Minelab SDC 2300 Vs GPX 5000

[krandino]

I am fortunate enough to be able to buy either a SDC2300 or a GPX5000. What I don't know is if these are significantly better than the ones I have and the expense is worth it. I already have a Minelab 705 Gold and an Equinox 800. I really want to do some gold hunting out west and of course using it for beaches would be nice also. Would either of these fill a niche that I can't already cover with the two that I have? Is either significantly better a finding gold or doing beach combing than what I have? Whatever I purchase would also have to take the place of the 705 because I will sell that. I would appreciate any advice on suitability and which pick and combination would give me the most range. And if there is enough difference to make the investment worthwhile.

Thanks,
Keith

[Gold Catcher]

Hi Krandino, both machines are pulse induction detectors (PI's) and are very different from the machines you are currently having. The SDC is a more specialized detector designed for shallow gold in mineralized ground. It has very fast timings, meaning that it switches very fast between pulse and sampling times to capture small gold that has very fast decay times of the induced currents. It is foldable (great for backpacking!), water proof and very rugged. It also is very easy to use, albeit a bit clunky (I use a bungee for longer detecting times).  The 5000 on the other hand shines mostly due its huge versatility in coil options and it can be configured to meet various needs. In stark contrast to the SDC, it has many different parameters that you can select, almost too many. It requires that you familiarize yourself with all the settings and use them in the appropriate conditions. It is a bit cumbersome to use with a separate battery pack that you can clip on your harness. If I had to choose one machine between the two, then it would be the SDC without any hesitation. In case you buy the SDC, make sure you also have the knuckle guard that you can buy separately. The new SDC's already come with it in the box, the old ones don't. I highly recommend you check out Steve's reviews on this forum and the advice he provides on the various detectors. One thing to remember, the SDC does not have discrimination, the 5000 has an option for that, albeit not very useful (from what I hear). These are just my personal views, others might think differently. But the SDC is a great entry PI detector that has a focus on shallow gold where VLF's sign off. But, it actually punches also pretty deep, deeper than what you would think given it's design. The threshold is a bit chirpy, but you get used to it. Listen to the mellow faint warbles, often hi/low/hi. These are my favorites and are often indicative of deeper gold-but it can also be a hot rock or deep sitting mineralization. Shallow gold (but also iron and lead trash...) mostly gives low/hi/low. Over time you get familiar with the various sounds the targets are making (i.e. iron trash can sound a bit raspy, gold more smooth and articulated), but I highly recommend you adopt a "dig it all" philosophy. 🙂 Also, I highly recommend to buy the SP01 signal enhancer with it. It makes all the difference in the world, especially for the SDC.

Hope this helps

GC  

[Jeff McClendon]

I answered your question over on Friendly Forum.

[krandino]

17 hours ago, Gold Catcher said:

Hi Krandino, both machines are pulse induction detectors (PI's) and are very different from the machines you are currently having. The SDC is a more specialized detector designed for shallow gold in mineralized ground. It has very fast timings, meaning that it switches very fast between pulse and sampling times to capture small gold that has very fast decay times of the induced currents. It is foldable (great for backpacking!), water proof and very rugged. It also is very easy to use, albeit a bit clunky (I use a bungee for longer detecting times).  The 5000 on the other hand shines mostly due its huge versatility in coil options and it can be configured to meet various needs. In stark contrast to the SDC, it has many different parameters that you can select, almost too many. It requires that you familiarize yourself with all the settings and use them in the appropriate conditions. It is a bit cumbersome to use with a separate battery pack that you can clip on your harness. If I had to choose one machine between the two, then it would be the SDC without any hesitation. In case you buy the SDC, make sure you also have the knuckle guard that you can buy separately. The new SDC's already come with it in the box, the old ones don't. I highly recommend you check out Steve's reviews on this forum and the advice he provides on the various detectors. One thing to remember, the SDC does not have discrimination, the 5000 has an option for that, albeit not very useful (from what I hear). These are just my personal views, others might think differently. But the SDC is a great entry PI detector that has a focus on shallow gold where VLF's sign off. But, it actually punches also pretty deep, deeper than what you would think given it's design. The threshold is a bit chirpy, but you get used to it. Listen to the mellow faint warbles, often hi/low/hi. These are my favorites and are often indicative of deeper gold-but it can also be a hot rock or deep sitting mineralization. Shallow gold (but also iron and lead trash...) mostly gives low/hi/low. Over time you get familiar with the various sounds the targets are making (i.e. iron trash can sound a bit raspy, gold more smooth and articulated), but I highly recommend you adopt a "dig it all" philosophy. 🙂 Also, I highly recommend to buy the SP01 signal enhancer with it. It makes all the difference in the world, especially for the SDC.

Hope this helps

GC  

Thank you very much for the information. I appreciate the time. Yes, it does help.

 

Thanks,

Keith

[Steve Herschbach]

SDC 2300 = simple to operate detector, that has a hardwired 8" coil. The GPX 5000 has over 100 coils available and tuning options to handle anything, but it is also much harder to master than SDC 2300. If you want simplicity, SDC is worth a look, though I would get the newer GPX 6000 personally, if you can afford it. The GPX 5000 still has far more coils and tuning options than the GPX 6000, and so is still a viable option for serious prospectors facing a wide range of conditions and terrain. I would tend to pass on the SDC 2300 at this point, unless waterproof or compact are top issues.

[Gold Catcher]

The Nox 8 is a good machine that also works for gold. You could stick with it for a while longer until you are able to buy the GPX 6000. This is likely one of the best detectors ML has ever made and you don't want to miss out on it (I get mine in less than 24 h) 😁

[krandino]

1 hour ago, Gold Catcher said:

The Nox 8 is a good machine that also works for gold. You could stick with it for a while longer until you are able to buy the GPX 6000. This is likely one of the best detectors ML has ever made and you don't want to miss out on it (I get mine in less than 24 h) 😁

You are referring to the 6000?

 

Keith

 

[Gold Catcher]

yes