Just the Numbers, Please: A Stand-Alone Sounder Sampling

The Raymarine ST40 and ST60 shine in our test of nine sounders. Smaller and less expensive units from Norcross and Uniden also deserve consideration.

With its large numbers and effective backlighting, the Raymarine ST40, our top choice, can be seen easily in daylight or at night.

Last December we reviewed fishfinders (aka scanning sounders) in Practical Sailor. If you're installing a depthsounder (and through-hull transducer) for the first time, and have space for such an instrument, it makes sense to at least consider a sounder that will paint you a picture of the bottom as well as give you depth numbers and (usually) water temperature—especially because monochrome fishfinders are priced about the same as single-purpose sounders, or even less. (If you're a fisherman as well as a sailor, so much the better.) In a future issue we'll review color fishfinders, too.…