ON THE HORIZON = MDT-8000

Hard rain and wet-salt splash is fine; yet, Dimitar chooses to NOT have the unit submerged for any lengthy period of time. ((( I have slightly more confidence; yet, I'm not the warrantor ))).

On that last video the audio is much better, I can hear the difference between the iron and nickel now. Thanks

I should get my unit either today or tomorrow. In the next two weeks I plan on testing it at a saltwater beach, relic hunting in soil almost as bad as Culpeper and the Arizona gold fields. It's going to take some time to learn the unit but I think I'll be able to at least get a feel for what it will do. I mainly use a TDI or GPX in these areas so it will be interesting to see how it compares for depth. I'm really looking forward to the discrimination it offers. Having used a PI for years now I think the audio will be pretty easy for me to pick up since PI's are all about audio. I'll do some videos in the field on targets in the wild, probably have the GPX along for comparison, only because I think people are interested in how it will stack up for depth. Discrimination is going to be a big plus and if it will get close to the GPX for depth it's going to be a game changer for sure.

NASA-Tom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Detector was never designed for the gold fields; s
> ubsequently, ...…… it has not been tested in this
> type of environment. However; ….. it may fair well
> there...…,,,,,,, due to it's bad-mineral handling
> abilities. I know some folks plan on bringing it t
> here. It would not be my choice for the gold field
> s; yet, (due to: lack of gold field testing) …. my
> thoughts are (speculatively) unfounded.
>
> WARRANTY is now CUT-IN-STONE: 18-MONTH WARRANTY ON
> TARSACCI

Thank you. I will be looking forward to the gold field testing results.

Dean

The audio sure did make a difference doing it that way.

Thank you for your efforts.

El

Elbert Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The audio sure did make a difference doing it that
> way.
>
> Thank you for your efforts.
>
> El


Elbert, you are welcome.
Imo, more of these audio only should be done using headphones as audio provider with cameras with a lot more detector models than Tarsacci. Would help I think with folks more. And the bonus is they upload to you tube in a flash. Saves times yet provides good learning tool. Maybe I am the first here on this forum, maybe other forums to to do.
So maybe we should call these the sharpshooter audio only learning clips— lol



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 12/18/2018 05:56PM by tnsharpshooter.

Thanks Dave for sharing. Is there a way to shut off the volume for any target that is below the disc level? The way the audio is now, I can see where it would drive you nuts in a bed of nails.

possum mo Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks Dave for sharing. Is there a way to shut o
> ff the volume for any target that is below the dis
> c level? The way the audio is now, I can see whe
> re it would drive you nuts in a bed of nails.

For nonferous range seems not. For ferrous range, yes, in disc mode. See this video. [m.youtube.com]

I am going to go out on a limb here. I highly suspect disc can be run somewhat below zero using disc mode and get rid of many nails yet smaller ferrous may come through tonally. And by doing some additional separation benefits had vs running zero disc. Fuller sized Nails seem ID in 18-21 range. So a disc of say 14,might buy you some performance yet a user can keep their sanity maybe by not hearing ALL the nails. NASA Tom comments on the iron range of this detector in this thread early on.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 12/18/2018 06:21PM by tnsharpshooter.

So if I'm understanding mixed mode correctly, you're always going to hear everything regardless of what the disc setting is. You'll get all 3 tones from the machine if disc is set at -30 or +30, is that correct?

possum mo Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thanks Dave for sharing. Is there a way to shut o
> ff the volume for any target that is below the dis
> c level? The way the audio is now, I can see whe
> re it would drive you nuts in a bed of nails.
If you hunt in disc you would not hear the nails. If you turn the disc above 0 then nails should still not be heard as they are below 0 in disc mode. Any other mode you will hear the nails. In mixed mode you should hear the all metal tone for nails as it plays the AM tone first. This is based on set point on 0.

