Joe Beechnut OBN

Thanks for sharing.. nice little tool to have around.. years ago I used a audiosears 2463 earphone/speaker as a quick tester for the Minelab BBS machines, to see if the machine was working, when the headphones were in question. Also I could trace out the shape of the send field, its reach and if the coil was working correct. This all came about when I was making head phones and I got a message from a customer telling me he could unplug his head phones and still hear his Sovereign GT.  

Not been hunting of late but when I do my favorite beaches are spots that have been closed, forgotten. Most here closed in the late 1960's. These are not ocean beaches, .........but bay waters, which can be calm to rough. sand is constantly on the move just not as much as the ocean. Here I've found hunting a few hundred feet off shore can produce the best results. Every spot is different but mostly here I'll skip all shallow targets, and listen for faints. If I come by heaverier (deep) coins like quarters (silver) or nickels I'm in the right zone for gold.  A great sign is crunchies.. a layer of broken shells. These can be deep or less than 10 inches, its a matter of timing, being there as soon as it happens.

I remember that video, the guy was about waist deep, calm water like a lake, detecting then sucking up the targets. One thing that stood out, the small 2 stroke sure was loud on the open water. And the detector was a CZ20. The Aquaticvak (above) looks like, I think I remember the guy walking into the water with the CZ setup and it was similar> The video was not the best..

Got me wanting to find that video now..it was at least 2o10 when it was youtubed.

 I have issue scooping when my boots change, going from winter to summer gear will throw my target recovery time off, causing me a couple extra scoops/tries at digging the target. After a few hunts I do adjust to the change..

No, but I see no harm in having them. I think I have them in all of my machines, shafts.. 4 excals and 2 Fisher AQ's

22 hours ago, Kevin Walenciak said:

I was wondering if this would help prevent the slight falsing I am getting transitioning from different depths?

I found all the noise or falsing is caused when saltwater contacts the control POD on the excalibur  (And it starts at the coil n battery endcap). And the same goes for the AQ. Coming out of the water or going into, the control head (And coil wire connection) is sensitive to the change.

On/Off audio switch to save my ears, on the AQ. The excalibur is not as bad, or loud.

I remember the Nox drove my AQ insane, and both of us were in the water. Heard him coming from about 20 out. Years ago in OC Md, the excalibur would alarm me when some one was a good distances away. I would be looking all around to see what is going on..

Interesting they can tune out a PI.. seems I remember at the club meeting they would not allow PI's at the club hunts..?

Just remember, every person who has posted tells their story to success and their are many more that could be posted. Every beach is different, every location has it secrets. It will be up to you to find the right one that works for you. When I first started hunting I came across a magazine article that hit home for me. Saved it.. I think it is in order..

3 hours ago, stateguy said:

Joe, I thought I herd something that the reason why they didn’t come up with a better waterproof AQ was because of how the machine gets warm. Don’t know if there any truth too that

Can't say I've heard that one. I do know the TDI series does heat up if you do the battery mods, from the original stock voltage. One reason the SurfMaster TDI had condensation issues when the Li-ion battery mod was done.

And that could be one reason both of mine are Ok now? Since all of my hunting is in the water, and the water keeps them cooler? 

2 hours ago, cjc said:

wish that was the problem.  The AQ has gated power that's why Im surprised to see this as usually it's  a result of  power surges. 

cjc

You ever notice how hot the AQ gets in one area? (right below) One of the first things I did when I got one was do a temp check on the corners and middle of the case. ANd this after 10 to 15 minutes if I remember correct...Got pictures  of it some where..

Both of my AQ's have a warm up period of about 15 minutes, been that way since day one.......after that 15 minutes no more adjustments needed. If my Pot goes, I guess I'll be the first to do the repair. If that is the only issue I'll be Happy.... My question then would be what pot does the TDI use for it's threshold for I never heard of them having the same issue. More than likely I'll be putting the guts in a water proof case of some type after... so it will be easier to work on.

This may sound a little crazy but I can't wait to get my hands inside of that monster..☠️

Don't forget the yesterday beaches and amusement parks that have been closed for many years. Lots of history out there.... at one time families flocked to these spots on weekends and summer vacations.

Carolina, where are you buddy? Maybe he can answer...GPX coil to the AQ..

My question..Are the GPX coils water proof? Submersible?

3 hours ago, bklein said:

Which of these was the right angle cable on your battery?  That's a nice one.  The Automation Direct ones would work though.

I wonder why the headset connector has so many pins.  Isn't it just really two active ones for the audio?  I'm thinking of trying a APTX LL transmitter setup but wonder if it will hear the whimpers at 16".  Alexandre is recommending I use a better headset.

