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Jason Halfen
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We've recently learned about the introduction of Humminbird's Down Imaging for 2010, which will revolutionize the way we see objects that are directly beneath the boat. There are circumstances, however, when a traditional 2-D sonar view is just what an angler needs: identifying small schools of baitfish, finding the thermocline, and so forth.
In 2010, Humminbird brings its exclusive Switchfire technology to the 2-D sonar components of its industry-leading sonar/GPS combos, including the Side Imaging units in the 1100, 900, and 800 series (I'm checking now to see about the 700 series units). Here's a bit about Switchfire, direct from Humminbird:
When you hit the water, you don’t limit yourself to one bait. So why limit your sonar? Exclusive Humminbird® SwitchFire™ Sonar gives you the power to choose how returns are displayed, so you can adjust with the fishing conditions—making our downlooking sonar an even more valuable fishfinding tool.
Max Mode: Watch as the sonar returns explode from the screen in amazing detail. You’ll see the tiniest subsurface object—even thermoclines and water currents—for complete underwater coverage.
Clear Mode: Time Variable Gain (TVG) software sifts through sonar returns to display only fish and structure. Great for fishing in shallow and rough water, or reducing undesired clutter in the water column.
A pair of screen captures, showing Switchfire in Max Mode (left) and Clear Mode (right) are included below.
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Jason Halfen ~ IDO Pro Staff
Guided walleye and smallmouth bass fishing in western Wisconsin:
JasonHalfenOutdoors.com
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Kooty
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Mille Lacs weed fishing in the fall..... 
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I was born in the 70's, grew up in 80's, made my mistakes in 90's now I'm just trying to make up for lost time.
John
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whittsend
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Use Switchfire in combo with the SI to view/track/target the weededge, DI to view any fish/structure you are trolling over and your choice of Navionics or LM mapping capability to really pinpoint your trolling run... WOW. Those Mille Lacs walleyes better watch out!  Throw in an Ipilot, and you might just start to see white flags sticking up through the water surface! 
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Do what you want. This is only an opinion. I'm not here to offer advice or recommendations in any professional capacity whatsoever.
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Nic Habeck
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Isn't this just the same as the TVG setting (ON/OFF) with a fancy name now?
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Nothing makes a fish bigger than almost being caught. ~Author Unknown
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Jason Halfen
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The technology is the same as the current TVG On/Off setting. The terminology and menu structure is much clearer now, such that the user doesn't need to remember if TVG should be on or off to achieve a particular sonar appearance. Max and clear modes should be pretty easy to remember, and if Switchfire is easy to use, more HB owners will actually use it and appreciate its power and applicability.
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Jason Halfen ~ IDO Pro Staff
Guided walleye and smallmouth bass fishing in western Wisconsin:
JasonHalfenOutdoors.com
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whittsend
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When trying to toggle the TVG on/off this year after they added that update, I did find it bulky. It will be nice to have an easier method to do so.
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Do what you want. This is only an opinion. I'm not here to offer advice or recommendations in any professional capacity whatsoever.
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Nic Habeck
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I have used TVG ON/OFF functionality along with different sensitivity and tranducer frequencies every time I am out. If I'm fishing in 10ft of water vs 30ft, my HB is set up totally different. Not sure how hard it is to know the difference between ON/OFF and Max/Clear is, but if it helps people...
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Nothing makes a fish bigger than almost being caught. ~Author Unknown
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Ready. Aim. Switchfire.