I am disappointed about the warranty for water as it wasn't really spelled out at time of purchase. No point in putting a waterproof headphone jack and o rings on it if didn't intend to resist a least for a short time and depth. With no instructions on the care of the O rings I suspected there would be no coverage for water leakage under warranty but yet they want you to walk out in the water and hold it over 18" of water to get Salinity balance. Why suggest to go out in water for this if you are only intended to use in wet sand. I would balance it in the wet sand unless I misunderstood and it has to be over done over water. I know Tom feels that it is water resistant and I believe him but if the Mfg. doesn't why would I risk any water exposure? I guess I should ask Is the coil waterproof or resistant? If the coil should have a problem with water like the 13" Ultimate coil did (water resistant only) will that cost a lot to replace?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/18/2018 07:51PM by ShovelNose.

Just for kicks I took my MDT out onto my deck this afternoon to try Keith's "dime between the boards" test. I have a clad dime and quarter, a nickel and a zinc penny glued in various locations between the boards of my deck. I tried all the frequencies with various sweep speeds and levels of disc. etc.

Keep in mind Tom's previous statement that the MDT wasn't designed to be used in heavy iron or a carpet of nails.

As expected the detector didn't do well when in 6.4, 9, or 12kHz no matter how the other settings were dialed in.
However, in 18kHz with a sweep speed that is actually a little faster than I normally use when in dense iron it hit all four coins with no problem. In Mix Mode or Disc with the disc set to -30 the nail/iron audio was driving me nuts. In Disc mode raising the disc to -14 to -15 eliminated the nail audio without noticeably affecting the detectors performance. I wouldn't recommend using the Mix mode in this type of environment just for the sake of your sanity.

Don't get me wrong, in iron it's not a Deus, F75 etc. but I now look forward to testing not only the depth and disc abilities of the MDT but also it's ability to work in iron.

HH

Chris

You guys are REALLY catching-on...… and very quickly! Yes...… 18-Khz is substantially the better performer..... in carpets of nails. I speculate Mixed Mode audio.... will be used by the relic hunters … in bad dirt. I do not have bad dirt in Florida..... so I choose ID (or all-metal) modes...… for my personal preference. I also like Threshold on -2...…. and sometimes dabble into Threshold -1.

* Coil is definitely waterproof! And yes..... the entire unit is waterproof.... down to 1.5-Meters..... for 30-minutes. A very small dab of nearly any household silicone …. placed on the O-rings...… is fine. The frequency/times in which you should do this...… is dictated by 'in-the-water' usage times. Simply looking at the O-rings.... will let you know if the residual coating of silicone has worn off.
* If you are hunting the wet-salt slope...… no..... you do NOT need to go out in the water to Salt Balance it. You can Salt Balance it on the wet slope! If you are water hunting...…. THAT'S when you should Grnd Bal on the water surface.

* Tones. Mixed Mode. Discrimination workings. == If you run Disc to max setting whilst in Mixed Mode...… you will no longer hear the low, medium or high tone. You would then only hear the one/single all-metal tone.

Alright some time in the field. First off at this site I played with buried clad dime at different depths. I don’t think Tarsacci strength is in disturbed soil. I determined I liked my threshold at -2. Seems sensitivty setting 7 was best. I get a little more feedback ground balancing at level 8. Don’t let this sensitivity setting of 7 lure you into thinking this detector is not seeing deeper in my ground. WRONG.

I will preface the rest of this post here with,,,I am highly suspicious. Now this word usually carries maybe moreof a negative connotation. This is not how I view using this word here.


Preliminary thoughts based on just this one hunt in an area I am very famialr with and know what I have used detector wise and coils,,,,Tarsacci shouldn’t be underestimated.
The detector is layed out nice being able to switch between disc, AM, and mixed mode. All my targets were found using mixed mode and checking using other modes. Funny thing today and I’m not sure why using the pinpoint was the hardest thing for me. So .i just went to AM and X out target. The Tarsacci’s coil size imo makes it a killer when running AM. Imo anyone who valued Fisher F.75’s AM, I think will have a ball with this detector.

