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Steve Herschbach

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  1. Steve Herschbach
    More detailed photo closeups of things like the battery, battery connections, coil connector, etc. would then be a welcome alternative. People love good photos. Thanks Rick.
  2. Steve Herschbach
    Honestly a real shame Garrett never fully exploited the ATX circuit by hobbling it with a 7 lb box and a crazy coil design. I’ve screamed for years for an ATX that looks like the Impulse. All to the benefit of First Texas however so too bad for the neighbors in Garland. My incredibly crappy cut and paste “prototype” LTX from 2014.....
  3. Steve Herschbach
    Bummer about the damage but great repair job! I made a lexan skid plate for my Equinox and have been happy with it so far.
  4. Steve Herschbach
    New Member Signup - Click Here! Lost Password - Click Here! Forum Tips & Tricks Advanced Search Tag List/Index Welcome to the Tarsacci Metal Detectors forum! Anything remotely related to the subject may be posted here. Forums for other subjects may be found here. The main goal here - to inform and educate. Please keep threads and posts on topic. Off topic posts may be moved or deleted without warning. The main goal of the forum is to share information. If you see something interesting on another forum or anywhere else, please link to it. The only goal here is to inform and anything interesting or informative is not only allowed but desired as long as it is on topic. While visiting this forum please act as if you are visiting my home. Treat others with decency and respect. Politics is not strictly prohibited but limit it to items of concern such as public meeting notices, comment periods, etc. No detector wars - every detector serves a purpose for somebody. For general editorial purposes this forum is treated as if it is a magazine. Do not place ads for your detector or equipment for sale here. That is only allowed in the Classifieds and is only for participating members - read the rules. A note about the Google Ads - I know we all hate ads but they pay for the website. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. All I can do is to promise not to go overboard with them. Special Note To Dealers - Dealers are welcome here, with minimal guidelines. Please read My Policy Regarding Dealers If you have problems logging in or any other issues while on the forum send me a Personal Message (PM). Information on other general forum use and features can be found here. Steve Herschbach
  5. Steve Herschbach
    I was contacted out of the blue recently by Dimitar Gargov, owner and designer for Tarsacci metal detectors. I gave him a call and we were like two kids talking metal detectors! He explained some ideas he has for the future and I decided it was past time to set up a forum for Tarsacci owners to discuss their detectors. The MDT 8000 is a very high performance detector designed first for saltwater use but people are trying it for other purposes to good result. The bottom line is I have always supported competition especially as regards new technology. My main bias is I tend to only feature detectors with U.S. dealers and service. Yup, I am U.S. centric - sue me! Tarsacci as a home brewed detector obviously meets that criteria. So here we go, a forum for Tarsacci and the MDT 8000 and whatever else Dimitar's brilliant mind brings us eventually. Yeah I am buttering him up because I think I have talked him into doing what he never does - appear on a forum to answer questions about his product. Don't expect to get deep proprietary info as it is.... well, it's proprietary! But I hope to see Dimitar here soon. I am sure you will give him all that friendly place to share information we are famous for. Thanks! Tarsacci MDT 8000 Data & Specifications Tarsacci MDT 8000 metal detector at the beach
  6. Steve Herschbach
    I am a multi use detectorist and picky about having the right tool for the job. I like precious metals so I am first a nugget hunter, second a jewelry hunter, third place goes to coins, and last to relics. Historically that has meant I always had near a dozen detectors with a half dozen in use at any time, others coming and going as they sorted out. The Equinox 800 is the first machine I have had, that while probably not perfect at anything, is so good at everything that I enjoy using it for whatever I do. I can nugget hunt one day and jump in saltwater the next. Not many nugget machines can pull that trick off. It's light and wireless and... quite affordable for what it does. I really like the Deus and honestly have almost bought an ORX a couple times. They are really sweet machines, and better ergonomics than the Equinox. As I explained for my purposes I find the Equinox better for me but if I was a relic hunter might very well have a DEUS instead. But that's last on my list and frankly when gold calls I rarely get around to anything else. But in the end I would just have to call the Equinox "a favorite" not "the favorite". I have a Goldmaster 24K that I like because it has closed coils that work better than the Equinox in stubble and the coils are more knock resistant when the machine is maxed out so better for "scrubbing" for tiny nuggets. It also has a concentric coil option I like that the Equinox lacks. And I have a White's V3i with Bigfoot coil, not so much for the V3i but to run the Bigfoot coil. Still my choice for park and field jewelry detecting over anything else. The fact is a DFX/Bigfoot suits me about as well but I decided I might shoot some video and that the V3i would be good for teaching detector concepts due to its color screen and infinite tuning options. Don't hold your breath for the videos though.... seems like forever on the to-do list but never quite get there. And finally I have "the hole". I have always had some sort of high power PI detector but sold both my GPZ and ATX some time ago. It's late enough in the game I am waiting for something new now, and looks like a Fisher Impulse AQ will fill that hole soon. If somebody made closed knock resistant coils and a Bigfoot coil for the Equinox it would remove the need for two extra detectors. So it shows how coils can often determine detector choices. That's one area I have to ding XP due to the design. Limited coil options and they are very expensive. The Equinox is limited also but at least the coils are cheap. So my favorite detector at the moment is an Equinox V3i 800 24K!
