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Newbie needs help deciding

A

Anonymous

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I'm just wondering if this is to much of a machine for a newbie? I've used torsoros a couple of times but there just turn on and go.The whites people say the Dfx is easier to use.But I can't find anybody to let me try one.I did get to try the explorer and I was real impressed with the depth.Found a couple of 50's nickels at about a foot at the beach.And that was just with the factory mode.The only problem I noticed was there was a guy with a bounty hunter and when ever he got whithin 20 ft the machine would chirp like crazy.Is there any thing you can do about that?I'm mainly going to be using this machine for relics and coins.I Know this is expensive but I've heard alot of good things.And really don't care how much it costs, I plan on hunting alot.Well any info anybody can give would be great.Thanks.
 
Hi There,
You can make the Explorer as easy or as hard as you wish.
I have had mine for 3 months as I got let down with whites who kept re promising the DFX to me.
They did me a great favour as I thought that the XLT was Gods gift to detecorists how wrong I was.
A few days ago at 2 feet down I found a Charles II 1-LB scale weight that has been buried fo 350 years and many other finds have come my way and we cant be lucky all of the time so it has to be the machine.
The programmes to do most of what you need are childs play to feed in compared with the XLT and DFX so go for it and get the Explorer XS.
Happy Hunting,
Jerry Bristol.UK.
 
I would think the explorer would be a much easier machine to learn than the DFX, really isnt amny things to set up, just settings to adjust preferences, the only thing that affects pergformance are sensitivity and gain.. not a hundred preamp phase etc settings, you could start off in smart screen with basic settings up the sensitivity and get stuff down over 10 inches easy.. just gotta listen.. the exporer gives a fairly simple to learn tone.. the only time i tried to listen to a dfx I really didnt get what it was saying.. the sounds seemed to be evrywhere.. anyway if you look at the number of new folks using the explorer and making great finds right off you can see it isnt that difficult to start off with, then it just gets better as you learn its ins and outs....
 
You can start off with the factory settings which makes it a very simple machine to learn. But as you learn you can graduate to more of the features without buying another detector. You can take your time learning it.. I think some try to do to much with it right off and that makes them upset and almost hate it... Go slow with the features learning a litte bit at a time and you will love it.... I do...Frank
 
I'm new to this too, but I remember reading somewhere that noise cancelling helped with interference from other machines
 
i would deffinatilly go exp. but get the xs. i just got my exp.xs around christmas time it was a gift to myself. i have a garrett gti1500 and gti2500 and i am getting stuff in the same location that the gtis miss. it takes time to learn but i am realy starting to love this uniy more and more. heres an example. last week i went to an old section of town where they ripped up and removed the sidewalks i went over the whole area 2 times with my 2500 & 1500 my oldest find was a 1941 merc dime. so i went to my car and got out my exp.xs put on the sunray 5 inch stealth coil which is great and found 2 indian heads one a rare 1871 and a 1872 both in CHERRY condition. so i would go with the best ,it will be worth the expense.besides i think the garrett gti2500 now cost more the the exp.xs. another helpful bit of info is dont forget our friend ralph at sunray they have great accessories for the xs and they ARE TOP NOTCH and no i am not a dealer just love the hobby
 
I've had my explorer xs for 3 months. Its great and worth the bucks to me. Don't try to learn too much too fast. read the manual and Andy Sabisch, Mastering the Minelab Explorer Xs and S. Then go try it for a while, come back and reread them and hunt some more. Check the forum frequently. It takes a while to get good but is worth it. Pinpointing is hardest but Sun Ray makes a probe just for the xs and it cuts digging time at least in half.
 
