Another old post on process and tones...

[Mark in NC]

I remember reading where Mike Hillis said he "clicked" with this detector. I know what he means! It's hard to put into words, but for me (notice I said "ME")... it just "feels right". It's one of those things where when you pick it up, I already think, "well, here's my old friend". Comfortable, natural, at ease... I think that sums it up pretty well.

My experience with the F-75 so far is that it is one of those detectors that you can pick up and use right out of the box. Very intuitive, and yet, it could take years to "master". Options? YES...options galore, but all at your fingertips...very easy to figure out and navigate.

I love the audio modes. The audio, to me, has a sort of "analog" feel to it. What I mean is that there are little nuances to the audio, not just a simple "beep". You can set it to any number of tones... and the presets include even more comfort (according to your tastes and needs)...4 tones? (a lot like CZ-70, 3D, Coinstrike) so far my favorite mode. Dp (delta pitch) is a true multi-audio setting that reminds me of the explorer and DFX. A different tone is assigned to each and every ID numeral based on conductivity. It also has single tones, two tones and three tones. (as well as subsettings for each). I haven't had time to use each one of those in depth, but the flexibility is outstanding.

The process modes are also very cool. There's the default (dE) which seems to be the best balance of things overall for general coin shooting. You also have "PF" or plowed field mode, which seems to take into account a disturbed soil matrix. There's also "JE" (jewelry mode) which is HOT to small targets and mid-conductors (very, very sensitive)
Bottle Cap mode (bc) seems to do the trick for helping to ID those pesky rusty bottlecaps, but I found it also helps in areas where there's lots of small conductors in the ground (trashy old school yards) There seems to be a slight depth decrease in this mode, but according to my test garden, not much.

Can you tell I like this detector ? I'm sure there's something here not to like, but darned if I can spot it yet!

Please take into account, these are all my impressions and opinions. I ain't no expert... I just know what I like. I also know this: The ergonomics are so good the only pain my ol' arthritic body feels is from bending/stooping to dig all the goodies! I've dug lots of trash....but it was almost all on purpose! When the ID locks, and the confidence bar is high...it's a coin.

One thing I love? Can slaw in the local bark filled tot lot came up as "foil and tab" on the ID... no false nickels readings! I haven't ran across any of the pencil eraser bands yet to test. I did find one dumb little pulltab type (smaller than the usual) at a school yard that ID'd as a nickel... but thankfully, it's only 1 so far! There may be some other tricks that I haven't discovered yet that will help eliminate even those.

All in all, I'm looking forward to the adventure of getting to know this detector better and better. I'm very, very excited about the future of Fisher if the F-75 is any indication of the direction they are going.

hh'n

Mark in NC

 

[BTaylor]

Hi Mark,

I am located in Roanoke, VA, and I just have a few questions. Do you mostly hunt coins, and what settings do you use with your F75?

Thanks, Bill

 

[Mark in NC]

Hi Bill,

I'm mainly a coin hunter. So far I've mostly been using the Default process and 4H audio (which puts nickels into the high tone range). However, one of the things I like about this detector is that I can change up if I need to. Today I hunted quite a bit in the dp mode (delta pitch), and I liked it a lot. I was at a very trashy old home site that had burned down years ago. The old owners (in the 50's) were mechanics of some type, and I kept digging odd little bits and pieces from engines. (copper and aluminum) I found with the dp mode I could "size" the targets better, and cherry pick for High conductors... I was right beside some high voltage powerlines and had to turn down the sensitivity a bit, but the targets were still easy to pick out of the background sounds and depth was still great. I also used the notch some today and it's really easy to set up.

hh'n

Mark in NC

 

[BTaylor]

Hi Mark,

I am also a coin hunter. When coin hunting how high do you increase your discrimination setting? The reason I ask this is because I find with high discrimination that I have to turn my sensitivity way down to make the detector stable in urban areas.

What I mean by stable is no false VDI numbers along with no false random audio signals. I also own a T2, which I find to be a more stable and quieter detector in an urban environment. I find the F75 is more susceptible to outside interference.

I am just trying to learn what is normal for the F75 in urban areas, since it is a much hotter detector than the T2. Any F75 information is appreciated.

