Requesting advice for the hearing impaired

Was around a Ace 250 just today with a gent hunting. I don't know if you know this or not but a Makro Racer has a vibrating handle plus tones. Never been around AT Pro, so can't comment.

Best of luck...

Toewe said:

Some of you may recall that I wear hearing aids because I have very significant hearing loss at the higher frequencies. Because of that and because I am now considering the purchase of a better detector, a Garrett AT Pro, it would be helpful to know how soft or subtle the important sounds are when running in the Pro mode. That probably needs more explanation...

When MDing, I do NOT wear my hearing aids for two reasons: the volume from the ACE250 is plenty loud without their use; and when using pro pointer, I usually remove at least one of the earphone muffs, to hear the pointer tone and I am paranoid that I might knock off a hearing aid and lose it. (They're more expensive than most detectors.)

In my short MDing experience, I have found that pennies, dimes quarters, etc. all cause a bell tone or a ringing tone that decays relatively slowly. That in comparison to a shorter duration clunk that much of the trash (and a nickel) generates. Of course, on the ACE250 these two sounds are equally loud so I have no problem hearing them, I only need to distinguish between the bell tone and the clunk - pretty easy.

My concern is with an AT Pro, in Pro mode, are the good target sounds as easy to distinguish from the trash sounds? Also is there enough volume available from an AT Pro to allow someone with a fair amount of hearing loss to hear the important sounds and sound differences? Hope that was clear and thanks for any help possible. HH.

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I don't think there would be a problem with distinguishing the trash sounds from the good ones. Iron will give the classic low tone and there is a distinctive difference once you get into the mid tone and high tone. Probably my biggest complaint with the AT Pro is that, without the headphones, it is pretty useless to me. I have a very hard time hearing anything from the speaker. Now this could be just me and my not as good as it should be hearing, but I do need to use the head phones. So, if you don't like using head phones, that may or may not be a problem. I would suggest trying to get your hands on an AT Pro, maybe a loaner or from a friend, and trying/listening to it yourself. That may be the only way you will know for sure. Good Luck.

VA-REB said:

...Probably my biggest complaint with the AT Pro is that, without the headphones, it is pretty useless to me. I have a very hard time hearing anything from the speaker. Now this could be just me and my not as good as it should be hearing, but I do need to use the head phones. So, if you don't like using head phones, that may or may not be a problem. .... Good Luck.

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I DO use the head phones, but do NOT use my hearing aids when MDing. Just remove an earphone when Pro Pointing so that I can hear it when searching around in the hole I have dug.

Thanks for your opinion though on distinguishing the good from the bad sounds. HH

I have pretty substantial hearing loss too. I dont wear any hearing aids but Ive been told I should. Using the AT pro without headphones , which I almost never do , as long as there isnt too much noise going on around me I can make out the difference between high , mid and low tones , but the quieter sounds made by deeper items are a problem. Sometimes those quieter tones are difficult even with the headphones and the volume all the way up. I can usually hear the quieter , deeper tones but I cant always tell the difference in the tones themselves. I suspect I "may" be missing some of them but if I am concentrating I think I do ok. Its something I have learned to live with though. There may be other machines with different sounding tones that are more in the range I can hear better , but I cant go swapping detectors until I find the right one so I work with what I have. For the most part the volume and tones on the ATP are sufficient , I say that while acknowledging with hearing loss , "pefection" is probably asking too much. It all depends on your particular hearing loss and the range you are capable of hearing , which is different for different people.

ohiochris said:

...For the most part the volume and tones on the ATP are sufficient , I say that while acknowledging with hearing loss , "pefection" is probably asking too much. It all depends on your particular hearing loss and the range you are capable of hearing , which is different for different people.

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Thanks for the opinion and HH.

I so far have always used my AT Pro in the STD mode. I don't know if almost everyone uses PRO mode because they are always hunting places where there are no coin signals that aren't directly below a rusty nail?

In the STD mode, I use sens 7 of 8, iron disc max (40), iron audio off, coins program, ground balance & in almost no time a loud beep. I dug a quarter down several inches that was quit tilted. A bit further down the BB field sideline, another loud beepI get dime numbers & reading of 8". Down 7", there is a clad dime. This in moderately mineralized soil that was very dry & hard.

Then I wander across some of the athletic fields & get a 52-53 ID, the only correct #s for nickels. It's a shallow nickel, but a bit surprising I got a correct ID as for some reason I then turned on iron ID & learned the nickel had been surrounded by 5 pieces of iron! This just using that gigantic 8.5x11 stock coil. Not enough trash to use a small coil? 1974 park used by hundreds on many days, & detected 100s of times as on a main street by elem sch. & near high sch.

