There was some discussion on this forum about how long it takes to learn a VLF detector. 100 hours was tossed around as the "standard". That totally depends on the detector, if it matches up well with the ground conditions here and whether I really want to learn it and maybe even master it. Pulse induction detectors are a whole different story.
I love metal detectors and metal detecting so when a detector simply can't handle the conditions where I detect, I know in about 5 minutes that there is no point in learning it. Detectors that have all sorts of features but all give high conductor or iron responses on every target that is 3" to 5" deep or deeper are basically worthless to me since most of the places I hunt have digging restrictions and digging it all is not allowed. I might as well be using a single tone PI if I want to hit deep targets or just use any entry level VLF detector and forget about targets deeper than 4" or so. I just can't accept those limitations. Some detectors are so cool like the Whites V3i, the Etrac and CTX3030 that I put in a lot more effort in trying to make them work here but no, there was no point. I could have put in hundreds and hundreds of hours and I would not have been satisfied with their performance. It's not their fault or mine. They just aren't suited for the ground conditions here.
Deus 2 is one of the few that actually works here and is a huge improvement over Deus 1 and the ORX because its simultaneous multi frequency technology does what it claims to do even in the ground conditions here. According to my hunt logs, I have about 400 hours using it, which has worn out one of the cam locks and I'm on my second remote mounting bracket. I have started to master high conductor target recognition like standard cherry picking especially for deep 8 to 12" coin sized high conductors. Every deep non-ferrous target has a degree of an iron "halo" here even when they are standalone targets. I am going to concentrate on the low and mid conductors this summer with Deus 2 and hopefully learn some techniques for more US nickel and gold jewelry recovery on shallower and then deeper targets in that category. I have taken it gold prospecting and it's okay for that and pretty easy to learn. I have basically mastered it for that purpose using its Goldfield mode and know its strengths and limitations. More coin/relic hunting in thick iron is another project for this summer. Some saltwater beach hunting is another thing on my Deus 2 list.
After many years with Deus 1, Deus 2 is not complicated for me as far as navigating its controls and features. It is definitely full of performance possibilities that I am only beginning to learn about.