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whites dfx questions

fano169

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Joined
Jun 12, 2011
Messages
462
Location
queens new york
I just got a whites dfx spectrum.... want to you it for trashy Parks. ... for silver and coins. How should I set it up. ..... its driving me nuts right now:?:
 
I found a bit of advise (from someone with a thousand years experience and from another forum) Since you asked, I thought that I would share it with you.

I think it is best to keep it simple. That does not mean you have to compromise performance. The preset programs are really well thought out, however, the main down side is that they are a bit wimpy, in order to be sure that they will work most anywhere.

It is really not necessary to get too complicated to do very well. As mentioned like real estate ...it is location location location. Research helps of course.

But getting down to some simple basic advice.

1/ Stay away from the coin program as you are walking away from most gold rings and jewelry. It is designed for beginners so that they will not get discouraged by digging up pull tabs...which come up in the same region as nickels and gold rings. Every time you put rejected numbers into the Disc Settings, you put "holes" in the response you will get from targets with adjacent VDI numbers. This creates a sort of "swiss cheese" response program. You will lose targets and break up the signal from others.

2/ I would suggest using either coin and jewelry if you want to have the designation of coins...penny nickel, dime etc. However, I prefer the Relic Program as I dig all targets except what I believe will be iron. Most serious detectorists dig anything that they feel isn't iron. You really never know what will come up next.

3/ Take OFF ratchet pinpoint it is not a good feature, as far as I am concerned. As you noticed you can ratchet out targets and you don't know the size or shape of a target, which can be valuable in deciding whether to dig or not.

4/ Always pinpoint BEFORE you decide whether the target is good or not. In order to get an accurate reading, you should make a clean pass over the center of the target, so pinpoint after hearing a repeatable signal while searching. Putting ON VCO Audio is very helpful for pinpointing

5/ Most of the guys do like TONE ID, but I guess I am one of those from the old school and it drives me nuts. It sounds like a caliope (not sure of spelling) I prefer the smooth signal and always use a threshold while hunting.....NOT SILENT SEARCH.

6/ Whichever program you use, I would advise ACCEPTING ALL VDI NUMBERS FROM ABOUT minus 20 or so up to +95. This opened up program will give the best response on good targets . Having some negative numbers helps in hearing very small good items which can be pulled into the negative range by mineralization. If you are bothered by "hot rocks" or "coke" then reject +95.

7/ Finally and most important.....use the AC Sensitivity control and the Preamp Gain to improve signal and depth of detection. Do NOT run either so high that you have erratic behavior....falsing, chatter or flashing numbers. You want a smooth threshold maintained. The DFX is a slower sweep detector and you should not sweep so fast that you lose your threshold hum (gasps or gaps at the end of a sweep usually)

A good rule of thumb, if your ground and environmental interference allows, is to raise your preset preamp gain to 3 (preset is 2)and raise the AC Sensitivity to about 70 to 72 if you can (preset is 60). The Preamp gain is an AUDIO GAIN and basically just makes the signal louder. 3 is usually ample. This control is most useful in reducing external interference by lowering it till the interference goes away. The AC Sensitivity is the most important setting as it determines how deep your detector will hear the target. The higher it can be set, the tinier and deeper the target will be heard......but as I said , WITHOUT causing interference.
 
To answer your questions- yes. Don't be afraid to make changes. Take your time with this machine and really get to know it inside and out. The DFX is a great machine. I would also suggest that you find a copy of Digging Deeper With The DFX by Jeff Foster. This book will help you to understand in layman's terms how to set up and operate your new machine.
 
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