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Nulling ... Iron Mask .... All Metal

I don't post here like I once did but rest assured that there is no other forum that compares to the wealth of information for Explorer users that can be found here on Findmall.
With that said, after reading 5 pages of post concerning all metal (wide open IM ) verses discrimination and hearing targets sound off during a null ... I decided to post my 2 cents worth.
Nulling is simply the result of a software driven discrimination process controlled by the amount of discrimination being used.
The higher the discrimination, the better the chance for nulling between ferrous and non ferrous targets that are co-located.
The detector still hears the discriminated out target but turns into a defaulted null sound to your headphones.
Granted ... good targets within the nulled targets will sound out when hit at the right angle.
Wide open iron mask allows for a much quicker re-set time between co-located targets and you never hear a null ... but it takes quite a while before the brain just ignores what can drive most others crazy. So ... wide open IM is not for everyone but neither is disc, I tend to trust what I hear and let my shovel do the rest.
Whatever works best for the individual is all that matters. I prefer to hunt with a wide open IM screen and hear it all, I'm used to it and can cover more ground that way.
Since I mostly relic hunt, iron is my friend, when hunting LARGE open fields or I'm way out in the woods and suddenly come up on a bunch of iron ... it tells me that PEOPLE were there and to sloooow the hell down and investigate the area more.
The old timers (me included) used to discuss the MInelab Wiggle here quite often, the process doesn't care if the detector is in all metal or discrimination mode ... all that matters is that the user can approach a target with shorter and shorter coil sweeps until the coil mimics a WIGGLE motion right up on the target. This was discovered many moons ago when trying to WORK up a weak signals on the edge being detected and we found that it worked quite well with close co-located targets too. Many dedicated Sovereign users can attest to this as it seems that this process works best with Minelab multi-frequency detectors and I've rarely been able to duplicate it with other brands including dual frequency units.
I can't tell you how many good targets I've dug over the years that only sounded off by just hearing the threshold sound make a soft dip ... that's it... just a dip in the threshold, no screen movement, no low or high sounds ... just a dip ... dig down a few inches and the screen and sounds start producing results.
So ... my opinion on all of this is to use whatever settings work for YOU with time spent in the field detecting. There really is NO shortcuts unless you are lucky enough to have Explorer mentor as you learn.
But the bottom line is that this is a HOBBY and we are supposed to be enjoying it :)
Hope nobody takes this post as offensive ... it's not meant to be. I'm just an OLD guy that likes to ramble sometimes.:detecting:

Good Hunting
Mike
 
Thanks Mike. You answered my question and verified Derrellds and Bryce 's statements about hearing targets through a null. I always thought that u needed a threshold in order to hear a target, and a null was like a 'time out ' for the detector. Wow..that totally changes my thinking and opens up my eyes. Now I really am anxious to get out and hit some trashy spots Ive been eyeing up..Thanks for the post Mike...HH:usaflag:
 
You will get targets with a null, because of the recovery it will hit targets before you hear a threshold making it seem you are always in null. Frase44NY, to get those targets close to the target that nulled you need to be moving a little slower, otherwise you may pass right over them. If i get a null i tend to go back over the target again a bit slower. Thanks Mike good post... by the way im curious about AM. My understanding is if the processor has to process different tones or TID then you are never in true AM. That said, does the Explorer only have pinpoint as AM? I was used to using the DFX so i do miss the mixed mode and true AM. The Explorer's pinpoint just doesnt seem to go as deep as the DFX's does or maybe its just the VCO.
 
I love posts like this and appreciate those of you with the knowledge and the willingness to share it.
 
If you didn't have the different tones than AM would be pretty much worthless for all practical intents and purposes. It still does take processing to generate the correct sound for the target ID, but it seems to be much faster than nulling not sure why. The screen update is notoriously slow; just had a thought, I'm wondering it the two are related, that having areas discriminated out slows the audio down to the screen update time?????

