Search the Community

Firstly my thanks to the guys at Coiltek. After dreadful weather here in central Victoria, and recovering from surgery, this morning dawned clear and sunny. Nice hot coffee and before the dew was off the ground I had the 6000 cranked up. Rudimentary reading of the manual the previous day saw the new detector humming sweetly after a short warm up. JP had been most helpful with a few tips on the local Finders forum, so it was quite easy to feel a certain amount of confidence as I ground balanced and paired up the headphones, which are surprisingly good compared to some of Minelab's previous offerings. There is a shallow but substantial lead running west to east across my fifty acre property which yielded a small amount of gold to my GPZ a few years back. I had gridded out the most promising area at the time, so it seemed obvious that this would be a good place to test my new toy. Not bothering to take a pick I headed off towards the east end of the block. Where on earth did these signals come from? A number were I am sure just shotgun pellets, but a few were at a reasonable depth as I tilted the coil to get some idea of just how deep. The more interesting signals I marked with boot scuffs and will check out within the next few days. I did not get to go back for my pick as a visitor turned up to have me check his detector. Initial impressions; Pretty damned good.

Six Thousand dollars to put out on anything is a large investment to make . I just wonder how many of you have committed yourself to buying the 6000 already? I’ve had a long talk with one Minelab dealer and he has been told that the 6000 may slow in coming to the US because of the high volume going to other countries. That’s due to the gold rush is there not here. For you that live in gold country it may be a easy discussion but for those of us that don’t we may have to think about it a while. I myself don’t have a bass boat parked in my drive with a big motor and trailer so this year I’m going to be good to me . I will have a 6000 as soon as I can get my hot little hands on one. How about you is Santa going to come early? The Best! Chuck

8 grammer found at 11 inches. Nothing special as most detectors PIs should see something that big at that depth, but at least we get to see a big one finally found on film.

I don't know how many 6000s are already 'in the system' as complete units in the box ready for use but the Covid count in Malaysia is forcing them to shut down some things. https://www.newsweek.com/malaysia-sets-new-covid-case-record-amid-concerns-about-new-variant-1594595 Be prepared for a long wait with the chip shortage.

I’m wondering if the double D coil on the 6000 discriminates on metal like the 5000 does?

I went out to what may be my last visit to my silver beach before opening day. It is a lot busier with preparations going on for Memorial Day, but If I am lucky, I may sneak in one more visit. I only need a couple more silvers to make 200. Lucky my wife went along as the heat was starting to get to me. It was nice to have someone be able to go back to the car and take some of the heavy targets and bring me back drinks. Hunted from around 8:30 to 3:30. I was toast after that. I started out again looking for low conductors and on my second hole I found the 10K Class ring. Hopefully, an easy return since the full name was engraved in the ring. Because of that I ended up digging a lot more iron than I wanted to. I was not planning on clearing areas of iron, but finding the ring made me change my plans. I did not get a lot of good targets this time around by clearing iron. Almost all of the silver found was not near any iron. Weather definitely played a part in how fast I dug targets. Full sun all day and hotter than they said it would be, probably around 70, with almost no breeze. So that beach still has good targets for me, but much harder to get in quantity. I guess I will be doing parks or cellar holes on my days off from now on. Time to put away the GPX and pull out the Equinox and learn some new tricks for the parks.

Availability? Don’t ask. But pricing looks reasonable, coils especially. Minelab GPX 6000 Lithium-Ion Battery part # 3011-0432 US$165.00 Minelab GPX17 17″ Mono Coil part # 3011-0427 US$369.00 Minelab GPX14 14″ Double D Coil part # 3011-0426 AUS$499.00 Minelab GPX11 11″ Mono Coil part # 3011-0425 AUS$449.00 Minelab ML100 Wireless/Wired Headphones part # 3011-0435 US$139.95 Minelab GPX 6000 User Manual Minelab GPX 6000 Accessories & Spare Parts Minelab GPX 6000 Video Training Series

