Find's Treasure Forums
Welcome to Find's Treasure Forums, Guests!
You are viewing this forums as a guest which limits you to read only status.
Only registered members may post stories, questions, classifieds, reply to other posts, contact other members using built in messaging and use many other features found on these forums.
Why not register and join us today? It's free! (We don't share your email addresses with anyone.) We keep email addresses of our users to protect them and others from bad people posting things they shouldn't.
Click here to register!
Need Support Help?
Cannot log in?, click here to have new password emailed to you
Will a digiscan meter from..
- Thread starter robocoin
- Start date
Was the original meter for the XS Sovereign a 550 or 180.How well do the two compare? How difficult is it to concert the 550 to a 180.
Art (NWOH)
New member
The earlier meters were 550. The newest (Digisearch) came out with the GT. It's the first from Minelab to be a 180.
Converting a 550 to a 180 requires changing the adjustment pot and one resistor. Wildherre was selling mod kits cheap (Sovereignmods website).
I like te XS2 meter in 550. I am one of the few who like a 550 meter at all, but I have my own reasons for my preference. And I am very particular about exactly which 550 meter that I like.
HH
Converting a 550 to a 180 requires changing the adjustment pot and one resistor. Wildherre was selling mod kits cheap (Sovereignmods website).
I like te XS2 meter in 550. I am one of the few who like a 550 meter at all, but I have my own reasons for my preference. And I am very particular about exactly which 550 meter that I like.
HH
Art,so the XS meter is a 550,which can be converted $$.Why do you prefer the 550 over the 180?
Art (NWOH)
New member
The 550 has 3 times the target resolution of the 180. This is useful in deciding which objects to look at or pass on.
The XS2 meter is very fast. The numbers jump around very quickly and do a fair job of following the Sov's changes in target ID. I can see a conductivity pattern in how the numbers run on the meter. There are a couple inherent problems..........
All the 550 meters are very touchy to calibrate and will drift a little over time, and the XS2's speed causes it to be sensitive to external noise. I fixed the noise problem pretty well by putting a cable made of shilded wire on the meter.
The Sovereign meter (came out with the Elite) is much slower to respond to rapid changes in target ID. Can't see a pattern on it, so I don't like it. Takes a second or two for the meter to catch up to the proper ID value. Might as well convert it to 180. It would give the appearance of speeding up the meter, as you would not have to wait for the last digit or two to stabilize (catch up).
These are things you would have to see for yourself to fully understand.
I don't use a meter the same way most do. Everyone else trys to get a solid singular number displayed. Scaling a meter down to 180 reduces resolution and gives a more stable appearance to the reading. Three different ID numbers on a 550 meter are incorporated into a single number on the 180. If you want "stable" then put a piece of tape over the rightmost digit ( scales down by another factor of 10). Or cover the center and rightmost digits to scale down by 100. Really stable then, but almost useless for ID.
HH
The XS2 meter is very fast. The numbers jump around very quickly and do a fair job of following the Sov's changes in target ID. I can see a conductivity pattern in how the numbers run on the meter. There are a couple inherent problems..........
All the 550 meters are very touchy to calibrate and will drift a little over time, and the XS2's speed causes it to be sensitive to external noise. I fixed the noise problem pretty well by putting a cable made of shilded wire on the meter.
The Sovereign meter (came out with the Elite) is much slower to respond to rapid changes in target ID. Can't see a pattern on it, so I don't like it. Takes a second or two for the meter to catch up to the proper ID value. Might as well convert it to 180. It would give the appearance of speeding up the meter, as you would not have to wait for the last digit or two to stabilize (catch up).
These are things you would have to see for yourself to fully understand.
I don't use a meter the same way most do. Everyone else trys to get a solid singular number displayed. Scaling a meter down to 180 reduces resolution and gives a more stable appearance to the reading. Three different ID numbers on a 550 meter are incorporated into a single number on the 180. If you want "stable" then put a piece of tape over the rightmost digit ( scales down by another factor of 10). Or cover the center and rightmost digits to scale down by 100. Really stable then, but almost useless for ID.
HH
I'm going to guess and say Robocoin and I are bidding on the same meter on Ebay.What would one of these meter be worth est?and will the cable reach the center post for a straight rod asm with the XS control box mounted in the rear? Would one be better off buying a new meter rather than used? Thanks for the information already given.
Art (NWOH)
New member
Rough guess...anything less than $100 would be OK. The less the better.
The cable (if not shortened) will be plenty long enough for anything you want to do.
Common meter problems.....
Dirt and/or condensation drive them nuts.
The adjustment pot can eventually wear out.
Shorts or broken solder joints in the connector (happens to coil connectors also). Don't pull or twist on them if you can help it.
HH
The cable (if not shortened) will be plenty long enough for anything you want to do.
Common meter problems.....
Dirt and/or condensation drive them nuts.
