UKD2User

Mainly to support the new Extrem 2 box device but also supposed to improve sensitivity in gold mode and a couple of other improvements.

I think it is that same feature which annoys some people - as wind noise can be a problem. There are simple modifications that can be made to address this problem (although it may then be less easy to have a conversation with someone!).

Yes, XP now offer three cables (in black!): 65cm (2ft) - intended for their dive shaft; 115cm (45ins), and 250cm (98ins) The middle-sized one is a much better option for normal use - much less 'spare' to deal with.

I've noticed that coins can give different VDIs in different circumstances. I always use autoscan on (so my D2 will do an automatic frequency scan every time I change search mode - or, if I ever chose to (I don't use this feature), adjust max freq for a chosen search mode). To date, I've assumed that different VDI from the same coin type has been caused by: 1) The state of corrosion of the coin; 2) The specifics of the particular hole (compaction/moisture/nearby junk/mineralisation/salt); 3) The fact that up to 10% of some earlier design British £1 coins were fakes! 4) The fact that each search mode transmits a different spectrum of energy into the ground and so the energy spectrum of the return signal will be different to match. Having read this thread I've come to realize that there's more to this. Frequency shift/scan has an effect on discrimination/unmasking as well. I put this down to the fact that every specific target location will have an absolutely unique frequency response pattern/signature (signal returns from ground/minerals/salts/ferrous and non-ferrous undesired items and desired targets all combined into an overall unique 'signature'). The transmitted (and therefore) returned signals are quantized (along the frequency axis) and so there's a sort comb-filtering effect going on. A 'frequency shift/retune simply moves the 'comb' sideways a little and in so doing, can mask parts of the overall response signature (sometimes enough to affect discrim/unmask/VDI functions). I don't think that there's anything that can be done about this - very interesting - effect, but it's just one more reason why a permission can never be said to be completely 'done'.

I use stock scuff covers. If they seem loose I use a couple of zip ties. If things get really bad I use self-amalgamating tape. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-amalgamating_tape

My phone is in my pocket most days - I don't plan on having any more children though...😁 I think that the wired connection to the search coil makes little difference to any risk - the nokta/minelab machines are using the same wifi mechanism to communicate with (wireless) headphones, pinpointers etc. Also - as those who experience interference will readily testify - we are subject to other people's wifi signals almost anywhere we go these days.

Nearly all modern detectors (Minelab/Nokta/XP) emit radio frequency electromagnetic waves in two wavebands (~2.4MHz frequencies - so called wifi - to communicate with headphones etc.; and VLF waveband frequencies of about 4kHz-120kHz to detect underground objects). All machines require FCC certification (or an equivalent, for a given jurisdiction) that all electromagnetic emission levels are within limits which are deemed safe, and which are shown not to interfere with nearby electronic equipment (that may be safety critical). They are also required not to unduly malfunction when subject to electromagnetic waves from other sources - so-called ElectroMagnetic Compatibility EMC: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_compatibility A metal detector like the Deus 2 or Manticore will not create more radiation at wifi frequencies than a cellphone (actually, probably less). All VLF detectors transmit similar amounts of electromagnetic energy at VLF frequencies - only you can decide if this is a problem for you.

I wonder if this is happening because there is some air trapped inside the coil cover? Personally, having to exert a couple of hundred newtons of extra downward force to swing underwater is no big deal. The upside of having a rig which floats was demonstrated for me some months ago when I watched a young lady windsurfer searching in vain for her expensive new GoPro - it had fallen off into the water - in a nice waterproof enclosure which sank without trace.

I agree, I don't like lowering AR much below 5. Maybe I'm just lucky, I find it's very unusual to have EMI so bad - over such a large area - and having fairly benign soil/sand generally - that I need to "detune" the machine. Something that all manufacturers could usefully do is get someone on their engineering teams with a deep understanding of psycho-acoustics. I think that, given the laws of physics and the current state of the art, the real progress yet to be made is in helping the user "hear" good targets better, at whatever depth, than the "trash". e.g. this kind of thing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auditory_masking

Or just tip the thing sideways for a moment or two (the shaft and handgrip are open at the bottom)?

