FoxPro Shockwave Coyote Caller Review - 2
At the report of the rifle, the FoxPro Shockwave immediately started to play an injured adult coyote sound. This feature is called FOXBANG. It is triggered by the sound of a rifle going off. You can preprogram the sound on any FoxPro caller with the FOXBANG feature to do this. I have it on my CS24B as well, and it has resulted in killing a lot more doubles on a stand. FoxPro callers (especially the Shockwave) come with quite a few features, but if I were forced to only pick one, the FOXBANG would be it, hands down!
The other coyote had spooked when I moved to shoot and had run back down the valley out of sight. Knowing it would soon reappear on the far hillside I quickly jacked in another round and waited for it. Sure enough, the coyote popped out about where I figured it would. It wasn't running flat out, but it wouldn't stop completely. I tracked it in the scope and realized it would vanish into the next valley soon. So I led it a little and touched one off. To my disappointment I missed, but I didn't have long to be bummed about it. At the report of the second shot, the rock pile three feet behind me erupted into a cacophony of buzzing. I instantly recognized the sound of my least favorite animal on the planet…RATTLE SNAKES!!!
For a guy nearly 50 years old and not nearly as athletic as I used to be, I can go from sitting to standing in record time when properly motivated. This was one of those times. I sprang straight up and spun around in the air to face the rock. As I did so I could hear other rattles continue to join in the chorus. I quickly surveyed the area around my seat to make sure no snakes were within striking distance. There weren't, so I grabbed my seat and rifle and made a mad dash down the hill away from the rock pile and towards my dead coyote. This, by the way, isn't easy to do with legs shaking so bad that just trying to stand is difficult. I grabbed the coyote by the front legs and then turned around and grabbed my caller. I took everything over to a large clear area on the hillside. I didn't want any more "shocking" surprises.
At this point I was pretty shaken up. I just wanted to get some quick photos and get out of there! By the time the pictures were finished it was nearly dark. On still shaky legs I loaded everything up and headed for my pickup as quickly as possible with my snake paranoia on full alert. Funny how long a half a mile can seem under such conditions. I made it to the truck and home safely. I have no idea how many rattlesnakes were in the rock pile and I don't care to ever go back and look. Needless to say, I made a major mental note to never hunt that particular stand ever again until there was snow on the ground.
I am pleased to report that since that my initial debut with the FoxPro Shockwave caller I was able to call single coyotes in on the next three stands I used the caller on. That is pretty darn impressive to call in a total of 5 coyotes on the first 4 stands using a brand new caller. I did not kill all the coyotes, but the Shockwave did its job well.
The FoxPro Shockwave caller has several other interesting features, including:
FOXMOTION: This mimics moving prey, by fading the sound from the left speaker to the right speaker.
FOXPITCH: This feature lets you manipulate the pitch of any sound with the hope of triggering a response. FOXPITCH is actually very cool because you can manipulate the intensity by making the pitch go up and down.
FOXDATA: Records temperature, barometric pressure, moon phase, time on the stand and the time of the shot itself in real time.
FOXCAST: For those that don't want to mess with pushing a lot of buttons while on their stand. It lets you set up an entire calling sequence so you can just kick back and watch for your predators coming in, rather than messing with the remote.
Now for the pros and cons. Well, actually there really aren't that many cons, as it is one of the most impressive e-callers I have ever taken into the field. This is no small statement as I've used e-callers by pretty much all the major manufacturers. The only struggle that I have had with the Shockwave has been while trying to program it from my computer. I was able to do it, but it took me much longer than when programming any other FoxPro caller I've ever used. I may be doing something wrong and taking the long path, so to speak. In fact, I'm sure there is a quicker way to do it, but I just haven't figured it out yet. Knowing that FoxPro has a tremendous customer service staff, I'm sure that a phone call or two with the technical department and I will be able to get up to speed.
The only other things to consider are the size and weight. I know I said it wasn't much heavier than my CS24B and it isn't. However, there are days where I'm hiking all day long and basically running and gunning. On days like this I try to go as light as possible. Heck, sometimes even ounces count depending on how many miles I'm going to cover on foot. On those days I will either pick my CS24B or just take a hand call. In regards to the size, while not nearly as big as the Prairie Blaster, the Shockwave is bigger than most of the other FoxPro callers. It takes up most of the room in my day pack. If it comes down to choosing between packing a lunch or using a larger caller, lunch will win out every time. With that said, most of the time the Shockwave will be a welcome addition to my coyote hunting arsenal. Most hunts don't require long hikes or being away from my pickup from dawn to dark. For quick hunts after work or all day hunts that don't require walking more than a mile to each stand, the FoxPro Shockwave caller is ideal. Quite frankly, I would prefer to use it just for the crystal clear stereo sound. So if you are in the market for the "Best of the Best" the FoxPro Shockwave should be right at the top of a very short list.
