Planning on getting a new detector soon but I can't deicde between ExII or Quattro ..

[Anonymous]

I been using Minelab detector for years .. started out with the GT model since they didn't have discrimate capable machine then Soverigen finally came out and used that .. great machine all of them .. Got Excalibur too this one I will never sell or give up (it's about 9 year old I think) .. then got the Explorer XS (great coin machine and a nice civil war machine if you use WoT) .. I sold it because I gotten so busy with real life and needed the cash but still kept the Excalibur (I water hunt and civil war hunt more than anything so Excalibur with WoT coil on it make a great civil war machine that I don't have to run to my car when it pouring out) ..
Now I am getting more free time avaiabole to go out hunting more again and wanted to pick up another minelab again but I can't decide if to go with the Explorer II or the Quattro .. I don't think Quattro any lesser machine but when I had the Explorer XS I really didn't mess with the setting that much or try to set it to squeeze an extra depth out of it however I wanted to know if anyone had experience comparing both models on default setting or standard setting how the depth is if it the same or one is better than other ..
I'll also have to make sure WoT is avaiable for the Quattro too if I went this path .. I still love to civil war hunt .. I love to hunt out in the field in the middle of nowhere miles from any city it's just so peaceful and all you hear is wind blowing and cows moo'ing ..
I really don't care about trying to squeeze "extra" 1/4 inches if that all you get from fine tuning an Explorer II then I'll might go with the Quattro since civil war sites are not really a trash infected area (unless your hunting in an area where black smith was at) and I don't need to fine tune a detector to seperate the trash from the good target in places I hunt but I am just mainly concerned is the depth.
Also another thing that important to me is it still a stable quiet machine in salt water like all other Minelabe FBB and FBS machines? Have anyone tried Quattro in wet sand with wave pounding on the coil?
Thanks for sharing any info you might have with me and Happy New Year and Happy hunting ..
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

I am sure tests have been been made reguarding both and results would only equate to the users ability. Since you already owned an XS a 11 model would be a logical choice..Quattro seems like a user friendly machine but feel the ability of a Explorer to alter many facets gives you the ability to hunt many areas.
I believe in keeping an Explorer simple but subtle changes do make it an outstanding detector and feel a Quattro will not give you these options. Quattro was not offered by Minelab to replace the Explorer but to give those having problems mastering an Explorer a chance to swing a Minelab without a long learning curve which many have. Again an Explorer is only as easy or hard as you want it to be...

 

[Anonymous]

And it was the accessories that made the decision easy for me. With the EXP II you get headphones, Alkaline battery pack, NiMH pack, home charger and car charger for the NiMH pack, and the OPTION of openining up the machine (tweaking).
The one single shortcoming I see in the EXP II is the limited number (2) of custom programs you can save. I would have liked to have seen them provide 4, 8 or even 16 program "slots", but they decided 2 was enough for some reason.
In any event, the accessory offerings sealed the deal for me, not I own Minelab's finest general purpose machine, and I am beyond happy with my choice.
Nothing really wrong with the Quattro, in fact I drove 160 miles round trip to buy one, but I did come home with the EXP II! <img src="/metal/html/biggrin.gif" border=0 width=15 height=15 alt="">
DAS

 

[Anonymous]

Explorer is easy to use and setup but that wasn't my reason of looking at Quattro ..
The thing with explorer is that I always set it once and never fiddle with the settings again unless some reason it just got wiped out and I had to go back and set all my prefence setting again.. I just basically turn on and go .. really never messed with custom discrimate smart menu because I relic and water hunt alots and hardly ever coin shoot so trash is not really an issue to me since I run it at zero discrimate or just a tad above iron ..
So basically I firgued if the depth is the same on both machine .. why should i pay another couple hunderds of dollar for the "extra" feature I don't hardly ever use when Quattro will just do as good a job for me at a lot cheaper price .. Feature on the machine make no different to me .. if "X" brand came out with a 1 knob machine that goes deeper than Explorer or Quattro then I would be buying it instead .. I don't care what it have on it .. all I care is the depth of the machine .. if on Explorer II you can set it to gain an extra inch or two in depth over the Quattro then I would be most likly buying Explorer II instead but if the main reason of Explorer II being a best machine because you can really narrow your discrmate setting down with the smart menu however the depth on both machine is pretty much the same then I would leaning toward Quattro instead and maybe get two Quattro and waterproof one of the Quattro ..
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

