Myers Depot Metal Detectors

My Wireless Setup!

Carlo

Carlo

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2014
Messages
284
I recently read a post about using Bluetooth as a wireless option. I have always read that there was a lag and therefore it could not be done unless you used an FM transmitter with FM headphones. I am here today to tell you that is all a load of bull, cause Bluetooth works perfectly! Now I'm not sure if it is just the advancement in BT technology or it always worked, but I can tell you that it does work and for a very small investment, you too can be free from wires.

I hunted one day with my wireless setup before I tried going back to my wired set. I was tripping and stumbling all over the darn wire! Being able to set down my machine and not be tethered to it is a beautiful thing.

Here is my setup. Total cost $35. It fits right under the Velcro flap of the elbow cover on my F70. Hope this inspires some of you to try this!!


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I used this TAOTronics Bluetooth dongle
http://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Transmitter-TaoTronics-Portable-Wireless/dp/B00P24XKS8/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_10?ie=UTF8&refRID=004WD6GPX2QHSH845237

And this TAOTronics headset
http://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Earphones-TaoTronics-Headphones-Noise-Cancelling/dp/B00RSUFT5G/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_7?ie=UTF8&refRID=1NGQP60684WADJM9A73H

The dongle worked flawlessly with another headset, I just wanted one devoted to metal detecting. I'm sure you could use any brand, this was a cheap experiment that worked perfectly. The brand is very nice quality for such low cost as well.
 
Yes...You would need that as well. I have always used one, so I already had one on hand. I prefer the right angle style available at Radio Shack, but your detectors jack may not require that style. Just make sure it is "stereo" as I don't think mono will work :grin:
 
Anytime, bud!
I have learned a ton from this forum and it's members. It's time to give back ;)

I would like to donate as well. Does the forum accept anything other than PayPal?
 
Thanks for the post. Been thinking / planning a waterproof compadre, and going wireless would be sweet. One less hole to worry about... Look forward to more I out on how this works, your post gives me hope.
 
GroundSweeper said:
Thanks for the post. Been thinking / planning a waterproof compadre, and going wireless would be sweet. One less hole to worry about... Look forward to more I out on how this works, your post gives me hope.
Click to expand...

Your Welcome, GS

Good luck with your compadre. I believe I have seen one made on the forums where the gent took the guts out and mounted them in clear pelican case with waterproof knobs/switches mounted to the outside. Quite ingenious actually!!

One tip...the Bluetooth signal will probably not penetrate through the water if you plan on incorporating it somehow. I know for a fact wifi does not pass through water so bt will probably have the same result. This is if you plan on diving with it. If your just looking to waterproof so you can hunt in the rain, this should work.
 
Never tried wireless anything underwater, but I would imagine the signal can still reach a few feet.
 
HarveyH48 said:
Never tried wireless anything underwater, but I would imagine the signal can still reach a few feet.
Click to expand...

I have a Sony action camera that uses wifi to connect to my phone as a remote monitor. As soon as you dunk it under water, wifi loses signal. Bluetooth is another form of "short range" wifi.

I'm not saying it will not work, but I'm highly doubtful...
 
How was the sound quality? Could you still here the special nuances of the target's sound like scratchy tone on soda bottle pop tops? I tried to go the wireless route a few months back and purchased the Rapoo wireless headphones but the sounds were terrible. Everything had a boomy sounds like I was in a big metal drum. I went back to a simple wired Sony headphones. Much better.
 
Carlo said:
Your Welcome, GS

Good luck with your compadre. I believe I have seen one made on the forums where the gent took the guts out and mounted them in clear pelican case with waterproof knobs/switches mounted to the outside. Quite ingenious actually!!

One tip...the Bluetooth signal will probably not penetrate through the water if you plan on incorporating it somehow. I know for a fact wifi does not pass through water so bt will probably have the same result. This is if you plan on diving with it. If your just looking to waterproof so you can hunt in the rain, this should work.
Click to expand...

Good to note for sure, thanks. I've seen the waterproof compadre threads. I'm not diving but won't rule out snorkel. So nothing too deep at all. But want to not worry about the detector. Thinking of putting coil wire and earbud wire through one cable clam, everything else inside the case. Turn on, close case and go. All for another thread though. Thanks for the info!
 
Borneo_Bleeper said:
How was the sound quality? Could you still here the special nuances of the target's sound like scratchy tone on soda bottle pop tops? I tried to go the wireless route a few months back and purchased the Rapoo wireless headphones but the sounds were terrible. Everything had a boomy sounds like I was in a big metal drum. I went back to a simple wired Sony headphones. Much better.
Click to expand...

