Is The Whites MXT Pro Still A Viable Detector?

Can it keep pace and hold its own with the newer detectors on the market today or is it an old relic? Why should someone get a MXT Pro rather than one of the newer detectors if money isn't an issue? What can it do that the newer and more modern detectors can't do?

tabman

Good question tabman. My 2 cents on this one is this. I have an MXT Pro with several coils. It's one of the detectors in my arsenal I won't sell. I believe it can hold it's own with any of the newer models being put to market today.

One of the things I like the most about it is it's simplicity. It can be set up in 1 minute and adjusted on the fly in a matter of seconds. A glance down and you can see all the controls and where they are set. If I haven't detected in a while and want to take it out for a spin, I don't have to read up on it in a manual the night before to remember how to use it (that's why I like my CZ's too !).

Recovery speed is still plenty fast, it goes deep and is hot on both silver AND low conductors. Put a Detech 13 inch Ultimate coil on it and watch out deep silver and relics. Put the Whites 5.3 coil on it and sniff out some clad and jewelry in the parks.

OK...it's not ergonomically designed as the new models out there. Does not have tons of bells and whistles or multiple frequencies. But its made in the USA, is rock solid in it's dependability and workmanship and Whites is top notch in customer service ( at least in my opinion in dealing with them several times over the course of my 30 years of detecting).

If someone asked would I recommend an MXT Pro I would say yes in a second.

I was an MXT and MXT Pro fan for years until I started using the Makro Racer, Racer 2 and now the Nokta Impact. The MXT's are very good "all around" detectors for sure but there are some newer detectors that out perform the MXT in certain areas. JMHO

I have had lots of detectors over the years and a lot have come and gone but still have and mxt pro that I won't give up. They just plain flat work even in my harsh alkali infested soil.

I've had all the MXT's and they all run about the same...the boards I believe went through some revisions as far as components but they all run about the same in the field...

YET I prefer the MXT Pro or All Pro (no difference in those two )...Just a name change..The reason being is it has a convenient ground grab button on display housing and for me when I want to update ground balance its on the fly instead of having to stop and reach across and flip switch on control box...Plus the Pro has a multi tone option in coin mode if your more inclined to use it in modern trash areas by ear only hunts...And theresa backlight on the Pros too for dim/low light conditions...

I've put MXTs to use since there release..I actually went to the dealers the day they arrived to his shop upon release back in early 2003 or so and had to have one right then after bench testing one.On the condition I get a DD coil for it quick..I did not like the 950 Concentric on it...And they have rewarded me ever since...Actually the MXT 300 model with the 6x10 DD netted me one of my lifelong quest in a well hunted site..

The MXT was built off the GMT Goldmachine and was designed to run DD coils and you can tell that by putting a Concentric on it that it's just not right...With a 6x10 or 6x8 SEF a MXT just flat out slaps brass..YES I said SLAPS...you cant miss it and it the most awesome sound you will ever hear when running relic mode...whack whack whack as it Lites up a target..It loves buttons...I've read the engineering report and I believe it has more of a Three filter design than 2...older whites were 4 filter and handle bad dirt well...BUt never had DD coils...well the MXT with its ability to be swung slower than those fast swing 4 filter units made all the difference in the world for working trash and still getting depth..and Luckily like all Whites the ID system is very accurate..and In my soil with the larger DDs I've dug some stuff at deep depths in hunted hard spots utilizing the relic mode two tone...you get all metal and disc at same time and by hearing that round all metal threshold rise and maybe if your lucky a slight peep in middle of the rise from disc circuit reporting in unison you can dig things extremely deep..things that if you were just in disc mode only you would ignore as a rejected blip from disc...but couple it together and the false blips are easily distinguishable from a legitimate deep target right at the end of disc range or even beyond disc range targets can be located...

MXTs are also very hot on silver and large brass at depth...I've dug some deep half dollars with the MXT and deep Belt buckles..


Its as home on a Soccer field as it is on centuries old relic site...the 4x6 DD is stellar in unlocking iron and the large D2 10" is deep ....the mid size 6x10 range is the perfect all arounder for it ..the machine is built like a tank and can take a beating...And will reward any user with finds about anywhere once accustom to it...One of the Legends in the world of detecting...One of the most versatile units to date.A real workhorse unit.




