Humminbird 515, 500 series specification

Hydrodynamic noise can be overcome by proper transducer installation. Many Humminbird® products have a Noise Filter menu setting that allows the user to clear the screen of noise that is difficult to eliminate.

Pixels: Pixels are the "picture elements", or small square blocks, that make up the image on the LCD. Measured as a vertical by horizontal number (i.e. 640 V x 320 H), this key specification typically indicates the quality of resolution. In fishfinders, the total resolution (vertical multiplied by horizontal) is often less important than the "Vertical Pixel" resolution. See Pixels, Vertical.

Pixels, Vertical: Vertical Pixels are a number of vertical picture elements in a single column on an LCD display. A greater number of vertical pixels provide finer resolution of targets detected by sonar. Essentially, a vertical distance (the depth), when divided by a larger number, breaks that distance into smaller samples, each representing a smaller area and thus providing more detail. In fishfinders, vertical pixels are more critical than horizontal pixels because the horizontal axis of the display represents time, or history. Sonar information on the horizontal axis can vary greatly, depending on boat speed and the Chart Speed setting. A greater number of horizontal pixels show more sonar history that the boat has passed through. On many models, Humminbird® provides the most vertical pixels to provide a better display resolution. See Chart Speed and Pixels.

Power Output: Power output is the amount of sound energy emitted into the water by the sonar transmitter. Power output is measured using either RMS (Root Mean Square) or P-T-P (Peak-to-Peak) measurement systems. Either method is acceptable, but it is important, when comparing power outputs, to make sure that the same measurement system is being used for both outputs, because P-T-P numbers are 8 times higher than RMS numbers. Greater power output allows the sonar signal to penetrate through weeds and thermoclines, reach deeper depths and operate more effectively in noisy environments, such as when the boat is running at high speed.

Pulse Width (Pulse Length): Pulse Width is the length of time that a sonar sound burst is transmitted into the water. Shorter pulse widths provide better target separation, but cannot travel to great depths. Longer pulse widths provide better depth penetration, but result in poorer target separation. Humminbird® varies pulse width based on depth to optimize both target separation and depth performance. See Target Separation.