishEasy 245DS Portable & SeaFinder 245DS Fish-Finding & Depth-Sounding Sonars Installation and Operation Instructions ® ® ®[...]

Copyright © 2007 LEI-Eagle All rights reserved. Eagle ® is a register ed trademark of L EI FishEasy ® 245DS is a registered trademark of LEI Eagle Electronics m ay find it nec essary to chang e or end our policies, regulations, and special offers at any time. We reserve the right to do so without notice. All featur es and specifications subject [...]

i Table of Contents Introduc tion ....................................................................................... 1 Specifications: FishEasy 245DS & SeaFin der 245D S ....................... 1 How Sonar Works ................................................................................. 3 Preparat ions ...............................[...]

ii Grayline ® ............................................................................................. 43 Chart Sp eed ........................................................................................ 45 Frequency ........................................................................................... 46 Fish I.D. ™ ..............[...]

1 Introduction Thank you for buying an Eagle ® sonar! Your unit is a high-quality so- nar designed for both professional and novice fishermen. All Eagle so- nars have an automatic mode that finds and displays the bottom, fish, underwater structure and more – right out of the box. All you have to do is press the on ( PWR ) key. To get started wit[...]

2 Back-up memory: ........... Built-in memory sto res sonar settings when unit is turned off. Sonar Frequency: ...................... 83/200 kHz. Transducers: ................... A dual search Skimmer ® transducer with built-in temperature sensor is packed with your unit. It has a wide fish detection area of up to 60º/120º with high sensitivity [...]

3 storage in temperatures higher or lower than specified will damage the liquid crystal display in your unit. This type of damage is not covered by the warranty. For more information, contact the fac- tory's Customer Service Department; phone numbers are inside the manual's back cover. How Sonar Works Sonar has been around since the 1940s[...]

4 A new innovation, the 83 kHz frequenc y offers superior sonar perform- ance at all depths from very shallo w up to 1,000 ft and provides up to 120º of fishfinding coverage. Preparations The following shows the recommended sequence for installing the transducer: CAUTION: You should read over this entire installation section before drill- ing any [...]

5 3. Determine the location of your battery or other power connection, along with the power cable route. 4. Install the transducer and route the transducer cable to the sonar unit. 5. Route the power cable from the unit's location to an appropriate power source and connect it there. 6. Connect the transducer/power cable to the unit and mount t[...]

6 Recommended Tools and supp lies If you prefer the option of routing the cable through the transom, you will need a 5/8" drill bit. Each transom mount requires use of a high quality , marine grade above- or below-waterline caulking compound. NOTE: The following installation types also call for these recommended tools and required supplies (su[...]

7 at speeds faster than 35 mph. Typically, a good transom location on aluminum boats is between the ribs closest to the engine. 3. The transducer should be installed with its face pointing straight down, if possible. For shoot-thru applications: Many popular fishing boat hulls have a flat keel pad that offers a good mounting surface. On vee hulls, [...]

8 Good and poor transducer locations. How low should you go? For most situations, you should in stall your Skimmer transducer so that its centerline is level with th e bottom of the boat hull. This will usually give you the best combination of smooth water flow and protec- tion from bangs and bumps. Align transducer centerline with hull bottom. The[...]

9 to loosen the screws and slide the tr ansducer up or down.) If you fre- quently lose bottom signal lock while running at high speed, the trans- ducer may be coming out of the wa ter as you cross waves or wakes. Move the transducer a little lower to help prevent this. If you cruise or fish around lots of structure and cover, your transducer may be[...]

10 Fourth, a Skimmer transducer with a built-in temp sensor will show only the temperature of the bilge, not the water surface temp. Follow the procedure listed in the sh oot-thru-hull installation section at the end of this lesson to determine if you can satisfactorily shoot through the hull. Transom Transducer Assembly and Mounting The best way t[...]

11 If the transducer's face isn't parallel with the ground, remove the transducer and ratchets from the br acket. Place the ratchets into the holes in the bracket with the letter "B" aligned with the dot stamped in the bracket. Reassemble the transducer and bracket and place them against the transom. Again, check to see if you c[...]

