I will be buying new electronics for my Nitro Z7 soon. I have been studying each of the four main brands of electronics; Garmin, Hummingbird, Lowrance and Raymarine. I fish in murky, shallow waters of south Arkansas so I have been told I do not need to go all-in on big electronics since electronics are not used much here. I would like to fish some of the bigger lakes in the southeast when I get a chance so I want something I can put maps on with GPS. I know I want down scan and I might as well get side scan while I am at it. I also would like to link/network the bow and console units. I am on the Garmin board because I am leaning that way with the Echomap 73SV at the console and maybe the Striker 7SV up front. A couple of questions; 1) Can these two units be linked/networked together (and what exactly does that mean) to allow marking way points, etc? Is the Striker 7SV capable of loading one of the map offerings on it? Lastly, should CHIRP be a deal breaker? Is it that much better than traditional sonar? I know this is a lengthy post, but I am need of some advice. I have never had to worry about this kind of purchase before. Thank you all in advance for your replies.

Dave