Hi Luke, That's alot of questions, I get confused easy so bear with me I'll try to answer them. As far as other machines I have either owned or still use, the list is very long and I don't want to bash any other machines on this forum. Lets just say right now The AT Pro gets top billing and the others are collecting dust. I love hunting for old coins and have been doing so on and off since I've been a teenager, probably a good 20+ years, the first 10 or so I wasn't to serious, I would say the past 5-10 I have been really into it, I have a standing goal of 100 silver coins a season (from when the ground thaws to when it freezes up) I have hit it now for the past 7 years. So I have used some very capable machines over the years, but I would have to say this has been the best start to a season yet, by far. So that does get me excited about the AT Pro. I do hunt quite a bit, a few times a week after work and also on weekends, weather permitting. I do have quite a few great sites to hunt and I do spend alot of time hitting the older parks, it's amazing the amount of old coins that are masked by junk in the parks, this seems to be where the AT Pro really shines. I don't think I have any great secret I just go real slow and listen, I find that when I grid an area I do much better than when I wonder around. Usually when I start to wonder It's time to go home. Oh yeah I'm in NY the upstate area.
HH Butch NY