Help! i so need it...

[dreamsville]

Hi Guys, i'm new and struggeling so please be patient with we me....

ok i,m a rookie going MAD! ive got the Xterra 70 with only 1 coil being the 10.5 DD HF

i'm pretty sure 99.9% that is me just not knowing what the hell i,m doing, so much so that one starts to question the machine, the coil, the area,s im working in....aggggghhhhhhhh

forgive me but may i ask some basic questions, and thank you to anyone who can be bothered to answer...

1) i hunt mostly in farmers fields lloking for coins /relics etc, ground ballance in normally 15 ish tonite it was 39 is low number Low mineral? whats good to hunt in?

2) Whats the advantage setting thresh at say 3 or 4 or much higer?

3) i try to run sentistivity at about 20/23 at 25 its seems to pop and peep, is it right that the higer sensitivity goes deeper?

4) Sometimes after i locate a target , remove the plug then sweep with the machine no signal is heard, yet it was a 32, then i think the machines not working test it on my spade then it now registers an audio when i sweep the plug again but now its showing iron!

5) how come when in coin mode it still picks up junk and hot rocks (ps are hot rocks just the coke like stones that give off signals?)

6) When i find a Hot rock i try to press reject but nothing seems to happen? if i can get it too reject would it only reject threm or other stuff as well.

7) ive got 100 acres of farmland and ive not found anything other than a couple of 1960 coins nothing like what you guys seem to pul up...

down the beach ( for a change of scenary ) the other day in wet sand put it in beach mode...and it was still falcing i would dig and the swet sand just filled the hole again... i gave up on about 6 digs in the end and headed back to dry sand... yet i thought having the double DD 10.5 HF would love this !! again agghhh

i,m out about 2 nights a week for at least 3 hours, and out on a sunday for 4 hours....i just dont feel like i,m getting the hang of the machine, i just dont know hat its telling me, i do try to study it but the different tones ( only use 4) and the target id i feel is not consistent enough for me to learn as i want too , ive even started looking at an explorer 11 thinking this is the answer.... is it?

I love detecting so any help will be so appreciated, its a great feeling when you cant wait to get back out their.... but man am flippen frustrated... HELP someone PLEASE!!!!!!!

Peter the Rookie..who is sooooo FRUSTRATED!!!!!!!!!!

 

[surfman]

Man, sounds like your having the same trouble I was having when I first started with the x70. First make sure you read the faqfaq at the top of this forum. All your answers are there. It takes time to get the hang of it but you will get it and when you do you'll love the 70. What I ended up doing was resetting back to factory settings. They say it takes about 100 hours to really get it. I got the thing down now but it took awhile. Try to just dig those solid repeatable signals. If the numbers bounce up or down by only two numbers, say 36-38-40, dig it. As far as the wet sand stuff ( I live at the beach ), try to stay in the dry. The x-terra series aren't the best for wet sand. I got an excall for that reason. There is some good stuff in the faqfaq about it though. I bet i've read it 10 times from start to finish and I know that's the reason I finally got it. There's some really great guys on here that i'm sure will be able to help. Dont give up just yet. That Explorer's gonna have alot longer learning curve than the 70. Go slow and enjoy yourself, if I find something cool, great, but if I dont that's great too. It's all about being outdoors and having fun. Good luck and let us know how it works out.

 

[wizzo86]

OK i feel your pain!!!! Here's what
I have done with my 705 ( replacement for the 70) almost the same machine with some improvements such as a back lighted screen and faster recovery between targets. First let's get you to read the frequent questions at the top of this forum. That will answer many of your questions..... Let's talk about the threshold.... First place your coil a couple inches off the ground and go no lower. bob it up and down. listen to the tone. you want it to be quiet or close to it....you'll hear a low tone hit the + till you start hearing a high tone.... right in the middle is where you want to be. First turn your sensitivity down till you start getting use to your machine..... You can always go over the places you start in at a later date with more sensitivity. I'm telling you this to stop some of your frustration.If the sensitivity is up you will get false signals and I'm thinking that's what's happening. Rule of thumb to remember is check threshold often. I have found that on one pass across a field it changes allot sometimes. SO get in the habit of checking it often. Hot rocks are a problem will drive you nuts... Remember every time you change the sensitivity you must reset the threshold. Good luck and I'm sure there will be others with more experience than I that will chime in with help....

 

[surfman]

What wizzo is talking about is the ground balance procedure. You can also use the tracking feature. It works great. Turn on, do noise cancell, find a spot with no targets and put in track. Walk a couple feet and switch it off. It will track really fast at first and then settle on a ground balance number. Set your threshold so you can just hear it. Factory preset should work fine. Dont make any big changes till you get the hang of it.

 

[7centsworth]

You have a good detector it just takes time to learn. You asked about low ground balance numbers . the lower the numbers the higher your mineralization is. I have never used that coil you have. But you have to swing x-terras a little slower than other brands. I always auto noise cancel and then auto ground balance. I know I hated my first x-terra for about a week . Once I realized to slow my swing to about half of what I was swing I started finding the good stuff. If you reject a hot rock with a certain number you will be rejecting all targets that come in at that same number. Be sure to read the faq faq post at top of page.

