Any Minelab FBS users try the Makro or Notka detectors?

[Chris(SoCenWI)]

As most/many of you know the Minelab FBS detectors found incredible amounts of coins in previously "hunted out" sites. I'm sure there is still many more coins to be found in these sites that are still masked by iron or other trash.

I started with the XS, bought a F-75 that was supposed to be faster, and then a CTX 3030. I still mainly swing the XS. The CTX has the ability to see commingled iron/coin targets perpendicular to the center web, but for some reason only in target trace, no audio response. From what I'm seeing on differing videos, the Makros and Notka do give a response.

Has anyone from the FBS camp tried either?

Chris

 

[Southwind]

My 2 cents.

I've owned 2 Racers. I didn't care for the first one and sold it but later decided maybe I just didn't give it enough time so I bought another one one. The results was the same as the first so I sold it. I've used a E-Trac for a few years and a CTX for several seasons.

Let me describe what I call running hot. If you take most detectors and do what some call "supper tune" it by miss-adjusting the ground balance to be a bit negative you end up with a detector that will get deep, but be unstable and noisy. Snap crackle & popping a lot. The F75 and Omega come to mind. Deep but noisy and not much fun in a modern trashy park but great for relics.

My experience was the Racer falls in the same class as the F75. If you like the way the F75 runs you'll love the Racer. If you like the way the Garrett/Whites run you'll hate the Racer. The FBS's seem to have a place different for the others. Personally I put them as a specialized machine. As far as deep copper & silver in had hit parks nothing matches the FBS. Not so much in going deeper, but in the ability to pass that info on to the user in an easy to identify way. I like the tones of the E-Trac best but feel the CTX's VDI accuracy is slight deeper than the E-Trac. If money didn't matter than I'd prefer the CTX.

Of course time with any detector cane overcome its weak points. I speak mostly of out of the box results. In short, If I did mainly relic hunting I go with a Racer which I felt was a stripped down F75. If I did mostly deep coin hunting in hard hit parks I'd go FBS.(E-Trac or CTX). Good detectors all of them when used in the right conditions.

 

[Chris(SoCenWI)]

I never fell in love with the F-75 like I did the XS. Even though it was supposed to be faster it seemed to be much worse IDing targets in heavy trash. Also coming from the 2D screen of the explorer where nickels hit middle south and good stuff mainly North east, but you could still pick out a Copper nickel Indian head... I didn't like having just one number to look at for IDing targets(which is my main beef with the 12 ferrous line on CTX 3030). And had a real hard time with steel bottle caps with the F-75 which were a total non-issue on the explorer.

Long story short it looks like the technology exits to show commingled ferrous/non ferrous targets no matter what the orientation of the coil. I played around with the CTX target trace as have others, looks promising but the fact that there isn't a corresponding audio component severely limits its usefulness.

As many others know, when in construction sites where the top few inches of soil and last 70 years of nails gone many old coins appear. They are still there to be found. Just hesitant to drop more $$$ on another detector with the hopes for something better and then finding my 15 year old XS still is king.

Chris

 

[Jason in Enid]

Do you not own a CTX? It is a lot better than the old explorer detector. If the cost is too much, then don't feel you have to trade. The Explorer is still a great detector. But if you can afford it, the CTX is better, just don't try to make it be an explorer, learn it as it's own detector.

 

[sube]

I still think the fbs detectors are the best all around detectors out there .I have a explorer 2 which is a very good detector .But balance wise it's not as good as the ctx . Found many coins that I missed with the explorer 2 will I use the 2 again not if I have the ctx.
I have used it since it came out it gives the best information to the digger out of all the detectors I have used. Mostly giving information about digging or not digging which was more time consuming with other detectors .
That said I have run small coils on the fisher and mxt areas where I searched first with these that had shallow coins and very small amounts of iron did not find many targets they missed but areas that had deeper coins and more iron I would say I made a killing coming back over with the ctx.
Getting back to the marko I don't think it will match depth with a fbs it may unmask better at shallow targets but not hearing anything deep found with the units.
The ctx will hold it's own against many detectors out there they all have there weak areas and good points.
If you know how to get the max out of the ctx you will leave very few coins behind that you are able to see with todays technology . No detector is going to get them all because of masking or just bad ground.
People have to use different tactics to get around the detectors deficiency such as creeping with the ctx .
All in all there is not a magic detector out there yet but I think we well be getting closer in the near future say a newer version deus or ctx 4040 and I cringe at the new price that will becoming with them say 3000 clams sube

 

[Chris(SoCenWI)]

I do own a CTX. I didn't find it to be much of an improvement over the XS generally, and much worse in terms of target ID. Not at all a fan of stuffing everything on the Ferrous 12 line compared to the older Explorer's display.