  7. Steve Herschbach
    Great post. Here are those prior cleaning and selling threads. I love my tag system!
  8. Steve Herschbach
    I agree that the increase in TX Boost is a good thing, and thank you for that great post EL NINO. I mainly want to warn people not to think 50% more voltage to the coil means 50% more depth, and some people might very well jump to that conclusion. People make assumptions that when overstated end up in disappointment. I prefer to undersell and over-deliver and stay conservative always when talking about performance increases. I would rather people be pleasantly surprised than the other way around. Like everything metal detecting increases are hard to come by and are small in nature.
  9. Steve Herschbach
    Thanks Glenn, always nice to see numbers instead of opinions. It all very much jives with what I would guess. The bottom line is the online users are a sort of elite who rapidly move to the latest and greatest. The larger mass of club type users is a slower moving demographic, often only going to newer machines after critical mass is hit and they see lots of other club members with them. Deus and Equinox just depends on your crowd. Relic hunters drift to Deus, park and beach hunters to Equinox.
  10. Steve Herschbach
    I'm with you Joe, it's about site selection and dig dig dig. I have to be honest I just want a new toy. It needs to have raw power and decent ergonomics, and I'm seeing both here. So a new toy, and better yet something actually new from a company I have been wanting to root for but have not had good reason in some time. It's hard to understand why the old Impulse went away so many years ago and was never replaced, but that's all water under the bridge now. This is still analog and it will be exciting to see where it goes with the leap to digital and the advanced signal processing that is then possible. Many of us believe some audio nuance gets lost with digital signal processing however so I am sure a last go at analog before making that leap will be just fine with a lot of people. Anyway Joe I'm looking forward to comparing AQ notes with you. Thanks for joining the forum.