Thanks again, Bill

 

[vlad]

The first thing I learned with the CZ is to hunt with discriminate on "zero". If you turn it up to "one" which notches out iron, you will get false signals squeaking through in higher notches; if you stay on "zero" there is no doubt about 99% of the iron, with an occasional deep perpendicular nail reading as a top coin signal, but if you are careful, the pinpoint will be different than the I.D. mode.
Does the F-75 have the ability to boost the audio, in steps? On the CZ turning the audio up to 8 to 10 almost seems like a second sensitivity control, because you will hear coins that simply are not there to be heard at the preset-of course you hear an incredible amount of ground noise so you really have to learn this aspect of hunting. Also can you run the threshold down into the negative? I've found on the C$ and MXT in areas where there is electrical interference, I could still "crank" the sensitivity, if I dropped the threshold further down into the null while retaining the extreme depth of full sensitivity.

 

[Mark in NC]

I've set it all over the place! Some sites, really low, others (cherry picking) really high. One of the coolest things I've observed is ZERO loss of depth in my sites so far for cranking the disc as high as you want to go (on high conductors anyway). In some cases, it even seems to "clean up" the audio on very, very deep stuff when the disc is up there. The stability thing seems to be site dependent. I actually haven't had any real problems with it except at one site, and even there is was better than most detectors I've used. Some sites 0 disc is fine, others it's not. However, even when hearing some background fluctuations, it was very easy to pick out the "real" targets. (just took a couple of extra coil sweeps). I'm still learning this thing as I go, but I'm still lovin' it so far!

hh'n

Mark in NC

 

[BTaylor]

Hi Mark,

Thanks for the reply. Your email makes a lot of sense. I have been talking to quite a few people around the country about their experiences with the F75 trying to see if there is any one reason for the way my F75 acts at different locations.

It maybe that the F75 is such a thoroughbred that you will not know how it is going to function until you try hunting in a certain location. I will keep you posted!

Take care and thanks again for your insight,

Bill

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

[quote Mark in NC]
The process modes are also very cool. There's the default (dE) which seems to be the best balance of things overall for general coin shooting. You also have "PF" or plowed field mode, which seems to take into account a disturbed soil matrix. There's also "JE" (jewelry mode) which is HOT to small targets and mid-conductors (very, very sensitive)
Bottle Cap mode (bc) seems to do the trick for helping to ID those pesky rusty bottlecaps, but I found it also helps in areas where there's lots of small conductors in the ground (trashy old school yards) There seems to be a slight depth decrease in this mode, but according to my test garden, not much.

One thing I love? Can slaw in the local bark filled tot lot came up as "foil and tab" on the ID... no false nickels readings! I haven't ran across any of the pencil eraser bands yet to test. I did find one dumb little pulltab type (smaller than the usual) at a school yard that ID'd as a nickel... but thankfully, it's only 1 so far! There may be some other tricks that I haven't discovered yet that will help eliminate even those.

Mark in NC[/quote]

Good, great and excellent. Thanks very much for the comments.

I dug one of those stupid pencil eraser bands at 8" with my Musky and I could not believe it. Sweet tone and I knew it was deep (no display on the Musky, but lifting while pinpointing will help).

The bottle cap feature and resistance to can slaw will be a Godsend at my local parks.

The Musky I use now has a vocabulary. I very much like that the F75 has a true tonal quality. Does it "chip" or "squeek" for trash vs. a sweet "eeeee" for coins? Or is that where the # display and confidence bar come into their own?

 

[Mark in NC]

The Musky I use now has a vocabulary. I very much like that the F75 has a true tonal quality. Does it "chip" or "squeek" for trash vs. a sweet "eeeee" for coins? Or is that where the # display and confidence bar come into their own?

It's kinda hard to put into words, but on a lot of detectors, the disc. side just seems to kind of give you a "beep" on conductors. So far with the F-75, you seem to get those little nuances to audio...(it's language I guess) that you usually see in the older analog machines. This varies with the process mode and discrimination levels. However, irregular trash items give you and "irregular" tone, especially as you sweep through all the angles. The ID also changes and doesn't seem to remain as steady as it does with a coin. The confidence bar has also been a great tool. I have dug some "non coin" items that registered high confidence, but they were round conductors (copper washers) that would fool any machine. But to answer your question, trash items do seem to "break up" or sputter where coins give a nice tight signal.

hh'n

Mark in NC