Vista Gold Field Test

I just received Keith's Vista Gold......... and will commence bench, then test-garden, then real-world field testing....... probably this afternoon.

Cant wait for the read.

this post i will keep my eyes on!

STILL waiting on mine! Sheessk...Im not a patient person and 3 weeks is a long time! Lol.

Sounds good Tom!

Excellent news ,a comparison versus GMP and DEUS will be very interesting ,also Gold in boost vs F75 in bp.

Great news. Thanks to Keith for sharing the unit. I know it was hard to let it out of your hands for a while.......

Tom in SC

Can't wait to hear your thoughts, NASA-Tom...

Keith -- thanks for sharing it, for the good of all...

Steve

I agree!!!

james1969 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Excellent news ,a comparison versus GMP and DEUS
> will be very interesting ,also Gold in boost vs
> F75 in bp.

Let me know if you're testing up Sanford way!

With the sand/soil the way it is down by Tom, this machine should be pretty slik !!......

Thanks for the loan out Keith .....Very nice of you !!.....

Tom,
Look forward to your report !!......Jim

Perfect timing. My Vista Gold came a few days ago.

I bought mine mostly for it's supposed superior separation abilities in the iron.

I'm hoping it gets some decent depth on certain types of targets as well.

Ultimately I'd like to know if I can expect it to perform in any way better than todays top machines.

It will be detecting colonial sites behind my Explorer SE and T2 SE.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/24/2013 03:23AM by Badger in NH.

Some (very) prelim results:

Unit seems like a nearly exact (but crude) copy of the GMP. Nearly the same/exact available functions..... and performing almost identical.

A couple of specifics:

Invoking 'boost' mode: 0.4" deeper on clad dime.
Invoking 'fast' mode: 0.3" deeper on a clad dime.

This may not sound like much...... but there is a strong audible difference/gain (usable) on these fringe-depth targets. Also....... clad dimes are high conductors........ and this unit is a 25Khz unit....... more resonant for low conductors.

In multiple test-garden scenarios........ the Vista Gold (thus far) has identical adjacent target separation characteristics as GMP...... as long as 'fast' is invoked.

I'm not acquiring the 'expected' results on the bench....... nor in the test-garden (mostly in reference to depth). I do not want to report any 'negative'.......... so I shall reserve my thoughts until real-world testing validates/invalidates. Lately...... a few modern detectors have been performing better in real-world scenarios.... vs.... test-garden & bench.

Prelim, prelim, prelim.
More results to follow.

Good info Tom...

If thats the 12inch dime then the GOLD is .3 ------.4 " deeper than the GMP and CZ and Etrac on it?

I read where the GMP was a dead heat for the CZ/ ETRAC but dont know the dept of that test...I assume the CZ hits the 12 inch?

The F75 LTD also max's out on the 12 inch dime I read...?

If so I find it interesting...That 25kHz is the deeper of the lot...


Yes I also believe the Gold performs like the GMP unmasking wise yet has more punch....


One thing I notice is the Gold does not airtest well...and seems to like mineral dirt better than neutral dirt...Almost like it likes to have something to signal on by the ground balance setting...If that makes sense....needs mineral to trigger a response...

Thaks for the info Tom..

Keith

How would it compare to an Eureka Gold?
Same disc option, about same frequency 20 kHz,...

Just Curious

HH
Johnb

Thanks Keith for loaning out your Vista Gold for Tom to test out. Thanks Tom for taking the time to prove what this machines real capabilities are. This is a must read thread. I just received my Vista Gold two days ago and have only begun to test it out. Just started a two week vacation and plan on some real tests on my relic sites. My only complaint so far is the wobbly lower shaft. I feel it is a little short for me also. So I have ordered a Whites tall man lower rod to fix that problem. It is 10 inches longer. it will fit in the shaft fine. Just have to drill out the bolt hole 1/16 inch for the larger Deeptech bolt size. Should work to make the unit feel more stout and user friendly. Everyone likes to add a custom touch to their favorite machines and I feel like this is going to become one of my favorites for relic hunting very quickly from my first tests. Your tests will be greatly looked forward to...Stuart

Keith (and all others)............ no.......... this Vista Gold is approx 1.4" less capable on a clad dime than GMP (and Deus). . . . . in a test-garden. Real world might be different; yet, I do not suspect any difference between real-world .... vs .... test-garden; but, , , , will not make that conclusive statement until 'real-world' proven. Now............. when toggle switch is placed in all-metal mode........ the unit will then achieve almost the same depth as GMP......... about 0.1" shy of GMP.

What's interesting about the GMP is........ It'll acquire the 12.0" deep clad dime in a test-garden with a weak audio response........ with 100% reliable, consistent, repeatable performance. Very weak audio report; yet, reliable absolute. In the real-world........... there are enough 'very weak' audio responses simply from real-world ground feedback/chatter........ that preempts (audibly masks) ever finding a 12.0" deep dime and/or 'fringe' targets........ to the point of attenuating 3" - 4" of (deeper-depth) targets........ subsequently...... making the GMP a 100% reliable to 7" unit..... under these conditions. Interestingly...... about one month ago, about 3-feet apart from each other, I found a Half-Dime and a silver Trime at 10"........ in the real-world,,,, with the GMP. The F75, CZ & Explorer independently ID'd the Half Dime and Trime as 'iron'....... 100% consistently, reliably. An eye-opener...... to say the least. This particular area has..... what I would categorize: 'medium mineralization'.......... yet, posed a lesser-than-norm real-world ground feedback/chatter; subsequently, allowing more audible intelligence on deeper targets with the GMP.

I compare the GMP/Deus to the Vista Gold............. as they target nearly the exact same market; yet, the GMP/Deus are more versatile...... due to a very usable audio 'coin tone'....... should you exclusively want to hunt for coins. The Vista Gold and GMP are uncanny-similar........ except for the GMP having a 3rd tone for coin hunting.

Real-world hunt(s) .... with the Vista Gold ..... are next.

The pots (control knobs) on this Vista Gold are a very 'grinding' feel; yet, no errors/problems incurred.

Keith several machines dont GB well here in Fl.... the DFX at least has a factory pre set. It will be interesting to see how it does on the beach and what type gold targets it may or may not pick up. Im taking dry sand use. Should be some interesting results.

Dew

i may consider buying a gmp now

The GMP is not sold in the U.S. yet, unless you find a used one.

im in the uk Aaron
shame Tom hasn't got the smart to test as well

The whites lower shaft is a hair too small a diameter...

I have one made up from a whites lower rod and have to put tape around it to keep it from wobbling to death...

They had an older design lower rod all one piece plastic...it fit's snug...thats the one's I have....the new Smart Javelin let me use had that new style lower rod like you are talking about and it is a little wobbly...I cant stand a shaft to wobble..

the newer machines in the last month or so has started using the different lower rod and it is loose but its not going to be as loose as the whites rod you have coming... I hate to say.

Keith

Thank's Tom..

The DTVG will hit a 10 inch dime in my dirt with ease with a proper ground balance,,, yet the Deus and GMP have to have the ground bal manipulated to hit the same dime..
they hit it then but they fasle trying to run them across the ground on twigs and stuff...If thats makes sense...

The DEUS I can get to be the deepest machine I have...but it has to be tweaked on and then it becomes too unstable to hunt..it will hit a measured 17" quarter but I pitty the person who tries to hunt with it like that..LOL!!Yet if the need arises it is doable no other machine I know of can do that but the DEUS,,,

I have a feeling your lack of mineral changes the whole scenario ..

Whats weird thats the only DT model that is different from the rest of the DT's...make me wonder if the other's would not be deeper performers if my dirt was better....Actually had a german engineer work on that particular model...

The Gold was built to work on roman sites contaminated with fired clay pottery...

Yes the post are plastic shaft...that was my first complaint about the machine...

The plastic pot shafts use a different pin out than the metal post ones so they are not replaceable as board mount...someone said they might use the newer metal post pots on upcoming design'.s..not sure though..

Thanks for the info Tom...

P.S. what does your ground bal at on the GOLD?

mine is at about 1:30 2:00

Keith

Try the famous beer can shim.

I'll add this if I may. I own an XP Deus with 9 inch coil. And I owned a Vista Gold, but since I prefer a VDI, I sold the Vista Gold. (plus, I needed some income). I buried an 11 inch (buried precisely) nickel. And although my dirt is moderately mineralized, I ran a rare earth magnet all though the pile of dirt from the hole, AND I wiped it around inside the hole hoping to remove any iron flecks that may or may not have been present. I buried the clad nickel and made a vid of me hitting it with the Vista Gold and 11 inch Elliptical coil. I also made a video of me hitting with with my Deus and 9 inch coil. They both hit it, allbeit the Deus seemed a bit more sure of itself. I set ground balance on both machines to be non-chattery in my dirt. Actually, my intentions wasn't to create a head to head comparison. My intention was to practice making videos. But as it turns out, I was proud of my Deus with 9 inch coil's performance. But hey, I'm not above ordering a Vista Smart when the mood strikes. Just depends on if I get some more sites to hunt. I have noticed something...if I don't wirte down where I have permission to hunt, I soon forget where they are!!!!!!! That's not good. (Sorry that I digressed)

Hello - I'm in the market for a new machine and am reading this forum and post with interest.

Tom - I'd like to know what your methodology is for your test garden tests? There is no video posted showing your results...have you written up how you do your testing on a previous posting and can you point me there so I can read all about it? Thanks - I'd love to replicate your testing methods myself...

I watched the video that was done about the separation ability of a few detectors and it showed the Vista SMART to be a clear winner in it's ability to separate a number of different conductor items amongst iron. It won out over the Deus, the CTX3030, the Blisstool...They say they were using the Deus in Deus Fast mode. I looked that up and the difference between the Deus Fast and the Deus GMP "mimic" program is only one thing - the Deus Fast actually has a faster reactivity speed of 3 versus a 2 for the GMP mimic program...would I be safe to assume that this 3 versus 2 for reactivity would make the Deus Fast actually perform better in a separation test?

Here is the video: [www.youtube.com] - where they actually use for the test the Vista SMART not the Vista GOLD. Keith's tests claim that the Vista GOLD to be faster than the SMART...so you are using the faster machine... The Deus starts at 3:24 in the video so you don't have to watch the other machines first...

Above you say: "In multiple test-garden scenarios........ the Vista Gold (thus far) has identical adjacent target separation characteristics as GMP...... as long as 'fast' is invoked." Tom...not to be combatant or disrespectful - this video clearly shows the Vista SMART to produce better than identical results...as compared to the Deus in Deus Fast mode???

To extrapolate the video results which used the Deus to compare to your tests using the GMP - I dug through some of your posts over the last year....

You said in a post on 4/9/12 about the Deus: "Real-world performance: Virtually identical to the XP GMP (Gold Maxx Power)." So Tom - would it be safe to say, not having the GMP machine since it's not sold in the USA, that for testing and real use purposes, the Deus can be a pretty good stand-in for the GMP performance?

In your report on the GMP tests on 4/2/12 you report: "6. XP GMP 'reactivity' is equiv to XP DEUS setting of '2'. (On a scale of 5).".....(this comment being consistent to the Deus GMP mimic program using the 2 reactivity versus the Deus Fast being a 3)...

On 4/14/12 while testing the GMP in the field you wrote: "Whilst relic hunting........... seeking to find/dig/recover ALL non-ferrous targets in carpets of nails............ I continue to be impressed with this units performance/capabilities. Once again........ it has proven to 'parallel' the performance of the current flagship relic hunter............. presenting equal confidence with this unit."

On 4/23/12 you add in about the GMP: "As I continue to review my collected field-data on the GMP (which also directly relates to the DEUS)...... I will share." "Detecting in carpets of nails with the GMP....... some of its performance characteristics are incongruent (paradox) to physics laws/expectations. The GMP seems to be somewhat desensitized to iron............ which is incongruent with its higher 18-Khz operating frequency. This high frequency should me more sensitive to iron. I speculate something unique engineered/taking-place within the ground balance phase-angle relationship ...... so as to somewhat 'blind' (desensitize) the detector to iron. In addition....... the larger coil (9" DD) has a certain "reduction-in-performance" expectation in carpets of iron nails (not recommended to use large coils in carpets of nails); yet, it will unmask non-ferrous targets....... with equivalent performance to a 4" or 5" size coil. "The GMP operates at a Reactivity of '2'. This appears to be approx 97% - 98% efficiency factor. The DEUS can be adjusted for a Reactivity setting of '3'......... which appears to be 100% efficiency rating. Using a Reactivity setting of '4' ........ or the maximum of '5'............ appears to be on the wrong side of the bell-curve".

On 8/29/12 you state in the GMP test thread: "For XP DEUS owners........... you can directly transfer the above data to your DEUS. "

Is it safe to say since the video shows the Vista SMART beating a Deus, and your above comments stating the Deus is a very close mimic of the GMP...that one can extrapolate that the SMART is potentially superior to the GMP in it's unmasking abilities???

I know you have the Vista GOLD and maybe someone should send you their Vista SMART for testing - but I for one eagerly await your field tests regarding the Vista GOLD performance in the carpet of nails....it would be so helpful if you can do some video of your testing - we'd all learn so much more hearing the machines and seeing with our own eyes how to do this type of test....

Thanks for everything you do to advance this fun hobby...

Keith.... can the plugger shaft holders be used to stop your wiggle? I use them on the Xcal and they are super.

Dew

I would have to say the Vista has a advantage with a narrow coil. The Deus also with a 9 inch round would have a edge.

To Keith and the other LeggoHead thanks for the shaft information. As always really good information on all aspects of individual machines and how to fine tune them to be more user friendly.

Kevin.....what the....you SOLD your GOLD already?!!