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mackhax0r · (This post was last modified: 05-20-20 02:22 AM by Tom - Raymarine - Moderator.)

Hello! I just got the Dragonfly Pro 5. I love the system and it's perfect for my kayak. However, I'm seeing a lot of noise on the screen. I tested it in a crystal clear river with slow moving current and I tested it on a pond that wasn't super clear, but not bad. In both areas my older Garmin had no issues.

I have it side-mounted on a Ocean Kayak Big Prowler II kayak. I attached screenshots (and pictures) of what the clutter looks like.

I adjusted the contrast and it seems to clear it up but it's definitely not ideal. Tuning the gain definitely fixes it but I'm not sure that is ideal based on what I'm reading.

Thoughts?

***Tom - Raymarine - Moderator*** · 05-20-20, 02:27 AM

Hello mackhax0r,

Is that the default all-Auto setup? If it's not in default all-Auto, what do you get under those conditions?

The Dragonfly is a very sensitive sounder and will pick up weak echoes that other sounders might miss, and if you prefer not to see those echoes then reducing the Gain or increasing the Surface Filter is the right approach on a Dragonfly (Gain works on the whole water column, Surface Filter specifically suppresses near-surface clutter top-down.)

There's a lot more detailed sounder diagnostic info here.

Regards,
Tom

mackhax0r · 05-21-20, 12:38 AM

Hi! Yes, that is 100% default settings. The only way to fix it is to manually adjust the gain. I had the same results in two different ponds. I have not tried salt water yet.

I didn't see the surface filter settings - is that listed in the same area as the gain/contrast?

I did review the diagnostic info - thanks! It's been really cold and windy so I haven't been out to even test things.

***Tom - Raymarine - Moderator*** · 05-21-20, 10:40 PM

Sorry, on a Dragonfly it's called Noise Filter, but yes, it's in the same Sensitivity setup as Gain and Contrast.

Regards,
Tom

mackhax0r · 05-28-20, 01:44 AM

Hi,

Yep - I found it! No change, though. The only setting that makes a different is the gain. It's set to about 15-20%. With the gain turned down I get this weird light bar at the top of the screen.

Could my transducer be defective? It is brand new, this is the first time using it. I received it in November or December.

(screenshot in case attachments didn't work): https://imgur.com/a/8DudSsr)

***Tom - Raymarine - Moderator*** · 05-31-20, 10:45 PM

Hi mackhax0r,

No, your sounder's working fine. The echoes you're seeing on the screen are - with the exception of the surface-clutter band which is in part the 'ringing' of the transducer and is common to all sounders - all real echoes in the water. The Dragonfly is, by design, a very sensitive sounder, capable of picking up details that other and older sounders would likely miss. If the image you're seeing is a little more cluttered than you'd like then you can reduce that by reducing the Gain or increasing the Noise Filter, but that's a personal-preference thing and personally I would always recommend leaving the system in Auto because I feel that it's better to see everything that can be seen and decide for yourself what's an important echo, rather than trying to hide clutter by reducing Gain and potentially also hiding more interesting returns such as the fish on the edge of the transducer beam.

Regards,
Tom