I have the Koss UR30... is it better?  

https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/bulgin/PXPPNP08RAF04ACL015PVC/13548258

You want the 4 pin coding A.. I used Bulgin brand, and I also wrap that fitting before a hunt with silicon tape, I dislike the little M-8's for they are not made for submerged for a extended period time time. Salt water and voltage/current do not do well together over time.

https://www.mouser.com/datasheet/2/57/M8_Data_Sheets-2943632.pdf

As far as head phones I'm not sure about the Koss speaker set. For anyone that uses a PI or hunts in all metal with the excalibur and is looking for deep gold, the most important thing is the head set. If your a fresh drop hunter or someone who does not want to dig deep targets the Koss should be fine. For me, I need deep... on the edge of the detecting field targets. For that is where I find my gold, your needs maybe different.

One reason I have the swing air test rig, to make the very best head set for me.  Fine tuning all aspects of your head phones ...work on blocking all ambient noise by making changes to the shells/pads, setting up the audio for your hearing abilities to get the most out of them by using different piezo's and design changes, watching how adjustments on the machine affect the audio,... than testing and learning what to listen for on targets others walk past.

Yes, just two of the 5 pins carry the audio.

20 hours ago, ALEXANDRE TARTAR said:

Hello, a video today fore you, look the speed of swing

Now you can change the headphone if you want 2'' more on the US nickel and obtain a better audio volume response

 

Thank You! 

On 1/12/2023 at 10:45 AM, midalake said:

Thanks for the update!!!! Want to see those California storm beach finds soon! 

Not me but a FB friend, first outing..

On 1/6/2023 at 11:09 PM, Tony said:

 

What did the max pulse delay finally end up being. I know the dial says 11.5 but did Fisher extend this 15uS ?

If this is, I would say it looks good. Rarely do I go lower than 9. something that seems to work both of my AQs. If it is noisy at 10, I'll go up with the delay..calm the machine down. than go back down to 10 which is what I run most of the time. And this takes about 15/20 minutes. (looks like I am using 12 delay, going up to  15/20 than back to 12) .......Also the AQ is a warm up machine, the threshold climbs the first 15+ minutes, after adjusting, (lowering) it steadies.

23 minutes ago, bklein said:

I retried my test at the park during lunch today but technology failed me.  I was using a bluetooth attached lapel mic inside my ear cup.  It seems to have some kind of noise reduction going on that fails to register the constant threshold I can definitely hear.  (plus my talking is too muffled to understand) So you can hear when the signal exceeds the threshold level so it proves yes, my detector "sees" the targets at 16" but the recording doesn't give a correct representation of the audio so I'll have to record the audio another way. Although, yes I hear the nickel at 15" this way, I feel most tests I've seen others do showed a much stronger signature of the nickel at 16".  OBN your video does represent things much like I experienced and showed I definitely moved the target too fast and rarely outside of the coil diameter - a bad habit after doing this too long with impatience...  my bad.  

I want to get this audio recording figured out, because I often record short things I ask about in forums and the audio is just always poor.  Sometimes I use my iphone, sometimes an old gopro.

I did more vid today but won't have it up till later Sunday. I did notice this, the higher the Delay on 18k, think I went to 11, the stronger the signal on the gold. Nickel still poor at just 16..and this is todays testing. Like Carolina said, get out there and play with the delays, and other settings..than using the coil with different sweep speeds and different swing styles. Even learn how to pinpoint with it, I found by using the edge of the coil or even pumping it up and down as I slowly move the coil over the faint target ...it will pull up weak signals..... settings today were full volume, sensitivity 8, threshold 4 plus, and it climbs as it gets warmed up.. 

Got a short quick video today, more Friday, took me awhile to get all setup and air traffic was bad, to noisy to hear faints. Have to go get the gold ring also, thought I had it here but must be at the deposit box. As you can see mine only gets 12 using the (same) way you tested...... but a few changes it goes to 15/ faint 16, and I figure I can squeeze more by using my head phones, not stockers either

Listen to what Mike says... if you don't do a full swing the target disappears, coil control is a necessary to get the most out of the AQ..

2 hours ago, ALEXANDRE TARTAR said:

I found this video on YouTube

First "error", you sweep the target below the searchcoil without ever leaving it, the ATS therefore takes over and the detector ends up absorbing the small variations in the target. (recalibrating)

Second "error", we don't ear the audio threshold so we can not ear the small target variations.

The audio threshold must adapt to the listener, here it is the camera, we must hear the audio threshold through the video recording. Of course if you put it on your ears it will be too strong it will have to be reduced for adapt to the ears.
Always a faint hum.

