Hi. Just checking this forum and thought to add my 2 cents. The first thing you should do is hunt with the preset programs as they are. This could be for any length of time 3 months, 6 or more even. They were designed by experts after all. Once you have noted a weakness in the program as set from the factory and can verbalize it. Ask how the machine can be set to improve that area of the program. And so on. The thing to remember is the factory programs were designed by the people that know the machine inside and out to be the best first step. The only uncontrolled variables is you, conditions and your search area.
I think the worst thing you could do is take the attitude that the factory didn't know what they were doing and just start changing settings willy nilly. That would be a guarantee of failure in my mind. Surprisingly I have seen people take that attitude in many walks of life.
The area I came from in California had a interesting history and geology. I am from the San Joaquin valley btw. From what I have read the mountains surrounding the valley had 7 miles of volcanic mud on them over time it washed in to the what was once an inland sea until it was filled and became the valley we see today. Lodi my home town has some of the nicest sandy loam anywhere but go to Galt up the road and you have a clay gumbo. Point being when you look at the soil de-nuded you see patches of both soil types side by side. Your detector has to deal with that and the junk in the ground.
I installed cabinets all over the valley and on one job I was walking over the site just checking things out and noticed a driveway being poured. There was a huge spot of yellow clay probably a glob spit out of a volcano millions of years ago. It was totally different from the soil around it. It would have been fun to have time to detect it just for GP.
I think the worst thing you could do is take the attitude that the factory didn't know what they were doing and just start changing settings willy nilly. That would be a guarantee of failure in my mind. Surprisingly I have seen people take that attitude in many walks of life.
The area I came from in California had a interesting history and geology. I am from the San Joaquin valley btw. From what I have read the mountains surrounding the valley had 7 miles of volcanic mud on them over time it washed in to the what was once an inland sea until it was filled and became the valley we see today. Lodi my home town has some of the nicest sandy loam anywhere but go to Galt up the road and you have a clay gumbo. Point being when you look at the soil de-nuded you see patches of both soil types side by side. Your detector has to deal with that and the junk in the ground.
I installed cabinets all over the valley and on one job I was walking over the site just checking things out and noticed a driveway being poured. There was a huge spot of yellow clay probably a glob spit out of a volcano millions of years ago. It was totally different from the soil around it. It would have been fun to have time to detect it just for GP.