Yes, I might miss gold unless it reads nickel or zind, but think I'm doing OK for a "cleaned out" place. At 10" in air test, sens 7 of 8 I get the high tone on dime 100% in STD mode, but in PRO mode it sometimes drops to medium tone. In STD mode this detector has the most accurate tone & VID I've seen.

The Makro Racer I also have. The vibration could be helpful. Also, the set of either 2 or 3 tones can be adjusted in pitch & it has a backlight with degrees of brightness. All the menu items are in one screen, making their writing & the rectangle around which one is being adjusted very small & light. At least the ID number is big. Air test of 3 tone 11" on quarter, 12" on nickel, 10" on dime. Goes deeper in 2 tone but no VID on deep coins & coins all same tone. Must ID deep ones by adjusting disc up & down.

The Racer can even reject quarters so you could maybe know the difference between a quarter & a half or dollar. Some large objects might still be rejected at disc 99. Using 2 tone it beeps on quarter to 14" at sens 80. If you get pro pack, it includes 4.5x5" DD coil included that faintly detects coins in air test at 10"-12".

There is a video somewhere on You Tube with quarter planted 10.5" deep & AT pro gets it loud in STD mode, with ground balance set several numbers or so below actual.
I hope I haven't made the decision much harder, but if you have any more questions, we can try to answer. Some dealers will go lower on price in e-mail or over phone. MAP prices AT Pro $595, Racer $649, or $849 w/pro pack. Best wishes, George (MN)

George (MN) said:

I so far have always used my AT Pro in the STD mode. I don't know if almost everyone uses PRO mode because they are always hunting places where there are no coin signals that aren't directly below a rusty nail?

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That's the first I've read of anyone admitting to using the STD mode on the AT Pro after a brief, initial learning period, but it is an interesting option. Does the AT Pro STD mode work about the same as the normal ACE250? That's the impression I have gotten.

George (MN) said:

In the STD mode, I use sens 7 of 8, iron disc max (40), iron audio off, coins program, ground balance & in almost no time a loud beep. I dug a quarter down several inches that was quit tilted. A bit further down the BB field sideline, another loud beepI get dime numbers & reading of 8". Down 7", there is a clad dime. This in moderately mineralized soil that was very dry & hard.

Then I wander across some of the athletic fields & get a 52-53 ID, the only correct #s for nickels. It's a shallow nickel, but a bit surprising I got a correct ID as for some reason I then turned on iron ID & learned the nickel had been surrounded by 5 pieces of iron! This just using that gigantic 8.5x11 stock coil. Not enough trash to use a small coil? 1974 park used by hundreds on many days, & detected 100s of times as on a main street by elem sch. & near high sch.

Yes, I might miss gold unless it reads nickel or zind, but think I'm doing OK for a "cleaned out" place. At 10" in air test, sens 7 of 8 I get the high tone on dime 100% in STD mode, but in PRO mode it sometimes drops to medium tone. In STD mode this detector has the most accurate tone & VID I've seen.

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That's also the first I've read about the ID numbers being especially accurate n STD mode. Do you feel the ID numbers are more accurate in STD mode than PRO mode? Or just more accurate than other detectors, including the Racer?

George (MN) said:

The Makro Racer I also have. The vibration could be helpful. Also, the set of either 2 or 3 tones can be adjusted in pitch & it has a backlight with degrees of brightness. All the menu items are in one screen, making their writing & the rectangle around which one is being adjusted very small & light. At least the ID number is big. Air test of 3 tone 11" on quarter, 12" on nickel, 10" on dime. Goes deeper in 2 tone but no VID on deep coins & coins all same tone. Must ID deep ones by adjusting disc up & down.

The Racer can even reject quarters so you could maybe know the difference between a quarter & a half or dollar. Some large objects might still be rejected at disc 99. Using 2 tone it beeps on quarter to 14" at sens 80. If you get pro pack, it includes 4.5x5" DD coil included that faintly detects coins in air test at 10"-12".

There is a video somewhere on You Tube with quarter planted 10.5" deep & AT pro gets it loud in STD mode, with ground balance set several numbers or so below actual.
I hope I haven't made the decision much harder, but if you have any more questions, we can try to answer. Some dealers will go lower on price in e-mail or over phone. MAP prices AT Pro $595, Racer $649, or $849 w/pro pack. Best wishes, George (MN)

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Now you are starting to confuse me. Are you saying you prefer the Racer over the AT Pro or simply that it might work better considering my hearing loss?

The slight difference in MAP is not important and I know to ask the sponsors for price quotes in pm's. The 'waterproof' feature of the AT Pro is nice, but will get very little use from me.

The slight depth advantage usually quoted for the Racer is not very interesting as I'm rarely willing to dig 10" holes anywhere, especially in our usually hard-as-nails soil.

