Need help with the Explorer setup.

My friend is bringing me his explorer to mess around with. I want to test it against the Equinox. I will get my buddies CTX too and throw in the mix. I don't know anything about the Explorer. What settings for depth and separation test do you suggest? Went and checked the minelab video out on you tube.

Tom, Tom the Explorer man.---Where are you???-----This guy needs your help!

Iron Mask - adjust to about the diameter of a wooden match minus 16 is good to help null small ferrous without shutting down completely.
In the Factory Settings it will take a long Recovery.

Sens 22-26 is good.

Threshold to a bare whisper - if you don't have this on you won't hear shutdown times

Will this be a good setting for the nail test against the Nox. I know from you guys the Explorer is good on deep silver but I want to put against the Nox on some unmasking test too. They are just test but will be interesting to see ...

Which Explorer model is it?
The XS, the II, SE?

I put you wrong on the Iron Mask -16 is equivalent to All Metal

From an article dated July 2004 - "Alternative Settings for the Explorer II"

For ploughed and rolled (flat) soils:
Iron Mask - minus 12
Sounds - Continuous
Response - Audio 1
Recovery - Default (off)
Threshold - 9
Variability - 6
Limits - 7
Gain - 7

Fresh ploughed soils:
Sensitivity - Semi-Auto
Iron Mask - 14
Sounds - Continuous
Response - Audio 2
Recovery - Fast
Threshold - 9
Variability - 9
Limits - 6

Beach use:
Iron Mask - 12
Sounds - Conductive
Response - Normal
Recovery - Deep
Threshold - 7
Variability - 6
Limits - 5

As you can see, there's heaps of set ups!
It had the reputation of a long learn curve!

PS I helped create it!

Well if You put it up against the Nox in Separation You are setting it up to lose.
The Etrac would fair better as it is faster. But still not a great separation Detector.
Now on 'I.D.' at Depth it should have No problem out doing the Nox.

Harold,ILL. Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Well if You put it up against the Nox in Separatio
> n You are setting it up to lose.
> The Etrac would fair better as it is faster. But s
> till not a great separation Detector.
> Now on 'I.D.' at Depth it should have No problem o
> ut doing the Nox.

The Explorer is one of the all time greats...but I never thought of it as fast recovery unit.
Agreeing with Harold, my guess is that the only thing the Explorer will out do against the Nox is I.D.

Its the SE. I am gonna test it on deep silver in my garden and see how the Nox fairs against it. I know the Nox will more than likely out do it on low conducters and separation.

Yes the SE is a little faster than the XS but still No speed Demon. But on Deep Silver it's hot like all Explorers.
That should be interesting to see along with the CTX.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/24/2018 05:30PM by Harold,ILL..

I just don't have much faith in test made by people not familiar with the unit tested and more so in comparisons. I've seen some pretty pathetic results by others. I am not saying you will not do better, but just that I've seen some very unfair comparisons that said way more about the user than the unit.

Past(or)Tom
Using a Legend, a Deus 2, an Equinox 800, a Tarsacci MDT 8000, & a few others...
with my beloved, fading Corgi, Sadie

Well in there lies the problem . I don't have time to master the detector that's why I asked for help from the Explorer masters. If a guy unfamiliar asked how to set the Deus up for certain test I could tell him how to do that in about 60 seconds. Im hoping someone on here will be able to do that for a BASIC test garden depth test in mild soil and some nail test. I will read the manual and know how to navigate the machine and maybe even what the functions do......lol .



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/24/2018 08:08PM by calabash digger.

I tell You what to do. Go to Findmall Explorer forum and type in Bryce,IL. He was the SE Master. I know He posted His settings. Or if someone has a copy of Andy Sabisch Etrac/Exploroer book they are in there.

Des D is your man, he was part of the team that developed it, he'll know the stuff that counts.


calabash digger Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Well in there lies the problem . I don't have time
> to master the detector that's why I asked for help
> from the Explorer masters. If a guy unfamiliar ask
> ed how to set the Deus up for certain test I could
> tell him how to do that in about 60 seconds. Im ho
> ping someone on here will be able to do that for a
> BASIC test garden depth test in mild soil and some
> nail test. I will read the manual and know how to
> navigate the machine and maybe even what the funct
> ions do......lol .

