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AT Pro and Etrac?

I

ironsight

New member
Howdy All, first post.

Been using my old trusty GARRETT GTA1000 off and on for years now. Found a lot with it but depth isn't great.
As silver is getting deeper these days, i decided to upgrade to an Etrac. Been using it for a month now and found a lot with it so far mostly clads and a couple silver dimes. Great depth (sometimes too great LOL) but it has a major troubling issue. It can't or has difficulty detecting certain kinds of small jewelry such as some thin split open rings and earrings. Although still learning this detector (which is another issue), the Etrac's discrimination does not match up for a $1500 machine IMO.

Thinking about using the Etrac's excellent depth for relic hunting or anywhere where every target can be dug and using an AT Pro for parks and such where every target can't be dug.

So my questions regarding the AT Pro.
1. How good is the discrimination?
2. Can it detect small jewelry?
3. Depth?
4. I understand there's been an update. How can i tell if a particular detector has been updated?
5. Learning curve?
6. Since it has no threshold tone is this an issue of some kind?

I would appreciate any comments.
Thanks
 
Thanks for the reply and offer!
But of the 140+ views with only your reply which didn't publicly address any of my concerns, i have to logically assume either the AT Pro is a piece of junk or maybe even something else is going on?
Gonna move on and try to find a friendlier forum!
Good luck detecting all.
 
I bought the Atpro about a month ago, I'm still learning on it but it is a fantastic machine the depth is great, I found a ring first full day of metal detecting and I do have the sniper coil on it , I do like it also no problems with it at all, it does not have a threshold , it is great in iron infested areas and able to find coins in it, you will like it! I do know about the Etrac, HH, Hank:garrett:
 
Don't know why anyone will not answer you, I think your questions is what this forum or any forum is all about.
I have never owned a at pro but I have owned a at Gold and believe me it is not a piece of junk. I have been detecting for at least 40 years and used all the machines on the market except the high end Minlabs. I plan on buying a at pro in the next few days, in fact I am so impressed with the Gold that I plan on becoming a dealer. You would be spot on with what you want to do with it.

Jim
 
Well, I'll answer what I can. I have both an AT-Pro and an E-Trac. Both have a learning curve and they are very different machines with different strengths and weaknesses.

No machine made will be the best on every single type of target in every situation in every type of ground. When you say the E-Tracs discrimination doesn't live up to it's price tag I'll have to disagree. It gives me better target ID at a deeper depth then the AT-Pro does but it also has a slower recovery speed. It excels at hitting deep silver and copper but is not the best for hitting tiny pieces of gold like split rings or stretched out thin chains. In fact I haven't heard of any top end machine that will do both all three (depth, ID, all different metals). For the thin and tiny gold you usually need a machine that is more of a gold specialist.

The E-Trac needs to be set up right for the situation you put it in and the targets you are looking for to achieve optimal results. It can be a turn on, minimal adjustment machine and do a respectable job but to push it to it's limits requires a little tweeking and possibly a different coil. That's part of the learning curve on any machine.

Now for the AT-Pro. It's also a fine machine, especially in it's price bracket. There is the audio to learn, when to use various features for various purposes, etc. There are also several coils that can be used which expand it's capabilities in the right circumstances. I'd never part with mine! It's the totlot king with the sniper coil. It's a great coin hunter in modern parks and parking lots with it's fast recovery. With the 5x8 coil it can work a pretty trashy site with great success. While it won't match a dedicated beach machine in the surf it can still do a decent job there, just not run as deep. In the dry sand it does better. You can hunt in the rain and mud without worry.

My hunting partner also hunts with an AT-Pro and we constantly compare targets before digging, which is way different than air testing or test gardens. On ID'ing deep targets, say past 8", the E-Tracs the winner. Less then that it's pretty even. On identifying deep nail falsing and large iron falses, the E-Trac wins once you learn what it's telling you. On bottle caps I'd say the AT-Pro in iron audio does a better job. In tough mineralized soil like we find near mineral springs around here the E-Trac can just edge out the AT-Pro on depth and discrimination but only running a small coil and plenty of discrimination. On relic finding the only edge the E-Trac gets is depth but that is by several inches in the right conditions.

