What Humminbird Works With MEGA Live Imaging? (2023 List)

UPDATED 17 MAY 2023

by Robert Ceran

Are you thinking of getting Humminbird MEGA Live imaging for your boat?

In that case one of the first questions you need to address is which Humminbird units are compatible with MEGA Live, and if you already have a compatible unit, or need to buy a new one.

In this article we’ll walk you through all MEGA Live compatible units, as well as the additional components you’ll need in order to run Humminbird Live.

We’ll also cover how to connect your MEGA Live, and how to run it together with MEGA 360, so you can decide what setup works best for your situation.

What units are compatible with Humminbird Live?

The following units are compatible with Humminbird Live imaging: all Apex units, all Solix units, G3N Helix 8 – 12 units with MEGA DI or MEGA SI, and G4N Helix 7 – 15 with MEGA DI or MEGA SI.

Note that all of these units have MEGA imaging functionality (either MEGA side imaging or down imaging) which is essential for Humminbird Live compatibility.

List of Humminbird MEGA Live compatible units

Here is a list of all Humminbird Live compatible units:

Helix 7

Helix 7 CHIRP MEGA DI GPS G4N
Helix 7 CHIRP MEGA DI GPS G4N CHO
Helix 7 CHIRP MEGA SI GPS G4N

Helix 8

Helix 8 CHIRP MEGA DI GPS G4N
Helix 8 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N
Helix 8 CHIRP MEGA DI GPS G4N CHO
Helix 8 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N CHO
Helix 8 CHIRP MEGA DI GPS G3N
Helix 8 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3N
Helix 8 CHIRP MEGA DI GPS G3N CHO
Helix 8 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3N CHO

Helix 9

Helix 9 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G4N
Helix 9 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G4N CHO
Helix 9 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N
Helix 9 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N CHO
Helix 9 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G3N
Helix 9 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G3N CHO
Helix 9 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3N
Helix 9 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3N CHO

Helix 10

Helix 10 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G4N
Helix 10 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G4N CHO
Helix 10 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N
Helix 10 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N CHO
Helix 10 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G3N
Helix 10 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G3N CHO
Helix 10 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3N
Helix 10 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3N CHO

Helix 12

Helix 12 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G4N
Helix 12 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G4N CHO
Helix 12 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N
Helix 12 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N CHO
Helix 12 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G3N
Helix 12 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G3N CHO
Helix 12 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3N
Helix 12 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3N CHO

Helix 15

Helix 15 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G4N CHO
Helix 15 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N
Helix 15 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G4N CHO

Solix 10

Solix 10 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3
Solix 10 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3 CHO
Solix 10 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G2 CHO
Solix 10 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G2
Solix 10 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G2 CHO

Solix 12

Solix 12 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3
Solix 12 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3 CHO
Solix 12 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G2 CHO
Solix 12 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G2
Solix 12 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G2 CHO

Solix 15

Solix 15 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3
Solix 15 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G3 CHO
Solix 15 CHIRP MEGA DI+ GPS G2 CHO
Solix 15 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G2
Solix 15 CHIRP MEGA SI+ GPS G2 CHO

Apex 13

Apex 13 MEGA SI+ CHARTPLOTTER
Apex 13 MEGA SI+ CHARTPLOTTER CHO

Apex 16

Apex 16 MEGA SI+ CHARTPLOTTER
Apex 16 MEGA SI+ CHARTPLOTTER CHO

Apex 19

Apex 19 MEGA SI+ CHARTPLOTTER
Apex 19 MEGA SI+ CHARTPLOTTER CHO

Is Humminbird MEGA Live compatible with Helix 7?

Yes, Humminbird MEGA Live is compatible with G4N Helix 7 units that have MEGA SI or MEGA DI functionality. However, it is not compatible with Helix 7 units that are G3N or older.

When it comes to G3N Helix units, Humminbird Live only works with Helix 8 or larger. This makes sense, given that the live sonar image of MEGA Live can be hard to see on a screen smaller than 8 inches.

So ideally, you’ll want to have as much screen real estate as possible in order to take full advantage of MEGA Live imaging, and a 7 inch screen tends to be a little too small for that.

If you’re currently debating which live sonar to get, check out our article on Humminbird MEGA Live vs Garmin LiveScope.

What do you need to run Humminbird Live?

In order to run Humminbird Live imaging, you need the following components:

MEGA Live transducer
A compatible fish finder unit
An ethernet switch (optional)
A trolling motor (or pole mount) on which to mount the transducer

If you already have a Humminbird Live compatible fish finder unit plus a trolling motor, you just need to get a MEGA Live transducer in order to run Humminbird Live imaging on your boat.

The ethernet switch is optional, since you can plug the ethernet cable of the MEGA Live transducer directly into your fish finder head unit if you’re using a Solix or Apex unit.

If you want to do this with a Helix unit, however, you’ll need a Humminbird ethernet adapter cable to plug it into the fish finder unit.

With that being said, a multi-port ethernet switch is nice to have if you want to use several transducers at the same time, or if you want to run MEGA 360 and MEGA Live at the same time.

If you’re also planning to run 360 imaging on your boat, check out our article on what units work with Humminbird MEGA 360 imaging?

What’s in the box when you buy Humminbird MEGA Live?

When you buy the MEGA Live transducer kit, it comes with the following components in the box:

MEGA Live transducer
Power cable (10’)
Ethernet cable (20’)
Mounting bracket for trolling motor shaft
Power Choke
Foam Sonar Masks

Keep in mind that you can also mount the MEGA Live transducer on a transducer pole instead of your trolling motor shaft, which comes with the advantage that it allows you to control transducer orientation independently of your trolling motor.

If you want to do this, you’ll need to buy the transducer pole separately, but once you have it you can mount the MEGA Live transducer on the pole using the same trolling motor mounting bracket that comes in the box.

How do you connect MEGA Live?

In order to connect MEGA Live, plug the ethernet cable of the MEGA Live transducer directly into the back of an Apex or Solix unit, or, if you’re using a Helix, use an ethernet adapter cable to plug it into the back of the unit.

An alternative option is to plug the transducer ethernet cable into an ethernet switch made by Humminbird, and then plug the switch into your fish finder control unit.

This comes with the advantage that it allows you to use several different transducers at the same time.

Can you run MEGA 360 and MEGA Live at the same time?

Yes, you can run MEGA 360 and MEGA Live imaging at the same time, and this is routinely done by many professional anglers, since it allows you to combine the strengths of live sonar and 360 sonar at the same time.

In order to set this up, it’s necessary to plug both the MEGA 360 and MEGA Live transducer into a Humminbird ethernet switch, which is then connected to your fish finder unit.