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Threshold

ryanchappell

New member
Anyone truly understand Threshold? All I have found on the subject is "turn the threshold to where you can barely hear a hum." That tells me nothing about the nature of this control!!!! Also, I seldom even use any discrimination because I am afraid that I will miss a coin while it is busy nulling out over iron. I can easily just ignore all the -4s and low tones. I just need to know what the heck threshold is doing to my detector?

Last night it seemed like turning it to a higher number on my 305 made more targets appear, thus in my opinion lowering the threshold of detection. Any help is appreciated. I am beginning to assume that people just ignore it and leave it at the "low hum" setting as it must be too complicated for people to want to discuss or even explain in a manual or white paper...
 
The E-Trac is one of the best silver detectors out, finding much more than any detector in 1978 could reach. Its not so much that its deeper, its that it can distinguish good targets from bad targets a lot easier I have heard.
 
If you look at the faqfaq section it should help you out quite a bit! And Chris I think you are opening up a can of worms here with your comments! There are a lot of experienced users with the xterras and the etracs that would disagree with your thinking. There isnt a thing on the market today that couldnt be better. But if you like a certain product and it works for you than so be it! If you dont like it look elsewhere!
 
I know nothing about Garret detectors, electronics in 1978, or the Etrac. Aside from those points with which I have no knowledge, I believe Chris Mac's post is pretty much on the money. I also believe that those who will critically read each of his points with an open mind will find most of them difficult to disagree with. For the record, I like my 505 and have no desire to exchange it for any other detector.

Ryan, as for threshold, here is what it has not done for me to date: It has not had any impact on IDs the detector gave for targets. It has not had any impact on the depth a given target could be detected. It has not eliminated noise or trash signals. It has not changed the tone a target is assigned. I have not given up looking for a real impact on the detector's performance but it is definitely not a priority and I seriously doubt I will find one.

It will tell you when you are over a discriminated target but that is of little use to me as I do not discriminate. It would be very useful if Minelab would build an mp3 player into the next detector so you could replace the threshold tone with some tunes.

Sometimes I wonder if Minelab's engineers sit around the pub at lunch and laugh at us poor forum folks trying to figure out threshold.

Cheers,

S505
 
....there are some schools of thought that suggest if the Threshold hum is in-audiable, the smaller, deeper and fainter signals struggle to break through.
By bringing the background hum up so you can just hear it, these signals can be picked up.

Now.....I'm not sure if this is true......it's just people's thoughts.

I think the Threshold is just a control so you can hear iron nulling when using disc patterns.

Gaz.
 
Gaz, you brought up the only area that I want to look at more. That is threshold's impact on the deep faint signals. Deep faint signals are elusive and seem only present at the lowest 1.5 inches of detection. Other than that the signals seem full strength. I have never heard them when actually detecting (I can't say I am really trying to hear them either) but have heard them when testing at depth in dirt. Sometimes they were quite easily heard but I was not recording settings etc. so am unable to point to the variables which influenced them most (it might have just been volume, depth, and target size). But I was also messing with threshold at the time. In order to be heard as faint, not only does a target have to be at the outer reach of the detector but there can be no other metal closer to the coil. A fairly rare set of circumstances where I detect. Thinking that I must need to tweak settings because I don't hear them is probably wishful thinking when circumstances are right for a faint signal less than 5% of the time.

S505
 
.....you can hear the difference when you air test.. As you take a target further away to the detection limit.....it growers weaker and more faint.
It's worth doing this to remind you of what it sounds like.

Gaz.
 
From what I read if threshold keeps humming when you hit target its a good 1
If it gos silent its junk
 
.......yeah that's right.....if you're using a disc pattern......
 
I dont really know what the threshold does besides blank when I'm going over iron which is good especially if your hunting old home sites, it gives you a good idea of the area where the house was knocked down ( old nails ) I usually set it to 10-12 on my headphones.
 
http://www.findmall.com/read.php?55,811636,811646#msg-811646
 
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