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Steve Herschbach

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  1. I'll just say that it seems to me people are getting way ahead of themselves buying coils and battery systems for a detector that has not even a hint of availability here in the states. Things could easily drag out until the end of the year. So far they have not applied for FCC certification that I know of. There are many details to work out on dealers and how to service. Right now they have not been able to supply demand in Australia so expanding here seems silly until they can. Some unforeseen event could occur that delays things. Long story short people might want to take a chill pill buying stuff for a detector that is not even for sale here and has no timeline at all for that happening. I don't recall seeing any official statement that U.S. dealers are planned at all.
  2. This is for people who have used both. Not really interested in opinionating from those who are just speculating. I have been hanging tough with my Equinox 800 package, in large part due to the coil selection. Both the D2 and Manticore have left me wanting in that department so far. XP holding out on the 5x10 coil, and Minelab holding out on, well, just about everything up to now. But at least the M8 and M15 coils are reaching user hands, and I am hopeful we might see a Coiltek 5x10 someday. But to keep it on the straight and narrow lets consider two coils only. The Deus 2 with 9" round as it's smallest option at this time, versus Manticore with 5x8 M8 coil. In general if coil sizes were identical I think most people would give the D2 the edge on picking non-ferrous out of a nail bed. But coils rule in the end, and I suspect the smaller M8 coil might tip the equation in favor of the Manticore for hunting dense trash. I'm also a small gold nugget guy as most people know. While some have knocked the Deus 2 for small gold capability my buddy Condor has one and does quite well on small gold with it in my opinion. As in I have been impressed. Yet another person (abenson) has the M8 on the Manticore and has killed it on some impressively tiny gold, but did note coil knock as an issue, something not seen on the Deus 2. That is however very dependent on sensitivity and even more so ground balance settings, so jury out on that for sure. Long story short I am strongly considering on replacing my Equinox 800 by next year with either the Deus 2 or Manticore. I tend to lean into small coils with VLF so the 9" or M8 are a real focal point for me. Frankly, if XP released the 5x10 for the Deus 2 it would probably be game over for me, but they really don't want me having that detector so are refusing so far to release that coil for the Deus 2. Yeah, I have heard the reasons why not - falling on deaf ears here. You out there XP? Give us the 5x10 for the Deus 2 and we can end this debate now. Until then however the Manticore M8 combo rates high with me, not least because I am simply more used to the Minelab way of doing things with menus. XP is a more radical shift for me. And in the long run I do think the Manticore will have the better coil selection, as we can at least hope for limited aftermarket coil support. Something we will never see with XP. Blah blah blah I do go on. So what do you people who have used both think about the D2 9" combo vs Manticore M8 setup?
  3. Killer first hunt with the M8 Chuck! I don't know about other people, but when I have a first hunt like that with just about anything it's like love at first sight sort of stuff. Then again I had a couple experiences that turned out just to be a big tease, so it will be interesting to hear your thoughts after you get some more time in with this coil. I am in particular interested in what people who have both think of the Deus 2 with 9" coil versus Manticore with 5x8 coil as working packages. I'll start a new thread on the Comparisons Forum on that topic.
  4. Welcome to the forum Pioneer. Thanks for the detailed explanation, and sounds like getting rid of the E1500 was the right thing for you. You are expecting things like full target id to max depth for instance, when I’d never expect that. The pinpoint mode is a non-motion mode, so yes it will drift. That’s the nature of a non-motion mode. The SDC at over twice the weight is a robust tank, so no doubt this featherweight machine feels cheap. And if I was a betting man I’d not bet on the E1500 picking up gold after a SDC but expect the opposite. Thats the crux of it, is it not? Thanks again for the report and best of luck with your gold finding this year. Perhaps we will hear about some success with your SDC on the main DP forum since you obviously won’t be hanging out on this one going forward.
  5. Thank you for the kind comment and thanks in return. All I can do is send out the party invitations but it is the people at the party that make it fun. I do think we have a top notch membership here, in both knowledge and helpful behavior.
  6. Well without getting much into this it's both. My TDI vs MXT was comparing a low power PI to a good VLF. Even with high power PI it is a generally known fact that PI compares poorly to VLF in air tests because it is the ground that accentuates the difference between the two. But target size is also very important, and as the targets get larger a PI will pull ahead of a VLF even in the mildest soils. There is also the wild card of the GPZ 7000 to consider. Some might be considering it a PI, and if so it does beat VLF across the board easily even in mild soil on all but the tiniest targets. But it's not actually a PI per se but a whole different beast, Zero Voltage technology. This is one area where air tests are applicable as being the same as the mildest of mildest soils. Test a GPX 6000 on a dime size target against a Manticore and see what you get. Other than that seems like a tempest in a tea pot. PI people usually like PI and VLF people like VLF and whatever floats your boat I say. In general, for most people my old saying does work pretty well "Use a VLF when you can and a PI when you have to." Thanks for the plug Chase.
