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Open Letter To White’s Electronics’s


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Friend Simon, the same basic laws are in place here, and are commonly referred to as "Lemon Laws." Certainly, the consumer should be protected. Hey, the new Chevrolet Colorado I just purchased already has Recall issues! But let me tell you what I know. Since 1994 I have been a Vendor at 129 "Gold Shows," i.e. recreational gold prospecting trade conventions, sponsored by several organizations. Steve and Gerry, and others here, can vouch for that. There are usually between 1,500 to 2,000 attendees at each Show. About 10% of them will spend time at my booth, and MANY of them tell basically the same story.." I bought my XLT 25 years ago. About 5 years after the warranty ran out, the coil died. White's replaced it for free. Seven years later the circuit board fried, White's replaced it for free. Two years ago I sent it in for a tune-up, White's replaced the coil, screen, lower shaft, and circuit board for only $90.00..." OR, "I've used my Goldmaster 3 for 25 years, never had a moments problem with it, I'm up to 11,000 nuggets, and it still works fine..." But on the other hand, I have frequently heard "I like [detector manufacturer]'s products, but their Customer Service is totally abysmal, rude, slow, uncaring, and overpriced." Quite a difference in consumer opinion. The point: ANY electronic device can "die." How well the manufacturer remedies this is testimony to how they view YOU, the Consumer. With respect, or with distain?

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I received an email today fro White's. It was of course talking about summer and the last chance to save. Well for curiosity I followed the link and was led to this page showing an old cabin in a remote place and then had to click on that to get to the same old models.

While I am very envious of those that have access to such places depicted in their ad, such places are not accessible here. It appears the comments of others about Whites being stuck in the past are a valid concern. I have owned whites equipment in the past and their equipment is built physically strong. Unfortunately their stuff is also power hungry and loves to eat batteries. The V3X I bought on ebay as a "demo machines" and had to return took a whopping 8 batteries. I only fired it up inside the house and ran test targets across the coil. During that short time I noticed the batteries noticeably warm and the voltage dropped. They need to work on the power consumption and weight of their machines. While I am all about durability what good is that if the machine is dollaring you to death eating batteries.

I'm sorry White's but there are too many competitors around that are hungry and thirsty for you market segment. They are coming out with innovating machines that are not costing and arm and a leg, weigh less, and are energy sippers. There have not been any signs of you changing course or realizing this. I hate to see a good company get lazy and hope people are going to be brand loyal. Bad news flash- People will go with what gets them the most for their money. Wake up and do something before it is too late!

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The MX Sport Saga was a dreadful time, because it was Me who first worked out what was going on/Wrong with it  and all the other stuff that went on that I never posted, just about ruined detecting for me, And I resigned to the fact that I own the last truly great Detector Whites made, And after all that went on and how things were handled verbally etc  that when I hear about a new machine from them is shortly followed with me saying a few cuss words to my self,

The down side of it all is that I championed Whites and done my best to help others with their new Whites machines, But now I don't even bother reading many posts on forums under the Whites banner, I am Angry at whites because they destroyed all that I believed in and undone all the hard work I did, Resulting in me giving away my brand new GMT and selling my New unused TDI's,

Without going in to details, my personal views about Whites detectors are normally said in private, I still love my MXT All Pro and I still believe that it is a heck of a Machine,      

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2 hours ago, auminesweeper said:

Without going in to details, my personal views about Whites detectors are normally said in private, I still love my MXT All Pro and I still believe that it is a heck of a Machine,      

I too lived through the early adopter pain with the MX Sport.  I thought the MX sport was going to be the waterproof MXT with updated electronics and packaging and was disappointed with the teething issues related to depth and separation programming (sent mine in for the firmware update - another thing XP, Minelab, and Makro/Nokta don't require you to do with their do it yourself firmware updates).  The design issue with the faceplate cracks and waterproof integrity was disappointing also, but Whites owned the issue to their credit.  The final straw came when the battery compartment on the Sport inexplicably cracked where screws entered the plastic mounting holes on the housing.  I was surprised that the plastic mounting blocks were used vice metal reinforced mounting points because that was obviously a high stress area for the plastic.  I could not see this happening on the MXT big box design.  Anyway,  I sent my unit in under warranty (insured shipping back to Whites at my expense was significant based on my location on the east coast which was also a dissatisfier but I knew that was the price of admission for warranty repair) and Whites dutifully repaired the unit and sent it back to me after a few weeks time.  I cannot complain about Whites standing behind their product warranties.  They did not disappoint in that respect.  They were innovative and I hope they can show some future ability to be innovative again.  But as far as the MX Sport saga is concerned, in my case - the MX Sport has found a new owner and I am still hanging on to my MXT, perhaps more for sentimental reasons than practical reasons as it is more a symbol of an era gone by than it is of solid detector that can still hang with these new young kids on the block.  But it actually can still hang AND I like the fact that it accommodates concentric coils which is a rarity nowadays.  And I really love those analog knob controls.  A classic.