  11. Steve Herschbach
    Just so people know what Gerry is referring to: "Featuring a 50% increase in coil voltage over previous models along with an all-new XGB ground balance system, take your prospecting to new depths with the Goldmaster 24k. This machine represents a new generation of VLF detection technology, with features that both sourdough and greenhorn prospectors can appreciate. Starting with the industry-standard 48 kHz operating frequency, we’ve packed all the necessities into one package to put you on the gold. A large, backlit display shows you all the machine’s settings as well as valuable target information. The Target Graph at the top of the display shows Ferrous, Gold, and High Conductor ranges, which is mirrored with Target ID numbers ranging from 0-99. An all-new XGB ground balance system can handle mineralized ground unlike other VLF prospecting machines." Source: Goldmaster 24K brochure Though the brochure says 50% not 54% but that could be marketing talking in round numbers. I’m not Jim but I’ll take a stab at that. Though it seems like if you have used both the GMT and 24K you would be in a position to better answer your own question Gerry than hear it from others. I'm sure the engineers have tools to measure these things though since the brochure and the number you quote conflict I am not sure we are being all that exact. You have probably used the V3i and are familiar with TX Boost? That’s all we are talking about. The 24K and GMX Sport employ full time TX Boost. It’s not linear, 50% more voltage to the coil does not give 50% more depth. The ground determines what happens, and in bad ground it can actually work at cross purposes and offer little or no gain, especially with larger coils. Think of it in terms of turning the sensitivity control up too high in bad ground. Here is what the V3i manual has to say about TX Boost: “Tx Boost – Dramatically increases the signal being sent (transmitted) to the search coil (loop). By increasing the transmit signal, the receive signal is also increased. In low mineralized ground, Tx Boost will increase detection depth, however, battery life is also reduced significantly, perhaps as much as 50%. May require adjustment to Rx Gain, Discrimination, and All Metal sensitivity levels. Tx Boost may not be usable in some ground.” From my report on the V3i: “The White's V3i does have a 22.5 kHz Prospecting Mode and other features that in theory make it a proficient prospecting detector. The machine is hot on small gold in the 22.5 kHz mode. When the original Vision came out I did some bench tests on it versus the MXT using a 0.7 grain test nugget (480 grains per Troy ounce). An MXT with a 4" x 6" Shooter coil at max Gain would barely signal on the nugget within 1/4" of the coil. The same Shooter coil was used on the Vision in Prospecting Mode (22.5 kHz only), with no tweaks except max RX Gain. The threshold a bit ratty but no worse than MXT at max Gain. The Vision got a good hit at 2" and whisper at 3". I then engaged the TX (transmit) Boost, raising voltage to the coil from 10V to 30V. I then got a good hit at 3" and whisper at 4". That is a 50% increase on a tiny nugget by engaging TX Boost. This is easily better than MXT performance and actually closer to what I'd expect from a GMT.” So with the V3i a 300% boost in voltage to the coil resulted in 50% more air test depth on a 0.7 grain nugget. I’d have to guess that even in normal soil under real world conditions that would be cut to a depth increase on a tiny nugget to less than I saw in the air test. If that is what we are seeing with the V3i then what might we see with machines running at twice the frequency with only a 54% boost in the voltage? You have used the GMT and 24K and can already probably answer that question but my answer is “just a little bit.” I'm doubtful people using a GMT and 24K would note much real world difference with identical coils in actual use. It's probable the GMT already has higher voltage to the coil than the normal V3i setting of 10V. I also suspect boosting it even more would have eaten up too much battery life for too little or no increase at all and so we ended up at 50% (or 54% - whatever) instead of 300%.
  12. Steve Herschbach
    Same housing as MX Sport, should be same weight, 4.2 lbs. If weight is your issue stick with the 24K at 3.5 lbs. It’s not all about weight when it comes to comfort. Balance matters, and the well balanced 4.2 lb MX Sport feels better on arm than some lighter nose-heavy detectors. In water it’s almost weightless, and it’s waterproof to use in water. Otherwise there really is no need to get one... the 24K is the lighter option.
  13. Steve Herschbach
    People think many things. Minelab said ZVT is the platform for the next ten years or more, not that the GPZ was. Minelab is in the business of selling metal detectors and it is disingenuous to pretend otherwise. We all know the program, they have been introducing new gold machines every few years. I always assumed the GPZ was just the first in a new series and can’t see how anyone would think otherwise. Unless told so by an overzealous salesperson... I have to grant you that. Fact is nobody need buy anything. Plenty of happy GPX owners out there.
  14. Steve Herschbach
    They are Google Ads and everyone sees different stuff based on whatever Google knows about you. I quite honestly have no idea what ads appear to different people... I only know the ones I see. Those are some fine looking “best” metal detectors!
  15. Steve Herschbach
    This was first seen last June and expected last fall but looks like ready for prime time finally. As near as I can tell the GMX Sport is a White's 24K in an MX Sport housing. The control pad and LCD display are identical to the 24K but with the 10 foot waterproof rating of the MX Sport. Since introduction appears close I am running with this and have created a new detector entry in our database which I will update as new information comes in. Good to see the 4" x 6" coil finally for the 24K also. It's hard to tell in the video but it appears they hopefully shaved the useless airspace off the bottom as was done with the 6" concentric. White's GMX Sport Data & Specifications For what it is worth I have found the White's 24K to be a very capable VLF nugget hunter and if the GMX Sport is running the same circuit it will be a good performing detector. Main markets will be gold nuggets and jewelry detecting in freshwater and hot on micro jewelry in tot lots and volleyball courts, etc. Too hot for saltwater however but may handle bone dry sand up higher on the beach i.e. the "towel line".
