Humminbird APEX 19 VX MSI+ Chartplotter with Transom Transducer

The APEX 19 VX MSI+ is the flagship 18.5-inch Humminbird chartplotter bundled with the XM 14 HW MSI T transom-mount transducer in the same box. The VX designation means you get a complete fishing kit on day one: the chartplotter, the transducer, the mounting hardware, and the cables. For boats getting their first MEGA Imaging+ setup, this is the right SKU compared to the CHO (Control Head Only) version. The CHO is for upgrading from an existing Humminbird system that already has the network transducer in place.

The chartplotter is what justifies the upgrade. The 18.5-inch full-HD IPS panel at 1920 by 1080 resolution gives you usable real estate to actually run MEGA Side Imaging at full detail next to a chart and a sonar window without any of them being too small to read. The Cross Touch interface accepts both touchscreen swipes and physical keypad inputs, which is the right answer for a chartplotter that lives at the bow with wet hands and gloves. Touch handles waypoint placement and pan-and-zoom, while the keys handle the operations that need to work reliably regardless of conditions. The dual-core processor keeps everything responsive when you stack multiple sonar feeds and chart overlays on the same screen.

The included XM 14 HW MSI T transducer is the transom-mount all-in-one. The T suffix is transom mount, the HW is high-wide CHIRP, the MSI is MEGA Side Imaging + Down Imaging. The transducer covers beam angles from 20 degrees to 86 degrees depending on the sonar mode, which is the right range for both shallow-water structure imaging and bottom finding at moderate depths. Side Imaging+ pushes the picture out to 250 feet per side at high detail. Down Imaging+ shows the same picture directly below the boat. Dual Spectrum CHIRP runs the conventional fish-arch sonar with target separation that distinguishes individual fish in a tight school from rocks, weeds, or bottom structure. The included transducer covers all of these sonar modes from a single transom-mount housing.

For boats that want deeper sonar capability, the APEX 19 has a dedicated 2kW transducer port for offshore CHIRP work. You'd plug a high-power 2D transducer into that port for bottom finding past 1,000 feet, alongside the included transducer doing the MEGA Imaging work. The dual-sonar-channel architecture means both transducers work at the same time, which is what serious offshore captains run when they fish structure in deep water. The MEGA Live forward-looking real-time sonar and MEGA 360 Imaging full-circle structure view are also supported through the network connections (transducers sold separately) if you want to add them later.

One-Boat Network is the integration ecosystem that turns this chartplotter from a standalone into the brain of a connected helm. Dual Ethernet ports let you network multiple APEX heads at different stations and share sonar history, waypoints, and routes between them. Bluetooth links to compatible Talon and Raptor shallow-water anchors for wireless control. NMEA 2000 carries engine data, weather sensors, and CZone digital switching panels to the chartplotter. HDMI in lets you display video from cameras on the chartplotter. HDMI out lets you mirror the picture to a second display at another station. Built-in Wi-Fi handles software updates over the air and pushes notifications through the One-Boat Network app on your phone. The unit ships with the pre-loaded enhanced basemap covering more than 10,000 US lakes plus coastal contours and navigation aids. Premium chart upgrades (LakeMaster, CoastMaster, Navionics) are purchased separately based on the waters you fish. AutoChart Live records custom bathymetry of the waters you fish in real time, and you don't have to do anything to enable it. It runs in the background while you fish.

For boats that are getting their first big-screen Humminbird system, the APEX 19 VX is the right launch point. You don't need to source a separate transducer, you don't need to buy a network cable just to plug in the included transducer, and you've got a workable basemap for navigation the day you turn it on. The transom-mount XM 14 HW MSI T install is the standard transducer drill-and-mount that any boat owner familiar with transom-mount sonar transducers can handle without yard help, although a marine electronics installer will do it cleaner. The chartplotter itself mounts on the included gimbal bracket or flush-mounts into the dash with the optional flush-mount kit. Power comes from the boat's 12V house bank through the included power cable. The system is up and running in a few hours of moderate install work. If you decide later to add MEGA Live or MEGA 360 Imaging, the dedicated network ports on the back of the chartplotter are already there waiting for the additional transducers.