D&P-OR Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Tom, Tom the Explorer man.---Where are you???-----
> This guy needs your help!


haha D&P : As soon as Cal Cobra spanks me (shows me a target I'd have to admit I'd have passed), then I will repent and get into the modern decades. But for now, it's serving me well

Iron mask: -12
volume : 10
variability: 10
recovery speed: fast
Gain: 7
Limit: 10
Sensitivity: 20 to 24-ish, depending on stability.
Mode: Ferrous
Make sure you're in manual mode, not auto sens. mode (cursor should NOT be rotating around the sens. setting)

If a person were going to be cherry-picking (turf, where he'll kiss nickels & small gold rings good-bye), then I'd go with all the above settings, except: Mode: Conductive. And build a disc. pattern that knocks out iron (your left 1/3 of the screen), and knocks out everything below the beefy-square tab range. So you'd essentially be left with an accepted rectangle in the upper right ~1/3 of the screen. I know some other turf hunters who continue to go strictly by sound (ie.: hunt the turf in the same way they'd hunt a relicky site or the beach) . There is merit to either method. Ie.: a personal preference.

PLEASE NOTE -- Iron mask numbers on the SE are different numbers than on the II, and prior models. So Tom's -12 is actually a 28, I believe, on the SE.

Now, Tom_in_CA has suggested you run "Ferrous" sounds -- and thus, he is using almost no iron mask, which makes sense when running Ferrous sounds.

HOWEVER, I always ran mine very similar to how he said in the last paragraph -- I ran CONDUCTIVE sounds, which means you are cueing your tones off of the conductive numbers (as opposed to cueing the tones off of the Ferrous numbers). And to run conductive sounds, you then need to use more iron mask as Tom noted -- because when cueing your tones off of the conductive number, a nail and a coin will sound similar (high-tone). And thus, you need to discriminate high ferrous-number targets like nails. To accomplish this, I always ran my iron mask at 20, which is -- like Tom said, about the left 1/3 of the screen blacked out. But, I did NOT run any other disc -- he talked about adding disc. to knock out square tabs, nickels, etc, but I did not do that. The only "disc" I ran, was the iron mask at 20 -- i.e. the left 1/3 or so of the screen.

I also agree on most of the rest of Tom's settings...volume 10, variability 10, I always ran my recovery speed at normal (fast off), but for separation tests I could see where you'd want it "fast on" as he suggested; gain 7, limits 10. Sensitivity MANUAL, not auto, as Tom said, and the 20 to 24 suggestion of Tom's is a good starting point, but it obviously depends upon coil size and EMI present. I could often run my sensitivity at or near maximum, but it was very site- and coil-dependent. Let your ears be your guide, as to how hot you can run it.

Steve

Thanks guys !

The Explorer SE was one of Bryce Brown's favorites....he has tons of info online. Dont think he posts much anymore. Andy's Explorer book (blue color) has quite a few detailed preferred set-ups.....including Bryce's. Keep in mind some settings are coil dependent......Bryce favored the 10x12 SEF.

I don't see or have any issue with Calabash digger picking up an Explorer SE, CTX & Equinox and doing some video testing.
He's a very experienced operator and has helped show and bring out many interesting aspects of many detector models.
Who cares a jot that the Explorer has a learn curve! Let's see the video. I for one would be very interested to see it.
I can't do it myself cos I don't have an Exp SE, a CTX nor an EQX any longer.

I'd go with something like this for Tests:

NOISE CANCEL and keep the coil in the air and very still - horizontal to the ground.

Manual Sens 25
Threshold 12
Iron Mask 29 (match stick thin line)
Response NORMAL
Sounds Continuous (constant = one tone for all)
Tone 5
Var 8
Limits 10
Recovery Fast



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/25/2018 06:25PM by Des D.

I shot the video today … I used Toms settings in the garden for the depth test. I used deep mode for the depth test on the silvers and relics. Its the best I could ...lol Thanks all for the settings.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/25/2018 07:41PM by calabash digger.