  16. Steve Herschbach
    The download ability always was intended to be nothing more than a bug fix utility. There was never any Minelab advertising that said it was "infinitely upgradable". GPZ Update 1 GPZ Update 2
  17. Steve Herschbach
    This was first seen last June and expected last fall but looks like ready for prime time finally. As near as I can tell the GMX Sport is a White's 24K in an MX Sport housing. The control pad and LCD display are identical to the 24K but with the 10 foot waterproof rating of the MX Sport. Since introduction appears close I am running with this and have created a new detector entry in our database which I will update as new information comes in. Good to see the 4" x 6" coil finally for the 24K also. It's hard to tell in the video but it appears they hopefully shaved the useless airspace off the bottom as was done with the 6" concentric. White's GMX Sport Data & Specifications For what it is worth I have found the White's 24K to be a very capable VLF nugget hunter and if the GMX Sport is running the same circuit it will be a good performing detector. Main markets will be gold nuggets and jewelry detecting in freshwater and hot on micro jewelry in tot lots and volleyball courts, etc. Too hot for saltwater however but may handle bone dry sand up higher on the beach i.e. the "towel line".
  18. Steve Herschbach
    The White's GMX Sport metal detector was introduced in 2020 and was still in production when White’s closed up shop in that same year. That makes the GMX the last detector model to be designed and sold by White’s Electronics after 50 years in business. The GMX is a 48 kHz induction balance metal detector waterproof to ten feet aimed primarily at the jewelry detecting and gold prospecting markets. The GMX Sport is physically based on the White's MX Sport housing but otherwise is a Goldmaster 24K electronically. The control functions are identical the the Goldmaster 24K and the display screen is also identical to the 24K. The introductory offer for the White’s GMX Sport includes TWO search coils, the round 6.5" concentric, and the 4" x 6" DD oval. The Whites waterproof headphones are also included, plus an adapter for standard 1/4" detector headphones. The GMX Sport MSRP is $899.95 with an internet price of $827.95 White's Goldmaster GMX Sport metal detector For advanced users of the White's GMX Sport, TracLock and Ground Grab are just a tap of button away. You can assign a ground balance offset in both TracLock or XGB modes. To help prospectors that prefer drywashing, sluicing, or panning, the GMX features a Ground Scan mode that can show you where valuable paystreaks are in stream beds and washes. The GMX Sport offers 10 levels of adjustable sensitivity, adjustable audio volume with two levels of Boost, adjustable discrimination, vSAT, adjustable threshold, non-motion pinpoint, and a Tone ID mode. But don’t let that scare you if this is your first prospecting machine – this is a turn-on-and-go machine, with advanced features you can grow into as you gain experience. WATERPROOF HOUSING IP-68 certified waterproof to 10 feet COILS - 6” round concentric and 4" x 6" DD coils both included as part of the Introductory Special. Optional "6 x 10" DD and 8" x 14" DD coils are available. SENSITIVITY – Set the sensitivity at a level that does not result in false signals from the ground. Very strong ground may result in the symbol on screen and a loud sound – this means the sensitivity is too high. GROUND BALANCE – With the default setting, the detector will use XGB to automatically ground balance. Tap to lock the ground balance to the current setting. Tapping when the ground balance is locked will update the current ground setting to what is under the coil. GROUND SCAN – Hold to put the detector into Ground Scan mode. The top bar displays the ground strength and the two digit numbers display the ground type (phase). Useful for tracing paystreaks. IRON CANCEL – Tap to silence hot rocks, trash and mineral changes in both audio modes. Hold to select the Iron Cancel setting (1 bar is default). Note that this setting may decrease the detector’s sensitivity to very small gold, but is necessary in difficult ground conditions. VOLUME and THRESHOLD – Tap to adjust the volume with the up and down buttons. Hold to adjust the threshold with the up and down buttons (“th” displays on screen). Set these to a comfortable level for your hearing and preference. AUDIO MODE – With the displayed on screen, the detector is in “BEEP” audio mode (high tone = good target, low tone = bad target). The default setting (without on screen) is a traditional All-Metal audio mode with greater sensitivity to small targets. SAT – SAT can smooth out ground