cjc

GG's for the CTX--the ones with no Vol control. They fit plug #2 on Joes cell. cjc

I think what Denis is saying is that gold "hangs on" better when you take the coil away. Im saying that compared to say a bottlecap--gold is a narrow less drawn out tone. Denis used the word "elastic" and I do understand what he means by that. cjc

Those are the kinds of basics of which I speak. These kinds of skills are all the more important with a powerful pulse like the AQ. With them--what you have is a very accurate pulse. Im learning this machine too but the ideas in that book are everything I need to apply to progress. (Tones notwithstanding). Its' been winter here and I've had the AQ out maybe a dozen times--enough to tell how much potential it has. cjc

The Gain. and Delay. Some of those micro targets would sound like nothing at 11 uSc with the Gain at or below preset. The TDI broke me of the "maxed out" habit. cjc cjc

I can see you are getting it and you certainly have the determination. if I were to give one bit of advice--try turning it down and bringing the factor of signal strength in. When you turn a pulse up--the signal character changes dramatically--less info. It's like there are things that your ears can only learn at these low settings. Also you notice that a lot of the instruction on this machine involves lifting the coil and hearing the "edge" of the signal--same thing. cjc

Thats a great hunt. Not to say that Im alltogether skilled with this machine but I get the sense of what it's capable of. I think that if one learns to go after narrow responses, stay off the elongated targets and (hate to say it rotten glasses) the AQ has the potential to be very accurate. It's a clean signal with a lot of target information. cjc

I would be inclined to stick my face in here and say that the above set of digs are those of a skilled pulse hunter. No elongateds, nothing outsized--good job. At the same time I would have to concur with Steve and say there are plenty of good targets, crosses, upended rings and earrings that will hit twice. We are always playing the odds with this hobby and its here that an even wider skill set comes in--where? site quality? target context? sand texture? and quite a few other target features. When I run the "Cuda" with it's great optimization (after decades) I can tell by how strong and clean a signal is--pretty much what it's made of. When someone uses the term "detector expert" I think of Steve--and very, very few others. (maybe Carl Moreland and Bill Lahr). Im also no stranger to playing "devils advocate" --the buying public deserves it but on this one--a superb gold hunter's machine that (like any) comes with a learning curve--I lean towards focussing on what it can do rather than what it can't. As Gigmasters unfair video shows us, the VLF- alumni hoards need to be kept at the gate. They want and expect too much. cjc

Hi Tony Epic ring BTW--I know you work hard at this and have done so for a very long time. I will say this: As these machines become more sophisticated, there's less need for a target ID circuit. The precision that allows the AQ to run a low, stable uSc also makes for a very clean and informative signal. This is what distinguishes Eric's circuits too--the GQA2 and the CS6Pi both tell you a ton about something in straight PI mode, To a lesser extent, even the simpler Dual Field has a clean enough signal that IF you don't run it too high--it will be wide and caps and weak / linear on pins. The AQ is all of these and more. To me, the ID modes are gravy--to be saved for "bed of spikes' type situations. Of the submersible pulses available I would be hard pressed not to admit it's the deepest too--with the TDIBH being second. To my mind with all your PI experience--you are "just the guy" for this machine--given some time on it. This is true of VLF's too. With machines with sophisticated electronics like the Anfibio and the EQuinox your target testing and coil control target "challenges" are much more effective. Point being that there's a lot more information in the All Metal tone of this machine than any simple PI. cjc

I agree, Ridge--If you can't make a few bucks with the performance of this detector--buy a Simplex. cjc

Rick, by industry standards, I already consider this detector to be "near perfect" (given a bit of bat run time, and submersability). The good (performance) outweights the shortfallings by far. If there are any big improvements in the production model I'll gladly pay that money too. cjc

Joe, in his wisdom put both connectors on his extended run time cell. Found that Grey Ghosts really enhance the audio. cjc

I would have to disagree with that in that even the toughest to master PI I've run, the TDI Pro gives a kind of weak, linear "off center" tone on any pin, even upended ones. The AQ does too. Only thing is it took me quite a while to learn to hear it. Might not be an out and out double tone but it has elements of it--more drawn out, less peaked. This is why I'm so sick of trying to promote my Equinox books--everyone's got these hard and fast "how to" rules--but they lack basic skills. To be fair though--hearing this level of signal quality is by no means basic. I'll say this on the topic. An "optimized" pulse--is just that--it focusses on a narrow conductive band. You can't have both. Now I was a bit put off testing some big 22k and seeing that there was a diminished response in the ID modes. I feared missing my "dream find". At the same time--I recognize that the best features of any machine come with trade-offs and (oh no!) its here that basic skills come in. It's like even with a pulse--there are those who are expecting the machine to do everything for you. No--there are a dozen signal quality features that can, with practice be recognised. As with all metal hunting with a VLF these signal features tell ten times more than any discriminate circuit ever could. This relegates the ID modes to a secondary role. They are nice to have but when I get something that is strong, solid and giving a partial low tone--I dig anyhow. I like the stability of Mute mode, but am aware of its response range. Hate to say it but so many of these questions come from a perspective of "what can this detector do for me?" when the answer is.... I feel like some old saddlemaker, or hide tanner preaching the "old skills" to an audience of highly vocal scofflaws. But then five minutes later they're asking a question (or posting a picture of a pile of junk) to which the obvious and simple answer is contained in those same, simple basic skills. cjc

