Reddog777, you asked a somewhat indirect question that was a bit vague (in some ways) and limiting (if we can't cite brand references).
MarkCZ provided a good answer below with regard to the detectors using regulated power to function which, basically, makes all the general performance similar. However, I'll throw my 2¢ in, for what it's worth, having used a vast array of batteries through the many years I have been detecting. Part of what I do, with regard to battery use and selection, is compare the cost & performance.
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Reddog777
Have anyone notice if there is difference between brand A, brand B, or brand C batteries as for as performance.
YES, there are some differences with regard to 'performance' as I view it, and the 'performance' I refer to is in cost and run-time, or the functional duration they might last.
If a person goes out detecting for a half-hour to two hours today, then goes out again for maybe an hour later in the week, and perhaps gets out for a short while early on a Saturday morning and then maybe an hour on Sunday evening, it can be difficult to tell a lot of difference in the
performance that battery/batteries provide with regard to 'run-time' because they have a brief use and power draw, then ample time to rebuild and refresh a little with the long delays before being used again.
I do my best to run batteries to death by hunting as often as I can and for as long as I can, limited only to available time, weather, and my health. When I was younger and healthier I could easily put in a long day afield without ache and pain. Even during some mild breaks during January to mid-February when it was supposed to be winter I would hit some of my favorite Utah and Nevada desert ghost towns. I could start hunting at daylight, take a 20-30 minute lunch break, and then hunt until sunset.
I recall one cloudy February 14th and 15th when I spent two days out there, with only a few sun-breaks but at least no snow on the ground. I only shut down the detector during that prolonged period for the short lunch break and maybe to water a sagebrush or two. The temperature at night was down to the mid-20° range and it didn't warm over 35° at the highest mark of the day, and during the day there were some off-and-on sun breaks. Due to the short daylight hours I probably have the detector operating for close to 9 hours each day.
I was younger and healthier and could put in that time without a problem, especially when the potential finds were there to be had. So, let's take a brief look and consider the "
performance" of batteries just under these conditions:
That would total to about 18 hours in two days, with almost 9 straight hours or run-time per day. The detectors used ARE based on a Voltage Regulated design, however, less quality batteries just won't last as long under prolonged drain-time.
Consider, too, that the nighttime and daytime temperatures ranged from about 23° to ±35°. I can guarantee you that many brands and type of batteries will not endure long operation at all if there are some temperature extremes, and that was cold! So the "
performance" can vary based upon the ambient temperatures where you are hunting, added with the duration of power draw. But it isn't only cold weather we deal with.
I like warm weather, but even until just a decade ago I could also spend long summer days in those same ghost towns, hunting when it was HOT, hitting 95° by noon and climbing to 106° for a high. Again, long, long days of hunting for many hours without any 'off-time', and often doing a few hours during the night when it was cooler, hanging around in the upper 70° to mid-80° range w/o the direct sun. Again, some batteries just dont last very long under extreme ranges or temperature, being too low or too high, while trying to provide ample power for a duration of use.
Today, a friend and I are working on our 2012 Coin-Count Goal. Here in NW Oregon we have had too much wet weather. Some park and school lawns are more like mud-bogs. It's also been just too cold and miserable at times, too, and we even had a few days where snow limited my hunt time. He's two years older than I am but I am the more worn-out and falling apart. I hunt with a cane and often have to take a break and sit down to rest the back for a few minutes. I can't move fast, I can't hunt for long before a break, so I can't put in the length of time or burn up batteries like I used to. We do our part to test battery life, however, as I am up to 709 coins for January and he hit 775. (He was slightly ahead of me but made good numbers Saturday with 130 coins to bump up his lead.)
The point here is that it is January and we aren't in a nice warm weather environment, and the detectors certainly aren't idle, if we have a chance to get out. So, battery "
performance" is important to us. If we went through a lot of inexpensive batteries in a hurry, then the overall quality of their service would not be so good.
Now, I touched on
duration or run-time which are
hard service demands, and also related hunting in
colder or hotter temperature conditions that can also impact battery "
performance". You also need to consider how the detector models were designed to work, and as end-users we dont know the absolutes about their designed battery draw or life-span other than what the manufacturers suggest in their Owner Manuals, but just consider these few suggestions for comparison:
1.. Most manufactures who supply batteries with their detectors ship them with
alkaline batteries installed.
2.. Most manufacturer's instructions state or encourage the use of only
alkaline batteries, and some even discourage the use of rechargeable batteries because they have a much shorter run-time in their detectors.
3.. Some manufacturers claim a full set of quality alkaline batteries will provide about 20 hours of operation, while another manufacturer claims their model will go 15-20, or perhaps 30-40, or even 50-65 hours on a set of batteries. So, it is apparent that, by design, different makes and different models will provide different service-life, so "
performance", to me, has to be based upon meeting the criteria to last as long as possible, and do so as affordable as possible.
In the end, I just divide the cost of batter (if one) or set of batteries by the number of hours of operation and I get the Cost-Per-Hour of run-time. From that I know which Brand(s) of batteries will provide the "
Performance Vs Cost" for me.
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Reddog777
... signal strength, target id, etc?
I believe that NO QUALITY BATTERY will enhance or improve the overall performance of signal strength, TID or other performance and display functions. The manufacturers made them to achieve a certain level of maximum performance by design, and instructed us to use the best quality battery we can. The regulated voltage of the detector will do the best it can beyond that point.