An avid big game hunter, Troy Adams has been hunting big game for nearly 30 years. Combining hunting and photography has helped him preserve many great memories. When not hunting, photographing, writing, or spending time with his family, Troy is usually found working on his wildlife art drawings.
The other coyote had spooked when I moved to shoot and had run back down the valley out of sight. Knowing it would soon reappear on the far hillside I quickly jacked in another round and waited for it. Sure enough, the coyote popped out about where I figured it would. It wasn't running flat out, but it wouldn't stop completely. I tracked it in the scope and realized it would vanish into the next valley soon. So I led it a little and touched one off. To my disappointment I missed, but I didn't have long to be bummed about it. At the report of the second shot, the rock pile three feet behind me erupted into a cacophony of buzzing. I instantly recognized the sound of my least favorite animal on the planet…RATTLE SNAKES!!!
For a guy nearly 50 years old and not nearly as athletic as I used to be, I can go from sitting to standing in record time when properly motivated. This was one of those times. I sprang straight up and spun around in the air to face the rock. As I did so I could hear other rattles continue to join in the chorus. I quickly surveyed the area around my seat to make sure no snakes were within striking distance. There weren't, so I grabbed my seat and rifle and made a mad dash down the hill away from the rock pile and towards my dead coyote. This, by the way, isn't easy to do with legs shaking so bad that just trying to stand is difficult. I grabbed the coyote by the front legs and then turned around and grabbed my caller. I took everything over to a large clear area on the hillside. I didn't want any more "shocking" surprises.
At this point I was pretty shaken up. I just wanted to get some quick photos and get out of there! By the time the pictures were finished it was nearly dark. On still shaky legs I loaded everything up and headed for my pickup as quickly as possible with my snake paranoia on full alert. Funny how long a half a mile can seem under such conditions. I made it to the truck and home safely. I have no idea how many rattlesnakes were in the rock pile and I don't care to ever go back and look. Needless to say, I made a major mental note to never hunt that particular stand ever again until there was snow on the ground.
I am pleased to report that since that my initial debut with the FoxPro Shockwave caller I was able to call single coyotes in on the next three stands I used the caller on. That is pretty darn impressive to call in a total of 5 coyotes on the first 4 stands using a brand new caller. I did not kill all the coyotes, but the Shockwave did its job well.
The FoxPro Shockwave caller has several other interesting features, including:
FOXMOTION: This mimics moving prey, by fading the sound from the left speaker to the right speaker.
FOXPITCH: This feature lets you manipulate the pitch of any sound with the hope of triggering a response. FOXPITCH is actually very cool because you can manipulate the intensity by making the pitch go up and down.
FOXDATA: Records temperature, barometric pressure, moon phase, time on the stand and the time of the shot itself in real time.
FOXCAST: For those that don't want to mess with pushing a lot of buttons while on their stand. It lets you set up an entire calling sequence so you can just kick back and watch for your predators coming in, rather than messing with the remote.
Now for the pros and cons. Well, actually there really aren't that many cons, as it is one of the most impressive e-callers I have ever taken into the field. This is no small statement as I've used e-callers by pretty much all the major manufacturers. The only struggle that I have had with the Shockwave has been while trying to program it from my computer. I was able to do it, but it took me much longer than when programming any other FoxPro caller I've ever used. I may be doing something wrong and taking the long path, so to speak. In fact, I'm sure there is a quicker way to do it, but I just haven't figured it out yet. Knowing that FoxPro has a tremendous customer service staff, I'm sure that a phone call or two with the technical department and I will be able to get up to speed.
The only other things to consider are the size and weight. I know I said it wasn't much heavier than my CS24B and it isn't. However, there are days where I'm hiking all day long and basically running and gunning. On days like this I try to go as light as possible. Heck, sometimes even ounces count depending on how many miles I'm going to cover on foot. On those days I will either pick my CS24B or just take a hand call. In regards to the size, while not nearly as big as the Prairie Blaster, the Shockwave is bigger than most of the other FoxPro callers. It takes up most of the room in my day pack. If it comes down to choosing between packing a lunch or using a larger caller, lunch will win out every time. With that said, most of the time the Shockwave will be a welcome addition to my coyote hunting arsenal. Most hunts don't require long hikes or being away from my pickup from dawn to dark. For quick hunts after work or all day hunts that don't require walking more than a mile to each stand, the FoxPro Shockwave caller is ideal. Quite frankly, I would prefer to use it just for the crystal clear stereo sound. So if you are in the market for the "Best of the Best" the FoxPro Shockwave should be right at the top of a very short list.
An avid big game hunter, Troy Adams has been hunting big game for nearly 30 years. Combining hunting and photography has helped him preserve many great memories. When not hunting, photographing, writing, or spending time with his family, Troy is usually found working on his wildlife art drawings.
- Previous page: Overview