This detector (again highly suspicous) is extracting nonferous from mineral. And for freq used (I used 18khz) is doing a good job based on how many targets and how deep and or how small they were.

Something I noticed targets out of ground in plug, They won’t ID correctly many times. Can even give negative ID reading using AM to sweep.

I’ll be watching for others feedback. Just one hunt. I was impressed. Will go back tomorrow hopefully.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/18/2018 11:06PM by tnsharpshooter.

Thanks Tom for that info. So a water hunting it will be. Now I don't have to worry so much about my less than graceful entry into the water. At least up to my knees right now. While all metal with a look at the ID if in doubt on the beach seems the way to go I will be flipping over to disc for awhile just to see how trusty the iron disc is and to see if I get that that sweet high low tone we are looking for. I like the idea of opening some iron so I don't miss that Rolex. lol I got this MD for one reason I'm a gold ring addict!

Tnss, am I interpreting your first sentence correctly that it does not detect a freshly buried Dime very deep?

I would like to know how deep this detector can see a dime both in mild and bad ground.
Just wondering if there has been a breakthrough in depth with proper ID with this technology compared to current VLFs on the market.

Bryan

Cabin Fever Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Tnss, am I interpreting your first sentence correc
> tly that it does not detect a freshly buried Dime
> very deep?o
>
> I would like to know how deep this detector can se
> e a dime both in mild and bad ground.
> Just wondering if there has been a breakthrough in
> depth with proper ID with this technology compared
> to current VLFs on the market.
>
> Bryan

Bryan, I am basing that statement solely on what I saw with a freshly buried vs what I saw in the wild on undisturbed buried targets. More time in this area I will know more. Detector looks very promising. Folks here should have a good idea what Tarsacci was hunting behind ( detector wise). No other detectors went with me today. Purposely too. No crutches. Curiosity will eventually get the best of me, hence some detector comparisons on Tarsacci located targets to see what happens. Namely Deus, Etrac, and Equinox, Anfibio. If what happened today happens again tomorrow something is definitley up with Tarsacci.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/18/2018 11:28PM by tnsharpshooter.

Thanks Sharpshooter.

Hopefully we will see more reports from others soon as this detector gets distributed.
For some reason there has been no information on coin depth tests in the dirt with this detector.
Usually that’s the first thing you hear about.

Bryan



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/19/2018 12:05AM by Cabin Fever.

(((The cat is just starting to come out of the bag))).

It started as a black sand/mineral beach machine but appears they took a second look. Seems a small change in software and it may scoop up what's left in Culpepper as well. Only time will tell.

Abenson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> On that last video the audio is much better, I can
> hear the difference between the iron and nickel no
> w. Thanks


You are welcome.

Got my unit today and the first thing I did was hook up the z-lynk system to it, works great. Headphones that came with the unit are nice and clear not muffled like most cheap headphones. I went out in the yard to my test garden where I have a 4, 5 and 6 inch dime buried. My dirt is real bad and most VLF's struggle to hit the 6 inch dime. The Tarsacci nailed it no problem. I also have a .58 cal minnie buried at 9 inches that only my GPX can hit. The Tarsacci was able to get it as well but it did struggle a bit as numbers were bouncing, but all positive. My yard has a ton of iron in it so I found that Disc mode worked best but is quiet just like I though, it's doable though. Not sure it will be loud enough on the beach with waves crashing. Mixed mode drove me nuts, not sure I'll be using that mode unless I'm in clean ground. When I hit the beach later this week I think I'll be running all metal.

