Geotech

I'm not arguing that the Equinox is a gimmick, a whole lotta people thinks it's a good detector and that's fine. I'm just stating what the detector is actually doing vs what Minelab would like people to believe it is doing. I've said it before, it completely baffles me why Minelab wants to lie about their technology when the truth is every bit as interesting.

Who established that?

Field is the same as Park as I recall. Gold is primarily 40k with a smidgen of 5k, again my recollection. Don't have my notes with me. The smidgen appeared to me to be a pretty useless amount, so it may have been thrown in just to say the gold mode has multi-IQ.

Park MF is 7.8k+39k. Beach MF is 7.8k+18.5k.

Yeah, my only involvement with the V3 design was to "shoot the engineer." I do both hardware and software. Coming from a chip design background, my real expertise is analog design, but I do a significant amount of C/C++ programming, too.

Actually, it was a team of 4, and one might take offense at being called a guy. But, yes, they're all gone.

There is much I wish I could say but can't. It is personally frustrating for me that things have gone the way they've gone, but I ain't the decider. However, I am working on things I think the serious hunters will like, but I have no idea on when they'll be ready for prime time.

Didn't give the results we were looking for. So dead-end, more or less.

Then what do you mean by hybrid technology? GPZ isn't hybrid, it's constant-current PI. GPX uses multi-period PI which is somewhat akin to MF. It is possible to mix PI and VLF in a hybrid, and then to extend that to MF. Whatever way the CZX was headed, it wasn't that way.

My first detector was a Jetco Gold Star BFO. I was 12, mowing yards in the summer, and saved up enough to buy one through the "Bennett Bros Blue Book" catalog. Couldn't afford the one I really wanted, a White's, and I thought, "That Jetco looks like a White's so I bet it's just as good!" Eh, not even close. In '78 I got a Kellyco catalog (still have it) which fueled my desire to upgrade to a Red Baron. Sold the Jetco, still couldn't afford a new Red Baron, but a barely used White's 6000/D showed up in the newspaper, and I met a guy at a McDonald's parking lot and bought it. Hunted years with that one, still got it. The "JET" in Jetco stood for John E. Turner, the guy who eventually bought the assets of the bankrupt Teknetics and Bounty Hunter, and eventually sold that business to First Texas. And now I work for First Texas. Oddly, I also worked for White's, the first "real" detector I ever owned. Some years ago I snagged another Jetco just for funsies. Also have a Red Baron now. Both are here in El Paso:

It was made by White's as a special for Apollo. I have one identical to this, plus the larger model below. It's a mid-70's TR-Disc. Around this time White's made specials for Sears, Apollo, Fireball, The Association, and Alexander Enterprises. Probably others.

I found out a long time ago, if you want to leak something out, put it in an obscure place on a web site where no one can possibly find it.

Hahaha you ain't stuffing that cat back in the bag.

Cal, your criticisms are fair and well-deserved. FTP has been focused on owning the low-end mass market (which has been successful) but allowed the higher end to stagnate. It's been a struggle, and continues to be, but I now have people in place who can change this. It takes time and there's nothing I can do but keep working until it's done. Hopefully the result will speak for itself.

Hear ya loud n clear. We have stuff in the works but I can't tell you to delay a purchase based on "it's in the works." The Equinox convinced a whole lotta people to sell their AT Pro, my goal is to come out with something that convinces a whole lotta people to sell their Equinox.

Norm, try these instructions, see if they are any easier to understand. There are 2 software versions, R1 & R2. R1 had a lock-up problem if you turn the unit on while overloaded. R2 fixed that problem, and in the process I added a few new features. Therefore, you need to figure out which version you have as I moved the factory reset from 3 clicks to 2 clicks, should you need that feature. The easy way to tell what version you have is to turn the thing on while a coin is right against the tip; if it locks up, that's R1; if you hear a beep-boop-beep-boop-beep-boop overload jingle, that's R2. In R2 I slightly extended the default time-out from 2s to 3s. I also added a Turbo-On mode which bypasses the auto-cal procedure and shortens the power-on time to maybe 1/4 seconds. There is a separate Turbo-Off mode which reverses the "off" and "retune" functionality; a quick-press powers down, while a press-hold retunes. If you use both Turbo-On and Turbo-Off, then the F-Tek powers up & down incredibly fast. PP_OperationR1.pdf PP_OperationR2.pdf

