How Many Controls Do We Really Need?

[Steve Herschbach]

This is a copy of a post I made elsewhere, expanded and updated. Do we really need a zillion controls?

You know, one of the best detectors I ever had was the White’s MXT. Not a ton of settings, just three modes with some basic adjustments. Easy to understand and a good if not great performer, got the job done. There is a fine balance between features and usefulness. V3i went too far for many, and many who got a V3i went back to the MXT. Not because the MXT was more powerful but because the ability to easily master its control set inspired confidence. With V3i you honestly really never really knew if you were set up right. Maybe the elite here will take a pass on detectors with basic control sets, but trust me as a very successful detector seller in my day, the cutting edge is not where the bread and butter sales are. I sold about 50 MXT for every V3i that went out the door.

Amazing thing about the MXT - the control set:

1. On/Off and Gain (Sensitivity)
2. Mode Switch - a. Coin & Jewelry b. Relic c. Prospecting
3. Ground Switch - a. ground tracking b. salt (beach) c. locked at last tracked position
4. Dual Control - a. disc in relic mode b. vsat in prospecting mode
5. Threshold
6. Pinpoint Trigger

Just the basics, not even a volume control. You did that at the headphones. Yet it not only worked it worked extremely well because the three main modes were close to perfect as they were. Do you really need twenty adjustments for iron bias and tones etc. or do you need a detector designed to work properly out of the box with only a few controls? I think the MXT perfectly illustrates that more controls is not always better. The choice of course is an individual one. I like full tones for instance but does it make the detector find anything deeper or give it better separation? A person running two tones will find the same targets I find in full tones. I would say it helps me decide what to dig and what not to dig, better discrimination, and there is that. So I'm not saying any opinions on this are right or wrong but I do think a solid case can be made for detectors that are designed to run extremely well with minimal adjustments. The MXT was a best selling classic and it was largely because anyone could pick it up and go without getting a degree in metal detecting. Everything you needed to know was printed on the bottom of the control box!

Minelab obviously bought into this philosophy in PI after the settings packed deep menu GPX 5000. The GPX 5000 is the V3i version of a PI detector. The SDC 2300 by contrast is a study in simplicity, and the Gold Monster plus GPX 6000 continue the idea of less being more.

Food for thought.

 

[Steve Herschbach]

 

[Kostas 13]

I would agree that the simpler a detector is the more effective it is because your attention will be 100% focused on the search without constantly thinking about whether you have set the correct settings.

[IBMe]

I’m starting to go the other way. I find myself leaving the zillion-option detectors sitting. I find I don’t enjoy the hunt, focused on the detector.

I take a simple detector out; I relax and enjoy the hunt.

It came as a surprise. Thought I had to have the super-duper.

 

[HardPack]

Digital opened the door to more user options and control features. One of the problems I see is that between all the different MD manufacturers is there is not a standardization of terminology & symbols,( ie: recovery, reactivity; gain, sensitivity; iron bias, BC reject), even worse there is not a clear definition of the individual control feature and what that control feature actually does; and especially no standardization of coil quality. As a result I find myself committing a disproportional amount of time learning an individual MD. Plus another big negative for me, the SMF MD manufacturers will not disclose which frequencies their SMF MD use in the multiple search modes. For confidence in the MD I find myself turning down all this high tech complexity to the basics to suit the ground and targets I actually search. Do the math for yourself, 4-search modes with at least 2-variations each times 12 plus individual control features. For me simple is better, I prefer to focus on the hunt not constantly fiddling with the detector. 

[Noah (FL)]

Still have a couple Tesoros I use for jewelry hunting but this post definitely makes me wish I still had an MXT. Such a great machine in iron infested spots, especially with smaller coils. I loved the 6x8 SEF!!

[Daniel Tn]

That's why I still keep the T2.  Turn it on. Set the sensitivity and disc.  GB and swing.  If you want multi tones, they are there and simple to pick from.  Easy and still one of the best around.  Definitely the smoothest all metal mode of any detector I've ran.

[Chase Goldman]

1 hour ago, Daniel Tn said:

That's why I still keep the T2.  Turn it on. Set the sensitivity and disc.  GB and swing.  If you want multi tones, they are there and simple to pick from.  Easy and still one of the best around.  Definitely the smoothest all metal mode of any detector I've ran.

Actually, you're describing how I use the Manticore.  The only other decision I have to make is whether I'm in AT General or Beach General, and I occasionally have to run a noise cancel - I run default disc or no disc on demand (horseshoe button).  I haven't futzed around with anything but the default settings lately other than some minor audio adjustments, and have done well with it.

The "complicated" present generation of detectors are only as complicated as you want them to be.  The designers have done a pretty good job at dialing in decent default settings for general purpose detecting to make them reliable turn on and go detectors as long as you can suppress your impulse to tweak.  I seldom have the time or patience to delve into intricate setups, even on the D2.  I'm happy to be blissfully ignorant of exploring the depths of the Manticore's settings customizations.

I will say this, though, I like having the options available to delve into should I encounter difficult situations and I do like to tweak my audio due to hearing loss and to manage audio fatigue , not to mention that great detector audio does more for in terms of providing dig decision info than any 3D display ever could.  So limiting my potential available options for the sake of simplicity for the masses is not something I personally endorse.  Since Equinox, I've seen several higher end detectors be able to provide usable, user friendly turn on and go default settings for 90% of detecting scenarios, while enabling more advanced users to tweak and customize to their heart's content or, if necessary, compensate for specific, unusual situations.  And if those "unusual" situations, happen to be your common daily occurrence, then the saved customization becomes a convenient set it once and forget it turn on and go experience.  So I personally don't buy into the premise that user friendly simplicity and copious settings options cannot co-exist on a single machine - as long as the menu structure is intuitive and frequently used/adjusted settings are readily available and not buried in a multi-level menu morass.

Also, while I prefer analog knobs to touch screens, even on digital equipment, because of the ready accessibility and tactile feedback, I also understand that dedicated, non-programmable knobs and switches can limit how future features and capabilities are implemented in detector vs. a programmable "glass" user interface.  If the future of detecting means that the software will continue to evolve while the hardware infrastructure remains essentially constant (e.g., the Vortex upgrade approach) then a programmable user interface probably needs to be part of the equation.  Is that more complexity, more controls than needed?  I guess so since it facilitates more controls and settings complexity.  Anyway, just putting that out there.

[Jeff McClendon]

If I am using a recently made SMF detector using its Multi settings in moderate to high iron mineralization, I can't dig it all and I am expecting top of the line performance both for depth, audio response and target ID accuracy,  I need adjustable iron bias, adjustable recovery speed, good ground balance options and some good audio options. I am okay with automatic frequency shift during startup, automatic triggered by the user or manual frequency shift like that on the Vortex. This is the kind of detecting I do most often.

If I am in a dig it all situation for coin sized targets, I don't really need highly adjustable iron bias, highly adjustable recovery speed or lots of audio options. I don't get that situation very often but the Vortex VX9 as it is right now seems fine for that if MD-MF works really well.