I’ve been following the battle between the old dog (GPZ-7000) and young dog (GPX-6000) with keen interest.. From what I can make of it, the young dog’s winning its battles in the USA and the old dog in Australia.. So far it seems the old dog can handle a scruff on heavily mineralized and ‘hot rock’ infested grounds better than the young dog, who prefers milder grounds.. But it’s too early in the day to scorn the young dog, it’s only just finding its feet in the world.. The old dog might’ve fought it out with other GPXs and always come out on top, but this young dog seems to have more sense of geology than its cousins.. Maybe a few more dust-ups in the old dog’s yard might do the young dog some good.. Or maybe the old dog won’t let the young dog anywhere near its yard no more? Maybe they should flog it out on neutral grounds somewhere, another 'Rumble in the Jungle'? Only time will tell who emerges Top Dog of the World , as with most other dog fights.. Hackles come up and fur starts to fly..

Hello gentlemen, finally someone from the Australian guys made an honest comparison

Made it out for a day at the beach. It seems like ages since I been out. The crowds were starting to gather since the weather was perfect that day. I was able to hit my favorite stretch of the beach for the most part. I started out trying for silver but decided to concentrate on low conductors, hoping for some gold. Total of 40 nickels that hunt, counting the war nickel. I ended the afternoon digging for high conductors as well, and was rewarded with yet another half dollar. Using a PI, you cannot get away from digging the deep, rounder shaped big iron since it could be a deep half, so I dig it. Some of longer iron items and shallow smaller nails, I could have avoided if I wanted to. I did manage to find a nice 10K tiny gold ring, so that made for a great day. Average depth was about 14” on most items. The ring was fairly shallow, probably around 7”. Total coins I believe was 100, so a high coin count. The usual copper and lead bits also found. Most items were resting on the clay layer or near it. Great to get out and enjoy the day.

I've read a few posts from those who have both and their input is pretty much what I expected. Having fun (especially with others) is the majority of why I enjoy detecting. Only a select few actually do it for a living and do well. The rest of us (me included), enjoy the hunt, adventures, comradery with like minded friends, and getting some gold on occasion. It's looking like the GPX-6000 is getting the majority of gold better than the GPZ-7000. So, is the extra weight worth the rare occasional big nugget? Lets go a step farther. Say the ZED hits a 4 ounce nugget at 34". Will the 6000 hit that same nugget at 30", 32" 33" or 34". Say it's 2" less and only gets the chunk at 32". It's still near 3' deep which is deeper than most folks enjoy digging and or most other detectors out there. So the reality for most folks, the GPX-6000 at a cost savings of $2000 and over 2 pounds lighter, better ergonomics, no more tethered into a harness, more user friendly, real wireless Bluetooth phones, is the best option for most. Like I said in another post. There should be a convoy of GPZ users heading down the highway to get the new GPX-6000 and having more fun, more gold more often. I can help make that smile happen. Anyone have a point I am missing or totally off, please chime in. Pic of the nugget will probably only be a few inches in depth difference between the 6 and 7. But the majority of us would probably hear if with both machines at 30 or more.

I totally understand that our Aussie brother's n sisters always get the jumpstart on the newest Minelab gold detector but our wait in the USA is getting totally ridiculous......