inconsistencies. Hold to adjust it (“Sa” displays on screen, 2 is the default setting). PINPOINT – Hold for non-motion pinpoint mode. In difficult ground this mode may be affected by mineralization. BACKLIGHT – Tap to enable the backlight (this reduces battery life). FREQUENCY SHIFT – Hold when turning the detector on to shift frequency (useful when there is EMI). Power off to save the selection. FACTORY RESET – Hold when turning the detector on to perform a factory reset. AUDIO - Built in speaker, 1/4” headphone jack adapter cable included WATERPROOF SPORT HEADPHONES included as part of the Introductory Special LENGTH - 45 inches collapsed, 55 inches fully extended BATTERIES - 8 AA BATTERY LIFE - 20 to 40 hours WEIGHT - 4.0 lbs WARRANTY - Two Year Transferable Official White's Goldmaster GMX Sport Product Page White's Goldmaster GMX Sport Owner's Manual White's Goldmaster XGB Ground Tracking Explained Forum threads tagged "whites 24k gmx" White’s Metal Detector Forum
  19. Steve Herschbach
    Well I guess that answers that on the small coil at least....
  20. Steve Herschbach
    Spud Diggers Jan 1st - "It's always a good day when everyone finds gold! We had a lot of fun metal detecting for gold in California. We found some nice relics and gold. We were using the White's GMT, 24k and the New GMX."
  21. Steve Herschbach
    They are actually the same detector, just the E600 is "feature limited". Set exactly the same performance should be identical. That being the case Robs first unit may have had an issue of some sort.
  22. Steve Herschbach
    There are plenty of people selling those already! You guys tell yourselves whatever you need to keep the dream alive. You ever hear the term "whistling past the graveyard?" But we are off topic now so time to put an end to the nonsense and get back to AQ discrimination advantages and caveats.
  23. Steve Herschbach
    An honest answer from somebody doing this for going on 50 years now and with some perspective? Somebody not selling detectors? Good finds will deplete to the point where for many people metal detecting will not be worth their time any longer. I am already seeing this in the gold prospecting world. Nobody is dropping new gold nuggets, and the gains from new detectors have largely been realized already. The GPZ 7000 gave things a lift for a few years, but now the gold patches have seen several years activity with the GPZ and large gold is getting quite rare. People are turning to detectors like the Gold Bug 2, Gold Monster, and Goldmaster 24K to chase the more prevalent gold weighed in grains, not grams. This however is more for the fun of it, and I know many older prospectors used to seeing an ounce of gold in a day who are now retiring as getting an ounce a week is now extremely challenging. I have dropped my goal to 1/2 ounce per week average and that is getting hard to hit. It actually is the rising gold prices over the last twenty years that kept things alive more than better detectors. At $300 an ounce all the serious guys would already be long gone. I always thought jewelry detecting would last forever. However, when I started beach detecting in Hawaii 20 year ago I went straight to pulse induction starting with the White's Surf PI then graduating to various ground balancing PI detectors to deal with the volcanic sand and cobbles. I did very well, but I realize now in retrospect I was already mining those deeper old layers VLF detectors had left behind. The rings all showed evidence of being in the water for decades. As I have gone back to those places in recent years I have found that there are now far more people beach detecting than 20 years ago, and it really is getting to be more about recent drops. The number of finds per hour for me has dropped dramatically compared to 20 years ago. The older stuff is that took decades to build up is being found and depleted. So the old layers are already depleting, especially as locals pounce after storms when those layers are near surface. People are dropping new stuff, but it is not what it was as young people prefer a new iPhone over expensive jewelry. I note that many younger people simply do not wear wedding rings these days. Tungsten and titanium and even silicone rings are common. And I think people seeing metal detectors on a beach every day warns people to be more careful with their jewelry. The honest truth from my perspective is I am the right age to have enjoyed the Golden Age of Metal Detecting. I got to detect when silver coins were common. I got to nugget hunt while large nuggets were common. And I saw some of the best years in beach detecting. I hate to also mention that more areas are off limits every year. I do not think well of the longer