Thanks a bunch for taking the time to post your opinions and suggestions. Was hoping to pull the trigger today, but now not so sure. Cheers and HH.

The AT Pro in STD gave me a high tone only at 10 inches on a dime. The PRO mode sometimes gave a medium instead of high tone on that air test of the dime at 10". Could not see the numbers, but I know in ground a high tone one way & a low tone when again sweeping over the coin from direction 180 degrees different, is what it does for zinc cent. So, in air it must at 10" in PRO mode think the dime is a zinc.

The Racer is probably a deeper detector than I need, as most soil here is hard & I'm almost 64 years old with bad back & other health problems, besides not feeling sure I can dig a 12" hole neatly & in a reasonable amount of time.

With Ace 250 stock coil, the deepest dime that IDed properly was 4". With the AT Pro, 7", so quite an improvement.

Between STD mode & PRO mode, you should probably like it 1 way or the other. Those who use the PRO mode I'm guessing probably dig more trash than me, but I'm sure if they dig all but iron, they might find gold. Going out in the water waist deep, where skin shrivels up & the rings slide off, is probably the best place to find gold rings without digging a ton of pulltabs. But I don't like getting wet that much and would probably have to buy more equipment, maybe more dangerous in water, etc.

I like to keep things simple & AT Pro STD mode deep coins are loud and the disc I use keeps the detector very quiet between coins. Most love the AT Pro. HH, George (MN)

George, got you beat by several years so I have the same kind of dislike for digging deep holes.

Based on your input and others I have pulled the trigger in the last two hours and ordered a very slightly used AT Pro from Craig, one of the forum sponsors, for a very great price.

Thanks for all your advice again.

Now if the detector manufacturers would realize the ability of altering tone sounds to accomidate people with hearing issues they would have a winner. It wouldnt be just for those with hearing loss , many people would like to be able to alter the sounds made by their machine according to personal preference and not be stuck with just the preloaded tones. Adjusting the tone or pitch ? ...of the sound to something more pleasing to the individual using the detector would be a desirable option for many as long as it wasnt so complicated that it cost an arm and a leg. I know I personally would prefer that to a backlight or an extra mode or two that I never use.

ohiochris said:

Now if the detector manufacturers would realize the ability of altering tone sounds to accomidate people with hearing issues they would have a winner. It wouldnt be just for those with hearing loss , many people would like to be able to alter the sounds made by their machine according to personal preference and not be stuck with just the preloaded tones. Adjusting the tone or pitch ? ...of the sound to something more pleasing to the individual using the detector would be a desirable option for many as long as it wasnt so complicated that it cost an arm and a leg. I know I personally would prefer that to a backlight or an extra mode or two that I never use.

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+1 for sure.

I just read about one detector that is designed for the hearing impaired. I think it was a Racer? anyone know different?

MD-Mainiac said:

I just read about one detector that is designed for the hearing impaired. I think it was a Racer? anyone know different?

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LOL, we're not deef, just hard of hearing. HH

Easy now....

MD-Mainiac said:

I just read about one detector that is designed for the hearing impaired. I think it was a Racer? anyone know different?

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I think thats because it has a vibration mode. But vibration dont tell you as much as sound does.

The whites v3i let's you set tone each and every vdi number. Deus is fairly adjustible as well in that department.

detectingMO said:

The whites v3i let's you set tone each and every vdi number. Deus is fairly adjustible as well in that department.

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Can you actually adjust the actual tone or just select which of the tones they give you ? Being able to select the tone is a step in the right direction probably , but the real benefit would be in adjusting the sound of those particular tones. And this really should be available on a mid range detector instead of only the high cost ones.

MD-Mainiac said:

I just read about one detector that is designed for the hearing impaired. I think it was a Racer? anyone know different?

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Yes the Makro Racer and the Nokta Fors CoRe both have the option of vibrating handle.

The vibrating handle for someone who is deaf or hearing impaired, does vibrate, and after vibration, one can use their eyes and look at the screen.

Also another good use of the vibrating handle--even for folks with good hearing is when open field hunting. The vibrating handle could alert a person when maybe they are not paying attention, talking on cell phone, talking to a friend etc.

Cheers And the night light feature is good too- different than backlight.

ohiochris said:

Can you actually adjust the actual tone or just select which of the tones they give you ? Being able to select the tone is a step in the right direction probably , but the real benefit would be in adjusting the sound of those particular tones. And this really should be available on a mid range detector instead of only the high cost ones.

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Yes I believe the range is similar to the deus 200hz - 800hz. But I I belive it's in 255 increments to cover that range. But yes every vdi can have it's own tone setting. The deus will let break up to 5 individual tone notches at whatever pitch you like 200-800hz