The adjustment pot can eventually wear out.
Shorts or broken solder joints in the connector (happens to coil connectors also). Don't pull or twist on them if you can help it.
HH
Art (NWOH)
New member
You might enquire if the cable is full length. If it has been cut to fit it could be too short for you. Also ask if it has been verified to be operational. Too often people unload bad stuff on that particular site.
If it's bad, Minelab will fix it, but will cost you as much as a new meter.
HH
If it's bad, Minelab will fix it, but will cost you as much as a new meter.
HH
Art, I will ask what the cable length is and if it is working order.Thanks
Art (NWOH)
New member
n/t
Art (NWOH)
New member
n/t
Art,Thanks
Charlie P. (NY)
New member
Last I knew David Keith had an older (550) version in his used equipment list at Dixie Detectors ((615) 860-4333 for $75 shipped in the US.
Art (NWOH)
New member
It will work OK for you.
Once you get used to it and don't fool with any other meters, there won't be any confusion.
That's the biggest secret......get to know what you have.
HH
Once you get used to it and don't fool with any other meters, there won't be any confusion.
That's the biggest secret......get to know what you have.
HH
The XS like the original Sovereign had the bar meters while the XS2 came out with the 550 digital meter. When I became a dealer when the XS were out I was told the Sun Ray DTI were much better than the bar meters they had for the XS. I learned my Sovereign XS with the 180 meter of Sun Rays and found that good targets locked into 179-180 while my IH and the new zinc pennies where 176-177 plus my nickles were 144-145, so as a coin hunter I could dig only coins and leave the trash for others. I even found that this meter I could see the numbers trying to climb to a good number on the real deep targets. This meter was very sensitive too and some of us after using it for a while could tell if it was a silver coin or not by the way this meter acted.
Now when I sold my XS to a good friend I left the Sun Ray meter go with it too and got the XS2 that came with the first Minelab digital meter which was the 550 meter. It was touchy to get it calibrated right on 550, so we just got close to it as it would bounce from 547-554. In the Field I had to check the calibration often and notice some of the numbers seem to over lap between the IH and the copper pennies plus many of my nickle signal and beaver tails off the older round tabs would read the same area, so I did dig more trash with it. After 2 weeks I ordered in a new Sun Ray DTI meter and sold the Minelab digital meter. To me this made all the difference in the world
Now on my trade ins I got a Elite with the 550 meter and this meter was way more stable and the numbers would lock in better too than the first Minelab Digital meters were. I have notice that when you rescale these 550 numbers to a 180 these meter are more stable and may be too stable compared to the Sun Ray DTIs as it didn't respond like Art was saying to those sight changes.
Sun Ray no longer makes these meter, but wish they did as those that used them love them over any other meter made. There still is a few out there yet you will see on the classified. I used to buy them as I found them if they were reasonable and nice shape. I have one now on my GT and just found another used one for the XS I may be selling that is on a straight shaft with the remote pinpoint and the coinsearch coil, but will not sell the Sun Ray meter separate as those that have used them know what this meter can do.
On the new 180 digisearch made for the GT I hear from a few that this meter is good as it is more sensitive than the rescaled 180 meters, but haven't had a chance to try one yet myself.
Rick
Now when I sold my XS to a good friend I left the Sun Ray meter go with it too and got the XS2 that came with the first Minelab digital meter which was the 550 meter. It was touchy to get it calibrated right on 550, so we just got close to it as it would bounce from 547-554. In the Field I had to check the calibration often and notice some of the numbers seem to over lap between the IH and the copper pennies plus many of my nickle signal and beaver tails off the older round tabs would read the same area, so I did dig more trash with it. After 2 weeks I ordered in a new Sun Ray DTI meter and sold the Minelab digital meter. To me this made all the difference in the world
Now on my trade ins I got a Elite with the 550 meter and this meter was way more stable and the numbers would lock in better too than the first Minelab Digital meters were. I have notice that when you rescale these 550 numbers to a 180 these meter are more stable and may be too stable compared to the Sun Ray DTIs as it didn't respond like Art was saying to those sight changes.
Sun Ray no longer makes these meter, but wish they did as those that used them love them over any other meter made. There still is a few out there yet you will see on the classified. I used to buy them as I found them if they were reasonable and nice shape. I have one now on my GT and just found another used one for the XS I may be selling that is on a straight shaft with the remote pinpoint and the coinsearch coil, but will not sell the Sun Ray meter separate as those that have used them know what this meter can do.
On the new 180 digisearch made for the GT I hear from a few that this meter is good as it is more sensitive than the rescaled 180 meters, but haven't had a chance to try one yet myself.
Rick
Art (NWOH)
New member
But the weather is bad and has everything I want to do on hold.
I am BORED BORED BORED.
How you doing Rick??
HH
I am BORED BORED BORED.
How you doing Rick??
HH