Abenson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Got my unit today and the first thing I did was ho
> ok up the z-lynk system to it, works great. Headph
> ones that came with the unit are nice and clear no
> t muffled like most cheap headphones. I went out i
> n the yard to my test garden where I have a 4, 5 a
> nd 6 inch dime buried. My dirt is real bad and mos
> t VLF's struggle to hit the 6 inch dime. The Tarsa
> cci nailed it no problem. I also have a .58 cal mi
> nnie buried at 9 inches that only my GPX can hit.
> The Tarsacci was able to get it as well but it did
> struggle a bit as numbers were bouncing, but all p
> ositive. My yard has a ton of iron in it so I foun
> d that Disc mode worked best but is quiet just lik
> e I though, it's doable though. Not sure it will b
> e loud enough on the beach with waves crashing. Mi
> xed mode drove me nuts, not sure I'll be using tha
> t mode unless I'm in clean ground. When I hit the
> beach later this week I think I'll be running all
> metal.


Sounds good. By chance did you check your 9”deep bullet trying all freqs ?? And what was the number in your GB window after balancing?? Also what sensitivty level did you use on the bullet? I am asking all this to see if my thinking is correct based so far on what I have witnessed. Although your soil may be higher mineralized than mine. I am seeing high 800s to around 930 in GB window usually. Varies a little depending on frequency used too. I realize GB number in window doesn’t necessary reflect soil mineralization levels. Still curious though as Tarsacci uses an unusual scale vs many detectors. Also did you try engaging black sand and having a listen on your bullet?



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 12/19/2018 03:55AM by tnsharpshooter.

tnsharpshooter Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Abenson Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Got my unit today and the first thing I did was
> ho
> > ok up the z-lynk system to it, works great. Head
> ph
> > ones that came with the unit are nice and clear
> no
> > t muffled like most cheap headphones. I went out
> i
> > n the yard to my test garden where I have a 4, 5
> a
> > nd 6 inch dime buried. My dirt is real bad and m
> os
> > t VLF's struggle to hit the 6 inch dime. The Tar
> sa
> > cci nailed it no problem. I also have a .58 cal
> mi
> > nnie buried at 9 inches that only my GPX can hit
> .
> > The Tarsacci was able to get it as well but it d
> id
> > struggle a bit as numbers were bouncing, but all
> p
> > ositive. My yard has a ton of iron in it so I fo
> un
> > d that Disc mode worked best but is quiet just l
> ik
> > e I though, it's doable though. Not sure it will
> b
> > e loud enough on the beach with waves crashing.
> Mi
> > xed mode drove me nuts, not sure I'll be using t
> ha
> > t mode unless I'm in clean ground. When I hit th
> e
> > beach later this week I think I'll be running al
> l
> > metal.
>
>
> Sounds good. By chance did you check your 9”deep
> bullet trying all freqs ?? And what was the numbe
> r in your GB window after balancing?? Also what s
> ensitivty level did you use on the bullet? I am a
> sking all this to see if my thinking is correct ba
> sed so far on what I have witnessed. Although you
> r soil may be higher mineralized than mine. I am
> seeing high 800s to around 930 in GB window usuall
> y. Varies a little depending on frequency used to
> o. I realize GB number in window doesn’t necessar
> y reflect soil mineralization levels. Still curio
> us though as Tarsacci uses an unusual scale vs man
> y detectors. Also did you try engaging black san
> d and having a listen on your bullet?

I only ran 12 KHz, didn't look at the GB number, 6 sensitivity, didn't try black sand or salt modes. It was dark outside so I was having a little trouble seeing the pad to make adjustments.