As for ease of use and weight the AT-Pro wins.

I consider the two machines to complement each other. Two different tools for two different jobs.
 
I Iive in an area where there are iron pockets and a lot of dry sand. One piece of advice I can offer for hunting in similar conditions with the at pro is ground balancing. After I became proficient at this my coin finding in that type of ground has become more consistent. Have not had success finding Nickles new or old with my at. More practice maybe.
 
Yes Bushmasta, I agree, you probably just need a little more practice to find those nickels. Since I got my ATPro my nickel finds has really improved. My magic number for nickels is 51 or a bounce between 50 to 51 to 52, and the sound is more mellow and consistent, without the small chirps. I have read here on the forum that some find nickels in the 53 range, but that is not the case with me. But it might be with you. So keep swinging till you go over a nickel!
 
Mopar, don't you think you were hasty in your 'judgement' of lack of responses. Give it some time. We are hobbyists...not paid customer service representatives.
 
Well done Sailorman:clap:
 
I'll chime in. I recommend the AT with no hesitation. I will get an etrac in the future b/se of the deep silver possibilities. I have a host of sites that I can go back over at that time to clean up.

But the AT is just such a fun and versatile detector. Really hard to beat the value proposition. Hunting water is a blast. Great for small gold/jewelry. Also great in iron infested areas, as others have noted. Can really nail silver. If you play with the GB and listen carefully and go slow, you can get deep silver.

As with any detector, there are things that i would like to change. but that list is very small. i absolutely love this machine and use it heavily.
 
I hunt the salt water beaches Of south florida the AT VERY STABLE and target depth In the salt Situation is between 8-10 in. I'm very pleased with the AT Pro . Its a serious Hunter for sure..
 
Guess he picked up his marbles and went home. Sure didn't give anyone time to respond. I have always found everyone helpful, so there!
 
I have only this to say on this subject...It has been raked over the coals so many times...Read this forum (especially posts by John-Edmonton) that show all the jewelry, rings, and silver found with the AT Pros since they came out...I think you might be amazed...As I always say...Keeping up with the Jone's has it's price, and it is more expensive than an AT Pro...lol. I have never, nor will I ever justify owning a Minelab machine...My AT Pro can hold it's own to one...

HH,
 
MOPARado said:
Thanks for the reply and offer!
But of the 140+ views with only your reply which didn't publicly address any of my concerns, i have to logically assume either the AT Pro is a piece of junk or maybe even something else is going on?
Gonna move on and try to find a friendlier forum!
Good luck detecting all.
Click to expand...

Sounds like flame bait. The cool thing is nobody on this forum took the bait. And, Sailorman, your analysis was great. You answered a lot of questions I had.
 
Well just FYI. I like all that information, it was just what I've been looking for, last week I sold my wife's 6000 Di PRO Sl and I'm looking into getting a diferent machine for her, I was thinking about the ACE-350 or the At-PRO and I have read a lot os postings here for both machnes but this is great information,
I my consider purchesing an AT PRO.
does this machine could be a turn on and go?
I own an Etrac for the last week and I like it a lot but it is to havy for her.
I like the Etrac because I can find all kines of things and coins just with the factory programs.
Thank you all for your imput on this question.
hope to get more imput from you all about my questions.
HH
Abel
 
The AT-Pro can very much be a turn on and go machine. There really aren't that many settings to use and learn and two audio options. You can download the manual online, that might be a very good idea. It would tell you a lot about how it runs.
 
Thank you Sailorman for your prompt response to the question. I will download the manual and read about it.
is there any other machine that you my recomend for my wife, we are getting old if you know what I mean :help:
 
i would recommend getting the 5x8 coil with the at pro if weight is an issue. its a great coil(meant for going slow) and it really is a big weight difference from the 8.5x11
 
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