Chris
 
Hope this isnt redundant... but... there is what we are calling NULL, when the machine goes to a low flat tone and then there is the QUIET or silence when no sounds are heard. No threshold no null not anything but quiet. One of the guys who reads this forum with me thought the quiet was what we are refering to as null and that the minelab is not able to detect any target when quiet. I had to tell him that his discrimination causes the quiet or silence ( no wonder no targets). I have one spot where the hole area is "Quiet" if I dont use the open iron mask and little or no discrimination. This is a tough hunt but the ONLY way I find I can hunt it with my EX and I havnt found that much just enough to keep me trying. I thought there might be others who assume the quiet is the Null its not.
 
Okay, now I am all screwed up! I thought that the break in the threshold as it goes quiet was the null, what is the flat tone that you are referring to? Please clarify. Thanks
 
Thats what I thought all this time..null=quiet..Im getting more confused by the minute..isnt null the discrimination that causes the quiet so not all undesireable targets are heard? Just want to clear this up :usaflag:
 
The only way to completely avoid the null is to run a wide open iron mask screen and most can't people handle all of the sounds ... as said previously, it's not for everybody but for SURE a process that must be learned to deal with certain hunt site conditions.

The Explorer retains full sound capability with a iron mask screen and YES this is truly a all metal mode accepting everything when wide open.

Think of it as a IRON discriminator only, the more the screen is CLOSED, the more iron shapes and sizes are accepted as well as nulling.

When the Explorer goes quite and all you hear is that flat tone ( NULL ) then it is either over heavy mineralized ground or a discriminated target, however, if it's over co-located targets like a nail & coin underneath the coil at the same time you should be able to hit the good target while in null from a different angle.

The display screen will not change during a null but the sound can.

It's always a good idea to check iron hits at different angles because there might just be something good very close to it.

That's why us old timers PREACH going sloooooow and hitting good sites from many angles .... and if it produces well enough ... grid it out and don't miss a square inch of it.

Good Hunting :detecting:
Mike
 
When machine is quiet..is that nulling, or when it lowers down to a low sound. ( Flat Tone).is that nulling..

If it's when it is quiet..what is the low sound we are hearing..a lower conductive target ??? Whew must be a lot of those in my area...

Geez this things not only Heavy..but complicated too.
 
might be persuaded to trade this thing off. It's not working for me..More I use it..the more I dislike it.
 
When the Explorer goes over a target that's been discriminated out ... that sound or lack of ... is the null.
I don't know about the rest of you guys but every Explorer I've ever owned has a different kind of sound when it goes into NULL instead of just running QUITELY ( no targets under coil ) because the threshold breaks and sounds whispery flat with quality headphones.

Hope this makes sense to you.

Mike
 
As close to new as you could get on a used machine..near perfect, ....Coil cover has scratches thats it.
 
Those machines are great.. alot of the guys here have them and are VERY successfull. Just hang in and get out as much asu can with it. Try the classroom forum on here also. When I first got my machine I practically live on that forum .And i cant tell u how many times I wanted to wrap my Explorer around a tree and I got talked out of it by the guys that are here and in the classroom. I read and asked a thousand questions on here and got more answers than I bargained for. Im so Happy I never sold it ..I am finding coins in parks I hunted 20 years ago. These parks have been POUNDED!!! Im pulling out coins That I never could find back then ( Whites 6000Di pro). Just hang in there man.. I promise you will be glad you did!!..GOOD LUCK!!
 
Thanks for the helpful information M.B.
I mess around with all metal some too...but I think I do better in conductive. I think it's a good idea to be proficient with both methods if we can.
 
n/t
 
Mike Bearden said:
When the Explorer goes over a target that's been discriminated out ... that sound or lack of ... is the null.
I don't know about the rest of you guys but every Explorer I've ever owned has a different kind of sound when it goes into NULL instead of just running QUITELY ( no targets under coil ) because the threshold breaks and sounds whispery flat with quality headphones.

Hope this makes sense to you.

Mike
Mike that better describes it "lack of sound" versus flat tone. Theres no tone in a null, the threshold disappears. That might have been whats confused a few people.

Good post. I used to disagree with people about this with the Sov as the Sov will also pick up targets in the null/blanking and yes, those threshold drops or wavers are always worth checking out, on the beach anyways:beers:
 
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