Big Boys Hobbies

One detector... T2SE? F75LTD? E-Trac? V3i?

Mirlen

Mirlen

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2013
Messages
262
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
If you could pick only one detector and an upgrade at a later date was very very very unlikely or at least very very far off which of these would you pick?

Teknetics T2SE
Fisher F75LTD
MineLab E Trac
White's V3i

Yes, I realize this is a bit of a spread in pricing. The higher ones are stretching my budget a bit but I'm considering them for their multi-frequency features. I'm a geek, and love tinkering with settings so the V3i is a bit appealing to me but I can see how having to adjust your settings repeatedly to obtain good results could become cumbersome. I've heard of EMI/chattiness issues with the T2/F75's. E Trac I'm mixed on...it utilizes a wide range of frequencies but I'm still a bit torn as to if I like the tones it uses, I sort of like the tones on the T2 and how it 'talks' better but I worry about EMI...

My intended purposes? Hm, no idea since I'm just getting started... My purchase is spurred on by an upcoming beach trip so I would like something that will work OK in the dry sand and maybe some wet sand, after that and we're back home it would likely be used in fields, playgrounds and parks in suburban and rural areas... I don't plan on making any treks out to deserts or exotic metal detecting hunting trips (yet!)...

Obviously there are lots of variables in users abilities, sites, soil etc but from many YouTube videos I saw, it seemed like the T2/F75's were able to find things where the E Trac and V3i wouldn't even respond...so that is a little concerning...
 
T2. I loved mine and wish I had another. Might want to hold off because Teknetics has a prototype out that may be a dual frequency unit. I will buy one of those if they hit production.
 
I've got the answer! It depends....:roll:






Depends on what kind of hunting you want to do... I know you stated you weren't sure, but that is going to be a big factor...

(Others please chime in here if I'm incorrect as I haven't owned all these detectors...)

F75/T2 High trash Relic and Coin Machines EMI can be a concern and NOT a salt beach machine.

Etrac Coin killer the best in high mineralization soils buuttt... Slow sweep, Poor ergonomics IMO ;).

V3i Solid all around but can take adjustments to get the better depths. Sometimes it can have you wondering if you have everything set right. Sometimes simple is better...



Depends on your ability to adjust... You stated that wasn't an issue. With my Vx3, once my programs were set, I make very little adjustments to them. But... I have the option to change them if needed.



Depends on your ears....Yep, I said your ears... audio fatigue is a hunt killer, so make certain you enjoy listening to the chosen detector. I had an SE Pro that was a depth monster, but I didn't like the tones right off... so it went away...


I don't think there is a perfect machine out there yet, but all of them you mentioned are good! Best of luck in finding one that fits your type of detecting!
 
I've only had an E-Trac, but look at it this way, I'm never buying any of the others.

If I lived within 2-3 hours of any ocean beach I would

1) Bypass the E-Trac and get a CZ-21 with the 10." coil. Then with the remaining ~$400 I would get a Fisher F4 with the 11 biaxial coil. One of our sponsors is offering the CZ-21 with a free RTG Pro aluminum travel handle scoop (it's a good one not junk). With this option I would also ask what it would take to wedge a ProPointer into the deal.

2) Bypass the E-Trac and get an Excal 1000 (comes with same scoop mentioned above) and squeeze out a few more bucks for a Fisher F2 with F-point pinpointer and sniper combo the same sponsor has. Failing that, get a Compadre.

I'd mention the sponsor but I don't want to play favorites or be a fan boy, should be easy to find. You could always ask other sponsors what they are offering. It's always a good idea to ask because updating websites is a pita and costs them money.

Good luck!
 
If I could only have one of the machines mentioned it would be the F75 hands down. All though I really like my Etrac and would love to have a V3i for a few months the F75 fits my style of hunting the best.

If you hold off a little longer there will be a new Multifreq Fisher/Tek machine coming out soon.
GL
HH
 
Leaning towards a V3i

So I spent most of yesterday pouring over more YouTube videos of the MineLab and V3i...

Leaning towards the V3i for the display mostly, it just seems to really shine day or night. Also all the features to tinker with appeal to my gadget/geeky side. I've sorta ruled out a T2SE/F75 for now due to single frequency, but could see picking something like that up later once the wife forgets the expenditure or if I hit something nice.. :)

Things I'm struggling with now are that it seems that a lot of people tout the MineLab Etrac's ability to hit deep, and that's appealing and I just don't want to 'miss' things with the V3i... But those Minelab tones, I dunno, they just aren't as appealing to me as more straight forward tones on the V3i (and the adjustability). Pinpointing on the V3i seemed faster/easier too and the polar plot looked interesting. I've also heard some not so good things on MineLab's customer service which REALLY turns me off.
 
