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XLT vs. newer mid price detectors

longbow62

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I did not know where would be the best place to ask this so I will try it here. I bought a Whites XLT new in 1998. It was pretty much state of the art at the time. I found stuff with it. Dug piles of trash most of the time though. I did find clad coins, a few silver coins, and one Indian Head. I never got close to mastering the machine, and it sat idle for years on end with me dusting it off occasionally only to get tired of digging mostly trash when I used it. I still use the stock programs to this day. I have taken up metal detecting again this time more seriously and while I still dig a lot of trash I am finding more coins now per hunt than I used to. I am now considering upgrading so here are my questions.

How much do I have to spend to get a detector considerably better than my XLT? I am pretty sure I paid more for it in 1998 than say the mid level AT Pro cost now. Even the MX Sport which I am interested in seems to have less features although I am not currently using the features on the XLT to my advantage. I will not be spending more than $1,000 just for a detector when I do upgrade. Are the mid level machines today leaps and bounds better than the old Whites XLT I paid about the same amount for? The XLT is the only detector I have ever used so I have no idea what the mid level machines today will do. Are they deeper? Do they discriminate better?
 
I used an XLT for more than a decade and made lots of nice finds with it. It was/is a good detector. However, I do feel like there's some big improvements with a newer "mid priced" detector.

When I hear "mid priced", the AT series from Garrett comes to mind, so I'll use it as the example here.

IMHO, these are the biggest improvements over the older XLT:

1) Depth. XLT was never known for being a deep seeker. The ATpro on the other hand does pretty well in the depth department.

2) Faster recovery with iron audio and high res iron disc = will perform better for picking goodies out of junky areas. You will still dig plenty of trash though. No new technology to get around that. The only way to limit the amount of trash you dig is to develop a really good understanding of what the detector is telling you. Even then, you will still dig trash. Thats just part of it.

3) Water Proof! No more running for shelter every time it starts to rain. You can even hunt IN the water if you want.

4) Easy to use. No confusing menus to sort through since the buttons for all of the settings are right there on the face of the detector.

Would these things make the upgrade worthwhile to you?

Of course there are other options in the sub $1000 range that will offer a lot of the same improvements over the XLT. Depth and recovery speed being the biggest upgrades IMO.
 
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I do get the part about newer detectors being somewhat deeper. I am pretty new to things like recovery speed. I take it that means if you pass the coil over say iron, and a coin is a few inches away from the iron a faster recovery will sound off the coin where as a detector with a slower recovery speed would pass right over it? Does not the "Spectra" graph bar on the XLT show you every item you passed the coil over during a sweep? I am wondering if the spectra graph bar is not more useful than just I.D. numbers or a bar graph that only shows one target at a time?
 
I have had an xtl and still use my DFX.
I think you would be better off just keeping what you have. The XLT is a great machine, it sounds like you don't have great places to hunt. If you are finding lots of trash than that is what is in the ground.. No new detector is going to find goodies if they are not there or buried under trash. I guess if you are not feeling the love and want something new, you you should be able to get at least $275 for the XLT to put towards your new detector that is not a lot better than the XLT!
The one place that newer machines do trump the xlt is smaller DD coils.. coil selection for the xlt is nonexistent.
Good luck!
 
What will newer machines get you??

XLT,,,one thing about it,,,to get max depth to near max depth even with correct settings for a site,,,swift coil movement a necessity.

Newer detectors,,,can get this XLT depth with a lot slower coil sweep speed.
Hence slower coil sweep,,,means a detector has more time to actually recover and separate,,,yet still be deepen than a XLt with similar coil sweep speed.

Some detectors obviously do better than others even the newer ones in his department currently.

An example here,,,a good used Minelab SE pro can be had for what a mid priced detector new will cost you.
Minelab SE pro,,,can with excruciating slow coil movement,,,10" deep dime is not out of the question,,,9" deep dimes very doable.
And a bonus here with SE pro,,you likely many times will know the denomination of coin before you dig,,,even deeper ones.
 
I had an XLT that when adjusted for stability indoors, it air tested 7.5" on a dime, Used outdoors, it rarely correctly IDed a coin deeper than 4".

