Howdy! About Garrett pinpointer

[TechBill]

Howdy everyone!

I been Treasure hunting and detecting for 30+ years but took a long break from it for the last several years. Now I am getting back into the game and recently purchased a CTX since I always used Minelab brand even since it was introduced into USA. I am also an administrator of Findmall server and do all the back-end work on this Findmall forums to keep it running smooth all those years.

My last detector was a eTrac and I had a X1 Sunray pinpointer on it so since they don't make one for CTX (darn!) I will have to purchase a pinpointer to use with CTX. After doing some search on this forum it seem that Garrett and Minelab are both popular pinpointer however one thing about me ...... I am Deaf ... so my research revealed that folks here think Garrett pinpointer have the strongest vibration but there no way to disable the speaker on it.

So my question is have anyone tried opening a Garrett pinpointer to cut the wire to the speakers? I don't need the sound or should I get the Minelab pinpointer instead? I also discovered in my research that Minelab pinpointer have a much better LED than the Garrett and speaker can be manually disabled.

My old old pinpointer before that was a VibraProbe (spelling?) but the depth wasn't great on it but I loved the vibration on it. Have they improve the depth on the newer models?

Thank you for all your inputs!

Bill

 

[goodmore]

I never cut the wire to the speaker, but I put silicone in the speaker hole and wrapped silicone tape around that. It cut the volume down quite a bit. I have the TRX now. I also had the Minelab unit and the Garrett Pro Pointer. I will tell you that the Garrett unit vibration is by far the best. I like the Whites unit the best because it is the deepest and the Garrett units hve durability problems. I'm afraid if you go cutting wires Garrett might not honor that warranty when you need it.

 

[GKMan]

Welcome back to the hobby Bill! I can't offer you advice on the pinpointers, since I use the Uniprobes, but performing a non invasive operation like Goodmore mentioned with silicon sounds like a sure way to cut down the sound and keep the warranty.
I did a quick Google and found this...http://www.damjanmozetic.si/2009/01/02/reducing-the-speaker-volume-on-the-garrett-pro-pointer/ Other hits I looked at mentioned that the disassembly of the pro pointer ended in disaster with the power switch falling apart.


I don't know why the guy that runs the site I linked to posted this since it doesn't sound like he is a detectorist, but, being an Admin feel free to delete it!


And from one IT guy to another, remember to always tell the folks you support to never type Google into the Google box because it can break the internet.....

 

[Bayoubug]

Hi Bill. Glad to see you get back into the swing of things. Lol. Thanks for keeping the gears turning and oiled. I've done a lot of IT work over the years myself. I would suggest the Whites TRX. I was looking for a new Pinpointer to go with my CTX because I used the DX1 with my DFX for years. I was going to go with the Garret until I heard about the TRX coming out. As the reviews started coming in I felt like this was the route for me. It has adjustable sensitivity. You can turn the sound off and use just the vibration mode. It seems like a tuff tool since I've been putting it to work. I'm sure the garret works fine based on the information I've collected about it. I just can't give any personal experience with it. Hope this helps Bill. Let us know what you get.

 

[bottle collector]

Bill, why would you want to cut the speaker wire if you are deaf? The only reason I can think of is not wanting others to hear the PP. I have the Garrett PP and the noise is a little loud for my liking so I wrapped electrical tape around it (about 4 wraps) centered over the speaker. That cuts the volume by about 80% IMO and is easily reversible. The vibrate feature on the Garrett is very good.

 

[Larry (IL)]

Be very careful opening a GPP I have read, things can go wrong real fast. I agree that taping the speaker hole will probably accomplish what you want to do Bill but I think the new White's TRX is the way to go.......

 

[GKMan]

Gosh yeah, if the TRX can turn off sound it definitely is a better option, so you can avoid the adventures people experienced taking apart the pro point

 

[Welwood470]

Hi BIll, I agree with others on here who advise against cutting or disabling the speaker. As far as reliability, I have two Garretts that I've had over 4 years and no issues. I bought
an extra for a back-up. I also got a product called Pro-Flex that is used for sealing roof leaks and RV rubber roofs. It is clear and flows nicely. I dabbed the Power swt.,
speaker and light and the speaker is barely audible. Now I have a waterproof PP...the best of two worlds. I also packed the speaker with a little mounting putty before
I coverd it with the Pro-Flexl......borrowed a little acrylic artist paint my wife uses for her craft projects, painted the switch red, speaker yellow and left the light clear.
Good luck which ever way you choose.

 

[TechBill]

One of you asked why disable speaker if I am Deaf.

Reason is I don't want to attract attentions if speaker accidentally went off while in my pouch or in my back pocket etc and I wouldn't even know it.

In past I had my phone going off while I am in class room or meetings that folks sometime wouldn't say anything to me and I would notice strange expression on their faces. Now I got an apps on my phone that mute my speaker automatically even if I accidentally turn speaker on then it will automatically mute it again right away. No more strange staring faces from others. ha!

Bill

 

[hershey1]

Why not give Garrett a call and explain your situation. Seems like they could fix you one with vibrate only without much trouble. Just a thought. HH