I have never tried to do this, not sure what SD card to buy. Will someone help guide me in the right direction please.

I would just buy the Lakemaster. Very detailed.

Lakemaster is the one that I use and recommend as well!

Buy a LakeMaster and a Navionics and use both of them. LakeMaster is great for the contours and details. Navionics shows more of the Docks and Marinas (Cover)

Hate to spend your money for you but I’m another vote for having both chips if you can afford both. Really varies from lake to lake as to which is better: Lakemaster or Navionics. I’m old school now with 997 and 1199 Humminbirds and I keep a Navionics Platinum South chip and a Lakemaster MidSouth chip both plugged into the two slots in my console 1199. Just click on either port to pick the best map for that particular lake!

Same for me. Navionics shows creek channels, but Lakemaster doesn't, but Lakemaster does things Navionics doesnt.

The newer lakemaster chip isn't as good as the older one, IMO

the older one has a lot more creek channels than newer one


bigger price tag and bigger disappointment

Do you recall the oldest version that you think had the best and most detail?

I had the same problem with a Lakemaster, I love my V2 for Fork, creeks everywhere, Big Mustang, Little Mustang, Williams etc.
However when I got a V4 for a new unit I noticed many, many creeks were not shown !
I got into a big e-mail back and forth with Lakemaster. At first they called me a liar in that the V's were both the same, with the V4
being more current with updates. I had to take screen shots of places where the creeks were on the V2, and missing on the V4.
Finally after talking to the guy in charge he told me that all the creeks that were now missing on the V4 "were silted in" and can
no longer be seen when they updated,...thats bull. Theyre still there cause you can see them when you cross over them...
So if anyone has an older vol 2, I swap ya for a Vol 4...jim

Since no one has answered your question, I will.

Units with Auto Chart Live have up to 8 hours of internal memory for creating HD contour mapping.
After that 8 hours, you have the choice of deleting the data or copying it to a Zero Line Card, then you get 8 more hours of Auto Chart Live.
You can leave the Zero Line Card in the unit to record the data directly to it, and have enough memory for the rest of your life. The card has millions of zero lines (shorelines). Auto Chart Live data is overlayed on whatever mapping background you have, Lakemaster, Navionics, or built-in mapping. When you play it back it is still an overlay.

You can also do RECORD which will record sonar logs to a regular memory card up to a 32 GB capacity. You can process that data via the computer software Auto Chart or Auto Chart Pro. When the data is processed, you then copy it to the included Zero Line Card and it will be read by the unit as Lakemaster==same settings.
Units that don't have built-in Auto Chart Live can do that also.