Now I have a Garrett AT Pro that air tests 10" on a dime. Used outdoors in a cleaned out park, I got a loud beep reading 10c at 8". Turned out to be a clad dime at 7". About $460-$550 new, maybe $360-$450 used. To get the lowest price on a new one, you must get a price quote by e-mail or phone.
They can't display a new price on the internet below about $545-$550.


How much do I have to spend to get a detector considerably better than my XLT? I am pretty sure I paid more for it in 1998 than say the mid level AT Pro cost now. Even the MX Sport which I am interested in seems to have less features although I am not currently using the features on the XLT to my advantage.

I will not be spending more than $1,000 just for a detector when I do upgrade. The XLT is the only detector I have ever used so I have no idea what the mid level machines today will do. Are they deeper? Do they discriminate better?
 
I presently do not have many high quality low trash permissions. I hope that changes over time. I did find a 1867 2 cent piece Sunday with the XLT. I did not measure depth exactly when I dug it, detector said 5.5 or 6 inches. It was pretty deep though.

I don't have a problem with XLT other than what I may be missing by continuing to use it. I do not want to jump on the Garrett AT Anything band wagon. I hear they are very good for the money, but they would be a last resort for me. I will research the Minelab SE PRO and see what the used market is like.

I guess my question is answered then. A close to 20 year old XLT is lacking compared to newer units.
 
My only problem with the XLT is the weight. It is probably the heaviest of all of my detectors although my Garrett 2500 may be as heavy. Most of the finds in my area are in the four and five inch range. The XLT will do that so I don't plan on getting rid of it.
 
I did not know where would be the best place to ask this so I will try it here. I bought a Whites XLT new in 1998. It was pretty much state of the art at the time. I found stuff with it. Dug piles of trash most of the time though. I did find clad coins, a few silver coins, and one Indian Head. I never got close to mastering the machine, and it sat idle for years on end with me dusting it off occasionally only to get tired of digging mostly trash when I used it. I still use the stock programs to this day. I have taken up metal detecting again this time more seriously and while I still dig a lot of trash I am finding more coins now per hunt than I used to. I am now considering upgrading so here are my questions.

How much do I have to spend to get a detector considerably better than my XLT? I am pretty sure I paid more for it in 1998 than say the mid level AT Pro cost now. Even the MX Sport which I am interested in seems to have less features although I am not currently using the features on the XLT to my advantage. I will not be spending more than $1,000 just for a detector when I do upgrade. Are the mid level machines today leaps and bounds better than the old Whites XLT I paid about the same amount for? The XLT is the only detector I have ever used so I have no idea what the mid level machines today will do. Are they deeper? Do they discriminate better?


I love my mx sport. Its a killer machine and worth every penny
 
How deep have you dug coins with the MX Sport? I would like a water proof detector. Don't know just how much I would use in the water although I have plenty of places I could. My main interest is finding silver coins. I could care less about clad. I do have a permission on a large Confederate civil war encampment. So I may be relic hunting a little also.
 
I can't add much as I have only used an ACE 250, XLT, and some old audio only White's... none of the newer middle range or better detectors. But I just wanted to thank everyone for the replies. I have been wondering the same thing as my XLT is my current go to machine but I can't help but wonder how much I am missing out on.
I hunt in mainly iron heavy old home sites where the house has been torn down and there are nails everywhere. It sounds like I might see a big benefit from an upgrade. Although I wonder if a cheap Tesoro Mojave might give us the depth and speed that the XLT lacks, and we can keep our XLTs for cherry picking shallow targets?
 
How deep have you dug coins with the MX Sport? I would like a water proof detector. Don't know just how much I would use in the water although I have plenty of places I could. My main interest is finding silver coins. I could care less about clad. I do have a permission on a large Confederate civil war encampment. So I may be relic hunting a little also.


I know ground elements play a role in depth. Down here in the Houston area we have good soil. An AT Pro can nail a dime at 9-10 inches all day. Good luck on your decision but most of all make sure you're having fun out there.
 
17 years ago that was my go to machine. Not understanding the issue with depth though. You run hot custom programs in it & it will hit those deeper targets. I've dug 9" coins. Maybe my soil is perfect here in Central Texas but I was never limited to 4-6" depth with it. Of course, it was sold long ago when I quit hunting in 2000. Now I really like my Racer 2 & my XP Deus...
 
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