  7. Exactly why the Gold Monster sells so well. Other detectors will find small gold as well, but none do it with needing to know so little about how to tune the detector. Minelab still has the only machines that do auto sensitivity as far as I know. SDC is close to same turn on and go type operation, even more forgiving due to it's inherent hot rock elimination. Lots of so called defective metal detectors or ones that get rained on for being improperly designed often are getting comments from people that seem to have issues with lots of detectors in general. They want to crank them to the max and have them run smooth and quiet under all conditions. The fact is some ground is really hard for all detectors. I have come to realize a weakness I have as a tester is my ability to simply adjust to whatever it is about a machine there is that others consider a defect. Knock sensitivity is high on that list. Quite a few hot machines can become coil knock sensitive under certain conditions. The solution is usually simple - lower the sensitivity, use superb coil control, or learn to just hear through the noise. That's what I do sometimes with issues when testing prototypes, and then I am surprised later when lots of people complain about something I never thought was much of an issue. I've had to train myself to think more like people who don't get along with electronics in general, can't program the cable box, can't seem to set the time on the microwave, etc.
  8. The headphones are doing some frequency hopping thing so that is probably what is going on. Ironically that feature is billed as preventing interference. I'd check with Garrett for suggestions on how to maybe sequence things properly to fix the issue. I usually don't use headphones or often use wired so that is why I would not encounter it, plus not using a pinpointer with the Axiom a lot I could have just missed the issue the times I do use the wireless headphones. "Frequency-Hopping Technology—Creates an infinite number of channels to prevent interference with nearby headphones and wireless devices."
  9. “I got it because I wanted more versatility. I sold it because there is too much going on” So basically he is selling it because it is doing the thing he bought it to do. You don’t get versatility without extra complexity. Last thing I’d be doing is telling a SDC user they need one. The SDC is an excellent and very simple small gold vacuum cleaner. The AlgoForce is lighter costs less etc but I doubt it really would find gold any better. And I’m a bit doubtful of coils larger than 14x9 at most. That 15x12 you’d want a large battery to balance out the weight. Not a coil I'd want on the machine. A U.S. buyer should grab fast though even with the bum coil. Beat everyone else by months at least. Bottom line impulse buy try sell has always been and always will be a feature of the detecting world, especially when the price is this attractive. Going to be lots of new detectorists especially pop for these just to discover PI detecting is not for them. Some people might be better off with a Manticore and 5x8 coil.
  10. Mine does not do that. What you are basically saying is the pinpointer is changing frequency after being turned off and back on. Or that the Axiom is shifting in frequency while running. Might be worth a query to Garrett.
  11. With all detectors turn whatever pinpointer you have on, put it 3 feet away, do a detector frequency scan, go detecting. Should just be part of your normal startup procedure.
  12. Some Garrett coils come with cover, some do not. None come with bolt or washers as far as I know except ATX coils which include a lower rod assembly.
  13. Placer Gold Deposits of Utah 1973 USGS Bulletin 1357 by Maureen G. Johnson - A catalog of location, geology, and production with lists of annotated references pertaining to the placer districts.
  14. You are vastly overestimating the power of a single thread to have any effect for the positive or negative. I’m sorry for the issues you are having, but the reality of this thread is that it will soon lose steam and fade into the background like all the other threads posted here over the last decade. Look at reviews on Amazon, glowing reviews, horrible reviews… the companies in general survive it all just fine. The best companies are like people, they make mistakes, but if they have decent product and decent service overall they will do fine. Nobody bats 100% and in life you don’t have to. Just get it right most of the time. And yes, both Garrett and Nokta are generally noted for their exceptional service, not the other way around. So rest assured and lose no sleep thinking you are somehow going to bring any company down with a single thread. That would take every member posting a litany of issues for a year or two, and other sites reflecting the same. When I look at Amazon reviews I don’t pay attention to single reviews, I look at aggregate results and most of us do the same. In my experience in the detector world a company that builds product that really makes the finds can crap all over its customers for years anyway and it makes little difference. People will complain, but still be first to line up for their next super duper whiz bang detector. As long as people believe in a companies products they can get away with almost anything in other aspects of the business. If you have the choice between being the company making the best detectors but having the worst service, or being the company that makes the third best detectors but has great service, it’s the first option that will probably get the most sales. Sad but true. This is because for the vast majority of us, detectors need no service. You buy them, they work. Problems overall are far fewer than you’d imagine by looking at the internet. I’d guess based on my own sales experience that less than 1% of detector purchasers overall have any manufacturer related issues at all with their detector.