I do believe that AN INFERIOR QUALITY BATTERY will diminish the overall performance when called upon to respond to and process the visual information of a deeper target because at some point the lower-quality battery will run down sooner or easier, or under more drain demand just sort of poop-out on us.
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Reddog777
No posting of brands is necessary. Just if there is difference.
Well, there is a difference. Times change, too, and I have seen good batteries become less appealing to me, and others that seem of lesser quality have surprised me with performance. I will state, however, that battery selection can be a personal thing. Too many people I know like the hobby but they just don't get out often enough to really enjoy it. If someone uses rechargeable batteries this whole thread might be on no interest, but perhaps it can. You see, it can make a difference based upon how much you travel and how much time you put in hunting.
I have gone out to my favorite desert sites in four states with friends who relied on rechargeable batteries. By mid-day they were out of juice! Trudging back to the vehicle for another battery pack, if they had one, and if it had sufficient charge. Sometimes they didn't get ample charge using the car charger and while they didn't rely on a store-bought battery each time their pack dies, they suffered more down-time because of their battery choice.
I have seen the same thing happen when people shopped a local 'dollar store' and bought up the 'standard' or 'heavy duty' batteries that were cheap, and sometimes even those that were 'alkaline' as a bargain price. Sadly, while it didn't cost them much to fuel up their detector, it was like driving a gas hog and they spent more on batteries than I ever would. That doesn't necessarily mean all inexpensive batteries are terrible, however.
Maybe Ray-O-Vac has improved their product, but I dont know. I have always tried to shop for the best value in batteries for me, based upon the run-time and cost. I did a lot of battery testing during the period from '85 through '92, especially, and shopped at various places for batteries. I was
never impressed with a Ray-O-Vac alkaline battery when compared with an Energizer or Duracell. It used to be that the best Duracell and best Energize batteries provided almost equal performance and I used then to base my comparisons to.
I had some friends who were going to be joining me on an outing to a ghost town and state stop and wanted to be ready in case they had battery failure (in case they weren't prepared). I went to the local store a coupe, of blocks away but they were out of the major brand so I bought a Toshiba Heavy Duty set of batteries. They were the 'AA' size. I had been hunting a long time on the ones I was using and during out outing my own batteries bit the dust and I recorded how long they lasted. For personal interest, I loaded up a pack of those heavy-duty batteries.
During the next month and a half I used up the others because I was hunting every day and putting a lot of use on them. When the battery pack was gone and I figured out the overall value of those batteries, I was really surprised. They lasted longer than the Ray-O-Vac alkalines, two off-brands of alkalines, and all of the other heavy-duty batteries I had used. Actually, they almost matched the length of time I got with the alkaline Energizer and Duracell batteries, running maybe 1-2 hours less. The cost savings was great! I used those as long as I could find them available.
There have been some other alkaline batteries such as the Nova or Panasonic batteries that come in some brands of detectors. The cost worked for the manufacturer, and I
usually found them to run almost as long and as well as the top-end Duracell's that I prefer. Today, I compare all batteries against the Duracell. In my emergency kits I have only three brands of batteries on hand for my radios and flashlights and lantern. They are Duracell, Kirkland AA's (made for Costco by the Duracell folks), and Utili-Tech (a bargain, off-shore alkaline battery I buy at Lowe's).
I usually keep the Costco brand Kirkland AA's on hand because I buy 48 for $11.99. That costs me just 24.98¢ each, so a 4-battery fill on a T2 is only under 99¢, and to fill my White's with 8 of them is just under $2.00. For me, their use-time is virtually the same as the more expensive Duracell, who makes the Kirkland AA's. You ask why the Utili-Tech batteries? My very old and dear mother buys some batteries for Christmas for detecting. In 2010 I spotted them on sale at Lowe's and got 48 for $8. That saved her money, and those 16.66¢ each batteries lasted almost as long in the T2 and XLT and MXT as did the other better quality alkaline batteries. What a savings!
For Christmas a month ago, Lowe's had a sale on these AA alkaline batteries with a 30-pack for $4. Only 13.33¢ each for an alkaline AA battery! Well, the useful life is just fine, and the price is terrific, so for me, the "
performance" for the investment and time is there.
Duracell, Kirkland, Energizer, Utili-Tech, Panasonic, Nova, and several other decent alkaline AA batteries all can do what the manufacturers designed their detectors to do, and all can provide decent time of operation. None will make them go deeper, sound louder, or process TID's better. An inferior or low-power, low energy, or really terrible battery can, however, not work as well and that can impact performance.
Sorry to ramble. I spend more time two-fingered typing these replies than I do detecting, it seems. Anyway, I was also a little confused as to exactly what you were hoping for, and that would have been some souped-up performance, and that's just not going to happen. MarkCZ gave a brier and correct answer with regard to the detectors only using a regulated about of voltage, and I just rambled about how I interpret what performance I expect.
Monte
"Your Eyes, the ONLY 100% accurate form of Discrimination!"Stinkwater WellsMonte V. Berry Sr.
monte@stinkwaterwells.com(503)481-8147
My "get serious" Detector Arsenal:
White'sMXT Pro w/6½"
XL Pro w/8" and 950
IDX Pro (modified) w/6½"
VX3 w/950
TesoroOutlaw, coming, will use 5¾"
TekneticsOmega w/8" and 5" DD
Gold MountainVIP w/7"
