Garmin 160C User Manual

Fishfinder 160C

color sonar

owner’s manual

®

© Copyright 2006 Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries

Garmin International, Inc.
1200 East 151st Street,
Olathe, Kansas 66062, USA
Tel. [phone] or 800/800.1020
Fax [phone]

All rights reserved. Except as expressly provided herein, no part of this manual may be reproduced, copied, transmitted, disseminated,
downloaded or stored in any storage medium, for any purpose without the express prior written consent of Garmin. Garmin hereby grants
permission to download a single copy of this manual onto a hard drive or other electronic storage medium to be viewed and to print one
copy of this manual or of any revision hereto, provided that such electronic or printed copy of this manual must contain the complete text
of this copyright notice and provided further that any unauthorized commercial distribution of this manual or any revision hereto is strictly
prohibited.

Information in this document is subject to change without notice. Garmin reserves the right to change or improve its products and to make changes in the content
without obligation to notify any person or organization of such changes or improvements. Visit the Garmin Web site (www.garmin.com) for current updates and
supplemental information concerning the use and operation of this and other Garmin products.

Garmin See-Thru®, and Ultrascrolltm are trademarks or registered trademarks of Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries and may not be used without the express permission
of Garmin.

Garmin (Europe) Ltd.
Unit 5, The Quadrangle, Abbey Park Industrial Estate,
Romsey, SO51 9DL, UK
Tel. [phone] (outside the UK)
0808 2380000 (UK only)
Fax [phone]

Garmin Corporation
No. 68, Jangshu 2nd Road, Shijr, Taipei County,
Taiwan
Tel. [phone]
Fax [phone]

October 2006 Part Number 190-00532-00 Rev. C Printed in Taiwan

INTRODUCTION > ABOUT THIS MANUAL

INTRODUCTION

Thank you for choosing the Garmin
Fishfinder 160C is a color sonar that offers many features, including
the following:

• Ultrascroll

™

, which gives you a much faster update rate on

your Sonar Pages.

• Auto Gain, which allows you to see more fish and structures.

• Whiteline, which helps you to interpret bottom hardness.

• 2x and 4x manual zoom.

• Adjustable keel offset.

• Alarms for shallow water, deep water, low battery, and
suspended target detection.

• NMEA sonar data output.

®

Fishfinder 160C. The

About This Manual

This manual covers the installation and operation of the Fishfinder
160C. To get the most out of your new Fishfinder, take time to read
this manual and learn the operating procedures for your unit in
detail.

The Introduction contains information about this manual and the
Table of Contents.

The Getting Started section contains general information about
your Fishfinder and sonar.

The Installation Instructions contain the information needed to
properly install and care for the Fishfinder 160C.

The Operating Instructions contain information about the
operation of the Fishfinder 160C.

The Appendix contains information such as specifications, license
requirements and warranty information.

The Index helps you find information quickly.

Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual i

INTRODUCTION > TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction ...........................................................................i

About This Manual ................................................................... i

Product Registration .............................................................. iii

Contact Garmin .............................................................................. iii

Caring for the Fishfinder 160C .............................................. iii

Caring for the Screen .....................................................................iii

Warnings ................................................................................. iv

Important Information ............................................................ iv

Getting Started .....................................................................1

Understanding the Fishfinder and Sonar .............................. 1

Understanding Sonar ......................................................................1

Understanding the Fishfinder Screen .............................................. 1

Using Dual Beam ............................................................................ 2

Whiteline ........................................................................................ 3

Thermoclines .................................................................................. 3

Installing the Fishfinder 160C ............................................4

Packing List ............................................................................. 4

Unit Installation ....................................................................... 5

Transducer Installation ........................................................... 6

Selecting a Transom Mount Location ............................................. 7

Mounting the Transducer on a Transom ......................................... 8

Mounting the Transducer on a Trolling Motor ............................... 9

Testing the Transom Mount Installation ....................................... 10

