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Explorer or E-Trac?

A

alex74

Member
hi folks,


after several years with another brand, i intend to buy a minelab again. my last minelab was an explorer xs in 2000. have the explorers become better since then from the xs to the II to the se? and is the e-trac now the pinnacle of he explorer evolution? or is the explorer se the better machine?
what are the main differences between the explorer series and the e-trac? could the e-trac be called explorer IV or is it something totally new or different? is the e-trac worth the extra $$ or do the explorer II or se the same good job?

regards, alex
 
hehe

Oh boy... you have asked questions that still have no answer. LOL

It just depends on what you are looking for. Some will tell you that the Etrac is a totally different machine. Others will say its similar. i suggest you use the search function on here becasue these questions have been pounded to death. Also some advice is to demo them and see what works for you. There are some guys out there that straight tear it up with the ole XS.
 
The only Minelab that I have used is a X70.I have used the Whites XLT for awhile. X70 seems to get picked or more often than the XLT. Seriously looking at an ETAC but wondering if it"s worth the extra $$$$. As a coin hunter I am wondering if the SE will do just as good of a job finding old coins as the ETAC. But to try at $1500.00 is a little to much.Same goes with the V3. Seems to be more deep silver stories on the Minelabe forums. HMMMM.

Kurt
 
Alex,

With the number of questions that you've asked one could write a book. Actually, someone has: Andy Sabisch. You should definitely pick up a copy--it will really assist you in understanding the differences between the two platforms. He is the most knowledgeable person on the planet when it comes to the Minelab product line. Then I would advise you to go to a dealer & try both machines out. Some guys love both, some like one, some the other. A good dealer will be able to help you once you explain what you've been using previously & also the areas you intend to hunt.

Good luck. Minelab makes an excellent product and both the Explorer & Etrac are tough machines to beat.

Bill
 
You are on the EXPLORER Forum so the consensus here would probably be the EXPLORER. Go to the E-Trac forum and just the opposite.

I have used and owned both. I still own an E2 and SE Pro with Pro Coil. But I have used Explorers since 2000 non stop. I personally did not see any added benefit as far as finds go with the E-Trac. But I preferred the Menu System on the E-Trac. It seemed to run very smooth--but so does my Explorer if I back the Sens off a bit.

I saw no depth advantage with the E-trac (I felt the Explorers actually hit harder on deep coins) Granted, The E-trac has a faster processor but the Explorers will find the stuff in the junk too if you go slow. You gotta go slow with either machine if you are hunting in the junk. I felt the Explorer gave me more info on a target as different coins hit in different places. I found the E-Trac lumped them too close together on the smart screen - but again- I'm comparing it to the Explorer.

For you-- the E-trac would probably be a great machine as you do not have a ton of experience on the Explorer. So you would not be comparing it to the Explorer like a lot of us die hard Explorer users. It is similar but different-- if that makes sense. But many very experienced Explorer users made the change and love it. It just wasn't worth it to me as I did not see an increase in my finds. But that is just me and my preference.

Either way, you will dig a lot more old coins once you learn the machine. A great machine is only part of the equation. You have to learn it and pass the coil over a good target, then hear it and determine if you want to dig it. Either machine will detect great targets. It up to you to hear it and dig it!

Either way you will have a great machine

Good luck

Ron
 
There's lots of good advice above. Andy's book will give you the technical differences and his thoughts about all the machines. That's a big piece of the puzzle. The rest will probably be individualized preferences. I have had both. I kept the E-Trac because the learning curve is not as steep and the finds for a newbie, with these machines, is likely to be a bit better/easier with the ET. That's with no sacrifice in depth etc. See... a preference. The bottom line is if you get and learn either machine there's no other machine on the market that can consistently compete with Minelabs design. Jim
 
seems like 95% of the deep silver stories are in the Explorer/Etrac forums, wonder why that is? Kind of makes you think, uh? HH
 
i have heard that the main frequency is at about 3kHz and that the other frequencies serve to eliminate minerals and emi. 3kHz is quite low and low frequencies love high conductive metal-silver.
 
i owned andys book "mastering the minelab explorer" when i hunted with the explorer xs in 2000. i was quite disappointed from the information in this book,( but i know he is the minelab god in the usa), but this is just my personal opinion. i got my best information concerning the explorer from desmond dunne in the uk. maybe because i am from germany and because i hunt for celtic, roman and medieval coins and artifacts on european soils such as the uk hunters do...

however, thanks for all replies!

best regards alex
 
Hi Alex,

I answered your post on the E-Trac forum and felt I had to make a comment here.
Andy's new book is in no way comparable to the older volume, it would be like comparing an old B&W TV to a new top of the line Plasma HD TV! Andy has put all his accumulated knowledge between then and now into the new book, plus he was instrumental in field testing during the engineering phase of the E-Trac's development.
My point buy the new book you won't be disappointed

Drew.
 
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