We may earn a commission through products purchased using links on this page. Products or services advertised on this page may be offered by an entity that is affiliated with us. Learn more about our process here.
Daddy by day, fisherman at night.
Simrad excels in the marine technology industry for its top-notch products like GPS devices, chart plotters, autopilots, radar systems, and fish finders.
I like how Simrad creates user-friendly and innovative models ideal for beginners and professional anglers. From my experience, this fish finder works best when using inflatable boats, large boats, and small mariners. This is my review of one of the best Simrad fish finders, the GO9 XSE.
Table of Contents
A Quick Look at Simrad GO9 XSE
| ⭐ Rating: | 4.7 ★★★★★ |
| 💵 Pricing: | Medium |
| 🖥️ Screen size: | 7 inches |
The standout features in the Simrad GO9 XSE include a customizable multi-touch display for easy screen setup and excellent mapping and charting features that aid navigation. Plus, you can link your devices for easy monitoring.
Technical Specifications
- Max Depth: Traditional - 1,000 ft. (200 kHz), Down Scan - 300 ft., Side Scan - 300 ft.
- Sonar Type: CHIRP/SideScan/DownScan Imaging™
- Screen Size: 9 Inches
- Product Dimensions: 9.56 x 6.71 x 3.26 inches
- Display resolution: 800x480 pixels
- Weight: from 2.9 pounds
- Mounting Options: Bracket or Panel
- Touchscreen: Yes
- Display Type: LED
- GPS: Yes
- Wi-Fi: Yes
- Waterproof: Yes (IPX 6 and 7)
The Good
- Plug-and-play connectivity to radar solutions aids productivity and safer cruising.
- Its nine inches display with LED backlighting is easily readable in different weather conditions.
- It features a chart plotting feature to mark waypoints and routes
- Screen mirroring lets you view the fish finder from your phone
The Bad
- Some anglers prefer fish finders with physical buttons, not a full touchscreen display.
- It lacks Genesis live updates.
Simrad GO9 XSE Features That Are Worth Mentioning
Multi-Touch Display
The multi-touch display is one of the key features that professional anglers love about the Simrad GO9 XSE. Operating this fishfinder is similar to how you would use a mobile device. Swipe up and down to view, press and hold to flip between menus, tap and drag waypoints and routes, or pinch the screen in or out to zoom.
C-MAP DISCOVER Charts
The GO9 XSE comes preloaded with C-MAP DISCOVER Charts to ease your navigation. The charts include a high-resolution Bathymetric layer, Full-Featured Vector Charts, Tides & Currents, and Custom Depth Shading.
The high-resolution Bathymetry layer gives detailed and accurate contour lines to 1’ detail. Meanwhile, the Full-Featured Vector Charts help in navigation with their up-to-date vector details.
The Tides & Currents feature shows expected tidal levels and directions when planning your fishing trip Knowing when the tides will rise or fall can increase or decrease your chances of catching game fish.
Connectivity
Gone are days when you would be stuck looking at your fish finder’s display screen all day. The Simrad GO9 XSE has screen mirroring technology, where you monitor and control the fish finder from your mobile device.
The device also has inbuilt-in WiFi and Bluetooth. This wireless connectivity grants you access to the GPS, radar, and charts while sitting, relaxing, or walking on the boat. To enjoy this, simply download the Simrad GoFree app and pair your devices. Once paired, control the fish finder remotely from your mobile device.
The fish finder also connects to an internet hotspot for software updates. This ensures you operate with the latest, advanced features for added functionality.
Additionally, the XSE fish finder allows NMEA 2000 connectivity so you can integrate other marine electronics. This will help you monitor the boat’s speed, fuel efficiency, engine performance, position, and heading.
Active Imaging Transducer
The Active Imaging 3-in-1 Transducer offers unmatched structure imaging than other fish finders. It pinpoints structures where fish love to hide, like drop-offs, fallen logs, rock piles, reefs, and wrecks. And the XSE fish finder does not compromise clarity since you receive this data as high-resolution images.
It features SideScan imaging, DownScan Imaging, and CHIRP Sonar. The DownScan and SideScan use high frequencies for imaging, and both have a range of 300 ft. Meanwhile, CHIRP Sonar sweeps the bottom through multiple frequencies.
The integration of these three systems promotes fish finding and target separation. You won’t waste your time in an area with submerged trash thinking there is fish.
Another interesting feature is the Fish Reveal technology that blends data from DownScan Imaging and CHIRP Sonar to offer crystal-clear images of fish and structures.
HALO20 Radar
The HALO20 radar is perfect for center consoles, cabin cruisers, powerboats, and yachts. This dome radar promotes situational awareness thanks to its 360-degree sweeps per second at short ranges. The radar clearly outlines objects to prevent collision between fast-moving boats and stationary structures.
The radar can also detect targets 24 nautical miles away. And it can simultaneously track up to 20 targets, easing your worry when navigating in bad weather or crowded water.
Simrad has also ensured that the HALO20 radar delivers whenever needed. It only takes seconds, not minutes, to power on, and if the radar is on low-power standby mode, it wakes instantly when prompted.
We love that the latest HALO20 software updates have improved visuals of data and graphics, a new menu for easier controls, new MARPA and AIS targets, and a new safety tool.
What Could Be Better on Simrad GO9 XSE?
The Simrad GO9 XSE packs amazing features leaving little room for criticism. However, we would have loved it if the fish finder had Ethernet compatibility. Additionally, even though the model comes with C-Map charts, it does not support NOAA charts.
Also, the GO9 XSE could be better if it supported Genesis Live mapping. This feature creates maps of depth contours based on live sonar. Anglers have found Genesis Live super helpful in areas without existing maps.
Who Is the Simrad GO9 XSE For?
After reading this Simrad GO9 XSE review, you might be wondering whether this fish finder is what you need. This inexpensive fish finder is suitable for small cruisers, large boats, beginners, and professional mariners.
The Simrad GO9 XSE boasts exceptional navigation features, including C-MAP Discover Charts, HALO20 Radar, sonar support, and Active Imaging Transducer. And it comes with a large display and delivers crisp, well-detailed images of the underwater world.
Award-winning in these categories: