ON THE HORIZON = MDT-8000

With the beach looking better than it has in a couple years I have taken the plunge and ordered the 12" Beast. I used the 13" Ultimate on my E Trac and the benifits of the coverage and added depth was worth the cost. Only it was not waterproof and if not careful moisture would ruin it. Enjoyed taking to you Arron and look forward to trying the Beast out.

Let's talk about the modes. Which ones do you like, where and when do you use them. I have just started using the MDT with 12 inch coil. About 15 hours so far. Hunting a well hunted field in disk mode I find it easy to listen to and easy to get on top of the Target. Running Max sensitivity and negative disc I'm finding it relatively easy to grab those soft signals. Especially after using F75.

I have pulled three pre 1900 complete Forks out of the ground. I know these are not Banner finds haha. All at 8 plus in deep. One was approximately 10 inches down laying on its side and very thin at that. After clearing out with a shovel and waving over the Dirt Pile I had an iron grunt. Thought the MDT lied to me but checking the whole discovered Target was still down there. I have dug some iron for learning purposes. But for me so far the MDT does not get fooled.

If that's all you're pulling out, you're forked!

The MDT will occasionally whisper a high tone on deep iron nails and they always appear at the side of the hole. . .. like many detectors.
I was in an area today that had horrible EMI. .. I never heard the MDT so chatty. . .felt like I was running my f-75. I did pull a war nickle though. . .RodMan dug an awesome deep old coin today with his EQ, but I'll let him tell ya's.

MDT coil update question. Any small coils in the works. Now that the 12-inch coil is out and I love it. Any plans for a smaller than stock coil. I Can Only Imagine how Surgical this machine could be with one.

gman.......right now...... there's no plans for a small coil. The thought is there; yet, we're uncertain the demand ((numbers)) is there.

Tom, I'm one among many who would like the small coil for the Tarsacci. Perhaps you might take a poll of small coil wishers. Could be 50% of owners? Thanks!

If a small dd coil say 4"- 5" in diameter could be made to go deep say 7"+. .. . .I'd buy it.

It seems like most relic hunters have a small coil in there arsenal.

This should give Tarsacci owners piece of mind.
[www.detectorprospector.com]

Follow-up thread where detector repaired.
[www.detectorprospector.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/20/2021 03:41PM by tnsharpshooter.

Good deal !! Good service. Actually I didn't expect anything but.

In Europe only one unit was repaired under warranty. Repair time 5 days. I think that is awesome and good for customers also.

Ok for all European users you can order Tarsacci MDT 800 on Ebay right now:

[www.ebay.pl]

I hope it will help.

More time, more experiences. Logging/documenting data:

A parcel of land (about a 2-acre field) directly across the street of a 1884 church ..... has been providing some interesting data/results. For years..... I had been hunting (and subsequent: testing) on this parcel. It has provided over 100 Wheats.....and several modern silvers (Roosevelt's, Washington's .... and a few modern Mercury's). No coin-sized objects were ever detected/dug beyond about 7". CZ's, Sovereign's, F75's, Impacts & and Equinox. This field was a citrus grove. I speculate fertilizer and mild phosphate content. On a clean spot (sans metal) on the ground...... I would lower the coil of the Equinox...... and the audio threshold would rise to the amplitude, freq/pitch....as if I was lowering the coil down onto a coin that was 7" or 8" deep. Hence; some mineralization. F75 would register as 3-bar dirt on Fe3O4 LCD graph. Ground Balancing any/all the units..... would allow the unit to operate quietly; yet, did not seem to add depth/ID. 7" is max/tops. If Grnd Bal was not set properly........ the audio sounded as if the field was littered with flecks/flakes of decomposing iron. Very 'chatty'. I've been detecting this field since 1996.

Enter Tarsacci. 6Khz, Tracking: 'OFF', Salt: '48', Grnd Balance: '750', Disc Mode, Black Sand: 'OFF', Sens: '9', Thresh: '-1', Disc: '-30' and Volume: 15. These settings had nothing to do with the dirt at hand; but/rather...... to reduce sensitivity to foil, small pieces of aluminum soda can pieces (can-slaw) and reduce sensitivity to flecks/flakes of iron/rust....and small nails. Yet, keep sensitivity high...for high conductors. I think Keith and Aaron did a video(s) demonstrating how to reduce sensitivity to foil.
This field suddenly felt as if it had been resurrected/resuscitated. Coin-sized objects were now detectable (with reasonable ID intel) down to 10" deep. (Recovered my first Indian Head......at 10". 1901. Probably dropped in the 1930's). Tarsacci was still struggling in this dirt; yet, no where near as bad as other units. Tarsacci was inhibited by about an inch or two. BUT...... I did not attempt to adjust the Tarsacci for these local dirt conditions; yet, wanted to keep it in a can-slaw & iron flecks mitigation config. ----I will probably go back....and play with other settings.....,,,,,,,........sometime in the future.
I (now) can find the 1930's drops. Where are the 1884 drops? Or the 1900 drops?

Ironically....... I jumped across the street....to the side-yard of the 1884 church.....with EQX....... and found a 1938 Jefferson Nickel and 1937 Buffalo Nickel. Both at 11.5" deep.......and only about 4-feet apart from each other. This dirt (directly across the street of the field) is 0-bar dirt. The Tarsacci could see these Nickels also; yet, ID was a bit less-telling. (Still: non-ferrous). I'll always take the EQX in 0-bar dirt...... over the MDT.

Hi, all.

I'd like to first note that due to my perception that the MDT8000 is a beach machine (and given that I'm NOT a beach hunter, residing here in Oklahoma), I initially "wrote off" this machine as being something that would be of interest to me. I have read a few posts here and there in this thread, but largely have ignored this unit...until recently.

After recently speaking with NASA-Tom about the unit a bit, I've been intrigued, and then my interest was cemented after I met Dimitar about 2 weeks ago, where he demonstrated the unit for me and gave me some great information. I must say, Dimitar is an incredibly intelligent, engaging, passionate man, who really is interested in teaching and helping folks understand this machine. I really enjoyed the privilege of meeting him, as well as his wife -- who is herself a very engaging, intelligent person with a similarly helpful manner.

I decided I needed to really educate myself as much as I could, so I decided to dig in. I just finished reading the entire thread, all 85 pages, starting from page 1. Also watched a good many of the videos herein. Thanks to ALL who have shared thoughts, observations, finds, settings, tips, tricks, etc. What an incredible collection of information, when you read through it in its entirety.

About a week ago, I purchased/received a new MDT8000 from Dimitar, fitted with 12" coil. I have NOT used the machine yet, though; given the "uniqueness" of this unit, I really wanted to read through this entire thread, watch the videos, and become familiar with the manual, before venturing out the unit.

I now have batteries charged, a new low-latency bluetooth transmitter, and a receiver, and I'm now ready to head outdoors, to my test garden, to begin getting used to the machine's language, and how to set it up properly for my soil conditions. Hopefully, later on, I will also be able to learn how to tailor the settings to different sites, and different objectives (as, for instance, NASA-Tom just laid out in his post, above). I have SO many questions, and so many head-scratching things I've read about here (and have seen on video) -- first and foremost in my mind being how Keith detected a coin under NOT ONLY a large sheet of foil, but ALSO under a tin can...just MIND-BENDING for me. I suspect my complete lack of experience using a PI unit will hinder me for quite awhile, in learning this machine. But, for now, I'll try to hold off on the questions, and just work with it in my test garden to try and get a feel for what this thing is, and what it can do. It seems clear that Dimitar has created a most unique unit here. I look forward to trying to learn it, and to utilize it in my irony-red Oklahoma dirt for coin and relic-hunting purposes. This dirt -- though I am sure not as "hot" as some that Keith, Daniel, and others deal with -- definitely impedes both depth and ID performance of most/all VLF machines. I'm looking for the Tarsacci to give me an edge over the other units I've used most successfully here (Minelab Explorer, CTX, and Equinox, and Fisher Gold Bug Pro).

Wish me luck...

Steve



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/06/2021 10:10AM by steveg.

So, did you add that NEW SteveG shaft to the 12"? I rarely hunt the dirt anymore but both me and Cliff changed our disc because of Keiths posts. I was NOTCHING out 27.... a good bit higher than a quarter that comes in at 20. Not something a coin guy would want to do. At 27 it did break up iron that wrapped around, but having disc at -30 for me knocked out a lot more. Bottle caps .... many hit at -27 deeper ones would do a lot like the explorer where you got the correct digit.... but not the +/- on a deeper target. Its been a really great beach machine.....GL out there. By the way .... shaft is working great shes stood up to some real testing out there lately.

Dew,

I'm working on getting a shaft built for myself, for the Tarsacci, as we speak, LOL! And I am REALLY glad to hear that you are pleased with yours!

I WOULD like to have a bit more explanation about how you are attacking the "wrap around iron" thing. I followed what -- and why -- you were notching at 29, to knock out 27- to 30-reading ferrous targets that were "wrapping." BUT -- I am NOT following why you changed, to now have disc set at -30 (only discriminating targets that read -30, correct?) I don't follow what Keith (and you/Cliff) are trying to accomplish with this change. Keith, or you, one of the two, made a comment in this regard about "flip flopping" iron -- but I don't know what is meant by "flip flop." I'm just not quite following why you switching to discriminating -30 helps you to do a better job of dealing with iron, than setting it at 29 or whatever (to knock out 27-30). I was following along early on with how you arrived at setting your notch in the upper 20s...and it made sense to me what you were trying to do. But I am not clear on why you made the change to -30 disc...I am not sure I can understand your statement that having 27 to 30 discriminated "broke up alot of iron" but that setting it at -30 "knocks out even more."

Thanks!

Steve

NASA-Tom,

This post by you, awhile back, didn't seem to get much attention, but I find it to be a most interesting and intriguing post. Can't wait to see what Minelab's "lift off" is, that has been achieved...and can't wait to learn about the "lift of" that Dimitar has come up with, that now sits ready to tackle my test garden...

Steve

NASA-Tom Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It is THE MOST craziest thing......being mega-imbe
> dded into both companies.......and it NOT being a
> C.O.I. (Conflict of Interest). Each entity has str
> engths/weaknesses (as to be expected). . . . . and
> ......they are not the same. (((A few are similar.
> .....but most are not))). In cumulative/collective
> foray....... I am actually able to launch to even
> higher plateau's........due to this enhanced diver
> sity. Minelab is a bunch of uncanny cohesive physi
> cists/engineers that churn-and-burn for stupendous
> performance. Tarsacci is WAY outside-the-box (tota
> l departure-from-the-norm) type of thinking/engine
> ering. Whilst the platforms come from completely d
> ifferent angles; there is a common denominator. Th
> at being: REAL WORLD applicability.
>
> We (at Minelab) have JUST achieved: Lift Off. Shat
> tered plateau. On orbit! (Elliptical......as it ma
> y be; yet, will circularize the orbital trajectory
> .....in the near-future). If I can define it......
> they can design it! (((Yes...... a collaborative &
> collective effort))).
> We (at Tarsacci) have also achieved: Lift Off.....
> .....but in tangential fashion. And on two fronts.
>
> All I can say is: STAND-BY!

steveg Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> NASA-Tom,
>
> This post by you, awhile back, didn't seem to get
> much attention, but I find it to be a most interes
> ting and intriguing post. Can't wait to see what
> Minelab's "lift off" is, that has been achieved...
> and can't wait to learn about the "lift of" that D
> imitar has come up with, that now sits ready to ta
> ckle my test garden...
>
> Steve
>
> NASA-Tom Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > It is THE MOST craziest thing......being mega-im
> be
> > dded into both companies.......and it NOT being
> a
> > C.O.I. (Conflict of Interest). Each entity has s
> tr
> > engths/weaknesses (as to be expected). . . . . a
> nd
> > ......they are not the same. (((A few are simila
> r.
> > .....but most are not))). In cumulative/collecti
> ve
> > foray....... I am actually able to launch to eve
> n
> > higher plateau's........due to this enhanced div
> er
> > sity. Minelab is a bunch of uncanny cohesive phy
> si
> > cists/engineers that churn-and-burn for stupendo
> us
> > performance. Tarsacci is WAY outside-the-box (to
> ta
> > l departure-from-the-norm) type of thinking/engi
> ne
> > ering. Whilst the platforms come from completely
> d
> > ifferent angles; there is a common denominator.
> Th
> > at being: REAL WORLD applicability.
> >
> > We (at Minelab) have JUST achieved: Lift Off. Sh
> at
> > tered plateau. On orbit! (Elliptical......as it
> ma
> > y be; yet, will circularize the orbital trajecto
> ry
> > .....in the near-future). If I can define it....
> ..
> > they can design it! (((Yes...... a collaborative
> &
> > collective effort))).
> > We (at Tarsacci) have also achieved: Lift Off...
> ..
> > .....but in tangential fashion. And on two front
> s.
> >
> > All I can say is: STAND-BY!


Sounds exciting.

Steve & David. Understand. ---Justified! Founded.
Sometimes I feel like Minelab is secondarily interested in producing detectors. Rather............ their primary interest is: INVENTING new stuff. New concepts. New ideas. That's what they do. Discover stuff! Make stuff! Invent stuff!
Yes.......... all of these things are completely valid.

Yes........ I've taken heat for:
But Tom.........in reference to VLF/SMF = BBS went about a foot on coin-sized objects. FBS went about a foot on coin-sized objects. M-IQ goes about a foot on coin-sized objects. What have we gained in 30-years? Yes...... detectors are lighter and use less battery power. But we are still only achieving about the same depths as 30-years ago. What have we gained?
What I can say is: True. We are still restricted/incarcerated to about a foot on coin-sized objects (in ideal dirt conditions). We are still restricted to 'near-field'........and cannot touch 'far-field'. But............ Mfr's have come to realize how 'trashy' the dirt we hunt.....truly is. We (now) are more capable of hunting sites that are a bit more trashier. We now can hunt sites that are up to "Medium" human activity/cohabitation. This has opened up a lot of doors. No....... we still cannot hunt sites of "High" human activity. Nothing exists today ....that can hunt in carpets of nails.
It is going to take a genius to unlock the: iron nails dilemma.
It is going to take a genius to unlock the: 12" plateau/restriction/incarceration on coin-sized objects.
Right now......... our only hope is: Minelab and Tarsacci. Neither entity is known for 'rehashing' old products......and putting them in rebadged new boxes.
Fisher use to come out with a new Flagship (of all Flagships).... about every 7-10 years....... for Decades. They would set-the-pace for the rest of the World. I don't see this happening anymore. They've succumbed to rebadging/rehashing older products.
Nokta/Makro has 'some' hope............ attempting to come out with their 1st Generation VLF/SMF. Let's hope it's a Grand Slam..............and not just merely a rehash of someone else's thinking/product(s)........nor in-the-rear of chasing the coattails of already-existing products. Let's hope it breaks the "about a foot on coin-sized objects" plateau/barrier.
White's, Tesoro, Troy = Ouch!
Tarsacci = Paradigm-shift. ----Not VLF. Nor SMF.
Tarsacci has

Obviously I have no idea what the upcoming Nokta detector will do or not do. I will place my bets and say the "foot" limit or barrier will not be beaten. The detector will be on par with the Equinox on unmasking ability. Maybe even a little better in certain situations. Your typical audio adjustments. How it deals with iron as far as identifying it will be of interest to me. " Bottle Caps" Also as a beach hunter I need to see the detectors sensitivity to gold. The Equinox does much better than the multi frequency detectors of the past in that area. Can a detector be created to identify a small woman's ring at depth in wet salt water sand? The discriminating PI was my hope, but that detector seems to be a slow process in the making.

This upcoming detector has one disadvantage already. Everyone out there already has an Equinox. A detector on par with Equinox will not persuade people to give them up. A real advantage or leap in technology needs to be apparent. Soon the videos will be up on controlled buried targets next to specific pieces of trash. And every hunter out there that sees those videos will need to make a decision. Something better?....or here we go again! I deal with an ever increasing amount of competition on the beach. More and more beach replenishment. An economic and generational shift from precious metal rings. And an ever increasing cost for me to make the trip to the happy hunting grounds....my beaches.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/08/2021 12:07PM by goodmore.

goodmore Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The
> discriminating PI was my hope, but that detector s
> eems to be a slow process in the making.
>

Tarsacci (almost)?

Steve

Tarsacci? Covid delayed my purchase. If the new Nokta unit is the same old same old I'll make the leap to the Tarsacci unit. For me it is all about salt water beaches.

I am very interested in the Tarsacci, but what about the waterproof rating? Most of my hunting lately has been east coast Florida beaches in waist to chest deep water using my Excalibur 2. I already drowned 2 Equinox's and have retired the Nox to shore line duty only...

goodmore -- understood. And I get the idea of waiting to see just what the new Nokta/Makro SMF unit might be capable of (though I have a hard time thinking that their first "foray" into SMF will be a "Trump card" over Multi-IQ/FBS...but the crew at Nokta/Makro should not be underestimated, I don't think...) With that said, though, it seems like from my still-newbie point of view (but having read nearly all of the available information that I know of, that is available on the Tarsacci, and doing my own initial testing on the unit) it seems to be as close to the description of a "full discriminating PI" as we can get, at this point...

kwalenciak -- I am NOT a water hunter, so I have no horse in this race, so to speak. BUT -- not being sure if you have read through all of this thread or not -- I wanted to let you know that I did read some interesting discussion somewhere in the 85 pages of this thread, LOL, about "in-water use" of the unit. Apparently, the waterproof rating for the machine is based on "5-foot, constant submersion of the control box." That, as I understand it, is the criteria for when the "30 minutes" limit applies. On the other hand, waist to chest deep (where I would assume your submersion of the control box ranges from not at all -- when waist deep, to 12 or maybe 18 inches or so -- when "chest deep") would not be subject to the "only 30 minutes" restriction. Again, not being a water hunter, I don't have a leg to stand on in terms of personal experience, but just wanted to let you know -- if you hadn't seen/read the discussions on this in the thread yourself -- that this is some of what has been discussed by others.

Steve

The MDT 8000 remains one of the better machines I have used in a long time. If I were to get a machine today, it would be one of those with the 12 inch coil. Without breaching into the pulse world, it remains the deepest of the machines I have used; I can only imagine what the 12 inch coil does for it.

I share the same thoughts as Tom on the Nokta/Makro and other machines. Making machines that are just equal to what is already on the market, doesn't do any good unless you are a fanboy that only buys brand specific items.

Wooooh. What happened to the rest of my post?! Looks like all data was cut-off right where my curser was......at time of posting. Hmmmmmmm. ((I'll go hunting for the missing data)).

kwalenciak............. Yes, the electronics (control box) is waterproof to 5-feet. Plenty of water hunters using it exclusively in the water. If you live anywhere near Titusville....... and would like to 'hands-on' with one.,.,.,.,., just holler. Sometimes this helps ease the butterflies.

Daniel........ The 12" coil has 'woke' the Tarsacci ...to yet another level. Even in bad dirt. And with this bigger coil....... the enhanced adjacent target separation characteristics is almost exactly identical to EQX.

steveg Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> NASA-Tom,
>
> This post by you, awhile back, didn't seem to get
> much attention, but I find it to be a most interes
> ting and intriguing post. Can't wait to see what
> Minelab's "lift off" is, that has been achieved...
> and can't wait to learn about the "lift of" that D
> imitar has come up with, that now sits ready to ta
> ckle my test garden...


I'm with you Steveg. That also caught my eye. I'd like to crawl into Tom's brain to find out what he knows about "lift off".

El

SO true, El, so true! LOL!

There is nothing better than those rare occasions when NASA-Tom has the two things that he very rarely possesses...TIME, and the FREEDOM TO SPEAK! When those two rare things align, though, BOY is it nice to be on the receiving end...

Steve

Dew and I got spent an hour at Myer's Metal Detector Sales in Tampa yesterday to talk to Phil about the MDT that he is now selling in his shop. We talked settings and showed how to adjust the settings.
Have to say the upgrade to the battery compartment is really nice and solid looking compared to the original plastic cap assembly. The newer one looks to be black anodized aluminum. Way to go Dimitar!


Cliff