 

[Digger]

Here is a post I made several years back about coin hunting with the X-TERRA 70. By the way, this link can be found in the FAQFAQ section. If you haven't read through those posts, I'd recommend it. HH Randy

http://www.findmall.com/read.php?55,497015,497015#msg-497015

 

[dreamsville]

Hi Guys thanks for all coming back to me so quickly, you never cease to amaze me, i go to bed wake up and the answers are their... what a great bunch of guys GREAT SUPPORT...

hey Randy i clicked on your link on the article you wrote a few years back.... BOY DO YOU KNOW YOUR STUFF and to take the time to type and pass on your wisdoms what can i say...

As a Rookie some went in based on where i,m at now ( not very far on) and some went reet over my head, the Tracking info etc ive NEVER used this facility at all on my machine... All you guys have just prevented me from selling up and geting a different machine ( how stupid would i have been)

ok couple of questions based on what ive heard so far:

Thresh hold

* i take it i just set it to a number that i can hear faintly humming in the background and thats ok, ps when i use the headphones it can be lower because i can hear it better, when i',m not using headphones i have to turn it up 5 notches so i can hear it!! does this make any difference to the effectiveness?

Ground ballance

* for now i will auto ballance however when i do it, are you saying its best to lower sensitivity to single digit press pinpoint to resume display then hit Ground ballance in all metal, HOWEVER when i GB as soon as i hit GB then go to hit auto before i can raise and lower the coil 1 time the AU comes up and the GB level appears.... so i guess i,m saying why is this happening, it only seems to work when i raise and lower before i hit AUTO what am i doing wrong?


TRACKING

* how important is this for me to use ( as i havent at all yet) as it appears, when noise cancel and GB are set does this not sort of take away the need to track? if i do use track do i not need to GB?

SENSITIVITY

* i picked up from a reply that everytime i adjust sensitivity to reset the ground ballance ( im always adjusting the sensitivity far too often i think as i have wanted to get as deep as poss and pick up as much as poss so i try to keep it over 20 and sometimes 23+ so i,m up and down the scale probs every 15 mins and i am not resetting GB afterwards so will this have been contributing to my frustration? ie doing something major wrong?

I do keep looking through FAQ and i can see a wealth of info i can grow into, i guess i just want to get basic operation working great and understand what i,m doing ie

set noise cancel, GB, use tracking if its important for me right now, slow my sweep, listen for more clear signals operate in Coin and treasure mode, use pinpoint and feel i am using the right coil ( still not sure after reading many posts) maybe i should go stock coil instead of 10.5DD HF it appears this is a sensitive coil for Gold and jewelery, yet i am hunting mostly in Farmland and woods looking for coins and the beach dry sand for jewelery, i feel i would like a second coil if only to be able to compare ? living in the UK i am excited at trying to find Roman stuff so dunno if anyone would say Peter the coil i would buy is.....

sorry all the questions i can feel the learning curve rising which lowers the frustration curve.. thansk to everyone who has replied so far,m im not sure if just adding a comment is the way to reply or go back to everyone individually , dont want to offend anyone..

Thanks Guys any extra help with my questions in this reply appreciated.

Peter ( better go to work now!)

 

[Danno]

Hi Peter,

I'm new too. Just got my 705 a few days ago and haven't even taken it out of the box yet.

I have downloaded a few Minelab videos from youtube and the Minelab website. They are excellent and makes it all so much clearer when you can follow
along with a video. For me a video is worth a 1000 words. Like having an instructor beside you.

Good Luck

Danno

 

[Digger]

ok couple of questions based on what ive heard so far:

Thresh hold

* i take it i just set it to a number that i can hear faintly humming in the background and thats ok, ps when i use the headphones it can be lower because i can hear it better, when i',m not using headphones i have to turn it up 5 notches so i can hear it!! does this make any difference to the effectiveness?

It doesn't surprise me that it requires raising the Threshold by 5 numbers to hear it without headphones. The key point is to not overdrive the Threshold. In other words, regardless of whether you are using headphones or not, don't set it any higher than "just barely audible". Having a Threshold too high can mask small targets. Having it too low will create a situation where deep targets may not produce enough signal to get your attention.

Ground ballance

* for now i will auto ballance however when i do it, are you saying its best to lower sensitivity to single digit press pinpoint to resume display then hit Ground ballance in all metal, HOWEVER when i GB as soon as i hit GB then go to hit auto before i can raise and lower the coil 1 time the AU comes up and the GB level appears.... so i guess i,m saying why is this happening, it only seems to work when i raise and lower before i hit AUTO what am i doing wrong?

