Originally Posted by
MikeP
Just like someone could argue that a .22 rifle sucks compared to a .375H&H the issue is simply, "what is the application?" Are you going to shoot rabbits to eat or grizzly bears to hang on the wall?
Their are several Airmar in-hull transducers. They vary in power and can shoot thorough a 1" thick FG hull and accurately measure max depth from 400 ft to nearly 1400 ft depending on the unit (deeper if the hull is thinner). Garmin lists the relevant transducers on their own website and recommends the in hulls for depth (only) information. Based on Airmar's recommendations I installed the Airmar P79, their second lowest power unit and, as I noted, the in-hull/through hull depth readings are identical at all depths I have encountered in the CHes Bay.
A search of the cruising and other boat forums will reveal that in-hulls are used by by operators of boats from 15 feet to beyond 70. You will even find sites of serious fisherman showing excellent bottom/fish data on the screen supplied by in-hull transducers even though they are not recommended for that purpose by chartlplotter makers such as Garmin.
If you are concerned about conflicting opinions as far as decision-making, just do some general research - thankfully very easy to do nowadays - and decide what will work for your application. Searching more than one site is useful because you get a much broader spectrum. Single sites sometimes have the "usual suspects" personality-wise and this stuff can often turn into a Ford vs Chevy vs Mopar thing. OTOH, understanding personalities/likes/dislikes can help as well. Just as knowing you always agree with person X is helpful, so is knowing you always disagree with person Y. You can make a decision that works for you based on either result!
( Mopars of course! ;)