I want to try the Ace 250, but....

[Gribnitz]

I just can't get the absolute horrible performance of the Ace 300 out of my head. It would only see a couple inches into the dirt and the 'treasure eye' was mostly usless. I had to resort to using an X pattern to try and center the target. The TA 300 was the first machine I bought because Garrett is a well known brand name. I was pretty let down and wishing I got that WalMart detector after I got it.

Now, the Ace 250 has amazing features for $200. Is the performance far and above the older 300 ? Why in the world did Garrett name it Ace, when the older Aces were really toys ?

 

[Anonymous]

but you got lucky since the new Aces are great detectors for a low price. They can't be compared anymore to the older Ace 300. I hope nobody ever thinks : " the Ace 250 works great...the Ace 300 must be better" because it is the other way around.

Now the Aces are just that.....Aces !!

I don't do all my posts here to sell stuff because i am not a dealer. I do it to let the people know that here is an inexpensive detector that gets the job done.

Thanks Charles Garrett!!!!

Andy,NM

 

[DavHut]

...you wont regret it. Your Tesoros just might go to sleep for awhile if you do.

 

[Uncle Willy]

The 250 is light years ahead of the 100/200/300 series. I field tested those and wasn't to happy with them myself. Don't even think of the 250 in the same sentence with an Ace 300 - just get one and be prepared to have a barrel of fun.

Bill

 

[NM5K]

I've had a 250 for one day, and I'm pretty impressed
so far. I had one cheap detector a long time ago,
and it was totally useless compared to this thing.
With the old one, you had to manually balance, etc,
and it was a nightmare. If you found anything, it was
mainly just from getting lucky and digging in the right
place.
From a newby standpoint, it's like night and day now.
I don't have to clutz around trying to balance it.
All I do is adjust the sensistivity about half way,
and maybe a bit more if it doesn't start falsing,
for deep stuff.
I just walk around and wait for it to beep. And beep
often it does. And when it beeps, there is something
in the ground. If there is little trash, the coin ID
works pretty dang well. I did a coin ID test on a cardboard
box, and it came out perfect every time.
Of course, the ground is different, but still seems
fairly accurate, unless cluttered up.
I've used it for just a few hours, and I'm already
used to it, and finding stuff no problem.
When you hear that coin "ding" go off, you almost always
have a coin, unless it's a nail, or tab fooling you.
I got a few of those, but probably no more that any other
machine. The nails were rusty corroded real bad, and
probably don't look totally like nails to the machine.
Most "dings" are coins of some kind..
Anway, so far, I think I chose the right unit for a
starter kit. I'm liking what I see so far.
And I kinda stumbled across the ace detectors at the
last minute too...I was considering others before I
heard about the aces, and saw all the good reviews.
BTW, the older 100/300 were generally called "treasure ace"
The 150/250 may still be treasure ace officially, but
they seem to pretty much have dropped the "treasure" from
the name. Maybe thats a way to distiguish them from the
older units which were totally different animals.
MK

 

[Ralph Bryant]

I've been around these detector forums now since they first came on line back around 1997 or so with the introduction of TreasureNet, and later Sean's original Tesoro Forum. During those years, I've come to know alot of different folks with different levels of experience under their belts. I know who "knows their stuff" and can pick out the bull schitters from the treasure getters on a pretty consistent basis.

Now, with that said, I very often read posts by the "old crew" with an interest in what they are doing or discovering in the way of equipment or hunting locations. Let me tell you that some of these guys are as sinical and skeptical as they come when it gets down to the nitty-gritty of new machine releases and picking them apart like Kentucky Fried Chicken. Not much gets by them, to say the least.

Something I have noticed is the almost unanimous approval of the little Ace 150 and 250 machines as the "biggest bang for the buck" currently on the market. There was a discussion over on Carl's Metal Detecting Equipment forum recently, talking about all of the hype, disappointments, and general dissatisfaction with technology improvements in the industry the last dozen years or more. I'm sure the combined experience level of the guys who post there is well into the hundreds of years, so these guys are far from being considered "newbies" by any means. They know what they are talking about, know how the machines work, and know what makes or breaks a new release. Their numbers consist of electronics technicians, multi-range detector dealers, magazine writers, field testers, design engineers, and just plain old die-hard detector aficionados, many of whom would be just as comfortable tearing a machine apart for disection or modification as using one to dig zincs in the local park.

When you get such a cross-section of the detector community agreeing within their own ranks on the merrits of what amounts to a "low-budget" detector, you can bet it is something worth looking at and considering. There just aren't alot of detectors that make that grade with this bunch, regardless of the price range. They would just as soon debate and pick apart a $1200 machine as one coming off the shelves at the local discount store. The ones that do manage to pass the mustard test are usually considered "best of the best" compared to all other comers on the market.

Ask any one of these guys who have handled one, what they think of the Ace 150 or 250, and you will get little more than positive comments. Even the owner of the forum himself recently had the following to say......

"We've reached a point where the difference is not based around performance but secondary issues of cosmetics, ergonomics, weight, etc. Until a radically new technology is developed I'll use what I've got and just try to get better in picking my spots, too. I'm less than thrilled with the newest crop of detectors. The Ace 250 is a special little machine and the one exception."

Carl knows his detectors inside and out, literally. This is one endorsement that I would not take lightly, especially so considering the price point.

Sure, there are "better" and more capable machines on the market, if you're willing to spend the multiples of price and the time it often takes to learn and understand a machine beyond just the basics of what it does, but more importantly WHY it does it. There are some higher dollar units that will provide more in the way of raw depth, but feature for feature, you simply cannot beat the Ace 150 or 250 for the money involved. But they go beyond just price and function by providing excellent PERFORMANCE. Don't make the mistake others of us have made in comparing them to earlier Garrett models. There just really is no comparison.

Ralph

 

[Wirechief]

Yep Garrett has set a new standard and you just can't do much better as far as features and performance for the money. The Aces are still a hot item and if this tells you anything it seems to be the only detector that sells for me. And they have a neat little snipe coil to fit it. It makes it hard to sell these other detectors priced 600.00 to 1200.00. So don't hesitate in buying the 250 because you won't lose. take care and God Bless.

John T., CET