Robert, I have the GTI 2500 and an Excalibur for the water. The Excal I bought about a month ago and I love it.....especially the "iron mask". I don't dig the hairpins etc at the beach which really helps. I was considering the Explorer for the dry beach and coinshooting but I was afraid I would miss the imaging (ie "B" size = coin). Not that this is totally reliable anyway but I know Garrett now sells a 12" coil that is supposed to go much deeper for the GTI2500. So my question is Robert since you have both the 1500 and 2500 do you miss the imaging with the Explorer? And what are the other tradeoffs if you have the time? Thanks,Barb
 
the answer is definately not ,i do have the 12.5 imagining coil also but still pick up alot of coins that my garretts miss and thats using the 8 inch sunray stealth coil. i dont use the stock minelab 10.5 inch coil much because i find it is a little to heavy to swing all day i have found lad coins 8-10 inches deep with the stealth coil and i think thats pretty respectable. i now use my garretts as back up units only;;;; as long as my exp.xs is working it will be my main unit. dont get me wrong i like my garretts and would not sell either one but i have found more this season with the exp. xs then i have found in the last 3 years with the garretts even in places that i have been over 2 or 3 times the exp.xs continues to amaze me.and i just got the exp.xs in dec 2000 so i am a newbee but enjoying every minute of it ..
 
Barb, Hello! I too had a Garrett GTI 2500, and enjoyed the imaging, however, I made the jump to the Minelab Explorer XS almost a year ago, and there is no looking back. I have owned most of the high end detectors (a detector junkie I guess) and the detector I take to the field, or the beach is the Minelab Explorer. It offers so much more, and with a little practice, you will be able to almost name your hits by bouncing back from the two dimensional to the numeric- it is the most accurate detector I have ever used. Marc
 
The Minelab Explorer XS is a great first machine! I recommend it because why spend money on a detector then sell it lose money only to buy an upgraded detector, if you can afford it, buy the best right from the start. As far as the chirping, go to MENU- then OPTION- then NOISE-and adjust the channel. (This is in the advanced mode) if you are in the QUICK START program, simple turn it off then on and it should select a channel seperate from the other detector. If you want the original factory preset, simple turn it on and HOLD the POWER BUTTON for about 5 seconds, it will then say factory preset. You may want to turn your sensitivity down a hair also. I find that I can detect almost on top of another detector without the detector going crazy. As far as the DFX, it is a great detector, but I will stick with the Minelab Explorer XS, it offers much more (why buy two frequencies when you can buy 28!!!) Good luck ! Marc TREASUREQUEST360@aol.com
 
Is the Explorer as good as the Excalibur for the "iron mask". I don't want to dig relics just coins. The Explorer does have a depth gauge/meter on it doesn't it?
Isn't Halloween one of those gift giving holidays? Maybe I can ask the Great Pumpkin for an Explorer XS.
Thanks again,
Barb
 
Barb; go get the exp.xs and you wont ever regret it but get the xs not the explorer . the xs offers more advanced features and you will be glad you got them once you master the beast.also pick up andy sabishs book called mastering the exp xs and s.it is a great informative book and will be very helpful i read it about 20 times during the long wisc. cold winter. and once you get the xs you will probally want some of sunrays goodies 5&8 inch stealth coils.treasure pouch,exp.stand x1 probe i got them all and they make top notch accessories for the exp. and just to clear up one point I AM NOT A DEALER:::: i am just a dedicated ther.i do not sell anything but seem to buy everything......my wife tells me it will take me 10 years to pay for all my stuff but HEY GOTTA HAVE TOYS
 
I never owned or used any metal detector previously. I did a little shopping around and the more I looked the more I realized that I would only be happy with the best. I have had my explorer over a year now and am very happy with my decision. i can tell you one thing, I have found coins where there have been many others with other machines before. That is what really impresses me. It took me a long time to get good , but I am really tuned in now and feel good about my skills.
 
Hey Robert, The person with the most toys is the winner!!! HH-Coinshooter65.
 
Hi Robert. I have a 2500 also and have found a lot of coins .not much silver not a lot of old places around here.do you like the am mode .I have dug targets at 12 inches and so far it seems to be right on the money so far in the am mode.Iam thinking about geting an explorer xs. Iwould like to know how good the 2d smartfind is. happy hunting. Tom L
 
Tom , my answer is since i got the exp.xs the garrett gti 2500 and gti 1500 are now BACK UP UNITS ONLY the exp.xs is the greatest unit i have ever owned and do not see myself going out and buying a new unit unless minelab tops the xs and i think that will be hard to do. i ahve found 5x more this season then i found in the last 3 years with the gtis hope this answers your question i am a HAPPY CAMPER did have the headphone jack break and had the crack fixed and am totally happy with my decision to buy the xs.
 
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