Installing the Wiring Harness ............................................... 10

Using the Fishfinder 160C ................................................12

Simulator Mode ..................................................................... 12

The Keypad ............................................................................ 12

The Fishfinder 160C Display ................................................ 13

The Adjustment Bar .............................................................. 14

Range ............................................................................................ 14

Gain .............................................................................................. 14

Scroll ............................................................................................. 14

Zoom ............................................................................................. 15

View .............................................................................................. 15

The Setup Menu ..................................................................... 15

Alarms .......................................................................................... 15

Graph ............................................................................................ 16

Numbers ........................................................................................ 18

Units .............................................................................................. 20

System .......................................................................................... 20

Appendix ............................................................................22

Specifications ........................................................................ 22

Physical Specifications ................................................................. 22

Power ............................................................................................ 22

Sonar ............................................................................................. 22

Limited Warranty ................................................................... 23

Software License Agreement ............................................... 24

Declaration of Conformity (DoC) ......................................... 24

Index ...................................................................................25

ii Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual

INTRODUCTION > PRODUCT REGISTRATION AND CARING FOR THE FISHFINDER 160C

Product Registration

Help us better support you by completing our online registration
today! Connect to our Web site at www.garmin.com/registration/.

Use this area to record the serial number (8-digit number located on
the back of the Fishfinder 160C) in case your Fishfinder 160C needs
service. Keep the original sales receipt, or a photocopy, in a safe
place.

Serial Number: ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ __

Caring for the Fishfinder 160C

The Fishfinder 160C's case is constructed of high-quality materials
and does not require user maintenance except cleaning.

Caring for the Screen

The Fishfinder 160C's lens is coated with a special anti-reflective coating that
is sensitive to skin oils, waxes and abbrasive cleaners. Cleaners containing
amonia, alcohol, abrasives, or anti-grease detergents will harm the anti­reflective coating. It is important to clean the lens using an eyeglass lens
cleaner (that is specified as safe for anti-reflective coatings) and a clean, lint­free cloth.

Contact Garmin

Contact Garmin if you have any questions while using your
Fishfinder 160C. In the USA contact Garmin Product Support by
phone: [phone] or [phone], Monday–Friday, 8 AM–5
PM Central Time; or go to www.garmin.com/support/, and click
Product Support.

In Europe, contact Garmin (Europe) Ltd. at
+44 (0) 870.8501241 (outside the UK) or
0808 2380000 (within the UK).

Tell Us What You Think

Tell us how you like this manual! Fill out the Product
Documentation Survey. Go to www.garmin.com/contactUs/, and
click Product Documentation Survey.

Cleaning the Case

Clean the unit’s outer casing (except for the screen) using a cloth dampened
with a mild detergent solution, and then wipe dry. Avoid chemical cleaners and
solvents that may damage plastic components.

Water Immersion

The Fishfinder 160C is waterproof to IEC Standard 60529 IPX7. It can
withstand immersion in 1 meter of water for 30 minutes. Prolonged submersion
can cause damage to the unit. After submersion, be certain to wipe and air dry
the unit before reuse.

Storage

Do not store the Fishfinder 160C where prolonged exposure to temperature
extremes may occur (such as in the trunk of a car) because permanent damage
may result.

Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual iii

INTRODUCTION > WARNINGS AND IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Important Information

Warnings

WARNING: This product, its packaging, and its components
contain chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer,
birth defects, or reproductive harm. This Notice is being provided
in accordance with California’s Proposition 65. If you have any
questions or would like additional information, please refer to our
Web site at http://www.garmin.com/prop65.

Hg

- LAMP(S) INSIDE THIS PRODUCT MAY CONTAIN

MERCURY AND MUST BE RECYCLED OR DISPOSED OF
ACCORDING TO LOCAL, STATE, OR FEDERAL LAWS.