term aspects of metal detecting going forward. We are getting one last burst of activity driven by fantastic detectors and bargain prices, but this actually spells the end game for many of us. Way too much competition now. The only saving grace I can see would be if somebody could make a detector that truly could see though trash, because target masking is hiding more good stuff than depth. Something based on sound that used metal density perhaps to see through aluminum and spot gold. A true mini ground radar. But using current electromagnetic based technology we are hitting serious limits for the future of metal detecting. I think we are already at or slightly past "peak detecting". That may be gloomy thinking for some but not for me. The fact is I am getting old and my days now are numbered. I don't need to worry about detecting 30 years from now. All I need to do is use a high power machine like the Impulse AQ to seek out those few remaining places where deeper older finds still lurk before somebody else gets them. Actually to be honest I was doing just fine with the Garrett ATX, but got tired of it's 7 lb weight and sold it after it failed in the middle of my last Hawaii trip. I've been waiting for something new ever since, and the Impulse looks to be it. After that I will probably be content to be an old guy wandering a beach with a good discrimination detector digging shallow targets simply because that's all I'll physically be able to do, and I will be more in it for the walk than the rare ring I might find. My timing in all this has been near perfect!
  24. Steve Herschbach
    Not really missing anything, both are great choices I would choose from myself. For me waterproof mattered so my decision was easy. If that does not matter it really just boils down to comparing the features carefully to see if some particular feature grabs you. Tones adjustments for instance. If you spent 100% of your time in dense ferrous many people still lean XP there and the main strength of the XP detectors is separating ferrous from non-ferrous. Target id maybe not so much. For groomed park detecting I think the Equinox holds better target id at depth. But seriously you can't go wrong with either detector.
  25. Steve Herschbach
    There are two basic mindsets at work in metal detecting. There are some that prefer to maximize returns per dig by using discrimination and who are willing to give up depth to have good discrimination. Then there is the power crowd who tends to go for power first with discrimination being a secondary concern, more a bonus than anything. Nearly all park detectorists fall into the discrimination camp. Nearly all serious gold prospectors fall into the high power camp. Beach and relic hunters swing both ways. However, the trend I have seen is that as shallower finds play out and good valuable finds remain at depth, people turn to power over discrimination. A fine example are the Culpepper relic hunters. That is tough ground that really impedes VLF performance. They cleaned things out with VLF, but then nearly everyone switched to pulse induction as the shallow VLF finds depleted out. Beach detecting is no different. Nobody is going to dig a ton of junk for pennies. But when a beach gets to where a VLF no longer is making many good gold finds you have only two options. Go somewhere else, or break out the big guns. That means pulse induction. The real question then simply becomes which PI unit to use. I have always favored PI detectors for gold prospecting and beach detecting. VLF detectors have always been more like playthings in my world; it's the PI detectors that put pounds of gold in my pockets.... and yes, I dug many more pounds of junk to get there! This is pretty much a rule of detecting. People will do what is easiest. If a VLF means you make good finds while digging less junk that is what people will do. But there comes a time when the VLFs no longer produce, unless you are willing to chase recent drops. At that point some people will go the next step and use PI detectors. And even then there is an eventual end. I have seen many nugget locations go though this cycle. VLF first, leave most of the trash. Then in come the PI detectors. The mindset changes. As long as you can find junk gold still can be found! Ever hear of target masking? So people continue to attack the location, digging everything. And a day comes when you can't even find trash anymore. The location goes quiet as a mouse. Then people start moving rocks and scraping the surface to get the coil closer to the gold! It's actually inevitable and it will happen on any beach where gold can be found. It is only a matter of time.
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