Jump to content

Interesting Thread On Tom Dankowski Testing The Prototype Nokta Impact


Recommended Posts


Hi Bryan,

I would not characterize myself as a true tester of the Nokta Impact on the level of Tom Dankowski or others. I did however receive a late version prototype about 30 days ago to do a last minute check of the system. Unfortunately weather has been at record bad levels in my area and it has been difficult to put in the time on the unit it deserves. It is a relatively complex detector compared to most, with many different settings to experiment with. It has several unique features, one of the most important perhaps to potential early buyers being the ability to update the firmware over the internet. This does remove much of the risk inherent in buying early and holds out the promise of possible tweaks and improvements to come.

My focus being gold prospecting I can say that while the Nokta Impact is a very capable machine for gold prospecting it will not match the Makro Gold Racer for sensitivity to smaller gold. It is closer to the Nokta Fors Gold+ in that regard. Performance on gram plus gold is on par with other machines in the 13 - 20 kHz class, though the ability to drop to 5 kHz may provide some benefits in the worst ground on large nuggets, much like is seen with the 6.4 kHz mode on the Eureka Gold.

The Nokta Impact is a very intriguing metal detector, much like owning several different machines in one. The 99 tone mode has a VCO response more like one might expect of the DEUS than other full tone models, like my DFX. The Gen mode is quite unique being a threshold based all metal mode with a dual tone disc mode layered over it, what is referred to as a mixed mode. Wireless headphone capability (2.4 Ghz lag free) is built-in but headphones will be optional. Physically the unit is a well balanced 4.26 pounds with a straight shaft, molded post style grip. The cable is enclosed in the rod assembly for snag free operation and a clean look. The 7" x 4" DD coil is a real sweet option for trashy locations.

There is a more that I will comment on later when I have time. For now rest assured this is a true flagship detector that can run head to head with the best that any other manufacturer has to offer. In my opinion it signals Nokta/Makro arrival as a true top-tier contender. Look at two of the so-called Big 5, Tesoro and Garrett, and show me anything remotely like this machine.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Tom's testing and insight into his maddening goal of just .1" more of depth makes for a great read IMHO!!

I made a cliff notes version to study up on it.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Cal,

Welcome to the forum!

I thought the thread was an incredible peek into a level of detail I certainly never get into with metal detectors. It mainly confirmed to me something I have believed for a long time - people chasing after "more depth" with normal VLF detectors are just wasting their time. More to the point, any new VLF detector that promises more depth than the best we already have probably can't deliver on that promise.

What can be done is better target separation / better discrimination accuracy through more advanced target processing combined with faster processors. But when people start talking single frequency VLF and more depth in the same breath, I just tune out.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...