I guess a small strip of lead wrapped round the shaft ought to fix that?

I think you've got to be careful what you wish for - I'd be much happier for mine to float to the surface if I lost control of it.

1.10 - they (seem to) have fixed the clock !! 😁

I think that the bone conduction headphones are intended to be used for total immersion - I don't think you get the intended effect if your head/ears are out of the water. The RC switches to square tones (I believe) automatically when the bone phones are plugged in - which perhaps explains the tonal difference. Bone phones use high impedance piezo transducers to achieve the waterproof rating - they are not really going to yield a "hi-fi" quality sound. I usually use the WSA2XL 's on the beach or in the rain. If I were going completely underwater, I'd stick with the bonephones - although I think that Gray Ghost over-ear phones are also available (they're quite a bit more expensive and probably also use very similar piezo transducers, so sound quality may not be very different).

In my experience, silver - as well as gold - can ring up ID's like pulltabs. You can (sometimes) hear the difference, but I dig them all.

"....the MANTICORE and EQUINOX 700 & 900 detectors utilise our new proprietary low latency wireless audio codec that is not used on any previous products...." I'd be surprised if Minelab have gone to the trouble of writing their own audio codec (there are so many excellent ones out there already, including the new BT LE ones). I strongly suspect that ML have deliberately made no 3rd party BT gear interoperable, and that this is a deliberate financial/marketing decision.

That does sound like one of these mechanical 'plug not sitting properly in socket' kind of things. Hope you find a solution!

Gary?

Without wanting to attempt teach anyone's grandmother to suck eggs, I notice that the ground - in my part of the northern hemisphere anyway - is getting very dry. I know this affects my ability to detect - and dig(!) - targets at depth at this time of year.

I've never used such a machine. What kinds of stuff have you found with yours - at what sort of depth?

Could part of the problem simply be a mechanical one? Aplogies if I'm stating the obvious but: I know that the EQX800 (and I assume the MC) have a 1/8" stereo jack socket for external wired phones. One possible gotcha is that the jack socket is surrounded by a threaded ring/bezel which can get in the way of 'fat' jack plugs, preventing them going all the way into the socket. Even a mm or two is enough to stop the connection working as it should. On more than one occasion, I've had to get a sharp blade and carve plastic off the moulded plug to get it to seat fully in the socket.

I quite agree!

You're right, I quoted the ref for the XTerraPro by mistake. I think that ML have used the chip/SoC to implement a "closed" wireless subsystem for these machines, but I hope I'm wrong. Interesting to see the codenames they used for the machines: Manticore = "Sirius" XTerraPro = "Tormentor" (I wonder which Turkish competitor it was intended to torment? 😁)

Nope, if you read the doc it's: a) related to the Manticore specifically, and b) seeking permanent, not temporary, confidentiality re. these items.

I haven't had time to study this in detail. I have noticed my clock going badly out of whack at least once since I upgraded everything to V1.10 I believe, but haven't yet tested my theory, that the clock goes wrong when pairing a different coil and/or some other accessory. I've seen something out on the internet showing what someone purported to be a reply from XP, in response to a request to fix the clock problem, saying that XP didn't see fixing this as a high priority (or some other words to that effect). My personal theory is that the problem may lie in a piece of code that XP themselves have licensed from someone else - and that they actually have no control over how to fix it. It's not uncommon these days, where individual chips are in fact little systems in their own right, e.g things like wireless communications. If I'm right, this would tie in with the idea that pairing is a trigger for the problem, as it may well involve running a piece of someone else's proprietary code. At least I can keep my cellphone on and the D2 is clever enough not to be bothered by EMI from it - and keep time that way. I think it's funny that the clock goes wrong, because actually, when I'm having a good hunt I lose all sense of time anyway! Maybe what would be most useful would be an alarm to tell you dinner's ready!