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38 minutes ago, Chase Goldman said:

I too lived through the early adopter pain with the MX Sport.  I thought the MX sport was going to be the waterproof MXT with updated electronics and packaging and was disappointed with the teething issues related to depth and separation programming (sent mine in for the firmware update - another thing XP, Minelab, and Makro/Nokta don't require you to do with their do it yourself firmware updates).  Tje design issue with the faceplate cracks and waterproof integrity was disappointing also, but Whites owned the issue to their credit.  The final straw came when the battery compartment on the Sport inexplicably cracked where screws entered the plastic mounting holes on the housing.  I was surprised that the plastic mounting blocks were used vice metal reinforced mounting points because that was obviously a high stress area for the plastic.  I could not see this happening on the MXT big box design.  Anyway,  I sent my unit in under warranty (ensured shipping back to Whites at my expense was significant based on my location on the east coast which was a dissatisfier) and Whites dutifully repaired the unit and sent it back to me after a few weeks time.  I cannot complain about Whites standing behind their product warranties.  They did not disappoint in that respect.  They were innovative and I hope they can show some future ability to be innovative again.  But as far as the MX Sport saga is concerned, in my case - the MX Sport has found a new owner and I am still hanging on to my MXT, perhaps more for sentimental reasons than practical reasons as it is more a symbol of an era gone by than it is of solid detector that can still hang with these new young kids on the block.  But it actually can still hang AND I like the fact that it accommodates concentric coils which is a rarity now days.

It was a horrible time for one and all, I tried to warn people and those that thought I was anti the new machine went ahead and bought it anyway and we all know how that went, The lack of response and the smarta** comments that owners got from certain quarters did not help and the total lack of willingness to listen to folks along with insisting on still sending new machines with the same problems where even the software numbers could not be relied upon did the most damage, But one field tester gave it above average reviews where people had to decipher his code by what was not said thinking that it was the machine for them.

I really hate the fact that in the end I had to jump in Boot and All in order to get someone to listen and not just pay Lip Service, This was the real reason it all got out of hand, So much could of been avoided if someone had taken on board that some end users Actually know a thing or two about detectors. It's was a very sad time for all involved including White's because they are such a big part of detecting history and it was Whites who found me my First Gold and many extremely old coins, and I still feel to this day if it was not for Whites then I would never of made those finds.

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Well guys, I have not given up on Whites. I really like my GM24K, and my modded 2013 TDI SL. Both are rock-solid, and perform well. I just scored a Miner John 8 x 12 for the TDI, and was amazed at the sensitivity. Outdoes the 12DF, and that's saying a lot. Other than one coil issue, which Whites handled easily, I've never had an issue with my Whites machines, other than typical wear on a couple of components.  I've also got a DFX, which was the earliest dual freq. machine, and a GM2 and GM3, both of which are still working great, though I've replaced a pot on each. If my machines aren't the latest and greatest, I don't care. They work. And, after being self-employed my entire adult life, I believe in rewarding companies that have great customer service. And Whites has set the all-time  world record in that department, and has forced their competitors to improve theirs. We all benefit from that, regardless of brand purchased.

Jim

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I think all the USA companies need to step it up and come out with new machines that can compete with the Nox, Amphibios/Kruzer and XP.

So often maybe they just don't listen to their customer base or follow trends closely or perhaps there are tangles with patents and risks of on infringements?

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The sad but true story is on my last trip to England I was with two separate groups of random people all from all over the U.S. and not one U.S. made detector among all of them. If that does not say it I don’t know what else does. That’s not being mean or biased or bashing, that’s just open eyes looking at reality.

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They do listen and then they build what one of their Kid designers dream up, Like Stuffing an average detector in to the Childrens range of detectors and then try to tell professional users this is the machine we have been waiting for,

The reason some of their older models have lasted nearly 20 years is because The Whites of Yesterday use to work with users and Prospectors alike and if it wasn't right they would fix it and this could go on for a year or two, But nower days they take our Ideas and twist them in to what they think we mean and wonder why we have little or no interest,

Don't bother writing letters and stuff because your concerns will end up in the bin before you have clicked SEND. The best thing you can do is go with brands from the EU and AU who are still making inroads and not living on past glories.

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37 minutes ago, Steve Herschbach said:

The sad but true story is on my last trip to England I was with two separate groups of random people all from all over the U.S. and not one U.S. made detector among all of them. If that does not say it I don’t know what else does. That’s not being mean or biased or bashing, that’s just open eyes looking at reality.

Isn't it interesting how a country like the USA that leads in technology can let itself fall behind in the metal detector industry? I guess theres not  much profit for companies to get involved...Silicon Valley? 

strick

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