My personal observations only, quick testing with no appreciable methodology. Make no conclusions based on my limited time with the machine. I had Steve's 6000 for a couple hours this morning. At sunup I detected up a swale where Jason had found a couple nuggets yesterday. I gridded a section 6 ft wide and about 25 yds long. I marked 7 undug targets, 4 definite dig me signals and 3 iffy threshold warbles with the 6000 and 11" coil. I then covered the same ground with my 7000 and 15x10 Xcoil. The 7000 had no trouble with any of the 4 dig me targets and found no new targets. Nothing but Ground and Salt noise over the questionable targets. I dug the clear targets, first 2 were micro nuggets in the .2 gram range. Third was a shallow hot rock and the 4th was surface trash. I ran the 6000 back over the questionable targets and couldn't get anything repeatable. I wish I had known JP's thing about the speaker/EMI because I was noise cancelling often, especially if I set the machine down for any length of time. Jason's summary from yesterday sums up our limited joint testing quite well. My feeling after this limited time is that if I were 5 years younger, I would stick to the 7000 with the array of X-Coils to suit the conditions. But, I'll turn 67 years young next month and my detecting shoulder has been nagging me for several years. I have fashioned a hipstick that transfers the detector weight into the frame of an archery fanny pack with shoulder straps. I thought it was great until I swung the 6000 with 11" coil. Regrettably, I decided to run the 6000 with the 17" coil with no bungee this morning. 45 minutes and I was done, hence my abbreviated time on the 6000. I'm gonna want a bungee for the 14" DD or the 17" coils. N. Nevada at this time of year is tough to hunt. The weather is great, but the ground has enough moisture to make the salt darn near unbearable in many places. The 6000 with 11" coil tames it some, but there's no magic absent the DD coil. Hot rocks are about the same as the 7000, although I found the Auto + with nearly silent threshold chops the tailing edge of a hotrock signal. You'd still have to dig them, but without enthusiasm. Am I buying one, probably. But I'm not rich and doubt I can justify $13k worth of detectors. I'm going to need to make an either or decision.

Still very new to the gpx. I go through the routine of EMI reduction and then GB, but even when absolutely motion less, every 5 seconds I get a warbling sound that lasts for about a second or so. When I start to swing a bit, it still does that warbling at the same interval. This is with the 11 commander DD. I haven’t tried this with the mono yet. I do have a single phase 7200V line about 200’ away. All settings are at factory presets. I have tried adjusting RX gain and stabilizer without success. The only thing that smooths it out is the cancel switch. Is this a common occurrence? I’ve searched 25 pages of Minelab forum pages (here) to root out the answer, but no luck yet. Thank you

If this has been posted here already I missed it, sorry. But, wow...

Get a GPX 6000 to use on your old patches before someone else does! You will be glad you did.

When it came to the Minelab GPX group of machines, it did not mention the GPX 4800. Can you comment on the 4800 giving us your perspective on that machine as a gold detector. I have noticed on Aussie Gold Prospectors that a few of the cast are using the 4800 with some success. What are the differences between the 4500, 4800 and the 5000. Thanks .

Ok have spent 12 hours behind the 6000, on old patches (our wet will not let me go further) Like all ML detectors the 6000 is Magic, but then I say that about any detector or coil that puts weight in my pocket, thus I give my review because history is in the past and we are looking forward if you don`t agree stop reading and bug off. At this early stage I list the great features, tis light, no menu just a simple matter to press a button say go from normal to difficult, to change sensitivity, to switch from no threshold to threshold, to change operation channel etc top time saving features. Does it get gold? You bet it does, remarkable sensitivity/depth on "micrograms" and stability and it has found its first patch, in amongst the high grass on a 45deg slope on the bank of a small wash. Am I impressed..... you bet but that is normal for each ML new detector for me since year dot. Only thing at this early stage I miss is no manual GB to give the final cleanup of patches. Does it compete with my ZX combos...... no way it complements it.

Hi Guys Just thought I would share my first trip with the GPX 6000 out near home. About an hour and a half in an old spot on the NSW Far South Coast AU. Settings on manual about 12 o"clock position in difficult. Hot ground but with a steady threashold. Down @ 6 - 8 inches. Cheers Jack

