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SDC 2300 Threshold


strick

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So I have had two very experienced older prospectors tell me that they don't like the 2300 because the threshold warbles. In other words it is not stable. It does not really matter which setting you use it still has a slight warble to it. Since I am new to prospecting I just kinda figured this was normal for the Minelab PI's They tell me that their 4500 and 5000 have a nice stable threshold which allows them to hear the faint signal's better. Therefore they don't have to use as much gray matter trying to figure out a target.  I have sometimes wondered  if I am missing small pieces of gold because of this. But then again I have found some very small pieces with the 2300. So my question is....is this normal for the SDC 2300 or is something wrong with both of my machines?   I'm guessing normal.  A few nuggets found during the last couple weeks. Biggest is .52 grams

strick

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The 5000 threshold is stable by comparison because you have access to both the Stabilizer control and also the Motion control, Stabilizer is pre-set in the SDC and is fixed MUCH higher than FP on the 5000, Motion is also pre-set on the SDC and is a lot faster than the FP of the 5K. If you want to listen to a 5K set similarly to the SDC put the Stabilizer on 20 and the Motion on Medium, then cross compare the thresholds. 

There is a lot of extra performance made available by having both those settings ramped up for the SDC, however thanks to new circuit designs the SDC can handle them quite well.

JP

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I'm one of the old farts that was using one of strick's  SDC2300's a few days ago  I did find some gold with it but after so many years of GPX use that threshold drove me nuts and was pretty tiring on the old brain cells and the ergonomics leave much to be desired.  Jonathan, I do understand what you are saying but it's just not for me. Prior to using it, I was genuinely thinking about getting one.  I'm glad I got to try before I bought one.

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So Im not the only one.......

I thought I was going crazy when I ran this baby,,,,

I could only compare it to running my old 2100 when i was just getting started out while I was down with BorderBoy in AZ....

I finally learned to listed to it like a radio blaring and just basically learned which sounds to listen too---when my brain got ahold of the right "note" i was better------

but there is no doubt if you crank up the SDC to 5 and try to run a low threshold , it can be maddening after an hour or so.....

I almost always try to run at 5 because I think it gives more depth---- is this a fair observation???

There was no doubt when i hit a nugget---- but i did have to listen to a lot of iffy targets/mineralized ground and see if they repeat, all the while trying not to track them out.

I need more time on mine and I am interested in hitting some tailing piles/creeks this spring.

All just what I am learning-- please keep posting so i may pick up a few ideas...

paul

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So Im not the only one.......

but there is no doubt if you crank up the SDC to 5 and try to run a low threshold , it can be maddening after an hour or so.....

I almost always try to run at 5 because I think it gives more depth---- is this a fair observation???

paul

All I can say is you have to love detectorists! The gain control exists to let you choose between a quieter more stable machine or a hotter, noisy machine. You are choosing to make the detector noisy, then going crazy from the noise!

Minelab made the right choice with the SD designation. The SD units were famous for the "Minelab warble" that was always present. The threshold was improved in the GP models and finally made near perfect in the GPX models.

I love a smooth threshold. If you do also, stick with the GPX. The SDC is a throwback because to get it hot some noise has been reintroduced into the unit.

Any VLF you can run quiet or you can run hot. You do not get both at once. Good Gold Bug 2 operators learn to run hot and noisy when they have to. It is simply a choice you get to make.

Increasing gain does not really add much depth on larger nuggets on the SDC but it does make tiny bits bang harder. But if it is driving you crazy, turn it down. Otherwise you are choosing to be crazy. It is the same as taking the GPX and cranking it up extra hot - you can make it noisy also. I usually run the SDC at 4 and only go to 5 if I am on a patch because - wait for it - it is quieter running.

An external speaker with B&Z booster and running even lower gain can make for a pleasant experience.

Minelab has left room to further fine tune future SDC models with advanced signal processing to achieve those quieter threshold levels we desire. Once again the multiple settings on the GPX show why it remains the top Minelab model and the SDC is designated as a mid-range model.

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I have ran my sdc very little but the warble doesn't seem to bother me anymore than running a TDI,actuallyto me its kind a soothing sound. It is easier for me to hear the slight change of tone with target with sdc than it is with TDI,just my opinion

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