Jerry: That's for the e-mail reply.
Del: Based on Jerry's initial post, I was presuming he already had an 'original' Racer and I wanted to share something with him. However, he explained in an e-mail back to me that he had been considering a used Racer w/wireless headphones, but decided to pass on that for now.
To All Interested: Since the question was regarding how the original wireless headphones perform with the original Racer, I'll share the following.
1.. As a reminder to users of the Racer series, the new 2.4 Gig. wireless headphones work on the Racer 2 and Gold Racer ONLY. They do not work with the original Racer.
2.. There were some apparent reasons why Makro Detectors engineered the new 2.4 Gig. headphones, and the most notable reason I can share from personal experience is that with the Racer and first wireless headphones, there was a little bit of response delay. I used the originals on my Racer and , for some applications, they were generally okay. For the bulk of my detecting, they aren't. Let me explain.
At the time the Racer and first headphones were about to be released, I was mainly using my Nokta FORS CoRe for most of my serious Relic Hunting where the bulk of the sites I work are terribly littered, especially with iron debris. The Racer I used for Relic Hunting at many locations off-and-on, but mainly relied on the Racer for urban Coin & Jewelry Hunting. Many of the C&J sites were either sparsely littered or maybe just a modest amount of trash that was fairly well spaced. Also, while I keep my Discrimination low so that I hear iron nails and more conductive iron when Relic Hunting, I usually just barely reject iron nails for most Coin & Jewelry Hunting.
Because of these two different approaches, I hear more targets, more often, when Relic Hunting, whereas I hear fewer targets, including a lot less iron trash, and less often, when Coin & Jewelry Hunting.
Therefore, when Coin & Jewelry Hunting with the Racer, where the detector isn't so 'busy' and I am not hearing a lot of rapid-fire responses as I do out Relic Hunting, I found the wireless headphones bearable and didn't really have a major issue with the lag time. I have experienced worse performance from other brands of wireless headphones in the past, and I guess I have a trained ear and experience to sort through the modest delay for a fair amount of my city searches because the wireless headphones were 'OK' to use on some rather hot summer days when casually searching city parks and such for lost coins.
3.. That said, I still use my preferred corded headphones most of the time because I like them and the audio quality, plus I tend to switch detectors and/or search coils as I hunt a site, or just travel about and search a variety of places. So, I don't use wireless headphones all that often, and we each have our own preferences and different hearing abilities or limitations, so we see a variety of headphones offered and used because you or I might like or dislike some particular brands or styles. The same goes for using wireless headphones.
So, for me, since I use my Racer 2's and Gold Racer's and coil assortment for different locations, and try to hunt whenever I can, and do spend most of my hunting time in very trashy conditions, and use several different detectors, ... the 2.4 Gig. headphones are all I need for 'part-time' use in summer heat when Coin Hunting with a Racer 2, or for a few places where I grab the Gold Racer and can switch the dongle over from a Racer 2.
I know a couple of people who have the original Racer and use the first wireless headphone that Makro offered, and they are doing okay and have no complaints. They Coin Hunt, encounter minimal targets at grassy parks and schools, and get by with the little delay they have.
Monte