Bleeper, do you have a volume control on your (?mfg.) detector, If not pick up a in line volume control like this at Radio Shack and back the volume down a bit. The rapoos worked OK on my ATPro with one of these. The sound will be better.
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Borneo_Bleeper said:
How was the sound quality? Could you still here the special nuances of the target's sound like scratchy tone on soda bottle pop tops? I tried to go the wireless route a few months back and purchased the Rapoo wireless headphones but the sounds were terrible. Everything had a boomy sounds like I was in a big metal drum. I went back to a simple wired Sony headphones. Much better.
Click to expand...

Sound quality is fine. It sounds just like I am wearing my wired headset. I can hear the jagged audio on junk targets just fine, too.

The only question so far I cannot answer is what everyone refers to as "faint signals". I dig everything repeatable other than iron. I am a coinshooter and jewelry hunter. I'm not saying I wouldn't be thrilled to find some old coins, but I generally have my fingers crossed for gold, silver or clad, in that exact order! If I have to dig more than say 7-8", I don't bother. I don't have the digging equipment for holes like that, and I don't feel comfortable doing it in public.

In an air test in auto tune (all metal) I can get a faint sound at the edge of the detection field, but I realize this is nothing like being in the ground. Its more of a coil test than anything.

My battery in the BT dongle died on me today mid hunt without warning, so I'd say I got a total of about 10-11 hours of use on one charge. I used it on a previous hunt for about 7-8 hours. Now I know to put in on the charger after a long hunt, other wise I'm sure I could get a few two hour hunts off it w/o a recharge. Still going to keep my wired set with me just in case!
 
blindsquirrel said:
Most of the good stuff is deep.Get the equiptment and get comfortable.GL HH
Click to expand...

Perhaps someday I will feel comfortable, but here in North Jersey you will get some pretty dirty looks if people see you digging in public like that. I been at this two years now, still an amateur for sure but I got really good at shooting for coins and jewelry, so I'm content. Until I can get myself permission to hunt on old ground, I'm going to have to settle for all the fill dirt our parks are loaded with.

Another thing, due to my settings, I very rarely see a target display of 6" or more . I would say 95% of the targets I shoot for show 3" depth when pinpointing. If I were in the woods detecting, I will dig anything regardless of depth. I admit, I only retreat to the woods when it is too hot or the ground is too hard and dry, like it is currently, otherwise I prefer a nice grassy loam!

I also don't have unlimited amounts of time to hunt, so I want every hunt to have at least some success. I'd rather come home with a pouch full of change than chase a bunch of phantom signals cause I have the sensitivity set too high.

We all measure success a little differently I suppose :grin:
 
I was looking at those until I came across this review on Amazon:

"I bought this so I could use wireless headphones with my metal detector... unfortunately there is a sound delay making it very difficult to pinpoint objects in the ground, and basically useless for that purpose."

.....and the answer from TaoTronics:

"Bluetooth is not an instant transmission protocol and there are some lag / delay due to the time it takes for the signals to be encoded and transmitted. Typically if you're listening to music or audio only, you won't ever notice this lag.
However, pair audio with video or use Bluetooth devices with musical instruments where the user expects instant feedback and it is noticeable.

In general, the lag should be between 0.2 to 0.5 seconds. But there are some factors that can increase the amount of lag / delay you experienced:
* Signal interference from nearby wireless transmissions. Things gets really bad if you are near a radio broadcasting device
* Other Bluetooth signals within range. Not so bad, just a little more delay
* Obstacles in the transmission path. This makes the sounds cuts in and out all the time
* Defective internal circuits
* Yes, defective internal circuits can also cause excessive amount of lag. So if you experience more than 1 or 2 seconds of lag for no obvious reason, please contact us and let us know."

I have not had any luck with bluetooth setups; even those using aptx in both the sending and receiving units have suffered from too much lag. My test for wireless is to put a coin at the end of a ruler, then sweep the coil over it at a two second sweep speed to see where the target sounds off at. The best I've gotten out of bluetooth is about ten inches between the target and the spot where it sounds off. It's been a couple of years since I last tested a bluetooth device, yet I've seen people posting that they use & like them. Maybe they've improved since then?
 
Thanks for your input. It may not work for everyone, but it works for me. If there is a 0.2 second delay, I certainly don't notice it. I swing fast and it picks up targets w/o a hitch. I don't have any problems pinpointing either.

I swing a Fisher F70, which is lightening fast to begin with, perhaps that's why I am successful. If you have a slower machine and there is a lag in the signal, you may notice it. YMMV

All I can say is I spend more on coffee in one week then I spent on this experiment and I am completely happy with my results. I'm wireless and I love it!! :yes:
 
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