explorer SE settings

[TennTyrant]

what settings do you use on normal hunts or list your favorite settings, I am looking for options to try other tan factory settings any help would be great.

 

[dewcon4414]

You might get a copy of Andy's book it has several really good hunters settings. There will be modifications you need to make for your area as well as hearing and disc options. Many of the settings are options for your comfort and confidence. For me auto sens..28, gain..9, threhold tone..8 Variabilit and limits 10, disc a modified nail disc, cond sounds, pitch hold, threshold loud enough to hear the nulls, recovery...both off. Im using the SEF coil, but these are the same setting i used on the standard coil. What i have found is the depth gauge isnt as accurate as in manual sensitivity and my pinpointing seems to be a little to the right. Hope this helped some.

Dew

 

[montanagold]

first thing I would say from experience is be careful not to mess with to much. When i first got my SE I ran on factory pre sets and instantly did well. I read Andy's book and it was a huge help. Lots of information. I set one of my saved programs from that book It was Bryce's deep silver setting, while I am sure it is a great setting and has found Bryce lots of silver, but I couldn't find even a new penny to save my life for 2 weeks. So I went back to factory presets and almost immediately started finding coins. I really think it has to do with the soil conditions where you are and also what works for the user. Its like everyone says start in factory and make slight changes from that. My pattern is almost factory with slight variations. But I do suggest getting the new book by Andy, It is packed full of information and will help you understand what each function is.

 

[Jim upstate NY]

I disagree for the most part with any pattern after you get a little time on it anyway, unless you absolutely have to because of overwhelming trash. I use an one notch iron mask pattern almost always, even in parks and just listen to everything, the good stuff will jump out at you and you learn to ignore the bad signals..

My settings
Iron mask one notch on left will knock out most iron and still allow to hear good stuff in most of the thickest iron
Fast response(only because I am in iron most times and find it gets plenty of depth anyway)
normal audio(I just find I get the best round sound response from good targets)
Ferrous sounds(this is a matter of choice I guess, but definitely better if hunting in iron)
gain at 7 or 8 max(anything more I find it falses more)
variability and volume max
threshold tone at the lowest settings and at lowest audible volume
Sensitivity almost always in manual, I dont often run too high, again a matter of ground conditions and where you are hunting
but I find with 10 inch or bigger coils 24 is more than enough
and seldom go above 28 with smaller coils..
my general setting is keeping at 24, then adjust according to conditions

Remember I hunt old cellar holesloaded with nails and iron and my ground is fairly mineralized here, lots of hot rocks and iron ore also in some of my spots
so one general way to go is not always the best.. but I do pretty much keep my setting the same no matter where I hunt and I do hunt in many states.. I keep most of my settings the same other than adjusting sensitivity to suit conditions

 

[dewcon4414]

As you can tell there arent any set rules. The best advise is to start with factory settings and bump up your sensitivity a bit. If you are used to another brand of detectors you may find adjusting the Threshold TONE a valueable tool to get the tone closest to what you were used to. My settings are not SET... i will adjust to the conditions. Your finds may not be what you are used to at first, but beleave me they will improve simply because you will be getting better depth right out of the box. I will switch from cond to ferr occassionally just because of the iron, but not normally in a park... i hate the sound of bottle caps worse than iron bounce which i know. I dont know for some reason i find myself wanting to look at the digital screen more than the smart screen when in Ferr. Dont ask me why... habbit i guess. Id suggest finding someone on here or in a local club that you have some confidence in.... get a splitter for two headphones and spend a little time with them. Dont discount a good test garden, because you will see good targets wont be the same as air testing at depth. Also... the depth gauge is a great option... beaware of the cond number if you are a digital screen person they are more accurate. HH

Dew

 

[Hotcz70]

I've got you beat
I've gone nearly THREEweeks without finding a wheatie...and it's driving me nuts

I have found a few silver so I'm not complaining...but I seriously haven't found a wheatie in the last 4 hunts.

I agree with what you said 100%...settings have a lot to do with independant site/soil conditions.

I also feel just as strongly though that it's a matter of personal preference and what our ears like...and what we train them to hear.

A perfect example...on my last hunt just a few days ago...I tried Captn_Se's iron mask setting...and it's also the same as Mike Moutray's.

Well 2 3/4 hours into the hunt I had absolutely nothing in my pouch except some rusty nails. Why?...because I was not used to the more open iron mask seting. I have trained my ears for how deep coins and iron respond to the specific iron mask setting of 22 I use on my SE.

I have learned to listen for a specific reaction of my SE while hitting a target in iron...junk...or while nulling...etc

Most of the parks I hunt are riddled with iron junk...but that's where most of the coins that are left are hiding.

The more open setting completely threw me off and deep iron sounded too much like a coin to me...just as I stated in Andy's book.

Just that one little adjustment that works so well for Mike and Dan...completely screwed me up for the day.

Now if I took tons of time to retrain my ears for a more open reaction...I'm sure Mike and Dan's setting would do well for me....but I have spent 1000's of hours training myself for the sounds/reactions I personally prefer...so I'll just stay there.

The last 15 minutes or so I went right back to my comfort zone of iron mask 22...and found the beautiful Seated quarter love token right next to a big chunk of iron as I showed in my post.

It's just amazing how one slight setting change of going from iron mask 22 to iron mask 27...can really change what we hear and dig.

Anyway buddy...good luck hunting ...and I hope you continue to make great finds like you have been.

Me...I hope I can scare up a wheatie or 2 on my next hunt. Never thought I'd hear myself say I'd rather find a wheatie than silver or injuns

 

[deeponedge]

It would depend a lot on the sites you hunt.
If you are more of a relic hunter and hunting cellar holes or iron infested fields; you might want to run ferrous sounds and an open screen.
If you are more of a coin hunter and hunt parks, schools and yards; it seems most of the people who find the larger amount of old coins use conductive sounds along with some iron mask.