For what its worth here are the settings that work for me Relic Hunting!

[Relic$Hunter]

Minelab Explorer XS, II Advanced Settings
For Relic Hunting in Louisiana!
By John Kelley AKA Relic$Hunter

Press the menu button on the front control panel. This will bring up the main menu selection. You should see a selection of 6 options on your screen. On the left side of the screen:
DISPLAY
SELECT
SAVE

On the right side of your screen:
AUDIO
OPTIONS
SETTINGS
Select OPTIONS

To the top left of the screen you will see:
ADVANCED
QUICK
Select ADVANCED

Now you will see three new selections on the right side of the screen:
NOISE
RESPONSE
RECOVER
No need to bother with NOISE, it is set when you press NOISE CANCEL on the front of the control panel. It automatically recognizes any interference and selects the best channel. You can still have problems with high voltage power line interference, but this can be controlled by dropping your sensitivity.

Select RESPONSE: Here you will see on the top left NORMAL. This is what I use. On the right side of the screen is: AUDIO 1, 2, & 3. I have tried all of them but I prefer NORMAL. Press the back button on the front of the control panel after making your selection. This will take you back to NOISE, RESPONSE, and RECOVER.

Select RECOVER: Here you will see two selections in the upper left side of the screen. Some controversy arises here, but I select FAST and DEEP together. I was told by a rep at Minelab that by selecting both, one would cancel out the other; however, I have hunted like this for years and dug .69 three ringers over 14

 

[king-ghidorah]

I know everyone likes normal for response but Pitch Hold & Long have their advantages and I using them intermittently in the field. I especially like Pitch Hold with my SE running AM mode in Fe tones.

 

[Eu_citzen]

I use these settings for relic hunting:

SENSITIVITY FUNCTION: Manual
SENSITIVITY VALUE: 22 (adjust to high as possible while remaining stable)
THRESHOLD: [user preference]
DISCRIMINATION FUNCTION: Smart
IRON MASK VALUE: -16
DISPLAY TYPE: Smart
AUDIO VOLUME GAIN: 8
AUDIO VOLUME max limit: 10
AUDIO TONE, TH. TONE LOWEST: 10
AUDIO TONE, Variability: 10
AUDIO TONE, Limits: 10
AUDIO SOUNDS: Ferrous
OPTIONS RESPONSE: Normal
RECOVERY FAST: Off
RECOVERY DEEP: On

Sweep slow and listen for high pitched sounds, dig all of them!!

HH,
Eu

 

[Marc in Va]

Here are my settings for relic hunting with my XS:
Smart screen
Manual sensitivity set 1 or 2 numbers below the unstable point. In most areas I hunt I can run at 20 to 24
IM 15
Deep ON
Fast Off
Gain 10
Everything else is factory settings.
Nothing fancy but it sure works for me

Marc