What detector should I get?

Thanks ,That's what I was hoping to hear.I will have to save a lot of money but someday that's what I want to buy.
 
Yes I have a bounty Hunter, treasure Hunter. Good starter machine but not good at deep targets.
 
Yes, a very good machine for the price and prices are dropping now that the Max is out. If you can find a good used machine consider purchasing also. They are a very rugged dependable detector. GL
 
I have had my AT pro for a couple of months and have limited amount of time using it . I started in my yard for a few days learning the basics . Ventured out to a local beach park on a lake and did better . My total clad count was just over a dollar. We are staying at a large campground that we are members of and did a little detecting yesterday and found nearly 2$ in just over an hour. Went for 4 hours today and raked in 19 quarters,11 dimes,4 nickels and 25-30 pennies plus a few odds and ends. It's a great machine for its price . That said I wish I had just went ahead and got the AT max for not that much more.
 
I read the AT Max is 1/2"-1" deeper in disc, with a bigger improvement in all metal. Also they have improved depth on salt beaches or in saltwater.
 
I have found lots of gold with my Ace250 BUT If I were you I'd get the AT Pro, less frustrating
to find the good stuff. It is a big improvement over the Ace.
 
AT Pro seems to be a very solid machine. I am biased, of course. It is my first and only detector. I Started using it in July 2017. Very user friendly and easy to learn the basics. You will not be disappointed.
 
May I suggest the Minelab Equinox 600 in that price range. The 800 will add more to the price, however it has the gold prospecting mode.
The Equinox handles the mineralized salts better than the ATP.
They are a new detector that will be available in the next month or so.
Good luck!
 
May I suggest the Minelab Equinox 600 in that price range. The 800 will add more to the price, however it has the gold prospecting mode.
The Equinox handles the mineralized salts better than the ATP.
They are a new detector that will be available in the next month or so.
Good luck!

I'm just curious if you've had time swinging the Equinox? If so, please disregard. If not, am I the only one who finds this recommending a product they haven't used thing as odd? Not trying to be an ass, just trying to see if I'm completely alone in this opinion that pre-ordering products and recommending them to others before trying them is a good practice?

This pre-order, use the customer for testers after they pay for something they haven't seen, "business model" comes directly from the video gaming industry. An industry which has been broken for a lot of years now...(I'm lookin at you Electronic Arts).

Anyway, hope the OP finds the machine that fits them. Good luck and HH!
 
I too find it odd to recommend a machine that isn't out yet and has no proven track record. How do you base the recommendation? On 4 months of forum discussions among others who haven't used it?

It might be a great machine, but that has yet to be proven in the real world. The ATPro has been.
 
am I the only one who finds this recommending a product they haven't used thing as odd?
... How do you base the recommendation?
.. The ATPro has been.


It is fairly easy to make such a recommendation if you compare detectors to cars. Lets use a bounty hunter, an ATP and the equinox.

The BH is like a car with 2wheel drive. The ATP is like a 2WD car with traction control and the Equinox (multi-frequency) is like a 4WD car. Stable soils are much like driving any of these vehicles on a dry, paved street. Add a little mineralization and the analogy is like adding rain or light snow. The bounty hunter has a hard time gaining traction, but the ATP with ground balance and software to compensate can do a little better, kind of like a 2wd car with traction control.

Then a blizzard hits and there is a ton of snow. This is similar to hunting in heavy mineral deposits or conductive salt water. No matter how much traction control (software) you add to a 2wd car, (single frequency detector), it will never handle conditions like a 4wd car, (multi-frequency detector).


The ATPro has been a proven FAILURE time and time again in salt water beaches. Yes, I've owned them and YES, you can stretch the truth and say it works if you decrease the sensitivity enough so that it can hardly identify a soda can at 2". Meanwhile, multi-frequency machines typically work with the same performance in stable soils as they do unstable.

Well, I hope that helps you better understand why the Equinox isn't just another fad. Yes, it is a new detector, but it is a multi-frequency detector that is light weight, waterproof, and relatively cheap too. Its a trifecta that many detectors just can't hit...especially the ATP and AT-Maxx.
 
It is fairly easy to make such a recommendation if you compare detectors to cars. Lets use a bounty hunter, an ATP and the equinox.

The BH is like a car with 2wheel drive. The ATP is like a 2WD car with traction control and the Equinox (multi-frequency) is like a 4WD car. Stable soils are much like driving any of these vehicles on a dry, paved street. Add a little mineralization and the analogy is like adding rain or light snow. The bounty hunter has a hard time gaining traction, but the ATP with ground balance and software to compensate can do a little better, kind of like a 2wd car with traction control.

Then a blizzard hits and there is a ton of snow. This is similar to hunting in heavy mineral deposits or conductive salt water. No matter how much traction control (software) you add to a 2wd car, (single frequency detector), it will never handle conditions like a 4wd car, (multi-frequency detector).


The ATPro has been a proven FAILURE time and time again in salt water beaches. Yes, I've owned them and YES, you can stretch the truth and say it works if you decrease the sensitivity enough so that it can hardly identify a soda can at 2". Meanwhile, multi-frequency machines typically work with the same performance in stable soils as they do unstable.

Well, I hope that helps you better understand why the Equinox isn't just another fad. Yes, it is a new detector, but it is a multi-frequency detector that is light weight, waterproof, and relatively cheap too. Its a trifecta that many detectors just can't hit...especially the ATP and AT-Maxx.

Ummmm... Not sure here...Oh well.

Anyway, doesn't matter if it's a car or a detector, if you're recommending a product that you have no experience with to someone, they should walk away and seek the recommendation of someone who has experience with it. Pretty simple.

I can just imagine how conversations go for people who do this.

"I'm thinking about buying a new car. Any recommendations?" "I haven't driven it, sat in it, or even seen one, but the manufacturer and a guy from the youtube say the new Yugo is the best car ever and will render all other automobiles obsolete, so I would recommend you definitely spend your hard earned money on it."

Cue the blank stare and slow turn to walk away...
 
Ummmm... Not sure here...Oh well.

Anyway, doesn't matter if it's a car or a detector, if you're recommending a product that you have no experience with to someone, ...

Ask someone in the snow belt if they should drive a corvette or snowmobile. Its not that hard of a question. Same applies to detectors. YOu have PI, Single or Multi frequency. It's pretty straight forward.
 
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