Hummingbird problem

[The Wicker Man]

I have an old Hummingbird wide 100 portable that runs off two 6 volt batteries that I use for remote trips. When checking it out this year I found that when I power it on it doesn't show a bottom and makes a distinct "clicking" noise from the transducer that you can hear and feel.
Has anybody else had this problem?

[Larry]

The "clicking noise" is normal operation that can be observed on almost any transducer. When you say that you were checking it out.....does that mean you had the transducer in the water and not just pointed at the ground ??

[Greg Walters]

The Wicker Man,

Larry is correct in that it is quite common to hear a clicking noise coming from the transducer. This is the transmit pulse of the depth sounder 'pinging' the transducer element. Some people can hear it, some can't. If you have tried your Wide 100 with the transducer in the water and get no bottom reading try the following:

1.) Check the voltage from the batteries while the depth sounder is running. Check to make sure that you are getting at least 10 volts when checking across both batteries. With the portable case facing you, I believe you should be able to check this by connecting a voltmeter to the silver battery tab on the far left (+) and the silver battery tab second from the right (-). You may be getting enough voltage to power on the Wide 100 but not enough to fully fire the transmitter.

2.) Check your Wide 100 on someone else's transducer/boat. If you know of someone that has a Wide 100 on their boat, try running your Wide 100 to see if it works correctly. If it does, this shows that either you have weak batteries (see above) or a bad transducer. If it doesn't work correctly, it shows that there is a problem with the control head. If the problem is in your transducer, send it in to us to be serviced, it will be less expensive than buying a new one. A new transducer for your Wide 100 (model XPT-6-24) costs $44.95 from us. The service charge for your XPT-6-24 transducer is $34. The service charge for your Wide 100 control head is $54. The service charge is the same if you send in your Wide 100 control head only, or your Wide 100 control head and transducer. So if you have to send in your Wide 100 control head, send your transducer too! Of coarse, there are shipping and handling charges for all of these too. Here is the address of our Service Department:

Service Department
Techsonic Industries, Inc.
108 Maple Lane
Eufaula, AL. 36027

In case you need it, here is our Customer Support number: (334) 687-0503.

If you cannot check these, send both your Wide 100 control head and transducer in for servicing. Always be sure to include a note explaining the problem, a return address, and any special shipping instructions.


Best regards,

Greg Walters
Product Test and Calibration Technician
Techsonic Industries
greg.walters@techsonic.com