12 Assemble transducer and bracket. 4. Drilling mounting holes. Hold the transducer and bracket assem- bly against the transom. The transducer should be roughly parallel to the ground. The transducer's centerlin e should be in line with the bot- tom of the hull. Don't let the bracket extend below the hull! Mark the center of each slot for[...]

13 Position transducer mount on transom and mark mounting holes. Side view shown at left and seen from above at right. 5. Attaching transducer to transom. Remove the transducer from the bracket and re-assemble it with the cable passing through the bracket over the bolt as shown in the following figures. Route cable over bolt and through bracket. Si[...]

14 Attach the transducer to the transom. Slide the transducer up or down until it's aligned properly with the bottom of the hull as shown in the preceding and following figures. Tighten the bracket's mounting screws, sealing them with the caulking compound. Adjust the transducer so that it's parallel to the ground and tighten the nut[...]

15 If you need to drill a hole in the tr ansom to pass the connector through, the required hole size is 5/8". (If yo u intend to route an additional speed or temp sensor cable through the same hole, you will need a 1" (25.4 mm) drill bit instead.) Caution: If you drill a hole in the transom for the cable, make sure it is located above the[...]

16 Position the transducer to aim straight down when the motor is in the water. Tighten the strap securely. 3. Route the transducer cable alon gside the trolling motor shaft. Use plastic ties (not included) to attach the transducer cable to the trolling motor shaft. Make sure there is enough slack in the cable for the motor to turn freely. Route th[...]

17 Transducer angles and their effects on fish arches. If the arch slopes up – but not back down – then the front of the trans- ducer is too high and needs to be lowered. If only the back half of the arch is printed, then the nose of th e transducer is angled too far down and needs to be raised. NOTE: Periodically wash the transducer's fac[...]

18 Shoot-Thru-Hull Preparation Hulls with Flotation Materials The transducer installation inside a fiberglass hull must be in an area that does not have air bubbles in the resin or separated fiberglass lay- ers. The sonar signal must pass th rough solid fiberglass. A successful transducer installation can be made on hulls with flotation materials ([...]

19 sonar signal must pass through solid fiberglass. Any air bubbles in the fiberglass or the epoxy will reduce or eliminate the sonar signals. Shoot-thru-hull transducer locations for high speed or trolling speed operation. Testing Determines Best Location Ideally, the shoot-thru transducer shou ld be installed as close to the transom as possible, [...]

20 Example of a second bottom signal. Unit is in 30 feet of water, with range set at 80 feet and sensitivity set at 87 percent. 3. Now move the transducer around to find the best location with the strongest possible bottom signal. If yo u find a spot with an acceptable bottom signal, mark the location and move on to step 4. If you can't get an[...]

21 Shoot-Thru-Hull Installation 1. Make sure the area is clean, dry and free of oil or grease, then sand both the inside surface of the hull and the face of the transducer with 100 grit sandpaper. The sanded hull area should be about 1-1/2 times the diameter of the transducer. The surface of the hull must be flat so the entire transducer face is in[...]

22 2. The epoxy consists of the epoxy itself and a hardener. Remove the two compounds from the package and place them on the paper plate. Thoroughly stir the two compounds together until the mixture has a uniform color and consistency. Do not mix too fast or bubbles will form in the epoxy. After mixing, you have 20 minutes to complete the instal- l[...]

23 CAUTION: When using the unit in a saltwater environment, we strongly rec- ommend that you shut off the power supply to the power cable when the unit is not in use. When the unit is turned off but still connected to a power supply, electro lysis can occur in the power ca- ble plug. This may result in corrosi on of the plug body along with the ele[...]

24 positive lead, black is negative or ground. Make sure to attach the in- line fuse holder to the red lead as close to the pow er source as possible. For example, if you have to extend the power cable to the battery or power buss, attach one end of the fuse holder directly to the battery or power buss. This will protect both the unit and the power[...]

25 Holes in the bracket’s base allow wood screw or through-bolt mounting. You may need to place a piece of plywood on the back side of thin pan- els to reinforce the panel and secure the mounting hardware. Front view (left) and side view (right) showing dimensions of the FishEasy 245DS and SeaFin der 245DS when mounted on quick release bracket. D[...]

