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Rob 1936 · 23-10-2011, 16:27

Has anyone had experience with the SE-200 with Interphase display?

John Webb · 23-10-2011, 17:24

HI,
We have an interphase forward sonar aboard our 48ft Cat with a sender in each hull, we have cruised for the last 14 months through New Caledonia, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Island and back to Australia. We used the sonar with a few problems arising that we eventually sorted.
How can I help?
Regards
John

tiburon · 23-10-2011, 17:29

I have a SE-200B with Interphase display at one helm and video feed to a Garmin chart plotter at the other. It is reliable, works as advertised, and I like it overall.
It is like learning to set up and read a radar, there is a short learning curve.

Roy M · 23-10-2011, 18:01

I have an SE200C on my 40 foot Searunner tri. I love it. About one thousand foot range in deep water, about one hundred inside the harbor. Here are some pics of the transducers.

Rob 1936 · 23-10-2011, 18:18

Thanks for the replies. I replaced an Interphase Probe that was getting old and time for an upgrade. Got the SE-200 with a display and a new thru hull transducer. It is the forward looking model only. Worked fine at the dock, but when going up the British Columbia coast, there would be the bottom and forward profile, but no digital depth readout when the depth was approaching 200 ft. The bottom line would go down to 500+ ft, but no digital. Called Interphase who said impossible. If you can see the bottom, there would be digital. Tried this and that, no cure. Replaced with old Probe which worked fine for the rest of the three month trip, so the transducer seemed ok.
Sent the works back to Interphase who upgraded the software and said the unit is up to specs.
Could not test it in our shallow water. North again this past summer. The first day it had digital down to 500 ft, then no digital, even though there was a bottom line. Called Interphase and sent a cell phone picture of the display, strong line at 200 plus, but no digital. They sent a new SE-200 to a town up the coast. Installed, and the same problem. Used the old Probe once more.
Interphase is working on it.
My question is whether the digital works for anyone in 200+ ft.
There are many rocks and quickly changing depths up here, so you want to see ahead and quickly see the depth. The digital readout is essential.

tiburon · 23-10-2011, 18:39

My SE-200B is only good as a digital depth sounder in under 300 feet, normally blanks out by 200 feet. I never thought this was strange as it uses a 200 kHz transducer array.

webejammin · 23-10-2011, 20:19

Do these units see flotsom floating on the surface like shipping containers?

tiburon · 23-10-2011, 20:53

I would expect not at all, except in maybe in flat, flat seas.

Expecting a shipping container to be say 6' to 8' below the surface it would be blocked out by surface clutter from wave action on the vertical scan.

Would not expect to see it on horizontal scan because the beam angles down so it would not be scanning near the surface except right in front of the boat.

Now if the shipping container is floating 20' to 40' below the surface, no problem, but it might be mistaken for a big fish, like a whale. Of course if it is 20' to 40' feet down who cares.

I find that it helps avoid hitting whales, shoals, and rocks, more then shipping containers.

Just an opinion ,

John Webb · 23-10-2011, 21:00

Hi Webejammin,
In a perfect world the Sonar will pick up large floating objects like shipping containers, but I would think in all honesty these items are in the open ocean and from my experience one would have to stare at the display as the alarm seems to go off in any rough water conditions. I have used the sonar in the majority of cases to pick out safe passage through reef and to display the bottom contours in areas where it is easy to get caught out by a sharp rising rocky outcrop.
As you are aware the speeds attainable in strong winds with a catamaran makes it imperative to scan ahead with the eyes as there would not be enough time to take evasive action using the alarms that are on my 2 year old sonar unit, maybe the newer models are more effective.
John

Rob 1936 · 24-10-2011, 12:05

If one is forced to travel at night in smaller boats, radar is essential. A forward looking sonar can not be depended upon to detect floating objects.
A 200 kHz transducer will detect the bottom in depths well over 300 ft.

Roy M · 25-10-2011, 20:56

The beam of the unit can be adjusted, but if you think about it, it's still looking at an angle in horizontal mode, and for that matter, in vertical mode. At slow speeds, in deep water, with minimal seas, it can see further than when things are faster and rougher. Those who require more precise instrumentation to determine what's ahead should probably invest in new glasses, and perhaps infrared cameras. Radar is good, also. The point is not to put down the available technology, but to use what's available (or affordable). Remember that line from the Coast Guard regs about maintaining, at all times, and by all means available, a good lookout. FLS by Interphase is the best unit I've found for my wallet for the moment. It beats my other options. The only things I'd really like, more, is a good FLIR, a pair of gyro binoculars, and side scan sonar (800 kHz).

Rob 1936 · 26-10-2011, 09:42

Hi Roy M
This thread went off course at the shipping container post.
My problem with the SE200 is that while maintaining a strong bottom profile to depths of 500-600 ft, the digital depth [number] is lost at depths greater than 200 ft.
Are others having the same problem. Tiburon apparently does.
The forward looking function is excellent.

Roy M · 26-10-2011, 20:05

Sorry. I missed that direction. Actually, I also run the Raymarine DSM 30 simultaneously (that's the most forward transducer in the earlier photos) so I guess I haven't paid attention to the digital depth.