Chris

 

[glenn3-88]

Chris,

I may have misunderstood you about the 12 ferrous line. I dig a lot of good coins at the 11,13,14, and 18 line sometimes.
A lot of it has to do with what's laying beside it. A lot of gold jewelry is found at the 14 & 18 ferrous line at the beach.
I may have not understood what you mean by the one 12 ferrous line though and if so, I apologize.

 

[LS hunter]

I have on several top end detectors White's, Garrett's, my first Minelab fps what's the SE pro I just traded,,Now I'm using the VX3,, but to totally be honest the only reason I traded off my SE pro was because I'm used to whites iding VDI.. without a doubt the minelab se pro was a silver killer,, depth unsurpassed by any detector I have used yet so far. I would have to give that credit to the FBS technology. Just my opinion you.

 

[Bryan V]

I bought a Racer this spring to hold me over until the Gold Racer came out for nugget hunting.
It's a nice detector. Very fast. Much faster than the CTX .
I found lots of coins with nails in the same hole. It can be deep but lost depth if I got in to hotter soil.
About 9" was my deepest coin but that was in some mild ground. 5 to 6" coins were the norm.
It did not false on nails like a CTX.
If I ever dug a nail it was because there was a coin in the hole with it.
I could and did run it behind the CTX in trashy ground and find coins.
It runs better in nails than the CTX in my opinion but is not good in aluminum and tin type trash.
The ID on the high end needs some work.
It's actually a nice compliment detector to the CTX.
It will not replace the CTX for serious deep coin hunting in mineralized ground.
Here are a few of my Racer digs with nails in the hole.
Bryan

 

[JamesBondaka]

I own 1 Makro and 1 Nokta. They are very well built and very strong. They are VLF detectors but utilize some different algorithms and software than other manufactures. Unfortunately, I have not had the time to accurately determine if they are as good as the manufactures claim. Especially, on deeper and older targets. IF they are half as good as the manufacture says....they will be worth every penny or.....worth their weight in gold This year, I will be able to find out how good they are. I will post something in regards to that.

 

[choppadude]

"Very fast. Much faster than the CTX" . You better send that CTX back then cause its not working! I own both the racer and the CTX and There is absolutely NO WAY the Racer has a faster recovery than the CTX. Now with the 5" OOR coil the racer does well in iron but if you get in a trashy area the Racer hits solid 40 - 60 on foil. At Least with the Minelabs I know what foil reads. In my opinion the Racer is the most over hyped detector I have seen in my 30 some years of detecting.
I will trade you a 6 month old Racer for that slow old CTX LOL!

 

[Bryan V]

"Very fast. Much faster than the CTX" . You better send that CTX back then cause its not working! I own both the racer and the CTX and There is absolutely NO WAY the Racer has a faster recovery than the CTX. Now with the 5" OOR coil the racer does well in iron but if you get in a trashy area the Racer hits solid 40 - 60 on foil. At Least with the Minelabs I know what foil reads. In my opinion the Racer is the most over hyped detector I have seen in my 30 some years of detecting.
I will trade you a 6 month old Racer for that slow old CTX LOL!

I addressed the aluminum and tin issues in my post. I'm not claiming the Racer is a better detector.
They are much different and should be used in different areas.
Maybe there is something wrong with my CTX. The speed difference is night and day. My Racer was much faster.
The speed and the weight are my only complaints of the CTX.
I'll throw in nail falsing too. My Racer didn't have a problem with that.

 

[mrwilburino]

In a market that is becoming saturated with speedy target-separators; a solid, accurate ID is harder to come by. That's why we pay more for it. There's always the etrac, and plenty of explorers still around, for those who want to spend less, but the CTX offers some advantages that I just don't want to detect without.