26 a good marine caulking compound. (S ome marine dealers stock cable hole covers to conceal the opening.) Using the Quick Release Mounting Bracket These units use a quick release mo unting bracket. When you run the cables through the bracket's cable slots, make sure you allow enough slack for tilting the unit and attaching the connector. (The[...]

27 the front of the bracket as you lowe r it into position.) As you push down, the unit will lock into place with a distinct click. To adjust the viewing angle, pinch the ratchets with one hand, then tilt the unit with your other hand. Release the ratchets and the unit locks into the new position. To dismount the unit for storage, press the ratch- [...]

28 Adjust viewing angle: use one hand to press and release the spring- loaded ratchets while you move the unit with the other hand. Portable Sonar Installation Like many Eagle products, the FishEasy 245DS and SeaFinder 245DS sonar units are capable of portable operation. They use the optional PPP-12 portable power pack. The power pack and portable [...]

29 Installing the Batteries Open the case and lay it flat. (The latch is located below the handle.) Insert eight "AA" size batteries into the battery adapter and place it in the battery compartment. Slip the battery cover tabs into the slots in the case wall, then close the battery cover with the thumb screw. Install batteries in battery [...]

30 Mounting the Unit A quick-release mount is built into the top of the portable power pack. To attach the unit, first plug in the cable connector. Then, hold the sonar unit vertically and slide it onto the brac ket from above. (The back of the unit should be touching the front of the br acket as you lower it into position.) As you push down, the u[...]

31 fresh ones. Always remove batteries from the compartm ent when storing the unit because dead batteries ca n leak and corrode the contacts. In cold weather the efficiency of dry cell batteries drops with the tem- perature. We find it a good idea to have the batteries and the sonar unit good and warm before we leave home. If the batteries do lose [...]

32 Moisten the suction cup, then press it onto the hull as firmly as possi- b l e . Tie the nylon cord to the boat an d set the power pack and sonar unit in a location for easy viewing. Your portable sonar is now ready for use. Portable transducer installed on boat transom. Tie nylon cord here Washer Washer Nut Bolt Screw Suction cup Transducer Hul[...]

33 Portable Transducer Storage There is room inside the power pack for the portable transducer. When you're finished fishing, tilt the so nar down to the storage position. Open the case and lay it flat. Unplug the power connector from the battery compartment socket. Wrap the transducer cable around the suction cup, then stow the trans- ducer o[...]

34 Notes[...]

35 Operation Keyboard Basics The unit sounds a tone when you pre ss any key. This tells you the unit has accepted a command. Numbers in the figure correspond to key ex- planations below: Eagle FishEasy 245 DS. 1 2 3[...]

36 1. PWR/CLEAR In this manual, the Power/Clear key is referred to as PWR . Press this key to turn the unit on and off. It also clears menus and menu selec- tions from the screen. To clear a menu from the screen, press PWR . NOTE: Hold the PWR key down for five second s to turn off the unit. 2. MENU UP & MENU DOWN These keys appear in the manua[...]

37 The MENU keys access these features, allowing you to customize unit set- tings. To switch menus, press MENU repeatedly. Press PWR to clear menus from the screen. The Backlight menu with backlight turned on. Display The lights will flash for about 10 seconds when the unit is turned on. The backlight menu will appear on the screen. Use the A RROW [...]

38 Opening screen, Full Chart page, or mode. The factory default setting has the Fish I.D. (fish symbols) turned on. Full Chart The unit's default page, Full Chart shows all echoes scrolling across the full screen. The bottom signal scrolls across the screen from right to left. The line at the top of the screen represents the surface. The bott[...]

39 Full Chart page, showing digital depth (above) and temp (below). The Fish I.D. feature is turned off. This unit has the following depth ra nges: 10, 20, 40, 80, 150, 300, 600, 1000 and 2000 feet. Depth Range menu with Manual setting selected (left). Range Size menu with 0-80 ft highlighted (right). Zoom The zoom feature enlarges all images on th[...]

40 is 0 to 60 feet, Zoom will show an enlarged view of the water column from 30 feet to 60 feet, always keeping the bottom in view. To zoom in the display, repeatedly press MENU until the Z OOM menu appears. Press ↓ to select O N , then press PWR to clear the menu. Zoom feature turned off (left). Zoom turned on (right). You can tell when the disp[...]

