AQ Manta Impulse!

[Joon hawn oh]

Don't you know when it's going to be released?

[Skate]

million dollar question years in the making. Latest I heard was testing on lithium batteries for plane travel was being conducted. Since my daughter flies for a living I'm okay with seeing this done.

[Steve Herschbach]

No, nobody knows. It sounded pretty close but then there was a delay, apparently over waterproof integrity issues being resolved. Complete radio silence from First Texas so not even a hint. Maybe they are forgoing the pre-release tease advertising that has become so common, and it will just be announced someday as ready to ship and buy. That would be kind of refreshing actually.

[Rick K - First Member]

Leaky cases are always a critical failure in a waterproof design. I have no idea if the supposed case leak has anything to do with the slow pace of final pre-production development at Fisher - as Steve said, Fisher is “leaktight” (lol) on the subject of the Manta/Impulse!

Here’s some stuff on leak testing waterproof items from a major supplier of testing services and hardware.

Here’s some stuff from the biggest testing company in the area of leak detection of electronic devices. 

This shows the two-step test. A container with the device in it is pressurized to a given level. If that pressure decreases, i means the air has leaked into the device (the interior of the device is at ambient pressure to begin with - a pressure lower that the level the chamber is pressurized to. 

pic upload 

upload photo to internet for link 

[www.cincinnati-test.com]
 

 

[Rick K - First Member]

On the general topic of the Impulse/Manta not being ready for product launch, I think Olson Wells summed it up long ago

OK - I swear the AQ ain’t no cheap California wine, but the classic Olson Wells commercial for Paul Masson, is probably in line with the thinking of the “gnomes” in El Paso. When it’s ready, it will be ready. 

 

Hope the "Finish" is as expected.

[Skate]

Rick,

What do you think the learning curve will be like on the Impulse? For most wetsand(with black sand influence for me) will it be set it and forget it? I'm trying to get me head around what exactly is going to be the way to go on most beach applications. I know it's early to speculate but you're better connected than most.

[Steve Herschbach]

How in the world would First Texas survive without you Rick! 

[Rick K - First Member]

Skate, The Impulse is on the whole slightly less “fussy” than the TDI (I have had two of those). The controls are similar, but there are differences. One big difference is that there is no huge depth penalty like is found in the TDI when the TDI is in GB on mode vs. GB off.

Below is a photo which was released after Fisher brought a proto to the Huge Outdoor Expo in Germany. Here is my best shot at explaining how it works. Please note that l have only used a prototype and that only for a few hours per day over three days.

Volume and Threshold are pretty self-explanatory. Likewise Sensitivity operates pretty much like on any other detector.

The two smaller knobs at the bottom are -

on the left, the on/off, Batt test, noise cancel, all metal and two discrim modes - mute and tone.

The right hand one sets the noise cancel position when in noise cancel and the pulse delay when operating in all metal or one of the two discrim positions.

The start up routine is turn on to noise cancel, then rotate the right hand bottom knob till you get the quietest audio - there is no stop, it’s just a rotary encoder.

Turn to all metal and set comfortable level of sensitivity, threshold and volume. The Sat Speed works much like the SAT or recovery speed setting on a VLF, longer signals with more depth perhaps or shorter ones to enhance the discrim function if you are using it.

The Iron Mask Knob increases the effect of discrimination in the Multitone or mute iron ID modes (selected with the lower left knob).

The Pulse Delay control is generally used at the minimum which conditions allow. Some circumstances may require a longer pulse delay to compensate for salinity, running salt water or other factors. The shorter the delay, the more sensitivity to ALL targets, not just to small ones.

The SAT and Pulse delay interact to some degree so adjusting the delay may make you want to tweak the SAT.

Unless ferrous junk is a serious problem, all metal is the quietest mode and the most straightforward to use. It also has the max depth (although the sensitivity difference between it and the ID positions has been steadily reduced as the successive prototype revisions were developed). 

LeJag, who has been the chief development tester, hunts in all metal and finds that he seldom needs to cross-check in discrim. - but he has been using PI’s for a decade and is an ace.

In my limited use of a prototype last October in San Diego, I found the all metal or the iron mute discrim mode to be the most comfortable for me.

None of the settings are super critical. The 

 

[Skate]

Very nice write up and much appreciated. My hope is that it will open up the wet sand hunting opportunities regardless of tide and sand conditions. Depth is depth and nothing beats a PI so my funds are going to be committed. Gas prices are too high to head to the beach for clad so it's gold or stay home for me.

[danielbecerra]

when will it be for sale ????