On power-up, the micro calibrates the RX circuit and sets up the threshold levels. It's the calibration that causes the delay, and to help speed this up a "starting point" is saved in memory from a "factory calibration." This is done at Sens=2 but is still pretty close for the other 2 levels. It's very possible that Sens=1 can be faster, but it also might only be randomly true. That is, YMMV.

Basic PI ignores basic (ferrite) mineralization. Ground that includes magnetic viscosity effects requires a PI with subtractive ground balancing. The F-Tek doesn't have subtractive GB.

I agree from the user perspective. Tip-only detection has advantages in some cases, broadside detection in others. From a designer's perspective, tip-vs-broad is a design constraint. Loaded oscillator (Garrett) and PI use a coil that is naturally broadside. With IB (TRX, Sunray) the coil design results in tip-only. It's not something the designer has much of a choice in, other than choosing the initial technology.

Sure it can. All you have to do is follow the instructions in the "Can't Register?" post.

Thanks Steve, 'preciate the kind words. Sorry it's only a pinpointer. More in the works.

Cal: I spent 21 years at Analog Devices & Maxim doing chip design. Our road maps were highly confidential, shared only with key customers under NDA. Most competitive new product development is done that way, whether chips or cars or metal detectors. As you point out, Minelab gave no hint of what they were working on until a few months prior to release, except to key people. When I was at White's I used to be a bit more liberal with development information, partly because there was no Marketing Dept to keep me in check, but also because it was some pretty exciting stuff. None of that exciting stuff ever made it to market, and it wasn't because it didn't work, but rather other factors. Maybe it will some day. At FTP I tend to keep a lot quieter about what we're doing, not because I'm not just as excited -- I am -- but because I don't want to make grandiose claims that may not live up to the hype. (Plus, Marketing has a big club, and it hurts.) Hell, I'm even pretty quiet within the company, not even telling the boss (and especially not Marketing!) what I'm working on. My preference is to get it working first, then I can make promises I know I can deliver. Steve: 25 years ago Minelab was dismissed as a nobody. 10 years ago XP was dismissed as a nobody. Today, I hear the same kind of talk about other New Kids, and I wag my finger at the naysayers. Never dismiss anyone, it's arrogant. But you're right, my job is simple: get a new product out. To that end, I have largely locked myself in the lab, and I'm finally making good progress. The pinpointer was unfortunate diversion that's now (mostly) over, and I still have other diversions and commitments, but the Main Event is high priority and making progress. Beyond that, I got nothin' to say until I got something to show. --Carl

There are several problems with releasing early information on projects. One is that it gives competitors a heads-up and allows them to react quicker, maybe even preempt our efforts. Second, it can bring sales to a dead stop if people decide to wait for the Next Big Thing. Yes, it can freeze competitor sales as well, which might outweigh the negatives. Third, sometimes things just don't work out the way we planned, and those early sneak peeks come back to bite us hard. If, ferinstance, you're still waiting on a CZX or a Mosca, well, my point exactly. FTP has a lot of stuff going on. I think it will be really good stuff and may even get us out in front for a change. But things don't move at a lightning pace at FTP, nor are things highly predictable. I thought the new PI machine would be getting released this Spring, which is partly why information on it got leaked. Not Spring. And since I can't predict exactly when it will be ready, I won't even try. The "5 new machines over the next 4 years" should rightfully elicit a chorus of yawns from everyone here. I don't even know why Marketing says stuff like that. The reality is, if all we can muster is 5 new machines over the next 4 years, then I probably should be fired. Expect more, and demand more. But don't expect a 5-year roadmap.

What would that look like?

Pretty exciting, eh? Watch for a Russian photo of a marketing slide for more details.