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Getting more into my F5

H

Hightone

New member
I have watched as many traded or sold their F5 because it was too confusing. Once I traded my Deleon and got the F5, I just swung it a few times a year, as I never really took the time to know it as well. Lately I thought about trading it and getting a more turn on a go unit. But today, I went out in the back to really just to get to know the unit.

I read the manual all the way through again. And once I went out and set the unit up. I have to say it really impressed me. I didn't realize that the unit needed to be in AM to use the Ground Phase button while pumping. I would rather have ground tracking, but this is no big deal.

Then I played with the gain in DISC mode. I could actually get up to about 75 before chatter started. I guess this would be more like "feedback" since the gain amplifies the transmitting signal. It seems like the threshold tuner is also a sensitivity control as well. I could turn it up to about 75 as well before the chatter started. And of course, I just set the disc to mask out the first segment.......iron.

At these high, slightly unstable settings, I noticed I could detect a newer quarter at about 12". But the ID didn't ID it as a quarter, yet jumped the segments. I did get the highest of the 4 tones though, and this was not consist ant. As I moved the coil closer, It properly ID ed at 8". The sound and segment was right on. Now in AM mode, the slight hum changed to reveal metal over the quarter as high as 14". As I moved closer the threshold was clearly broken at around the 10-11" range. Again, the segment ID kicked in at 8".

Over a newer dime, there was only about a 2" difference less, except in AM, where the dime still broke threshold at close to 14".

Now this might be impressive to me, for depth, but the added things I like about the F5. Changing settings are quick. If I see drift in the ground phase, I simple thumb the Ground Balance knob to match. Increasing the notch can be done as easily. It's knobs are like having my Tesoro, and then some.

The reset is impressive as well. It may not be as "fine" as my Tesoso was, but it's pretty close. Having an option of 1 to 4 tones is nice. And the screen has a lot of information before digging. Now I know, a lot of things can effect TID. The F5 has a meter called confidence. Even over a true quarter, I couldn't get the confidence to peg. But it was "pretty sure" my quarter was a quarter. The FE meter might come in handy at the beach or an area of high mineralization changes. I don't have either in my area.

Just thought I'd share this with anyone who has, or may consider owning one.

If anyone has any pointers, I welcome them.
 
First off the F5 is pretty simple, don't over think the unit. It doesn't have to be perfectly balanced all the time, set it up and let it go, if it gets way out of setting then readjust.
The only true examples of how deep certain coins are is to dig them, no just on top of the ground or air test, air test will give you a general idea of how something registers such as gold but not a true given exact id number.

I know my F5 pretty well and i have about 2 hundred hours on it and i still learn things each time i go out, i have pulled gold rings out at all different id numbers so don't think that an id of 45 of 52 is junk, they usually are except when its not.

Many people buy a detector and use it a few times and say i never really found anything good and stop using it, put it in the closet and forget about, but if you want to find all kinds of fun stuff try to put in at least 4 to 6 hrs per week and you will see a difference and you will really get to know your machine.

Good Luck
 
I have the 5" (never used), the stock and the 11" DD which is on it now.
 
Mike Hillis has wrote quite a bit about the F5 if you search his posts....he says its the perfect inland jewelry hunter...Oh snap! I see youve been a member here for 7 yrs, so you probably know all of this already!:please:
Mud
 
n/t
 
Somebody has compiled all those posts into a single location....
I think you might still be able to get to it here: http://www.findmall.com/read.php?37,1866467,1866467#msg-1866467

Good luck!
Mike
 
I just read through 15 pages (of 115) of your posts, and that took an hour.

I did learn some neat F5 stuff (GB tricks, EMI signs), and found you to be a pretty nice guy as well. lol.:clapping:
 
No go. It seeems Sven had something at one time, but to download it, I am asked to download some junk first (download manager). I'll Pass.
What Elton had at the Linux Ubuntu site is no longer valid,

No big deal. I've had a Garrett, 2 Tesoro's and a Xterra. I'll get by.

Thanks for trying, tho.
 
Hightone,
Send me your email address via Private Message and I'll send you what I have.

HH
Mike
 
Hello Hightone,

As yourself, I'm just getting into knowing my F5 and stumbled onto the forum while researching these fine machines and came across the wealth of knowledge that Mike has shared. needless to say, i was happy to learn that someone(Thanks Sven Stau):super: had compiled the many threads. so, if its ok with mike and others I'd like to post the link of the "Tips and Tricks" that Sven put together.

http://www.treasurelinx.com/fisher.html
 
What factors and their weighting goes into the algorithm that results in the Confidence Meter readout? Is there an equivalent function, though named differently, on other machines? I understand it is just one more among several items that would help us to decide "to dig or not to dig." Should we give it relatively equal weight to the other "to dig or not to dig" indications we learn from the machine, or more or less? Or "it depends." Or "all of the above?"
 
Hi Earth Fisher,

I don't know about any of the math that goes into the algorithms that operate the confidence meter.

For performance questions, the best thing you can do is watch two video's by Bill_S. There are links to them on this forum if you search for posts made by Bill_S. Look at the confidence meter and the TID responses, and the depth of the targets. Between the two you-tube videos, you have nearly an hour of F5 usage that helps to show how the display information works.

HH
Mike
 
Thanks. I have seen those. Without going into math, and based on your own experience and knowledge, do you have a sense of what the machine considers to come up with its confidence indication?
 
Earth Fisher,

I think it is a two hump camel..... Peak Signal Strength coupled to Peak Phase Shift response.

HH
Mike
 
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