I don't remember if I chimed in, but I've owned a lot of machines over the years as I like to "sample the wine" and see what's out there. Depth and separation with tone alerts (but with detailed analog-like audio too) and a good high resolution VDI is all I really look for in a machine. Any extra features aren't really important to me. When you think about it, depth and separation is where the tires meet the road in detector performance. For that reason a good coil can make all the difference, because it's the sharpness of the coil's field that "sees" between targets, and the depth of the coil's field that pushes depths deeper.
I owned a 6000 Pro XL and it was a great machine. Loved the high resolution VDI to tell silver and other coins from each other in some cases. But, lacking tone alerts, I found myself always watching the meter as I don't like to discriminate out anything (even iron) and like to listen to it all. Without tone alerts it was hard for me to constantly watch the screen while working through heavy trash. I only like to look at the screen when a high tone peaks my interest or some other lower conductor that still has a "quality" sound to it. For the same reasons, and also even owning machines lacking an VDI display too, I owned and moved on from many other machines over time. Always looking...
Then I got my hands on a QII. Fantastic machine, so I figured I'd up grade to the QXT. Even better because of the extra features on it. Fast, lighting fast ID, and I could set high tones or lows to any of the 8 zones I wanted. So once again I was able to hunt with nothing discriminated out and just listen for any hints of high tones among the trash. The QXT was deep, but then I ended up with a QXT Pro. Same machine but it lets you set sensitivity a tad higher without getting unstable (usually 18 instead of 16 on that setting). As a result it was maybe a tad deeper than the QXT. Both the QXT, QXT Pro, and 6000 Pro XL were my deepest machines in my soil for years. About 7.5" max on a silver dime, where all the other machines (especially higher frequency ones) couldn't manage that much depth in my low to high mineral soils. I atribute the better depth of the QXT and 6000 to their low frequency nature that my soil seems to like better.
But, I had only two complaints with the QXT (and Pro)...Only two tone alerts (high or low depending on what you set each zone to), and no VDI #s. The 8 zones made for rather poor resolution in terms of trying to split hairs on targets to say for example gold ring hunt while avoiding a common tab # or two at a site. Just couldn't do it with that kind of resolution, and so my nickle finds also suffered in that respect. I didn't mind zincs having only one zone and copper pennies and higher having their own zone. As long as I can avoid zincs at certain sites I'm happy when I'm in the mood to avoid billions of them at some spots. Far as copper penny or higher, I don't trust the high resolution on machines to tell me what kind of coin it might be, as I've dug plenty of silvers that a machine told me were wheats or something else due to depth, ground minerals, being on edge, being worn, the ground being dry, or for other reasons. For that reason, when I'm old coin hunting I only want to know it's a coin, because if it's deep I'm digging it even if a machine tells me it thinks it's not a silver coin, and if it's shallow but in trash then I'm digging those too because it could easily be an old coin that others missed due to the masking.
Oh, but my third and final complaint with the QXT...Lack of larger coils bigger than the 9.5" to push depths deeper, and I wanted that to be in a DD coil as when coils get bigger DDs seem to do better due to soaking up less ground matrix in general in soil with higher minerals. Plus a DD separates left/right wise so much better at all depths from shallow to deep IMO (in general). Had somebody come out with a bigger coil and it being a DD, like say a SEF 12x10, for the low frequency Whites models to push my depths deeper and also improve left/right separation I would have probably stayed with the QXT. Shame Detech doesn't make these coils for the low frequency Whites, because there are probably more of those machines out there than any other that are compatible with each other's coils (XLT, QXT, 6000, and so on). Seems like a huge market of potential buyers to breath new life into people's favorite machines.