  15. I can testify for a fact the customer is not always right. The secret is to just do what is right by all involved…. and sometimes that means telling a customer they are full of it. It’s a tough needle to thread at times, no doubt about it.
  16. Well having been a dealer for 35 years if you gave me your money to order a coil that is advertised as having a coil cover I'd have got you the coil cover. And then I'd have beaten it out of the manufacturer on my own, not dump it on you. Or eaten it as I did many times because my customers are my customers, not the manufacturers customers. But if it's advertised on the website as having a cover they would cough it up, I have no doubt of that. FYI for anyone dealing with Garrett email is not their forte. Call the 800 number and talk to Rusty.
  17. Not mentioning the manufacturer only protects them and robs your post of any effectiveness it might have had. As far as sending a message to the industry as a whole telling them not to screw up? Yeah, CEOs everywhere are calling for big meetings today. “Hey guys, I read on a forum today we should not make mistakes and take care of our customers. Who knew?” People often labor under the misperception that I am beholden in some way to this or that manufacturer and care about their little feelers being hurt. That I have some kind of ties that I fear being cut. That I'm out to run cover for them here. Nothing could be further from the truth. I’ve owned and run multimillion dollar companies and know how to wear my big boy pants. I know what makes companies tick and I know what gets their attention and what does not. There are ways to do it that are effective and ways that are not. One secret function of this forum is to expand my reach and the effectiveness of my own influence with companies. Relating your experience honestly and respectfully and naming names has the best chance of getting results. The more well spoken the communication the better. Anyone that has followed my posts for years knows I’m not shy of calling out any company and have done so many times. They all have earned my ire one way or the other over the years. Long story short nobody need tiptoe around calling companies out by name. But when you do make sure you put some thought into it. Presentation matters if the goal is to actually have some impact that matters. Companies generally respect well spoken people making cogent suggestions and voicing genuine concerns when it’s done right. Naming names but doing it respectfully is a great way to start. Believe it or not these companies are not out to screw people and in general actually do want to up their game and do a better job. It’s not as easy as you might think running a large company. There is frustration in wanting to do a great job but having to deal with the fact that mistakes are always made because we are all just human. I experienced that frustration constantly in my own business career and I’m certain it exists at these companies also.
  18. The Impulse was not really sold outside the U.S. so almost nobody in Australia has one. The E1500 is not for sale in the states yet. People here who have an Impulse probably like it for being submersible. The E1500 is not, so other than curiosity not much reason for an Impulse owner to get an E1500. Bottom line I will not be holding my breath for this head to head comparison to happen. I hope it does. My gut feeling is the Impulse probably has more punch on coin and ring size targets, but I have nothing really to base that on other than the fact that the E1500 seems aimed at small target proficiency, small gold nuggets specifically, and the Impulse was specifically designed for ring size targets. I'd expect either to have the edge for what they were designed to do. There in no denying the Impulse will work far better when submerged. AlgoForce E1500 Specifications & Manuals Fisher Impulse AQ Ltd Specifications & Manuals
  19. Machines no matter which ones have different issues at different locations around the world. Insisting that a detector is carte blanche no good because of issues in one locale when users in other locales are just fine makes no sense to me. I consider the GPX 6000 to be a superior unit to the Axiom for most locations but do have places where it’s exactly the opposite, and it’s precisely because the Axiom handles the ground better at those places. Jeff finds that to be true for him where he is at. I ran the Axiom just fine in WA for two weeks at various locations just outside Meekatharra. Another ten days with a crew running multiple Axioms at widely spread locations in Eastern and Southern Oz. All I can say is that you seem to have ground the Axiom or your Axiom in particular does not like. So Garrett may be scratching their heads also over your reports, and rather than just blow you off want to take the time to do proper testing. Or not, maybe like you say they just don’t care, though I find that doubtful. It’s not my job to defend them or Minelab but I am sorry when people have difficulty with any machine. Do consider however that your experience does not speak for all users worldwide. It’s the experience you and your mate are having with your machines on your ground, nothing more and nothing less. I am truly sorry regardless that it is not going the way it should.
  20. I would never worry about powering up a control box without a coil attached. On the other extreme, I would never under any circumstances want to connect or disconnect a coil on a GPZ 7000 if it was powered up, but due to the way you have to half disassemble the detector to do this it is unlikely anyone would. On the other Minelabs Carl is probably right but it is also something I would never do. We are creatures of habit, and developing a habit of being sure a detector of any sort is not powered up when connecting or disconnecting a coil will never cause you grief. You can't say the same the other way around so do please just look at it as good practice. And again... From the GPX 5000 and earlier manuals: “Always ensure that the control box is turned off before connecting or disconnecting the coil to avoid damage to the detector's electronics”
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