Headphone vs. No Headphone

[samuel_schumaker]

Okay i just realized something. I hadnt watched any detecting videos for several months. Back when i was learning my detector i use to watch lots of youtube videos on the explorer to see what some coin finds sounded like. Well i just realized that with my Koss headphones i dont get a good flutie sound. If i unplug my headphones the detector gives a nice flutey sound on silver and on all clad coins. With the headphones on its just a high pitch signal but doesnt really have the flutiness. Do you guys use headphones always when hunting? are the koss headphones that come with the detector not very good? Or are mine maybe messed up? Thanks

 

[sgoss66]

You will get alot of opinions on this, but I feel the Koss phones are actually pretty decent...and I was able to get a good flutie sound on mine. I do like my SunRay Pro Golds a little better, but I personally feel the Koss phones are actually a decent set of phones. If yours don't sound good, I'd definitely send them in and get a new pair from Minelab. Don't judge them until you are sure, as I actually found them to sound pretty good...

Steve

 

[samuel_schumaker]

I just cant believe its such a noticeable difference with them plugged in vs. Just the speaker on the unit. Buy I don't have anything else to compare it too

 

[sgoss66]

If there is that much of a noticeable difference, I'd say you definitely have a bad pair. That should not be the case...do you have a detector shop near you -- or someone else who swings a Minelab? You could test another pair -- which is definitely what I'd do. If it's just a case that you have a bad pair, you could get Minelab to send you new ones. The worst part of the Koss phones is that eventually the plug will wear out, and some don't like the large ear pieces. That's usually the two main complaints -- most people don't complain that they sound terrible; like I say, I -- and most I have talked to -- feel that the sound from them is actually pretty good...

Steve

 

[dewcon4414]

I do agree with Steve about the Koss not being that bad..... but put on say a pair of PRo Golds and you will hear the difference. Un plugged.....you are going to BURN batteries faster and miss a lot of weaker signals...... even ear buds are better than NO phones.

Dew

 

[samuel_schumaker]

Problem is nobody else i know really even detects, maybe two other people but i dont really know them i just know of them and i know the one doesnt use headphones. Neither use minelabs. So in order to figure out if its a problem with my headphones or a problem with my detector maybe like the outlet for the headphone jack i am gonna just have to order another pair of headphones and see if it sounds better.Im thinking about going ahead and buying some sunray golds and then if i realize the koss are messed up maybe i can send them in. Are they guranteed for two years just like the detector? Thanks

 

[dewcon4414]

Thats not a way to say your headphone are messed up. You might get different sounds with different headphones. The trick is learning what they are telling you. Cant beat a good pair of headphones.... but what you will find is less noise and crisper tones to include the weak ones. If you plan on coin hunting and not hitting deep targets..... by all means dont use head phones. But trust me with them you will hear a lot of targets once you learn the machine that they wont. You can learn to find good targets with the cheapest of cheap detectors..... its 80 percent detector 20 percent you.

Dew

 

[samuel_schumaker]

I agree but i just cant believe the difference i hear out of my detector and any other detectign video i see on the internet vs. my detector with these headphones. Its like a night and day difference in sound. With the headphones on its like just a high pitch beep if you will, not flutie at all. Like it doesnt have any variation in tone. i have been finding a decent amount of indian heads, silver and wheats and i feel comfortable using the machine but i just cant believe i never noticied this until now. I dont know if it just slowly got this way and i didnt notice or what but i remember when i was first detecting this winter the sounds in the headphones were just like the sounds i heard from the machine speaker. Now its totally different

 

[Tom_in_CA]

There are many different Koss headphones, so it depends on which particular one you're using. And, to be honest with you, I believe the quality of Koss took a "dump", in recent years. I had a pair of Koss from nearly 10 yrs. ago, that gave perfect clear crisp sounds (where you could hear flutiness, and so forth, and extremem range of tones, etc....). Eventually, they gave out after nearly 10 yrs. So since I had enjoyed them so much, I went out to Ebay and found an un-opened pair of those exact same model # headphones. Imagine my surprise when the sounds were muffled, and not as good, as my previous pair!

Before sending them in for "repair", I sleuthed around and got the following explanation: You can not expect that Koss (or any other such manufacturer) gets their parts from the same vendor source, year after year. Because in their quest to protect the "bottom line", they might .... over the course of time ....... choose a less expensive vendor, for the components inside their headphones. And even though the spec's might/should be the same, they'er not always. So for example, maybe for a few years early on, they got their interior speakers from a US manufacturer. But then later on, switch to a vendor from china, to save money on those "same" speakers.

I ditched my Koss headphones and went with a pair of Killer B's (which are like Grey Ghost). If you have any friends who have Killer B's or Grey Ghost, see if they'll let you plug them in to your machine, and do some side-by-side air test comparisons to your phones.

 

[widebody]

[size=large]i noticed you don't have a signature at the bottom of your post. looking at others you'll see info about machines they use ect. also where most are from. at least three guys from this forum found me because of my signature. it's one way to get with guys who may know more about your area and or your machine. help may be just that close.

HH[/size]

 

[MikeO]

Sam, yes without a doubt wear headphones. You can miss a faint signal without headphones easily. There are just to many ambient outside noises that you will hear without them.
I will say though my hearing is great and most times when hunting alone I will wear one on and one up so I can hear anything coming up around me and still be able to hear those fainter sounds.
Sound's weird but, it works (well for me it does).
I have been partial to the Grey Ghost's (DetecterPro) and have used them (numerous pairs) for well over 10 years. My next set will be the G.G. Ultimates when I need another set.
I believe Killer Bee's and the G.G. Originals are about the same in speaker impedance, db range and freq. resp.

 

[sgoss66]

Sam --

You say the sound through the headphones "used to be good, just like the detector speaker," but then got worse over time? DEFINITELY a bad pair of phones. You asked about warranty -- those Koss phones have a lifetime warranty. You send them like $6 or $7 for shipping, and send in the old ones, and they send you a new pair. You might contact Minelab first, and tell them you'd like them to send you a new pair. If they won't, for some reason, then you could contact Koss about the warranty.

http://www.koss.com/

Steve