The California Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003 requires the recycling

of certain electronics. For more information on the applicability to this product,
see www.erecycle.org.

iv Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual

GETTING STARTED > UNDERSTANDING THE FISHFINDER AND SONAR

GETTING STARTED

Understanding the Fishfinder and Sonar

The Fishfinder 160C is a fully automatic, color sonar unit that allows
you to go out on the water and find fish without having to configure a
lot of settings. However, you can customize each setting as you prefer.

If you have used a Fishfinder before, you might already know how
to interpret the sonar information on the screen, so you can skip this
section. If you have not used a Fishfinder before, you might want to
learn a bit about sonar: what it is, how it works, and what you might
see on the Fishfinder 160C screen. This manual provides a general
understanding of those things that you need to know about sonar that
can help you interpret the screen and find the fish.

Understanding Sonar

During installation, you connect your Fishfinder 160C to a
transducer. The transducer uses sound to determine information
about what is in the water beneath your boat. Then the transducer
sends the information to your Fishfinder to be shown on the screen
for you to view and interpret.

The transducer sends sound waves down into the water in a cone
shape, similar to a flashlight beam (covering a smaller circular area
at the top and angling out to a larger circular area at the bottom).

These sound waves reflect off of any object that they hit, and then
the waves travel back up to the transducer. These objects could
be fish, branches, the bottom, or any other object that has density
that is different from the water. The transducer receives the
wave information, and then sends the information to the Fishfinder.
The Fishfinder shows the information on the screen for you to see
and interpret. The type of transducer and settings that you choose
determine how the information appears on the screen.

Understanding the Fishfinder Screen

Experimentation and experience are the keys to successfully
interpreting your Fishfinder screen. We recommend that you take
your Fishfinder out on familiar water, and spend time learning to
interpret what you see on the Fishfinder 160C screen.

Think of the Fishfinder screen as if you took a picture from the side
of an aquarium in your home. You can see how deep a fish is in
the water (how close it is to the top or bottom), but you cannot tell
where the fish is located horizontally in the water (whether it is near
the front or the back of the aquarium). Remember this when you are
trying to locate exactly where something is in the water.

The strongest sonar returns appear on your screen as the most
intense solid red. The weaker returns appear as less intense, less
solid colors,with dark blue to black being the weakest.

sound

Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual 1

GETTING STARTED > UNDERSTANDING THE FISHFINDER AND SONAR

The bottom of the water is always going to be the strongest signal,
and therefore the bottom is the continuous, intense red line running
across the bottom of the screen. The Fishfinder 160C includes the
latest technology in interpreting bottom signals; it can see through
fish, structures, and thermoclines (see page 3). Even so, large
schools of fish or dense structures close to the bottom can affect
water depth return readings.

Along the top of the screen, you might see a grouping of intense

Using Dual Beam

A dual beam transducer can transmit a narrow or a wide beam. The
water area covered by the transmitted sound waves is determined by
the transducer beam width and the water depth. The narrow beam
provides crisp detail of what is under your boat, and is very helpful
if you are fishing in deeper water where the beam covers more area
(for example, at a depth of 30 feet, the narrow beam covers the area
of about a 7-foot circle).

colors. This area is surface clutter, which can be caused by waves or
any other sonar interference at the surface of the water. Too much
surface clutter can obscure your view of fish. You can turn down the
Gain setting to reduce this surface clutter.

Between the bottom and the surface clutter, you may see suspended
targets. By default, the targets appear as

NOTE: Suspended target returns might not always appear

as perfect arches, due to the speed, fish orientation, or other
conditions.

arches.

You can turn on the Fish Symbols setting if you want to see
suspended targets indicated by fish shapes instead of arches.

The wide beam is more helpful in shallow water, because it gives
you a much wider view of objects in the water, including areas
beyond the sides of your boat. At a depth of 30 feet, the wide beam
covers the area of approximately a 20-foot circle.