Went to a different, flat beach for a change of pace. I was going to wrap the GPX in plastic and go into the water a bit but found out my Detech coil needs to be weighed down in order to not float. Not a big deal, as it is a great coil and my favorite. I will know better next time and will weigh it down. Because of how flat the beach is, I expected and was granted, lots of bits of aluminum 😆. The number of coins was in line with how things seen to go for me on my area beaches. Found a bit of silver as well. Also found a ring which is either nickel or white gold. It is not as clean as I would expect gold to be, but maybe it is a lower karat. Just somehow reminds me of how some clad quarters look when they are tumbled a lot, coming out looking clean and not that red/green/brown look. Reads a solid 8 on the Nox. I still feel there should be some deep gold and silver there due to the deep coins and deep lead that is still left behind. Also, the number of pull tabs could have been gold rings as well. I do have to say one thing about the GPX line. They are very durable machines. I just hope the GPX 6000 is as durable. My 5000 has done a lot of deep woods hunting as well as the beach hunts. Things do go wrong with it (like the cam locks), but it always powers up and performs well. So, nothing earth shattering, but a decent day at the beach.

Hey guys. My name is Patrick, I'm new to detection, I'm from Brazil. Sorry for the google translation ,. I would like the help of the most experienced. I know that many have already upgraded their machines to 6000 and 7000. I have a GPX5000 with a 12x15 mono commander and a DD 11 "commander. My nugget hunting region is the most mineralized in Brazil with large companies that remove material. What are the best coils to handle such a hot soil? I am thinking of upgrading to DETECH coils of 15 "ultimate or DETECH 18" closed DD. Am I right with these coils or wrong to deal with high mineralization? Thank you all.

Fat Bastard Prospecting, all his videos are entertaining unless you're offended by common Aussie prospector language. He does a quick run with the new 6000, not a great deal of new information but entertaining none the less.

I am starting this thread to ask the folks who have used both to give their thoughts, opinions, comparisons and experiences with both. I have only seen JP and Rob post on the Nugget Finder coil and have only seen it in action on the Outback Gold Fever Channel. We all know that the 6000 blows away any competition with weight and ergonomics, but would still like to know if it gets any closer to this with Z and the 12”. Performance wise is really what I am after and these two sizes are only an inch apart, but 2 different techs. I am on the fence, do I buy a new coil for my Z or sell/save for a 6000? I am truly in the middle on this based on my terrain, age and gold I am after. My terrain: is the woods and broad gulches. There is always overburden and vegetation so I need the power to bust through that to get to the start of the bedrock erosional surface and hopefully close bedrock. However, wearing a harness does not work and is cumbersome for detecting in this environment, its never flat so you never feel the help from a bungy, its pointless for this area. My age: is 45 and I can go about 5-6 hours max before being whipped, thats not just from detecting but digging and hiking in and out too, so I know as age goes on the hours will be less but new tech could come out too. My gold: is sub grammers, that is the majority. We have hit larger pieces but the bread and butter is sub grammers and the Z is getting them through all that overburden but I am not sure if the GPX6000 would. So my “dream” detector would be ZVT tech in a compactable SDC form with interchangable coils, light and ergonomic. Is that to hard to ask? 😂😂😂😂 So, in the interim, it’s either a lighter coil for the GPZ that supposedly is more sensitive and can get a little deeper and reduce the weight for non bungy users OR a new detector that is lighter, that is also more sensitive at least on surface gold, that we have seen so far, but has the possibility as more reviews come out to see if you can actually hit small gold at depth like a GPZ. Can’t have both, the coil I could afford, The GPX would require selling off the Z. I also don’t have the ability to drive to the closest dealer that would have both in AZ. Thats a two day drive one way. So please, if you may, would love feedback on this vs the two. In the end it sure helps me out and probably many others too. Thanks!

Hope this thread seems like a good idea. One thing I noticed yesterday using the 14" DD. I put it on and set it to Conductive Ground Cancel. At some point I turned off the GPX, had a break and turned it on again. After ?? mins/hours I noticed the GPX was in EMI Cancel mode. I tested this a couple of times. When the GPX 6000 is turned off in Conductive Ground Cancel mode and then back on again it does not remember that it was in CGC mode - it returns to the Default of EMI Cancel mode. Hot tip - check what mode it is in when turning on with the 14" DD attached and set it accordingly. At least that is what mine does - I assume everyones is the same? 🤔