41 ual Depth Range mode, you can select one of 17 pre-set Zoom Ranges. This lets you enlarge a segment of the water column. To do this, make sure Depth Rang e is set to manual mode. Next, re- pe a te d l y press MENU until the Z OOM menu appears. Press ↓ to select O N , then press MENU UP to display the Z OOM R AN G E menu. Use the arrow keys to [...]

42 Sensitivity set to manual mode (left). Sensitivity scroll bar (right) . You can change the sensitivity level whether you are in Auto Sensitivity mode or Manual Sensitivity mode. The adjustment method works the same in both modes, but gives you slightly different results. To adjust sensitivity in Auto Mode: Repeatedly press MENU until the S ENSIT[...]

43 These figures show results of different sensitivity levels on the same location. Fig. 1: Sensitivity at 98 percent, determined by Auto Sensitiv- ity. Typical of full auto mode. Fig. 2: Sensitivity set at 71 percent. Fig. 3: Sensitivity set at 47 percent. Fig. 4: Sensitivity set at 100 percent. Grayline ® Grayline ® lets you distinguish between[...]

44 Grayline scroll bar. If you have two signals of equal size, one with gray and the other with- out, then the target with gray is the stronger signal. This helps distin- guish weeds from trees on the bo ttom or fish from structure. Grayline is adjustable. Since Grayline shows the difference between strong and weak signals, adjusting the sensitivit[...]

45 A small amount of Grayline indicates a soft bottom (left), probably sand or mud. More Grayline indicates a harder, rocky bottom (right). Chart Speed The speed at which echoes scroll a cross the screen is called the chart speed. The default for this unit is "max" (100 percent). We recommend you leave the scroll speed setting there for m[...]

46 Sometimes, you may achieve better images as you decrease the chart speed to match the speed of your boat. If you are at anchor, ice fishing or fishing from a dock, experiment with a chart speed of 25 percent. If you are drifting slowly, try a chart speed of 50 percent. When you are stationary and a fish swims through the sonar signal cone, the i[...]

47 fresh and salt water sport fishing applications. When you get into very deep salt water, up to 1,000 feet, the 83 kHz frequency will work best. The 200 kHz transducer will give you better detail and definition, but less depth penetration. You will not get as much detail or definition with the 83 kHz frequency, but it has greater depth penetratio[...]

48 Underwater scene in normal fish arch mode (left). Fish I.D. menu with the feature turned on (right). To see what is under your boat in maximum detail , we recommend you turn off Fish I.D. and begin learning to interpret fish arches. You may see Fish I.D. symbols on the s creen when actually, there are no fish. The reverse is also true — Fish I[...]

49 To turn Fish I.D. off, repeatedly press MENU until the F ISH ID menu ap- pears. Press ↓ to select O FF , then press PWR . To turn it back on, repeat the above steps, but press ↑ to select O N . FishTrack ™ The FishTrack ™ feature shows the depth of a fish symbol when it ap- pears on the display. To turn it on, repeatedly press MENU until[...]

50 To turn on Fish I.D., repeatedly press MENU until the F ISH ID menu ap- pears. Press ↓ to select O N , then press PWR . Repeatedly press MENU un- til the F ISH A LARM menu appears. Press ↑ to select O N , then press PWR . To turn on Fish I.D., repeatedly press MENU until the F ISH ID menu ap- pears. Press ↓ to select O N , then press PWR .[...]

51 Shallow Alarm menu (left). Shallow Alarm Value Dialog box (right). Press ↓ to S ET V AL UE . The Shallow Alarm Value dialog box will appear. Use ↑ ↓ to enter the first number in the dialog box, then press MENU DOWN to move to the next digit. Re peat those steps until the desired depth has been entered in the dialog box. To move the cursor [...]

52 Deep Alarm menu (left). Deep Alarm dialog box (right). Press the ↓ to S ET V ALU E . The Deep Alarm Value dialog box will appear. Use ↓ to enter the first number in the dialog box, then press MENU DOWN to move to the next digit. Re peat those steps until the desired depth has been entered in the dialog box. To move the cursor back to any of [...]