Narrow

Beam

Wide

Beam

2 Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual

GETTING STARTED > UNDERSTANDING THE FISHFINDER AND SONAR

Whiteline

The Fishfinder 160C can help you to determine if the bottom is hard
or soft. When the sonar sound waves are reflected back by the bottom,
a hard bottom returns a stronger signal than a soft bottom. A thin
whiteline indicates a softer bottom while a thick whiteline indicates
a harder bottom. Normally, a red line shows the point where water
meets the bottom. This line follows the bottom contour, along with

Thermoclines

Garmin’s See-Thru technology allows the Fishfinder 160C to “see”
through thermoclines and helps locate fish where they live; and fish
love thermoclines!

A rough definition of a thermocline is a break in water where the
water temperature changes faster than the water above it.

any significant objects lying on the bottom. The unit uses the whiteline
function to make the bottom layer information easier to distinguish.

With the Fishfinder 160C, active whiteline helps accentuate where
strong signals are located, which makes bottom type determination
easier. The example below shows the bottom return with and without
the whiteline activated.

Thermocline

Whiteline

Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual 3

Hard Bottom

Soft Bottom

Whiteline Turned Off

INSTALLING THE FISHFINDER 160C > PACKING LIST

ENTER

MENU

INSTALLING THE FISHFINDER 160C

Read these instructions before attempting installation. Make sure

H

you completely understand these instructions before you begin.
When in doubt, seek professional assistance.

Be sure the wiring harness reaches the unit and transducer location
before beginning installation. The Garmin Fishfinder 160C hardware
allows for installation on either the transom or trolling motor. Check
the packing list below. If you are missing any items, contact your

A

E

I

J

M

N

Garmin dealer.

D

Packing List

A–Fishfinder 160C Sonar Unit (1)
B–Swivel Mount Bracket (1)
C–Swivel Base (1)
D–Mounting Knobs- Short, Long (1ea)
E–Mounting Knob Spacer (1)
F–Transducer With Power Cable (1)
G–Transducer Mount (1)
H–Trolling Motor Mount Gasket (1)
I–5 mm Flat Washers (2)
J–4 x 12 mm Screws (4)

4 Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual

K–10-32 Lock Nut (1)
L–5 x 30 mm Screws (2)
M–10-32 x 1.75 Screw (1)
N–1/4" Cable Clamps (2)
O–Plastic Spacer (1)
P–1/4" Rubber Washer (1)
Q–Cable Tie, 5.6" (4)
R–Cable Tie, 20" (1)
S–Power/Data Cable
(not shown)

(Cable not shown)

B

C

G

F

K

L

O

P

Q

R

Unit Installation

Choose a location that provides optimal viewing and allows easy
access to the unit’s keypad. Select a mounting surface strong enough
to support the weight of the unit and protect it from excessive
vibration or shock. DO NOT mount the bracket in a location where
the unit is exposed to extreme temperature conditions. When
installing the mounting bracket, be sure to allow room for the
connection and routing of the power cable.

INSTALLING THE FISHFINDER 160C > UNIT INSTALLATION

Mounting Holes

Tool List (not included)

—drill, screwdriver (Phillips or standard),
three #8 pan-head machine bolts with matching nuts and washers,
and a 5/32" drill bit, OR three #8 pan head self-tapping screws, and

Swivel Base

a 1/16" drill bit.

To mount the bracket assembly:

1. Using the swivel base as a template, mark the location of the
three mounting holes.

2. If securing the base with machine bolts, drill three 5/32" holes
at the locations you marked. If securing the base using self­tapping screws, drill 1/16" starter holes at the locations you
marked. Generally, starter holes should be no deeper than
half the screw length.

3. Secure the swivel base with three bolts or screws. DO NOT
OVERTIGHTEN.

4. Attach the swivel bracket and secure it with the short knob.

Fishfinder 160C Owner’s Manual 5

Short Knob

Swivel Bracket and Base