The reason I tell people to use all metal is to make sure there are no targets under the coil as you Ground Balance. The reason I tell people who are new to the X-TERRA to lower their Sensitivity before setting the GB is because they might not be familiar enough with the Threhsold tone to distinguish it from the GB tone. If you do not have a problem identifying the different tones, then leaving the Sensitivity up at the operational level is fine. Just keep in mind that overdriving the Threshold or the Sensitivity can cause you to set the GB at an incorrect level. To set the GB using the Auto mode, find a spot that is free of any metallic objects, hold the coil about 6-inches above the surface, press the GB pad and you will hear the GB hum. Press the Mode pad and you will see the letters AU appear in the display. Slowly lower the coil toward the ground, being careful to not actually touch the coil on the ground. You will see the menu bars acting as a progress screen. Continue raising and lowering the coil (2 - 10 seconds, depending on the mineralization) until the sequence is complete. When the Auto GB has completed it's task, you will hear a confirmation tone.

TRACKING

* how important is this for me to use ( as i havent at all yet) as it appears, when noise cancel and GB are set does this not sort of take away the need to track? if i do use track do i not need to GB?

Noise Cancel should be done every time you turn on your detector. And, it should be the first thing you check if your X-TERRA gets noisy during a hunt. Noise Cancel is the process of allowing the electronics of the X-TERRA to minimize outside electrical interference. It is not dependent on GB or tracking. Tracking is "constant ground balancing on the fly". If you have your detector set to Tracking, there is no reason to Ground Balance as the X-TERRA is constantly doing it for you. Be aware, however, that after you first hear a target, if you continue to X over that target repeatedly, you can actully fool the X-TERRA into thinking that target is part of the ground matrix. Since GB is the simplest form of discrimination (it discriminates out the effects of the ground), you could discriminate out a good target accidently and temporarily. With a little practice, you shouldn't have this problem. But while you're in the learning curve, you might want to switch off Tracking when you are Xing over a target. Then turn it on again when you are ready to continue the hunt.

SENSITIVITY

* i picked up from a reply that everytime i adjust sensitivity to reset the ground ballance ( im always adjusting the sensitivity far too often i think as i have wanted to get as deep as poss and pick up as much as poss so i try to keep it over 20 and sometimes 23+ so i,m up and down the scale probs every 15 mins and i am not resetting GB afterwards so will this have been contributing to my frustration? ie doing something major wrong?

Although Sensitivity, GB and Threshold all work "hand in hand", you don't have to reset the GB everytime you change your sensitivity. Your part of the world can have some really nasty mineralization. As such, don't think the Sensitivity numbers I use here in the States is representative of what you might require. Having your Sensitivity too high can be far worse than having it too low. When it is set too high for the soil, the signals actually bounce back to the receive circuits instead of penetrating the soil. Kind of like bright lights bouncing back toward you in the fog. It is an art, not a science. But once I have my NC and GB set properly, I like to keep my Sensitiivity as high as I can, without causing false signals (chirping). If you run in tracking mode, you will not have to worry about changing your GB for anything as the X-TERRA will do it for you.

JMHO HH Randy

 

[RKW]

General advice from a new 705 owner: turn down your sensitivity and increase it as you become more familiar with the MD. Keep returning to your manual as you learn the machine. Keep returning to the 705 specific FAQ's as you learn the machine. Be patient. There is an art to it and it will come as you practice.

 

[wizzo86]

OK i feel your pain!!!! Here's what
I have done with my 705 ( replacement for the 70) almost the same machine with some improvements such as a back lighted screen and faster recovery between targets. First let's get you to read the frequent questions at the top of this forum. That will answer many of your questions..... Let's talk about the threshold.... First place your coil a couple inches off the ground and go no lower. bob it up and down. listen to the tone. you want it to be quiet or close to it....you'll hear a low tone hit the + till you start hearing a high tone.... right in the middle is where you want to be. First turn your sensitivity down till you start getting use to your machine..... You can always go over the places you start in at a later date with more sensitivity. I'm telling you this to stop some of your frustration.If the sensitivity is up you will get false signals and I'm thinking that's what's happening. Rule of thumb to remember is check threshold often. I have found that on one pass across a field it changes allot sometimes. SO get in the habit of checking it often. Hot rocks are a problem will drive you nuts... Remember every time you change the sensitivity you must reset the threshold. Good luck and I'm sure there will be others with more experience than I that will chime in with help....

I misspoke when i used the term threshold. First let me say i never use it. I ground balance all the time. ground balance = manual, threshold = automatic.That way I do not have to worry about sweeping over a target too much (to understand what is there) and fooling the automatic threshold. It's very easy to do and you get in the habit of doing it often. just remember to put the machine in all metal and look for a spot that does not give you a metal reading when you do. I usually detect in P1 in trash areas and all metal in few target areas. I have only had my machine 2 months now and this is what I have learned. Now I am very confident that we have the best machines out there for the price.

 

[Digger]

With the X-70 and 705, the GB can be set automatically and the Noise Cancel Channel can be set automatically. But the Sensitivity and Threshold can only be set manually. Sensitivity varies upon the number of targets under the coil at any one time, and ground conditions. The Threshold should typically be set so that it is just barely making a sound. I think of the Threshold as a starting point for the target signals. Too much or too little Threshold can result in targets being missed. Too little (e.g. silent search) can cause weak signals to not make enough sound to overcome the silence. And too much Threshold can create a situation where the target is too small or too deep to overcome the sound of the Threshold. JMHO HH Randy

 

[elvis earnhardt]

make sure your target stability is on!