Keith

“I don't care that they stole my idea . . I care that they don't have any of their own”
-Nikola Tesla

Keith, I agree with everything you said about the MXT's.

Keith------I remember your testings/vid of the MXT and the SEF 6X8" DD and how that coil on the MXT did better with g.b. on your very highly mineralized brick (that special brick) & hitting a target under it (nickel?)-----better than the Whites 5X10 DD.-------How come you aren't still using that combo out in the field---or are you?---------Del

Yes I use alot of unit I don't talk about lol..

There just part of the arsenal.

Keith

“I don't care that they stole my idea . . I care that they don't have any of their own”
-Nikola Tesla

Just picked up a pro with the 10”dd and a 4x6” for trash work myself

Should be interesting as I had the 1st mxt back in 2003/4 but I too didn’t like the 950 coils that came on them, however, always loved any unit with a mixed mode which is why I bought this one

One of my favorite machines too. I had one when they first came out but did not like it then and was quite vocal about it being a flop. My other machines could out hunt it on signals all day long. I didn't know then, that the culprit was the 950 concentric coil that was on it, as I didn't know enough to know the difference between a concentric coil and a DD coil. The MXT coupled with the Ultimate coil and 6x8 SEF is a dynamite package. I could make due with one for sure, although I utilized it for relic hunting in the Coin/Jewelry and Prospecting mode more so than its Relic mode. I did not like the tones or mixed mode of the Relic mode. The Prospecting mode is very deep for relics.

Thanks for all the info. I just bought a MXT All Pro with the 950 search coil. I'm now in the market for a good used SEF 6 x 8 search coil at a decent price.

tabman

The SEF 6 x 8 stays on my MXT Pro all the time, it is a good coil.

Keith Southern Wrote:
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> Yes I use alot of unit I don't talk about lol..
>
> There just part of the arsenal.
>
> Keith

Ok, so how's the MXT "stacking up" to the Fors Relic & T2 Classic these days (IYO)?

I found them boring! But they do work.

Alpha Goat Wrote:
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> I found them boring! But they do work.


You found the Relic & T2 boring George?

D&P-OR Wrote:
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> Alpha Goat Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I found them boring! But they do work.
>
>
> You found the Relic & T2 boring George?


No. The T2 with boost process running 60.39.BP works great in my red clay. I'm left handed. I did not care for side controls but the Relic is very good.

Yes, the MXT is still very much a viable detector.

A few years ago, I did extensive side-by-side comparison testing of the MXT with both the V3i and the CTX 3030. I even went so far as to carry two detectors on my hunts so I could thoroughly compare signals on real-world in-ground targets. WHat I found was that the MXT was just as deep and had just as good target ID as the CTX 3030 and the V3i. Coils used were the 10x12 SEF on the MXT and V3i and the stock 11" on the CTX. I was primarily interested in isolated deep coin targets.

The CTX 3030 was a very nice detector, well balanced, easy to use, and was less chattery than the MXT to get the same depth and ID. But there was no difference between the two in raw performance. Now this was in fairly mild soil: iron mineralization but not strong. But since I hunt primarily in this type of soil here in Boise, I saw no great need to keep the CTX and sold it after a year. Maybe in stronger soils, the CTX would have shown its advantage over the MXT, but not here in Boise. I still use my V3i because it's just so fun to tweak all the settings and experiment, but it too had no advantage over the MXT in real-world performance. Disclaimer: I'll say it again to try to avoid any flaming: this was in my soil. But I do think my soil is fairly representative of commonly found urban soils across the US.

The MXT is just a great detector. It does lack a lot of bells and whistles, some of which are really nice to have, like target trace, advanced discrimination settings, 3-freq spectragraph, and so forth, but overall it's a hot rod that simply works great. The ground balance system is the best I've ever used, it is deep, has great audio (built-in mixed mode), has a very forgiving wide sweep speed range and can be swept very slowly and get excellent separation while maintaining depth, and is rugged and easy to use. It's still the standard against which I judge all other detectors.