When I have customers that come in with the same predicament I ask them to tell me a bit about themselves.
Because to me, the difference between the Explorer II and the Quattro it not just electronic and mechanical, it's a matter of personality.
Are you a spontaneous person, like to pick up and go? Quattro
Are you a very particular person who likes to study everything, every detail? Explorer II.
Are you a person who can get easily frustrated by a computer software program that is a bit difficult to learn? Quattro
Are you someone who sees a difficult computer program as something of a challenge. Do you take it as a personal accomplishment to become proficient with it and learn every nuance ? Explorer II
If you play video games, when you sit down to play a new one, do you become obsessed with beating it? Explorer II
Do you hate video games ? Do they give you a headache? Quattro
Are you a "control freak" wanting to be able to manipulate every second of your time ? Explorer II
Are you more laid back? Do you have a tendency to say, screw it, it can wait until later. Quattro.
If you picked up a new detector and it took you three weeks before you totally understood the detector and started finding good stuff, would that be OK with you ? If so, Explorer II.
Do you expect to be digging coins the first time you pick up a detector without even reading the instructions? Quattro.
As a kid did you like to tear things apart and examine every part to find out how something worked? Do you still like to ? Explorer II.
Do you have a tool bench. Do you own more than $200 worth of Craftsman tools? Do you own both a soldering gun and a soldering iron? Do you know how to wire a 220v AC outlet ? Sweat a copper pipe ? Explorer II.
Do you hate to read and study things ? Quattro
Did you ever or do you now own a Sovereign with a meter? Did you love this machine ? If so: Quattro.
Did you ever own any other metal detector that had a graphics screen that provided a lot of detailed information? Did you like it ? If so, Explorer II.
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Ask yourself these questions, and you will pretty much know which machine you will enjoy.
And make no mistake aboout it, the most important variable in how successful you will be depends on how confident you are in your machine, and how competent you become in learning the machine.
If you do not have the personality that will handle the learning curve of an Explorer II, then you will probably end up using the Explorer as a very expensive coat rack.
Hope this helps !
DOC

 

[Anonymous]

That the thing is doc ...
I pretty much 50 / 50 on your list so that still leave me between Explorer II and Quattro hehe ..
However if the depth is no difference between the two then my question had been answered and I know what I will be getting ..
What feature detectors have make no different to me as long it can handle the soil I detect in ..
See I live in Southwestern Missouri and our ground is so bad you'll be lucky enought to detect a .69 calibur at 5-6 inches even with an Explorer tuned at max peak setting which mean any other "X" brand may only pick it up at 4 inches or worse..
That is why I started with Minelab GT detector long ago when it was the only machine capable of picking up deep relic in a bad hot ground compare to other "X" brand machine and it was quite painful digging up all those irons since it was mainly an all metal nuggest machine made for bad/hot ground.
I know Explorer will handle Missouri ground just fine because I used to have one for 2 year before I sold it but I wouldn't mind going with Quattro if it handle just as well with the same depth and it have less feature on it that I hardly ever use on Explorer .. Only 2 thing I would consider important in a metal detector are the depth and able to adjust the deep faint signal and boost up the sound ..
Basically I am just hoping someone here can tell me they had compare the 2 side by side with "default" setting ie. "no tweaking" and performance wise and depth is the same on both in bad ground.
Bill

 

[Anonymous]

I am not replacing an Explorer .. I sold my Explorer long ago .. just buying a new detector but I am staying with Minelab since past experence tells me it the brand to go with for this hot/bad ground I live at.
I just would had gone with Explorer II if Quattro wasn't avaiable for sure .. but it look so different and I like trying new things .. hell I kinda like that blue color .. wonder if they'll sell me the blue housing with Explorer II in it .. hehehe ..
I would love to replace my Excalibur one day with a waterproof FBS unit if Minelab will ever release such machine in the future .. I think FBS is more stable and have some edge over the BBS in a bad/hot ground here but for now Ill stick with Excalibur as my water machine over any other brand until that day.
Bill