Gotta realize. No one can swing your detector for you. You'll have to find your own perfect fit. They all find gold, silver, relics, pull tabs, krap, etc. I've seen ace 250's out hunt several thousand dollar machines. The detector is only as good as the person using it. Learn yours and it doesn't matter what you swing.:yes:
I'd love to have me aV3i. If you don't like learning curves you may want to do more research before you buy. VX3 maybe?, etc.
 
Oh I know it takes learning and brain discrimination to get the most out of your unit! I'm mainly worrying about getting a reliable machine that performs well.

Which brings me to this... I'm hitting a bunch of threads etc of V3i's having issues with the stock D2 coil, is this still a problem or has White's corrected something? Have seen threads where people have had to replace their coil 2,3 even 5 times...(!?) So that's a concern if there is a known issue with the coils...
 
They say the D2 coil is not a problem any longer. But even over on the Whites forum most users recommend using something else.
 
Picked the V3i

I decided to pick the V3i. Poked thru the sponsors and Chuck from Indian Nations gave me a good deal, now the annoying part, WAITING... Had a local dealer with one assembled but his pricing was not where I needed to be to prevent being thrown out of the house :) Thank you Chuck for keeping me from being homeless! My inner geek is looking forward to tinkering with it! Was a really tough decision between the eTrac and V3i but in the end the display and customer service concerns won me over to White's.
 
Bonus Bucks...

So, now that I have the V3i enroute, I need to decide on those $200 bonus bucks...

Since I didn't get the detector with the headphones, I was considering just using them for the wireless headphones...anyone have any feedback on the headphones and how well they work?

Or maybe a coil like the 4x6 or 5.3 for schoolyards/parks... Thoughts? Is the 6x10 a little too 'close' to the 10" DD to be worth it?
 
Good choice on the V3i, I love mine.

I run the V3i with a 10x12 SEF coil, pretty good combination.

I also have the wireless headphones... and eh... I could live without them. Rather not have another set of batteries to worry about, not to mention they are super hot, hot as in my ears sweat like crazy with them on in the daytime... good sound though. :D
 
Crumble said:
I run the V3i with a 10x12 SEF coil, pretty good combination.

I also have the wireless headphones... and eh... I could live without them.
Click to expand...

Good point on the headphone heat...maybe I'll just pickup a 1/4-> 1/8 adapter and run some earbuds or something light...

So of the Bonus Bucks coils, which would you recommend to give a bit more versatility vs. the D2 coil? 5.3? 4x6? 6x10?
 
Mirlen said:
Good point on the headphone heat...maybe I'll just pickup a 1/4-> 1/8 adapter and run some earbuds or something light...

So of the Bonus Bucks coils, which would you recommend to give a bit more versatility vs. the D2 coil? 5.3? 4x6? 6x10?
Click to expand...

Depends on what your hunting grounds are like. I beach hunt 100% of the time, where coverage and depth are the name of the game, so big DD coils is what I prefer. I never use the small coils so can't give any advice on those. :( My V3i came with the 950 ellipse, so no experience with the D2 either, but heard it's a hard coil to beat.

You may find that you are happy with the D2 coil, so may want to look into a Propointer, Lesche, etc.
 
You picked the detector with the steepest learning curve as your first detector... :D May want to start reading up on the different settings and how they effect performance/sweep speed. Can just stick with the preset programs until you get comfortable, then start tweaking the settings.

Any other questions about the V3i, just ask.
 
I chose the F75 LTD and never looked back, 26 months with it...10 gold rings and over 550 pieces of silver later and it's still the detector that works for me...And as for it being just a dirt machine, it does quite well in the wet sand on the beach:yes:
 
Crumble said:
You picked the detector with the steepest learning curve as your first detector... :D May want to start reading up on the different settings and how they effect performance/sweep speed.
Click to expand...

I have watched just about every video on Youtube with the keyword "V3i". And started scouring the manual as my detector seems to sit around relaxing in some UPS distribution center in Earth City, MO...move it buddy...am spoiled with Amazon Prime I guess!

Since I'll be doing a beach trip I ordered a Eclipse 9.5 coil to try out...
 
Great choice I to have the v3i with quite a few ad ons Inc sunray probe,full dust covers for it I like my detectors looking good all the time. I also mainly use the 6x8. & the 10x12 sef coils they r amazing on the v. As u can c its got quite a learning Curve use the stock programs and befor u know it ull b that much more comfortable to start making ur own programs its a great machine my main issue what I run into is what machine to use v3i deus or the pro all of which r excellent
 
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