Real differences

Take a look at my most recent post.

https://metaldetectingforum.com/showthread.php?t=271142

I had searched this with my ACE 350 when I first started. This park is laden with iron nails that drove my ACE crazy. The Equinox's depth and ability to separate targets with multi-freq is galaxies superior to the ACE series. If you get a machine with greater technology AND are willing to put in the time and practice, you will greatly increase your ability to find awesome targets.

The ACE 350 was a great learners machine that really got me interested in the hobby. It has a soft spot in my heart, but it sits unused. It's up to you to decide if you are into this hobby enough to warrant the price and dedication needed to master a new, more powerful machine. Happy hunting.

Trebleplink said:

I have an Ace 250 and I like it better than my BH202. What I'm after is exactly what advantage you get with an ATpro or Nox.

It looks like around the $300 or $400 price, you get a 0-100 numerical display. But isn't the left-to-right bargraph at the top of the Ace 250 pretty much showing the same thing?

The 250 detects pretty deep if you up the sens. I do like it's pinpoint function.

How much more accurate is identification and discrimination with a pricier machine?

Click to expand...

Spend more and you usually get more...more accuracy in ID's, more depth, more features you can adjust so you can conquer more sites including very difficult ones the starter units just can't deal with.
And BTW...bar graphs are ok but I found numerical ID's provide much more and more accurate information...why do you think Garrett came out with similar models with that feature?I
It's because most others now have them and most hunters that use screens want them.

Many start with the lower priced entry level models and just stay there and are happy.
Others want a shot at more so they upgrade to other models that might have extra features that can get them to levels they could not reach before in depth and performance.
If all detectors performed close to the same in all price ranges most on this forum here will be using $200 detectors...but I suspect that most don't.
Many still have and use lower priced models even though they upgraded because they learned them so well but if they need real performance and/or depth you better believe the more feature packed detectors are called to action.

It's like everything else in the world, you have different levels of products usually low, medium and high.
Some always but the cheapest lower levels thinking there is no difference.
Others spend more to be in the middle of higher ends because they have experience and know they would be happier and hope to be more successful.
I ran with an F2 for years, found coins galore and a ton of jewelry, silver and gold, and I was happy because my $200 investment brought me not only over $2000 in clad and jewelry but more fun than I can express.
But then I got curious.
I thought it I can do this with the lowest end Fisher what might I be able to do with a higher end model.
I ended up with an F70/Patriot and at that moment my world changed...I took it out on my first hunt and even though I had no experience with the upgrade and it was a bit confusing at first because I had way more power and so many features but I knew this was a major upgrade after that hunt.
I never took out my F2 again.
http://metaldetectingforum.com/showthread.php?p=1867564#post1867564

Over the last 4 years using my F70 I reached shocking levels of success that I never dreamed of just was never possible with the F2 as great as it was.
That is why so many upgrade from the Aces or other entry level models into the AT Pro's and all the other mid to high level models...to up their game.


You can drive a Chevy Spark which has 4 wheels, then signals, seats and everything else most cars have and it will get you there but me, if I had the money and the option I would much rather pick a Malibu or a Cadillac.
Every minute of my driving experience would be better from shirt hops to long hauls so value for the money.

In sales, and for all consumers it always comes down to features and benefits...it is truly the only way to make informed buying decisions.
For you it might be different than the next guy, if you enjoy your Ace and find enough to make you happy than stick with it, no need to spend extra money that won't help you since you consider yourself successful.
However if one day you see another model that has one of more features that you believe might benefit you and work better at your sites then that is where you need to think about making some decisions.I

We are all different and after all it is just a hobby.
Do what makes you happy...always!

If you went from the Ace-250 to the AT-PRO you would get an increase in depth. Better identification and the ability to detect in shallow water. I have an ACE-250 that has been out of the house six or eight times in two years. It does not produce for me like a better machine. I bought it as a loaner for anyone who wanted to see if they liked detecting.

The ace is a good beginner machine but if you wish to get seriously better finds you will need to upgrade unless you hunt playgrounds primarily.
Playgrounds produce excellent finds at times but I wanted to hunt anywhere so I got the Equinox 800.

If you do upgrade get ready for buyers remorse.... at least for a time. Each upgrade I wondered if maybe I made a mistake. The machine wasnt like my last one, and I knew my old machine better. Sometimes I would prefer the older machine to the new one. After a few months, or even years of learning and understanding the new machine you wont look back to the old stuff.

I started with a very cheap detector at Christmas this year. Got an AT Pro at the beginning of the year. Then I bought a Nox 800 a couple weeks ago. I found coins with the cheap detector. I found a lot of coins with the AT Pro. I'm finding even more coins with the Nox and I'm finding them where I hunted with the AT Pro. The equinox, with it's ability to change programs, is like having multiple detectors instead of just one. I hit an area of my pounded park a few days ago with the Nox in Park 1 mode. I dug a bunch of deep quarters , dimes, nickels, and pennies. I hit the same area tonight using park 2. I found 11 quarters, 8 dimes, a nickel, and 5 pennies in an hour. These were all masked by iron.

First let me caveat and say that I don't have a newer mid to high end machine, but I have researched this very issue enough that my opinion on the subject may still be useful.

From my understanding there are 5 main areas where you will find a Nox, or AT pro will be a large improvement over your ACE.

1. Separation - Depending on the type of hunting you do this may be the biggest factor in finding more stuff. Many of the newer mid range and up detectors are great at separation. Meaning if you have a nail next to a coin, your detector will let you know both of them are there. Your ACE will likely just tell you about the nail, or give an iffy signal on the coin.

2. Depth - This is probably the biggest factor that most people think about when a new detector comes out. But for most detectorists I think it may be less important than they think. The Nox and AT pro will likely get an inch or two more depth on a target than your ACE, but depending on your site you may not find that much more stuff just on depth alone. Also, depth is affected by a lot of different factors (soil, target masking, EMI, etc), so there are no guarantees here.

3. Visual Target ID - Having solid, detailed target ID numbers can be really useful over the simple bars on an ACE. Once you get to know your detector these numbers can be a big part of the educated guess work that a good detectorist does to determine if a target is worth digging or not. More information means more knowledge if you can process it. You will learn that a certain ID at one site means yet another shotgun shell, while at another site you can pick out the civil war cannon ball from other trash.

4. Audio Target ID - The other half of the target ID story. A lot (but not all) of the newer, higher end detectors provide a lot of target information to the user through sound. This can be an incredibly useful tool because of the nuance than can be conveyed through the beeps and boops, especially if they are kept pretty raw, and not filtered and replaced with computerized sounds like in the ACE. The detector has to try to figure out what an object in the ground is based solely on it's response to an electro-magnetic signal. That is not easy, and offloading some of the signal processing to a human through audio can make for a much more accurate ID (if the human is up to the task).

5. Adjustability - ACE detectors are pretty much turn on and go machines. This is great for beginners because you don't have a ton of choices to face before you can even start detecting. However if the user is up to it, having a lot of configurable options can make machine work better for different conditions, or help improve the meld between user and machine. The NOX or AT Pro will have many more options for adjustability than the ACE.

Thank you all for good advice.