I agree with all that has been said, My first MXT whooped all my other machines so I did not see the point in hanging on to them, having tested a lot of coils on the MXT I have it running like a dream, The secrete to depth on the MXT is in the right coil choice, the machine it's self is very powerful indeed but coils can make or break the MXT, the concentrics are deep in lesser soils but as the ground heats up the Detech Coils can really allow the MXT to put that power to good use and as Keith said that 2 tone relic mode with the all metal 3rd tone can really boost the depth, way beyond past the point of bleeping on a target, Using that third tone gives the MXT similar depth to PI machines when matched with the right coil even in hotter soil conditions, As does the older 5900 Blue Box.

After reading these posts I miss mine. Should have hung on to it..

I'll never forget the time I had taken it over to my grandfathers to show my uncles for thanksgiving, 2003. They wanted to see if it would really show me whats in the ground, as they had never really played with a detector and were only aware of the old Whites commercials, "you can see whats in the ground before you dig it up". So i proceeded to show my new machine off.. fired it up.. ground balanced.. walk 5 steps.. and by far, one of the sweetest high tones I've ever heard from a detector.. I said "dime".. my uncle and dad leaned in to see the screen and noted what it said while my more skeptical uncle stood and watched. I pinpointed and was stunned.. 10 inches.. I said "this has got to be old" and by the time I look up, the skeptic uncle had already dashed to the garden shed and brought back a spade shovel, planting it right next to my coil he says "right there" meaning to cut a plug.. With three swift chomps he popped up a plug and at the tip was the reed of a mercury dime, my first mercury dime.

Brings back the warm and fuzzies.. now to check ebay..

I just received a Detech 5 x 10 SEF DD search coil in the mail, but I haven't had a chance to try it out in the field yet. That sucker is super light and from the testing that I did in my coin garden it has some amazing depth for its size. Oh yeah, it handles EMI great! I can run the sensitivity wide open without much or any chatter. I just ordered a 5.3 concentric search coil and can't wait until it gets here. The 950 search coil that came on my MXT Pro is just a little too big for the trashy places that I like to detect. I'd be out detecting today, but it's raining.

What are your favorite search coils for the MXT?

tabman

tabman Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I just received a Detech 5 x 10 SEF DD search coil
> in the mail, but I haven't had a chance to try it
> out in the field yet. That sucker is super light a
> nd from the testing that I did in my coin garden i
> t has some amazing depth for its size. Oh yeah, it
> handles EMI great! I can run the sensitivity wide
> open without much or any chatter. I just ordered a
> 5.3 concentric search coil and can't wait until it
> gets here. The 950 search coil that came on my MXT
> Pro is just a little too big for the trashy places
> that I like to detect. I'd be out detecting today,
> but it's raining.
>
> What are your favorite search coils for the MXT?
>
> tabman

I like the 12"/300 coil but it can loose depth in hotter ground So now my go to Coil is the Detech 14x10 because it has the power of the 12" concentric but it does not loose depth and it can see bits of lead/gold down to 0.03 grams, then the next one is the 5.3 (6") concentric, The 5.3 is the hottest coil for finding small gold and it has more depth than the 6x10 Whites DD coil in most soils even in the hot Gold areas in Australia., I also have the 15" MXT Max concentric coil for deep searching, I have the MXT All Pro and it came with the factory 10" DD coil, I also have the 950 concentric which is a good coil in normal type soils, One thing to remember is that you don't have to turn the Disc up as high when you use a concentric coil because they have better discrimination so In junk filled sites I try to use a concentric coil even for Gold because running the disc too high you can wipe out Iron stained Gold so that is why I say to use the 5.3 coil for 5 reasons 1) it is the hottest coil on tiny targets and way more sensitive 2) it can match the 6x10 for depth, 3) the Discrimination is very accurate, 4) you don't need to use as much Disc, 5) it work really well in junk filled sites,

So 1) 14x10, 2) 5.3 (6") and the 950 coil is good if you want an easy day, Just remember that the 14x10 weighs the same as the factory 10" DD coil but it has more depth and covers more ground and it is better balanced and because of that it has become my go to coil,

hope that helps.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/17/2017 01:40PM by auminesweeper.