Abenson Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> tnsharpshooter Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Abenson Wrote:
> > ------------------------------------------------
> --
> > -----
> > > Got my unit today and the first thing I did wa
> s
> > ho
> > > ok up the z-lynk system to it, works great. He
> ad
> > ph
> > > ones that came with the unit are nice and clea
> r
> > no
> > > t muffled like most cheap headphones. I went o
> ut
> > i
> > > n the yard to my test garden where I have a 4,
> 5
> > a
> > > nd 6 inch dime buried. My dirt is real bad and
> m
> > os
> > > t VLF's struggle to hit the 6 inch dime. The T
> ar
> > sa
> > > cci nailed it no problem. I also have a .58 ca
> l
> > mi
> > > nnie buried at 9 inches that only my GPX can h
> it
> > .
> > > The Tarsacci was able to get it as well but it
> d
> > id
> > > struggle a bit as numbers were bouncing, but a
> ll
> > p
> > > ositive. My yard has a ton of iron in it so I
> fo
> > un
> > > d that Disc mode worked best but is quiet just
> l
> > ik
> > > e I though, it's doable though. Not sure it wi
> ll
> > b
> > > e loud enough on the beach with waves crashing
> .
> > Mi
> > > xed mode drove me nuts, not sure I'll be using
> t
> > ha
> > > t mode unless I'm in clean ground. When I hit
> th
> > e
> > > beach later this week I think I'll be running
> al
> > l
> > > metal.
> >
> >
> > Sounds good. By chance did you check your 9”dee
> p
> > bullet trying all freqs ?? And what was the num
> be
> > r in your GB window after balancing?? Also what
> s
> > ensitivty level did you use on the bullet? I am
> a
> > sking all this to see if my thinking is correct
> ba
> > sed so far on what I have witnessed. Although y
> ou
> > r soil may be higher mineralized than mine. I a
> m
> > seeing high 800s to around 930 in GB window usua
> ll
> > y. Varies a little depending on frequency used
> to
> > o. I realize GB number in window doesn’t necess
> ar
> > y reflect soil mineralization levels. Still cur
> io
> > us though as Tarsacci uses an unusual scale vs m
> an
> > y detectors. Also did you try engaging black s
> an
> > d and having a listen on your bullet?
>
> I only ran 12 KHz, didn't look at the GB number,
> 6 sensitivity, didn't try black sand or salt modes
> . It was dark outside so I was having a little tro
> uble seeing the pad to make adjustments.

That’s alright. Just curious. Will be watching for more info from you on the unit.
Have a good evening.

So it sounds as though in AM mode, it is a single tone detector correct?? (Listening to the videos)
Hard to tell but there seems to be softer edge to the tone passing over a square vs. a clean dime??

Interesting stuff so far.

More data.
Spent a few hours in the field this morning.

Disclaimer here. I will plead 90 % ignorance level when it comes to detectors and All Metal use.
I never really liked using AM period on any of my past owned models. Maybe one reason is most detectors it was too difficult to get into AM from disc mode while using.

AM use on Tarsacci, to me is a real weapon on this detector. Why?
AM use seems can expose nails vs using disc modes or mixed mode by virtue of tone nuance and signal size.

Tarsacci seems will alert in vertical nail undisturbed in the ground st times, but this AM use will sniff out letting a person walk. (So far no full length vertical nails alerted on, rather shorter like 1/4 to 1/2 lengths). Deus Hf coils seems likes to alert on longer ones. Equinox too.

A balancing act taking place with Tarsacci as far as sens setting and threshold setting. Looks like lower threshold may indeed allow for faster sweep vs higher, yet in a more perfect coil sweep and position scenario higher threshold can get a person detecting deeper.

I have heard no EMI so far while using detector, and with coil off the ground as well as when detector coil is raised in the air like above my head. Have not had Tarsacci in urban area yet.

Will Tarsacci false when bumping weeds and sticks?
It can.
Here is what I notice though and this is where running mixed mode can help. For whatever reason running mixed mode, if you bump the coil somewhat while sweeping I am hearing no AM signal coming in, rather disc signal false. If I use disc mode I will get the high tone blips when Coil is bumped, and this sound can mimmick a good target struck. Mixed mode use if I don.’t hear AM channel trying to come yet hear this disc channel tone come in, I think it is reasonably safe to assume false caused by coil bumping(rubbing.

I like this detector. If it wouldn’t have been designed where I can go to and fro the different modes easily I wouldn’t like near as much,

More later.
Time in the field next few days limited likely to RAIN.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 12/20/2018 11:03AM by tnsharpshooter.

I made it to the beach today. Now let me give some background about my beaches. I live in Utah, so no ocean beaches, but we do have saltwater beaches on the Great Salt Lake. I have hunted many Southern California beaches as well, usually twice a year, so I do understand the challenges with the black sand in those areas.

