FschJg

After 3x charging the Pro Sonic the LED of the receiver module will not switch to blue (fully charged) even after several hours on the charger. I just contacted Jamie at Minelab to ask for help. I am a bit disappointed!

I am afraid you will have to get 2 machines, the one for beach/surf hunting and a gold machine. Don't disregard the TDI Pro for prospecting. It is a great machine for the money. I am not sure if I would buy the SL, I would rather get a used Pro. But who knows, you might find a couple of rings and Rolex watches at the beach and it will pay for a ML Pi machine ;-) Anyways good luck and happy hunting.

What about a used Minelab Excal 2 ?

Hi MontAmmie, I recommend the TDI Pro, which you can find used. I run one myself for relic hunting and to go after ancient coins. If you get a folded mono coil for the TDI you will have a killer machine which fits your wallet. I would sell you mine but it is modded and customized and will not meet your $ limit. But check ebay once in a while you will find a TDI Pro for a good price.

Yes I got it for $265 which is still expensive.

A quock addition, I ordered a Gold Screamer a while back. Not the power pack version, just the regular Gold Screamer which uses the ML battery. The system worked but with all the cables it was a mess. Two short cables to connect the GS in line with the battery plus another cable for the external speaker. Well the Pro Sonic eliminates all of that plus I can mount the receiver with the build in speaker on the Pro Swing45 right on my shoulder. I actually have to turn down the audio because is is way too loud. So if anybody wants a Gold Screamer, I have one to get rid of.

I just traded my V3i in for another machine since in comparison it was lacking depth compared to my other VLF's. The V3i is a great coin shooter but here in Europe we need to look past 12" to find the good stuff. The V3i was just not able to do that. I wish I could have kept it since the display and the user interface was awesome.

Recently I had a very bad experience with a dealer that cost me about $1000. In this case it was the communication between a dealer and a manufactor. I was hopeing to get a good service from a smaller dealer i stead of going through one of the big names in the industrie. But I choose wrong and I paid for it. Over the years I thought I established a good relationship with some of the places I usually buy. And when I say buy I mean I spend quite a few bucks with them. But I made the shocking discovery I am just one of many customers and it makes no difference if I spend $50 or $5000 in one order. In the end I get the same sh**** service. So I concluded for myself that I take myself much to important or better my expectations are much too high. I am just one of thousands of customers and I can not expect to receive a simple email in regards to my order. The iceing of the cake was an experiance I made with a small company from Australia. I read about an EMI filter for the GPX. So I decided to send them an email with a question aboit it and some questions about potential modifications of the GPX as well. No answer! So I send a second email, again no answer. Next due to the time difference I stayed up and gave them a call. On the phone I was told that my questions yould only be answered by the technician who does the mods and builds the filter. I was given his direct email address. So again I wrote up an email with my questions. The answer I got was stunning. In regards to my question what mods are available, what they do and which of the mods would help in ,y situation I also asked for the cost of the different mods. Also I asked for the price of the inline EMI filter. Well the answer I got was " The complete mod package is $2000 and the DD EMI filter is $220" Wow ok so I said forget about modifications if My simple questions are not answered and just buy the filter and be happy. So I replied that I would like to buy the filter and gave him my address for the calculation of postage. I also asked how I can pay. I NEVER received an answer! So I called and left a message about my order. I yet have to receive an answer! I recon the dealer is not interrested in my money. And to be honest I am not sure if I would have my detector modified by somebody who seems unable to write more than one sentence on a $2000 transaction. FschJg

Using the GPX with wired headphones is a pain in the neck for me. So I was looking for a wireless option. When I saw the Pro Sonic system I went ahead and ordered it. What a relief, so much more freedome without the cable. Especially the heavy GPX with all it's cables and the harness makes it so much more pleasant not to have another cable. I can place the detector away from the target area while digging and don't have to take my headphones off. No more cable getting snagged at the handle, no more dangeling wire. Another benefit, on a hot day, I just clip the receiver to the shoulder strap of the Pro Swing 45 and use the speaker instead of headphones. About a possible delay in audio responds, so far I have not noticed any delay. Audio is spot on as the coil passes over the target. Another nice to have feature especially on a GPX is the volume adjustment on the receiver module. So in conclusion, I can say, I am very pleased with the Pro Sonic. I paid $269 for the system. Is it worth the money when you compare it to the Garrett or Deteknix systems? Maybe not. I think the only benefit is the built in speaker of the ML system. Other than that, if you are on a budget or you only use headphones, go ahead and buy the Garrett or Deteknix and safe more than half. I think ML needs to come down with the price to make it more attractive. So why did I buy it? Ohh well I guess I am a ML fan boy ? FschJg

Here is my experience with ML and communication. I c&p it from another forum where I posted this: So I was in the market for a GPX 5000 and a CTX 3030 since they offer a 15% discount for service members. I am stationed with the US Air Force on a base in Germany. I contacted a dealer in the US to order the machines. The dealer wrote me back that he could not sell to me since I am not in the US. He actually said he contacted ML and they told him so. I explained to him that I am on orders and even submitted a copy of my mil. ID card. Still no chance to get the machines. So I went ahead and bought both machines in Europe for a pretty penny PLUS 19% tax.A little later I contacted the US dealer again to buy some accessories for both machines, only to find out that he was also not able to sell me any accessories for the same reason. I got so mad and contacted ML USA direct to complain. I wrote them not only don't I get the 15% discount, I actually have to pay a much higher price since they won't allow me to buy stateside.Two days later ML answered that they do allow sales to military members overseas! They asked for the dealers name to inform him about this too. Great for future sales but bad for me. I just send a s*** load of money on a GPX 5000, a CTX 3030, the CTX17, ProSwing45 and some more ML accessories. Lesson learned. Bad communicatiin between ML and the dealer cost me a pretty penny. I actually bought two GPX since the wife wanted one as well. The second one was a trade in. I found another dealer, River Team Six Detectors, he took three of my machines and offered me a GPX 5000 for them. So at least I did not loose much on the second deal. Still frustrating because I could have spend the money I lost on coils. This experience made me buy Detech coils instead of ML coils, because I was just not willing to throw more money at ML

I sure will. Both coils are in transit as we speak. With a bit of luck I will have'em on the weekened.

Got the 15" spiral and the 18" mono both by Detech. Can't wait to see them in action.

It sounds like the 15" DD Spiral by Detech is a very good allround coil and has some advantages compared to the stock 11". My understanding from reading so far, it is even more sensitive than the 11" stock, has a deeper iron reject and the larger footprint. I also read it is less effected by EMI compared to the stock. So really it is now a matter between the 15" Detech and a 18" by Detech or ML. Btw, I am after Roman/Celtic coins and WW2 relics. Size anywhere from Dime size coins helmets.

Hello, This was posted in the Find's forum as well but no answer yet. So I am planning on getting a 18 or 15" DD coil for my GPX 5000 for relic hunting. I am looking at ML and Detech coils. I am unsure if I should go ahead and get the ML 18" DD or rather the Detech one, or maybe even the 15" Spiral DD by Detech. Which one gives more depth on relics? Which one is more quiet? Any suggestions? Thanks FschJg