Question about sovereign meter

[fwcrawford]

I just got a new sovereign gt and the new digital meter for it.
I assembled everything, installed the new meter and turn the machine on.
As I was waiving a quarter across the coil to calibrate the meter, I noticed that the display is very hard to see and it looks like the screen is frosted over.
The numbers are hard to make out although I did manage to calibrate it, but I think something is wrong with the screen.
I looked to see if it had a protective covering on the display, but I didn't see anything that looked like it had to be removed.
I sure could use some advice on this as I am somewhat disappointed after waiting so long to get the detector and already having issues with it.
I will contact the dealer tomorrow, but was wondering if others have had this problem.
Thanks in advance for any help,
Felix

 

[Rick(ND)]

Felix,

This don't sound right as all those I have sold and seen, none have had a weak display, but to be sure make sure your battery is charged up and see what it will do. If this isn't the problem than I would contact your dealer and see if he has another meter in stock and try it and see if it is better.
Most Sovereigns I have seen work great out of the box with very few if any that have a problem, but can happen. Out of all those i have sold only 1 had a bad sensitivity control right out of the box, the rest work flawlessly with some over 12 year old now.

 

[fwcrawford]

Thanks Rick,
I didn't think of that.
I don't know what condition the battery is in when shipped, but I didn't charge it before testing and calibrating the meter.
I'll try that when I get home.
thanks again for the quick response,
Felix

 

[ashley100456]

Been using a GT with a meter now for quite a while & with reasonable success and it works great, Only time i thought i had a problem with the meter was when i couldnt see the numbers very good, Figuired i had left it in the sun or something as the display was darkened/Fogged over with only about one of the digits showing clearly, Took of my Polariod sunglasses & bingo , end of problem. Dont wear Polariod Sunglasses if you want to read your meter.
Cheers
Ashley

 

[Critterhunter]

And if the meter screen is either way too hot or way too cold that will change the visability of the screen. Most Whites detectors like my QXT Pro have an angle adjustment for the display. When extreme tempertures or lighting conditons start effecting how clear the display is you just adjust that to correct it.

Good tip about the sun glasses. Polarized ones will for sure screw up your ability to see things. I noticed this with my Turnigy Accucel 6 charger in the field when flying planes. I charge packs while flying others to stay ahead of them and that way I have endless flights for the day. I thought my charger went dead until I took off my sunglasses and the screen suddenly was back.

If it isn't temperture, sunglasses, or a low battery (my best guess too) then the meter is bad. These Minelab displays are easy to see under most conditions.

 

[fwcrawford]

I tried some alkiline batteries when I got home, but had the same results.
I will try to post a photo tomorrow and have contacted my dealer about the problem.
Thanks again,
Felix

 

[fwcrawford]

Hey guys,
I finally got a replacement meter from Minelab today and installed it on my new detector.
I posted a photo of the new meter compared to the meter that was shipped with my detector when I purchased it a short time ago.
There is a difference in the size of the display window and the replacement meter has a larger display and the numbers are very easy to see and very clear as opposed to the other meter I had.
Anyone have any ideas on the differences between the two?
Maybe they have changed where they are manufactured or something.
Just thought I'd post the photo so you can see what I am talking about.
The meter on the bottom in the photo is the replacement that Minelab sent me.
If you look closely, you can see a smear or smudge on the display window of the other meter that made it very hard to see the numbers and it appears the smear is between the two clear screens... it looks like it has a cover over the screen, but I didn't think it was supposed be removed.
Thanks again for the suggestions and help,
Felix

 

[ivanll]

The top meter have the protective display plastic in place, this is a narrow clear screen with a blue surround border.

The bottom meter have had the protective display plastic removed, and now show the whole display.

 

[Siliquaesid]

This may sound strange, but I reckon one is a clone.

I know most Minelab circuit boards are made in China and that Minelab were recently sold by their parent company. I deal a lot with China and heard rumors of a Sovereign copy over two years ago. I know I've seen Garrett and Whites copies from China. How they do this is;

During a production run for the host company, they make TWICE as many as they need. They then bill the customer for the TOTAL order making it look like the units cost more to produce than they actually do. These units are almost identical to the real thing, they even run off serial number duplicates so when the customer has a problem, companies like Minelab just assume the machine was sold on and don't verify the authenticity.

May be an idea to contact Minelab and ask them who the serial number of your machine is registered to. It SHOULD be you if they tell you someone else, you know you have a clone. Of course, if the OTHER machine hasn't been sold yet, then the duplicate won't show up...yet ;-(

 

[Critterhunter]

No, that meter wasn't a clone but rather he didn't remove the protective film cover from the looks of it. The China thing running off "clones". They were doing the same thing with brushless motors. So long as they had the equipment set up for that particular motor they were contracted to build for an American compnay they'd run off more of them after hours and then sell them for about 1/5th the price. Now they are making a lot of their own designs and the quality has improved a good bit on most of them. First clones were touch and go with the quality issue.