I'm not one for heavy amounts of computer settings. Don't mind using them, but I'm the kind of person who always wonders if he set this or that up best for a site and that kind of ruins my hunt. Always find myself spending more time tweaking then hunting when the computer controls get out of hand with too many settings. That's why I'm waiting for Whites to come out with a machine with just enough computer controls to get the job done (like the QXT had), but without overkill to the point where I'll always have doubt if I set it up perfectly for the site. And I'd like to see it be a low frequency machine so it handles my soil better. Combine that with a good high resolution VDI for the foil to copper penny range so I can split hairs on common trash and what might be a ring or old nickle or something.
Everything above copper penny I'm happy just to be told is a coin and not what type because that makes the VDI too unstable for my tastes when coins are deep or in trash sometimes. Only coin I really want to distinctly ID is zincs and nickles (nickles get easy if you are using a machine with good low to mid range VDI resolution so you can avoid most tabs and foil and zero in on the nickles). With great low to mid range resolution it gives you more of a chance to avoid a few common trash items at a site and dig everything else hoping for a gold ring or something too. Throw in a good range of tone alerts on targets based on conductivity, but without the audio being highly processed to where you lose some details and are just getting short "beeps" or "blips". Meaning I want long analog like audio as that gives more detail IMO. All this combined on a low frequency machine that is deeper than the
old ones thanks to moderen technology, along with a good DD coil in about the 12" range to max out the depth on coins. Throw in a 4 or 5" coil choice too for heavy trash and I'll be one happy camper and will add such a machine to my line up.
Come on Whites, you can do it! You don't even have to make such a coil to go with it. Just let Detech make their 5" trash coil, 12x10, 15x12, and the new 13" Ultimate for it. THAT would be a killer machine IMO. Anybody with me on this? There is just "something" about those low frequency old Whites units. Smooth, stable, excellent discrimination (when you want to use it), and good analog-like audio (even on the digital QXT) that would give you all types of details on targets to tell if it's "fuzzy" or scratchy or "harsh" sounding obvious junk or not. Combine numerous tone alerts to that good old Whites audio of those machines and you'd have one heck of a machine. With modern technology to push the already excellent depth of low frequency machines even deeper (say south of 8khz somewhere), and not overmobbing the computer with too many settings to tweak, along with a good DD coil selection, I think they'd have a real winner on their hands and have a lot of return customers who cut their teeth on Whites when they first got into detecting.
Think I'm finally home after a lot of years searching for my particular needs. Custom 1.5 lb lighter 
Sovereign GT (easy to do by just "building" lighter shaft) & SEF 12x10 as everyday coil. 8" Tornado (actually 7.25") as super heavy trash coil (Very deep & separates better than typical 8/9" true size coils). 13" Ultimate for large fields/beaches on certain days I want to grid faster than even the 12x10's nice improvement over stock for that. Stock 10" Tornado stays on water rig (stock shaft). 
ProPointer. Owned 15x12 & SunRay S-5 (5.5") at one time. Loaned a prior 13" Ultimate & SunRay S-12 (12.5").
Some Oldest Silver- 1835 Bust Dime, 1842 "O" Seated Dime, 1855 Seated Quarter, 1858 3 Cent Piece, 1891 Seated Dime, & another Seated Quarter too damaged to read date. Highest Value- 3 Cent Piece, Seated Quarter, & now 1921 F-12 Standing Liberty. Oldest Coin? Got to give large cents a good look & see. 2013 so far- 1 Seated Quarter, 1 Barber Quarter, 1 Standing Liberty, 2 Washingtons, 1 Barber Dime, 9 Mercs, 3 Rosies. 1 War Nickel. 19 silvers in total, & 1 1872 key date Indian, 2 Bufallos, 1 man's 14K gold medium sized ring & 1 gold chain, with possibility of few 8"+ deep mystery coins being Indians after cleaning.
What matters in life is the journey and not the desitination. How you handle that journey determines if you were a success, not so much what you achieved if and when you finally get there, especially if you made it by stepping on people along the way...
In loving memory of my long haired (wooly) husky Sky. She taught me just how beautiful and pure a soul can be, human or not...Edited 6 time(s). Last edit at 08/04/2012 11:21AM by Critterhunter.
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