How to Identify Your Lowrance 3-in-1 Transducer
You spent good money on a Lowrance setup, and now your screen looks like a mess and you're not sure if the settings advice you're reading even applies to the transducer you actually own. Same screen, wrong transducer assumed, wrong settings, and that's why nothing on your unit looks the way it does on YouTube.
Lowrance makes five 3-in-1 transducers. They all do 2D, down imaging, and side imaging, but they aren't the same hardware and they don't take the same settings:
- Active Imaging
- Active Imaging HD
- TripleShot
- TripleShot HD
- TotalScan
Here are the three ways to figure out which one you've got. Do all three if you're not sure.
1. Visual inspection
Pull your transducer up out of the water and look at it.
All five Lowrance 3-in-1 transducers have a long, flat, rectangular body. That flat bottom is the side imaging element. If your transducer has that flat surface running along the bottom, you're holding a 3-in-1.
The TotalScan is the odd one out shape-wise. It has either red or blue plastic marking on the top of the mounting hardware.
The TotalScan transducer itself looks like the Active Imaging (non HD). They both have rounded bottoms and are about 6" long. The Active Imaging HD is the same length but has flat sides instead of rounded.
The TripleShot and TripleShot HD are very skinny and long transducers. They are about 1" wide and 6" long. There is no physical difference between them.
2. The part number on the tag near the plug
Run your hand up the transducer cable until you reach the plug end. There's a small white or silver sticker wrapped around the cable a few inches back from the connector. That tag has the model name and a Lowrance part number printed on it.
Here's what to match against:
| Part number | What it is |
|---|---|
| 000-14029-001 | TripleShot (HOOK² / Reveal) |
| 000-16285-001 | TripleShot HD (Eagle) |
| 000-14489-001 | Active Imaging 3-in-1 |
| 000-16062-001 or 000-16061-001 | Active Imaging HD 3-in-1 |
| 000-12568-001 or 000-14257-001 | TotalScan (transom skimmer or thru-hull) |
If your part number doesn't match any of these exactly, type the full number into Google. Lowrance's own product page will tell you exactly what you've got. The tag is the most reliable way to confirm a transducer. The shape can fool you, the part number can't.
3. Check the unit itself
Sometimes the transducer is already in the water and you don't want to pull it just to look. Or the tag is faded from a couple of seasons in the sun. No problem. Your HDS, Elite FS, or Hook Reveal already knows what's plugged in.
On the unit, go to:
Settings > Sonar > Installation > Transducer
You'll see a list of channels. If you've got a 3-in-1 transducer, it should show up on Channel 2. That's the standard mapping for the imaging side of a 3-in-1. Channel 1 handles the 2D ping. Channel 2 is where the down imaging and side imaging elements live.
If Channel 2 is empty or shows the wrong model, your unit isn't seeing the imaging side of the transducer. That's why your down and side screens are blank or look wrong. Could be a bad connection at the plug. Could be the wrong transducer selected from the menu. Pick the correct 3-in-1 model from the dropdown and save.
If the Channel 2 dropdown doesn't have any of the five 3-in-1 options on this list, you don't have a 3-in-1 transducer plugged in, no matter what the box on the boat said when you bought it.
What to do once you know
Once you know which 3-in-1 you're actually running, you can stop guessing on settings. Every Lowrance 3-in-1 transducer has its own sensitivity, contrast, and TVG behavior because the elements are different sizes and the ping frequencies aren't the same. Generic "set everything to halfway" advice doesn't work because the hardware isn't generic.
The dialed-in numbers for your 2D, down imaging, and side imaging screens are inside the 3-in-1 Sonar Bundle. PDF settings guide plus the three video courses covering each imaging type, walked through screen by screen.
— Hugh, Fishfinder Coach
