New guy with old questions

Welcome from Dodge City

Hum sounds a bit odd. My ATP was quiet as a mouse until there was something under the coil. In fact I can't remember it ever getting noise from EMI, which is what yours sounds like.

It does it all the time even when you're out in a field?

Where do you run your sensitivity? Try dropping to about half-way

Unless your looking for iron try discriminating around 35.

I run pro zero discrim at 40, iron audio off. Sensitivity normally 3 down from max, higher in clean areas lower in trash. If your not discriminating any iron I don't think iron audio on or off makes a difference.

Acccording to a friend it sounds like his.. nothing abnormal......nothing amiss... But after spending 550 bucks I just wanted to make sure... Also we hunt in some pretty heavy iron areas... rarely move a foot without hearing something so maybe I am being paranoid.... lol
my sensitivity is usually 2 down from max... I will try it lower...

As the the craziness... I've ONLY noticed it as he is leaving for work..when is cruiser is running....no other time has it done it

JoehinVT said:

Acccording to a friend it sounds like his.. nothing abnormal......nothing amiss... But after spending 550 bucks I just wanted to make sure... Also we hunt in some pretty heavy iron areas... rarely move a foot without hearing something so maybe I am being paranoid.... lol
my sensitivity is usually 2 down from max... I will try it lower...

As the the craziness... I've ONLY noticed it as he is leaving for work..when is cruiser is running....no other time has it done it

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That's EMI coming from all the electronics in his cruiser. Most don't even have a passanger seat due to all the electronics onboard. I've hit some pretty bad EMI while out and switching channels helped a little but ultimately just had to lower sensitivity.

Sounds like what your hearing is normal but I run the AT Pro hot as I want to hear everything, but I can definitely still tell a real target from all the chatter. I run pro zero mode wide open, no discrim and 1 or 2 from top sensitivity dependant if I'm around other large objects or in the open.

The speaker compared to headphones is pretty quiet, surprisingly quiet for a metal detector where you need to hear those faint tones. Headphones or earbuds are a must.

Thats what I was hoping to hear ... I do hear a lot of tones mid or at the end of my sweeps but nothing repeatable so I assume it's just the nature of detectors... And that is how I was shown to run... HOT lol no notch no discrim.. Pro zero mode wide open... just lots of noise lol

JoehinVT said:

Thats what I was hoping to hear ... I do hear a lot of tones mid or at the end of my sweeps but nothing repeatable so I assume it's just the nature of detectors... And that is how I was shown to run... HOT lol no notch no discrim.. Pro zero mode wide open... just lots of noise lol

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I'm not too sure about other detectors, but you can definitely do what I can only best describe as "throw the signal" with the AT Pro on the ends of swings. I do this purposely very often when I search around swingset poles, chain link fences or any other large metal item where I want to check if there are targets there. Basically you just line up the large metal item on the end of a quick swing, slow enough for it to get an VDI or tone but not slow enough to where you hear the signal from the large metal "ramping up" in the headphones (this in actuality is a very fast swing). I can hit much deeper targets this way than lowering the sensitivity and sweeping just beside the metal item. The VDI and mixed tone gives me an idea that something is there with it, as the large metal item itself usually stays close to a constant.

To me, the AT Pro actually hits open targets better and harder with a semi-fast swing. It nails quarters deep too, in the open. If other stuff is around the target, then you have to slow down for separation. Seems the faster the swing within reason, the more sensitive it becomes hence more chatter on trace elements while running hot and fast, which you wouldn't dig anyways. You will still hear real targets though, but whisper deep targets could easily be mistaken within the chatter. This is where it pays to slow way down, the chatter drops but the whisper target will still be there. You really have to find a happy medium between these two styles or what works best for you. If you just lightly even graze the ground with the coil while sweeping somewhat fast, it will tone also.

You think it chatters , try an f70 with high sensitivity!

MrNovice said:

To me, the AT Pro actually hits open targets better and harder with a semi-fast swing. It nails quarters deep too, in the open. If other stuff is around the target, then you have to slow down for separation. Seems the faster the swing within reason, the more sensitive it becomes hence more chatter on trace elements while running hot and fast, which you wouldn't dig anyways. You will still hear real targets though, but whisper deep targets could easily be mistaken within the chatter. This is where it pays to slow way down, the chatter drops but the whisper target will still be there. You really have to find a happy medium between these two styles or what works best for you. If you just lightly even graze the ground with the coil while sweeping somewhat fast, it will tone also.

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Gotcha! Thats exactly what I needed to hear... I did not realize hitting the ground would cause a tone also!! Thanks for the info!!!

If you hunt in the city, using the larger 8.5" x 11" DD coil, getting some chatter is not unusual. Underground cables, above ground wires and other types of wireless chatter do cause problems. You can try turning down your sensitivity. Having it turned up too high can make the coil miss some good targets. The sensitivity control is not a depth control.

Another option is to try switching to different frequencies. Sometimes that will stabilize the machine. If the EMI is at a certain cursor, notch it out.

Smaller coils, either DD or concentric type are not as prone to EMI as larger coils and can usually be run at a higher sensitivity.

I presume your cables are somewhat taut so as the wires don't move, as the coil can pick up that movement.

You would be amazed how much !!!! and scrap is in the ground, sounds normal to me. But if you set the coil on the ground and let it be still and it is squawking then there might be an issue with the coil. And yes, your neighbors patrol car probably puts off all kinds of signals that will interfere with your detector.