The sovereign elite myth

[Anonymous]

I don't know for sure how many detectors I had -maybe 30 went through several tesoro's and whites and the fishers like the F5-cz-5 ca-70 and tons of others and the mine labs - Xterra 70,705-safari -SE Pro etc.
the best buy I had came from someone named Donna I think.
safari like new with books-Cd three coils headphones boxed for $800. LIKE A DUMMY I SOLD IT. The most accurate one I had was the SE Pro which if you had the signal in the upper right had corner with the numbers-it was almost always a coin.Yep I sold that and got out for about 1 1/2 yrs.
Now I want to get back into it and was looking and stumbled across a detector depth source which said the Elite was the deepest by far. Like 14 or 15 inches.
I was fishing for and XS but couldn't come up with one so I think I will wait for the winter to come and see if some are selling. Just wondering and not trying to start an argument but is it true it can go that deep-Deeper than the GT.
davidF

 

[goodmore]

I have used quite a few models of the Sovereign. I never found one that could really out perfrom the other. In fact I prefer the XS-2A to any of the others. It's cheap. It's simple. It has a switch to have tone ID or not. That is all I need. I only use it for wet sand hunting. Combined with the 12 x 10 SEF coil I really enjoy using it.

 

[ROBOCOP]

I don't know if it's deeper but the choice of coils now may be different than what you were used to.
I like my Sov XS 2 Pro with the SEF 10x12 coil. I use the 550 meter. I mounted the control box behind my elbow on the stock S shaft and it makes for a very comfortable wide sweeping swing.
I upgraded the battery pack to 1100 mah at batterys plus. I use Jolly Roger headphones and overall it's a very smooth performing detector.

I considered trying the SEF 15x12 coil but I think the larger footprint with overlapping targets would just confuse the 550 meter.

If I don't get a lot of nulls on a particular beach (not much iron) I can come back the next day with a Detector Pro HHPI and go for depth.

Good luck.

ROBOCOP

 

[Ron from Michigan]

I have used both the Elite and GT and they are both deep,but that's not the main reason I like the Sovereign,its easy to use once learned and IDS very deep targets better that most detectors.I currently use a Elite.The Sovereign is my go to detector and isn't a myth its still one of the best detectors I've ever used.There is a reason why Sovereigns hold their resale value,and that is performance.Good Luck Ron

 

[Rick(ND)]

All the model Sovereigns are good, just some are better than the others I feel. The GT is the newest model and to me it is the best model as it seems to be a bit more sensitive that any of the others. Like I say to me I notice the GT may false a little more as it seems to be more sensitive over the others. The easiest to learn I feel is the XS and the XS2 with the 8 inch coinsearch coil and the one to me that don't seem to do as well is the original Sovereign (the one before the XS) and the Elite to me (tried 3 different ones) seem the signal sounded deeper than the actually were and the control are not in the right spot like the other Sovereigns, so they do get bumped a bit and have to check them often to see they are where you want them. The XS2a to me didn't have the depth or sensitivity of the earlier Sovereign from my use of them.
Looking at used ones you will notice the GT holds it price well as there is a reason why as they are in more demand from those that know theirs Sovereigns. This goes the same with the XS and the XS2 as they are hard to find and the price is higher then the others as you will notice. The secret to the Sovereigns is taking the time to learn then which to some is very easy, others take a while, but once you know it it will impress you what it can do.

Rick

 

[Anonymous]

ok-thanks for the advice.
Just making sure as I have plenty of time to learn it.Right now I am leaning towards the Sovereign but the only other detectors I would buy right now are the Etrac and maybe the CZ-3D.
I could have had a nice etrac but getting back into it again I wanted to start out slow and not jump right into a big dollar machine. There are a lot of Etacs that show up and I'm wondering if it might be to much for some people which includes me maybe.
DavidF

 

[Neil]

I have used quite a few models of the Sovereign. I never found one that could really out perfrom the other. In fact I prefer the XS-2A to any of the others. It's cheap. It's simple. It has a switch to have tone ID or not. That is all I need. I only use it for wet sand hunting. Combined with the 12 x 10 SEF coil I really enjoy using it.

Yep that's just like the newer modeled elite except the elite adds the newer nimh battery pack and the noise/band toggle.

With the right coil and soil and properly tuned I think they can all get coins down 14". Sometimes it even seems the worse the soil the deeper they will go, definetly wetter sand allows/helps them to go deeper.

The etrac is a great choice also. Depends on how you hunt/where you hunt.

 

[Rick(ND)]

My first Minelab was the Sovereign XS back in 1996 and wondered if I made the right decision until I got to know it a bit and got used to the tones and also trying to learn the CZ7 and a GTI 2500 at the same time. The tones were different on the Sovereign, but once I went slow and got used to it I found it to be a very good detector and one of my all time favorites. It is easy to set up and is more of a turn on and go detector while some of the others you have to learn to set it up for the area you are going to hunt. I tried all the different Explorers and then the E-Trac and for me the E-Trac was easier to use then the Explorers were for me anyway. I got a CTX 3030 right now and it has a lot of different controls to adjust or mis adjust where as the Sovereign may not do as good in some cases, but for most of my hunting the Sovereign does excellent and can find good coins faster and less trash.
The thing with the Sovereign I like is I just have to turn it on and check my meter calibration and I am ready to hunt and go slow and listen to what it is telling me and look at my meter on the close tones to a good target verses trash. Another thing I like about the Sovereign is it hates iron so I don't get the rusty nails and the older crown caps I did with the CZ7 I had. I do get some that fool me as if it is deep and iffy I will dig them.

Good Luck and remember don't give up, it will be worth it.

Rick

 

[GeorgeinSC]

I purchased my first detector two years ago. I purchased the Sovereign GT on the advice of my Brother In Law. His twin brother had one and both of them were very impressed with the results that the GT was producing. Of course Minelab decided to quit producing the machine within months of my purchase.

It did not take long for me to think that I had wasted a bunch of money by purchasing the GT as I could not understand what the machine was telling me and more than one time I was tempted by a sturdy tree.

I purchased a 180 meter from Ron. With the meter giving guidance my trash digging decreased drastically. As I continue to learn the machine my good finds have increased. I have gone over areas where my first visits only produced clad coins and now that I have learned to slow down and really listen to the tones my silver coin finds have increased. Some of my coin finds have been down quite deep. On wet sand at the beach I frequently have targets that Disappear before I get down to them. Another scoop or two out of the bottom of the hole and the target is in the scoop.

After having the GT for a while I purchased the Excalibur II a year ago for the beach/water. Both machines have paid for themselves in finds not to mention enjoyment received and good exercise benefits. I have also purchased a second GT just in case that my primary GT ever decides to give up the ghost. I would not want to not have the Sovereign in my detecting arsenal.