Shocking news for sure--just glad that he's okay. Joe is the master of cold water hunting and equipment selection--must have been something very unusual that happened. Anyone who has been in the water hunting game for a long time has had their close calls. We can only try and learn for next time. No matter how experienced you are there can always be that "second event" that catches us off guard. In these cold water days a "fox" type whistle is not a bad idea--you just never know when there will be a hole dug by ice or some other hazzard. Just glad that Joe is on the mend--I know that he is a tough and resourceful man. He will not be down for long. Thanking God for the rescuers. clive

My New Years resolution was to quit debates and hot dogs--for much the same reason...cjc

well- its really about knowing what the machine will do. with either platform signals at the edge of the range are either big iron being heard in part or something non-ferrous carrying up to the surface because it conducts well. more about being familar with the machine than any principle of physics. cjc

Let me qualify that statement. When you have a pulse that you are really familar with--that you know the feild size well on, and you hear a very faint, narrow signal that's round--there is a very good chance that it will be non-ferrous. I can certainly do this with the Cuda--having run it for 30 years....

whereas with something modulated like the Equinox you have no clue. cjc

Can't help thinking that most hunters would have a much easier time if they had done some time with a pulse. I think that's why you do so well with the Excal--you have learned to run it like a pulse--and assess your targets with a wider set of metrics. By pulse hunter standards any discrimination spoils you. There's just as much info to be got from the context. Its true though a narrow deep pulse signal is always going to be non-ferrous--simple physics. The TDI is bad for one ways--jury still out on the AQ certainly seems more consistent in that once its "caught" a target it keeps it. cjc

Did a quick hunt the other day and dug only coins. This has to do with the "training" that Canadian coins have given me. In a way they are a "median" target--part non-ferrous and part steel. What this means is that they have characteristics of both. So with a clean processing pulse like the AQ--you have a narrow signal (imagine a tube carrying the response up) with some wide or maybe irregular characteristics. Point being that they make good "trainers" teaching you to look for even poor examples of a narrow response. Then when you hear some clean gold...unmistakable. Foils and tabs will do the same thing but are still not as good of conductors. If you are in soft material focussing on deep heavy targets this is a very strong tool for ID'ing responses with the AQ. Very glad that caps sound wide on this machine. With a pulse that processes at this level the principle of "carry" (see illustration) is even more important. With some VLFs--Hieneken caps are similar to Canadian coins--steel--but with lots of aluminum in there too--right on the border--and for this reason a good teaching tool. cjc

I had it backwards; I was missing things because they got lost in the high gain noise. The more difficult the site, the more important it is to find an efficient signal balance. @cjc's book help a lot for me. That's good advice JCR! It's like once you get up towards 90 everythingis clipping down and harder to hear--not easier. cjc

ya there's a lot of info in 2 tone just never needed to get away from it except maybe to smooth out the big coil in salt. I think that alloys just don't sound off a strong and a peaked response (easier to hear in 2 tone)_ means something that's clean metal and distinct from the ground--not corroded. cjc

I would also add that a lowered SAT (ATS) is something I've arrived at with this machine too. In keeping with the evolution of Eric's machines there is a very high level of processing. When you add super fast SAT to the mix there's a defininte loss of depth. The upside is that with some of these detectors that run at a higher uSc (GQA2, CS6Pi) this makes for great stabilty in fast salt. With the Impulse I see this slick processing great for ID-ing gold in that anything thats not a clean conductor will be wider and less consistent in how it enters and leaves the detection field. Last ring I got was very narrow and clean--just an ideal response--carrying up really well. I can see that this machine--like the GQ and CS6, will have the potential of being really accurate because of how well it's processing. cjc

Great hunt all the more satisfying when you have to battle tough conditons. Thanks for the settings too. Just wish someone would come up with some electric gloves! clive

Dewcon with these machines--if you have the good proven ground that a lot of gold has come from--the sooner you are out there diggign the better. I think the key is--it has to be a LOT better than what's been used there before--like when the Dual Field came out. I know you have some good sites down there--give it a spin! clive

Price I paid for this detector was just fine. Great detector--we have a great future together! cjc