GPS / Sonar / Lowrance - The Hull Truth

Joe N · 08-19-2002, 09:12 PM

Any help with the following would be appreciated:

1. I have a Lowrance 350A sonar / gps linked to a Lowrance 2000 Global Map. The 350 gets the GPS signals and sends to the 2000.

Problem One: Yesterday after running under a bridge, the 2000 stopped tracking my boat and showed my last position as being under the bridge even though I had run 5 miles away. I heard the 350 signal me that it had lost track of the satellites and heard the 2000 signal me that the 350 wasn't feeding it lat / lon info.

I reset the 350 back to factory settings and turned off the 2000. 15 min later, the 350 picked up the satellites gave me the tone. I turned on the 2000, and it was showing my correct position.

Problem Two: I just had a new transducer installed this spring. The new one worked fine for a while but now occaisionally stops showing me depth when I run at any speed. Sometimes it works fine, then it doesn't. Is this transducer bad too?

Thanks, Joe

chorn24 · 08-20-2002, 06:21 AM

I owned one for 3 years and never had that happen,
Lowrance Tech support is very good, there may be a software upgrade, check to see if there is anything in the way of your transducer, like water pickups ect. I have ajusted them up or down 1/8 of an inch and eliminated high speed problems as well.

J.B. Cornwell · 08-20-2002, 06:42 AM

Howdy, Joe.

I think your 350A has an intermittent component failure. One that is common to GPS and Sonar circuitry.

Lowrance has super Customer Service. I would send it to them for new guts.

Good luck [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

Red sky at night. . .
JB [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

Gil Morgan · 08-20-2002, 10:18 AM

Lowrance is trying NOT to support the 350A anymore. They are charging ridiculous prices and offering rebates to swap your 350A to whatever is their latest equipment. I tried to send mine back to get a new LCD screen and the price was so high, I decided to go Garmin. With regard to your specific problem, I pass under a bridge every time I go offshore, and my 350A always temporarily loses GPS but recovers within 5 to 10 seconds. I suspect that your 2000 may be locking up your 350A when the signal is lost thus preventing the 350A from doing its' GPS module recovery procedure. Try disconnecting the 2000, do the under-bridge test routine and see if the 350A recovers. Your depth sounder problem sounds like a transducer problem. It may be going South on you.

Joe N · 08-20-2002, 01:10 PM

Thanks for the input, its greatly appreciated. Hopefully the units will run ok throughout the rest of the season.

With respect to customer service, my understanding is that these are old units for Lowrance. They will send you new units for a price but won't fix them. Maybe they are trying to tell me something?

Gil Morgan · 08-20-2002, 02:40 PM

Your right Joe N, I do recall that swap deal for a refurbished 350A was one of their proposals. I could not see losing all of my waypoints and position icons that were in my old 350A, so that deal was a non-starter. The message is loud and clear though, find another unit. I have since bought a Garmin 2006C (great unit) but kept the 350A for the depth sounder. Can hardly read the screen on the 350A and am about to go with the GSV20 depth sounder box for the 2006.