Third "error" it is necessary to adapt to the standard sweeping speed of approximately one meter per second.
So you have to go back and forth below the searchcoil (while leaving the detection zone of 1 meter per second).

 

 

 

BK...I should be able to reproduce the same results as the video, using the short motion / swing, than I'll show how coil control, a full swing and using the threshold can change the results. Temps look good here thursday, maybe I can do a video than. 

2 hours ago, Gary985112 said:

Can you share any tips on dealing with this?  I hear some people say to dig everything on the beach, is it true? Should I be doing something to avoid pull tabs? 

Every location is different.. For me..

The water/waves are great classifiers, light objects are pushed in, heavy targets are out further.

Than you have tides, where some depositors will be at high tide at 12 noon, on the beach, lowtide these areas can be easier to get to, these areas will hold heavier targets since the lighter targets have been washed in...

I know Anton, helped him with several questions. 

I'm not sure which would be best for diving, specially at 30 feet.   Just a guess, I would say the piezo can be sealed best and I think less apt to be affected by the pressure of 30 foot under....

Alton has asked which piezo's I used, I suggest he try both the 50mm and the 65mm's....Me...I like the audio of the 50mm Unlimited audio piezo for it is higher pitched (and works best with my hearing, diff reson frequency). when I tested the head phones on the second round AQ, Alexandra Tartar had found some 65mm's and used them on the set for the AQ and the audio was great, but the audio is a little bassier...  I did make a set of head phones using the 65mm, they are loud and the frequency is different..but the 50mm's work as well. I don't know of anyone that has used Altons.

I used the 65mm set that came with the Fisher AQ on the excalibur almost immediately, they are way better than the stock yellows. In Fact I recommended to Fisher they manufacture the new headset w/65's and sell them for all water machines..I was that impressed. Never heard a word.

So I don't think you can go wrong with Antons 65mm's, if his quality is good. Diving 30 feet, all though it does not sound to deep..it is tough on head phones, one little weak point and your looking at having issues sooner or later.

I think the stock yellows excalibur HP's use like a 40mm, been a while can't remember for sure, all I know is they maybe the worse headphones made. I use the 50mm mostly now, than pictured below is the 65's

Here are a few pics, and the Fisher set I tested that had a little weepage and you can see that they were going to have future issues. The problem was they used the stock base plate, which pushed the limits of the size of the 65 piezo and silicon.

First pic is the big 65 compared to the 50mm

Second is the Set of Fisher AQ HP's using the 65 mm

Third is the water damage

Forth the chart for the 65

Hardwire only will be the more dependable setup. 

Now if your very relaxed about pulling the endcap off/on, why not have two endcap setups. One with the CTX connector and one with a stock set (Yellow) hard wired. The hardwired set will be your backup.

To insure CTX/excalibur endcap with the female M-12 8 pin fitting will last to 30 feet....

You have to aquaseal the small gap between the control pod and the endcap and seal both the allen set screws when installing. Aqua seal only, and a thin coat, I have found the more the easier it does peel off. 

Also important is to clean/rinse both connections, male and female M-12's OFTEN.

Make sure the endcap mod is done correctly, sealed correctly inside the endcap, with no crack if using a older stock endcap).. they are famous for fracturing. 

The M12-8 pin male fitting that the headphones use. If done correctly, filling the fitting with 2 part epoxy to seal the internal connection.

I did several hundred of the CTX M-12 endcaps years ago, never had a fail. I never recommended them for anything more than 10 feet for there are so many factors involved which could cause issues down the road. I've been using them since 2012 at one to two feet submerged (In saltwater) and to this day love the opp to swap head phones. 

Any question just ask...Good Luck!

1 hour ago, bklein said:

17.77mm ID

It's US size 7.5.. I don't have many 18k's .. Have to look thru my pics n see if can find close to yours ...  Here is one,  (Size 😎8 )( 8grams). If I can find it, very close. Checking for more.. Just found one closer I think, more uniform in shape.. 

I have family in town till next week. Once all has settled down I'll do a few test and see if I can duplicate past test. Can you give me a detail description of your gold ring..K / purity...weight...shape/design so I can use close to the same. Also make yourself a better set of head phones, the AQ stock head phones are good but to squeeze every inch out of it you need better audio. I'll make you a list of what I used for that next week.

Love the old style inscription!  And a Great save!!

I have a lot of oldies similar and after researching several I was only able to locate one owner. Its tough tracking down after many years. Luckily the guy was well documented on several things and his marriage. If I remember correct it was around the same date as yours.