53 Battery Alarm menu (left). Low Battery Alarm Value (right). To move the cursor back to any of the previously entered numbers, press MENU UP . Press PWR to return to the Battery Alarm menu. Use ↑ to select O N , which will turn on the alarm, then press PWR to clear the menu. If the voltage value falls below the alarm’s setting, the alarm will[...]

54 Noise Rejection menu. The ASP feature has three settings — Off, Low and High. When first turned on, noise rejection is set on low. If you have high noise levels, try using the high ASP setting. If, however, you are having trouble with noise, we suggest you take step s to find the interference source and fix it, rather than continually using th[...]

55 Depth menu with Depth display turned off (left). Depth display set to Large (right). Temperature Display Temperature may be displayed on the screen in a small or medium size or can be turned off completely. Temperature menu (left). Temperature display set to small size (right).[...]

56 To display Temperature: Repeatedly press MENU until the T EMPERATURE menu appears. Use ↑ ↓ to select the size of the temperature display. Press PWR to clear the menu. Voltage menu with the voltage display turned off (left) and with volt- age set to a small display size (right). Voltage The Voltage menu allows you to display battery voltage o[...]

57 Backlight turned on (left). Contrast scroll bar (right). Contrast The unit’s display contrast is adjustable to suit different lighting condi- tions. It will help you see the screen from different angles or at various times of the day. To adjust the contrast, repeatedly press MENU until the C ONTRAST scroll bar appears. To decrease screen contr[...]

58 Simulator menu (left). Languages menu (right). Set Language This unit supports 11 languages: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Danish, Swedish, Russian, Czech, Dutch and Finnish. To select a language: 1. Repeatedly press MENU until the Languages menu appears. 2. Use ↑ ↓ to select the desired language. All menus now appear in the lan[...]

59 Notes[...]

60 Notes[...]

61 Troubleshooting If your unit is not working, or if yo u need technical help, please use the following troubleshooting section be fore contacting the factory cus- tomer service department. It may save you the trouble of returning your unit for repair. For contact information, refer to the last page, just inside the back cover of this manual. Unit[...]

62 Weak bottom echo, digital readings erratic, or no fish signals: 1. Make certain the transducer is pointing straight down. Clean the face of the transducer. Oil, dirt and fuel can cause a film to form on the transducer, reducing its effectiveness. If the transducer is mounted in- side the hull, be sure it is shooting through only one layer of fib[...]

63 Try using resistor spark plugs or routing the sonar unit's power and transducer cables away from othe r electrical wiring on the boat. No fish arches when the Fi sh I.D. feature is off: 1. Make certain the transducer is pointing straight down. This is the most common problem if a partial arch is displayed. 2. The sensitivity may not be high[...]

64 If no noise is present, turn the pu mp off, then turn on the VHF radio and transmit. Keep doing this until all electrical equipment has been turned on, their effect on the sonar display noted, then turned off. If you find noise interference from an electrical instrument, trolling motor, pump, or radio, try to isolate the problem. You can usually[...]

65 EAGLE ELECTRON ICS FULL ONE-YEAR WARRA NTY "We," "our," or "us" refers to EAG LE ELECTR ONICS, a division of LE I, the manufactu rer of this product. "You" or "your" refers to the first person who purch ases this produc t as a consumer item for personal, family, or household use. We warrant this [...]

66 How to Obtain Service… …in the USA: We back your investment in quality pr oducts with quick, expert service and genuine Eagle replacement parts. If you're in the United States and you have technical, return or re pair questions, please contact the Factory Customer Service Department. Before any product can be re- turned, you must call c[...]

Accessory Ordering Information for all countries To order Eagle accessories such as power cab les or transducers, please contact: 1) Your local marine dealer or co nsumer electronics store. Mo st quality dealers that handle marine electronic equipmen t or other consumer electronics should be able to assist you with these items. To locate an Eag le [...]

Visit our web site: www.eaglesonar.com Eagle Pub. 988-0143-832 Copyright © 2007 All Rights Reserved Printed in USA 060607 LEI-Eagle ™[...]