The Great Salt Lake is 3 times saltier than the ocean and it has many areas that contain black sand, so a real test for the Tarsacci. Multi-frequency machines like the E-Trac, CTX, Equinox, etc. are limited in depth to about 8-9 inches. The TDI about 12 inches and the GPX about 14 inches or so on nickel size targets. In the water nothing but the CTX in salt mode and GPX in cancel mode will work without constant falsing.

Last weekend I was out at one of the beaches with my GPX and marked a few deeper targets so I could test the Tarsacci on them. So take into account I have only a few hours on the Tarsacci, this was just a test run. I ran all metal mode and I started out in the recommended settings for black sand and saltwater which was threshold -2, sensitivity 7, which I did need to lower to 5 to get it to ground balance, black sand ON, Salt Mode ON set at 27, 12 KHz. Now I left the salinity at 27 because I couldn't remember how to salinity balance the detector. So given that, a different salinity level could change everything.

Just a side note and maybe Tom or someone else who has tested the detector, can someone explain how GB numbers and salinity numbers correlate to the ground. Is a higher GB number mean more minerals? Is a higher salinity number mean more salt? I think if I knew what the correlation was I could manually dial in the detector better if needed.

So on to the marked targets. All were very clear signals on the GPX. Target 1 was detected with the Tarsacci and ended up being a fired .32 cal bullet at about 7 inches. Target 2 was not detected by the Tarsacci and was a swim cap buckle at about 14 inches. Target 3 was not detected and was a snap off a pair of pants about 12 inches deep. Target 4 was detected by the Tarsacci and registered as iron, it was a 4 inch long bolt at 12 inches. Now I also buried a nickle at 10 inches and could not pick it up with the Tarsacci.

I feel I'm doing something wrong. Any input/suggestions from testers or others would be welcome.

Going out again for longer on Saturday, so maybe I can get the machine dialed in better with suggestions from others about setting the machine up better.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/19/2018 09:55PM by Abenson.

Yes...… all-metal mode is always/only one tone.

Andrew...…. two things:
1. It sounds like you are wanting PI performance.... out of a non-PI unit.
2. Yes..... it sounds like it would benefit you to truly perform a Salt Balance in that environment. Invoking Black Sand (and deselecting it) ….. may also be a good test. Both of these procedures may allow you to increase Sens.
3. I have some concerns about these 'marked' targets...… that were found some time ago...… with a PI. Did you (by chance)…. perform the head-to-head comparison..... within a few minutes of each other...… PI to Tarsacci?

And for those who choose to take the Tarsacci water hunting...…. please make sure that your coil connector and headphone connector are 'snug'...….. so as to avoid water intrusion. ((( I know this is common sense. I am not intending to implicate: "I need to hold your hand..... for every step of the process! ))).

Tom...

The targets were marked a few days ago and the PI was with me today to do a head to head test. I'm not expecting PI performance but I was a little concerned that I was unable to at least get the 10 inch nickel when I've heard about 14 inch nickels detected by testers. My biggest concern was the salinity setting which I couldn't figure out. I'm sure that will change now that I have looked at the user manual again and know how to set it.

When I go out Saturday I will have more time to mess with the unit and hopefully dial it in.

Any suggestions from anyone on settings is appreciated.

I did some more testing last night in my test garden. I think I can safely say that the Tarsacci out performs all my other VLF machines when it comes to depth and target ID in my soil.

Some things I noticed
1- in bad soil activating black sand mode improves performance, it's not just for the beach.
2- Disc mode is more prone to falsing, this was also noted by TNSS
3-The more I use mixed mode the more I like it, initially didn't think I would.
4-18KHz is the best performer in iron, other have also stated this.
5-You can really ramp the Tarsacci up by changing the threshold and sensitivity, but it does get chatty, I run my Deus chatty anyway so it doesn't bother me.

I think the Tarsacci is going to be a great relic machine in open fields with moderate junk.