GTI 1500- 9.5 imaging or 8.5x11DD? more questions..

[crusty metal]

I got a older GTI 1500 that I got from my brother 7-8 years or so ago. I don't think it has 20 hours on it. I'm tossing back and forth on getting one of these coils to upgrade the original white scorcher. Either 9.5 imaging (maybe 12.5) or a 8.5x11 DD? I do use the depth imaging more so than other stuff but I could maybe live without imaging totally if worth the extra benefit of DD? But the imaging is what makes the gti what it is. Also.. If I go with the DD will my coins still have that different destinct tone verses junk iron? Really need opinions here as soon will be buying one or other. Thanks.

 

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[John-Edmonton]

I would suggest you get the 12.5" imaging coil, and continue using the white imaging coil. The 8.5 x 11" DD coil does not image, and really has no advantage over the 12.5 " imaging coil. In fact, if you can get a sniper coil, get it. It is a killer in the true all metal mode. It doesn't image, but with a coil that size, you can figure out a targets size quite easily.

 

[crusty metal]

Thanks John-Edmonton.. I live in Southern Wisconsin so not sure if soil is considered heavy minerals or not? mostly farm fields and woods mixed in. Soft soil compared to Southern states I guess. I read some conditions 'lock' the machine up with the 12.5 in heavy mineral conditions? very confusing to me. I like the Idea of the 12.5 for it's depth and imaging but do you think the locking up will be a issue here in southern WI?

 

[NiagracountyNY]

I just traded off my gti2500 pro pack.If u can live without the imaging..which i felt was only acurate to 5 or 6 inches on a coin..I would deff get the DD coil.Concentric coils have that cone shaped beam that comes to a point.Unless u get that POINT right on the target u could miss it.You will get better separation and miss less with the DD.Some say the concentric get better depth,but i doubt much,and again its just that tip of the beam thats getting that extra half inch.DD all day for me.

 

[Keppy]

I had a 1500 for years and all i ever used on it were the 9.5 and 12.5 on it and i worked out fine for me .. I have the AT Pro now and i can tell you to me the GTI 1500 was and still is a lot better detector than the AT Pro ...

 

[NiagracountyNY]

I kept the at pro.I personaly feel with the iron audio abilities and the dd coil the pro is a lot more machine than the gti series.Being able to size items doesn't help in iron and trash.

 

[Kodiak43351]

The DD coil is a great coil and I love it in the trashy locations on my pro. I've never used the gti series but know how they work from reading and watching a lot of videos. There is a YouTube video of a guy in the woods using the DD and he was getting great depth and finding great stuff.

 

[Keppy]

I kept the at pro.I personaly feel with the iron audio abilities and the dd coil the pro is a lot more machine than the gti series.Being able to size items doesn't help in iron and trash.

Well to me the Pro is a lot less detector than the GTI detectors … It even cost a lot less.. To me my Pro is just another Ace with a bigger price tag..

 

[redbeardrelics]

I've had the GTI2500 with the 9.5" and the 12.5" imaging coils, for about 8 years and am happy with both. I hunt mostly farm fields, some trashy and some not. On the trashy sites I prefer the stock 9.5", but sometimes feel as I might be missing deeper items due to lack of separation and amount of iron. The 12.5" I generally only use on real early sites where there is not much trash, and on the other sites after I have pounded them with the 9.5" and am not finding many more targets to dig. I am thinking of getting a DD coil for this machine for the trashy spots, and it looks like Garrett offers 4 different DD's for it, the 5" x 8", the 5" x 10" scorcher, the 8.5" x 11", and the 10" x 14". I assume the only difference in these DD coils is the width and depth of the scan, anybody have any reviews they can give on the DD's? thanks.

 

[crusty metal]

thanks on that info folks.. rbr- thanks on asking that input on different dd's- I'll be watching also for replys. I'm leaning towards 8.5x11DD or the imaging 12.5- I like the imaging but concerned on size of coil might be to big for woods,ect. But.. good opinion here from a experienced detectorist- so still caught in the middle thinking

 

[crusty metal]

I decided to get both coils. The 8.5x11DD is on the way and will get the 12.5 imaging in near future. Might wait to see if I can find it on sale this winter. Want to get a sniper too yet.

 

[Kodiak43351]

Well to me the Pro is a lot less detector than the GTI detectors … It even cost a lot less.. To me my Pro is just another Ace with a bigger price tag..

like I said I've never owned a gti but have owned an ace 350 and the pro is not even in same league as an ace. I liked the 350 but the pro just plain out hunts it in every way. I have gone over same places I took ace and passed coil over same spot and pro pulled silver dimes where the ace gave a junk signal. I don't use standard mode so maybe that's what your talking about. I see you don't live far from me let's get together and hunt. Maybe I can give you some pointers on the pro to help you if you think it's just another ace. Because if you think your pro is just another ace then you are not using it correctly in my opinion. I love it and only detector I'm looking at now is the gold because of how well it hits low conductors and the true all metal mode because I'm more of a relic hunter. I have no problems at all finding silver and gold jewelry with the pro I just want to hunt some old sites for some relics and believe gold will give me an edge on the lower conductors and a bit more depth. I hunt a lot of old sites with the pro and it doesn't disappoint but I just want to add the gold. I notice you don't list your detectors, have you ever used an ace, my finds are proof that the pro works well for me and I don't leave much if anything behind. I use the 5x8 DD coil mostly but the stock coil does well also. I've pulled Indian head and wheats out of trashy areas with the stock coil but the 5x8 is a lot better and depth isn't going to mean jack in a trashy area. Separation of targets is the key in those areas. Everyone is entitled to their opinions so I felt I should give mine since you felt like misleading others who may not know any better.

 

[Kodiak43351]

I decided to get both coils. The 8.5x11DD is on the way and will get the 12.5 imaging in near future. Might wait to see if I can find it on sale this winter. Want to get a sniper too yet.

i think you will be happy with your purchase. The DD coils are great in trashy areas. I researched the gti but I liked the pro better and I like to get in the rivers here and I have dropped my pro more than once and it was completely submerged. With most other detectors my unit would of been toast or at very least needed to be dried out. With the pro I just picked it up and continued my hunt. You have a very capable machine with the gti and the DD coil is going to give you an edge over the concentric coils in trashy locations. Good luck and hope you find something awesome.

 

[redbeardrelics]

I decided to get both coils. The 8.5x11DD is on the way and will get the 12.5 imaging in near future. Might wait to see if I can find it on sale this winter. Want to get a sniper too yet.

Cool, I am ordering the 10"x 14" DD, and maybe we can compare notes later on. I am hoping that the 10" x 14" will give me both better separation and depth than the stock 9.5" imaging. Only way to find out for sure is to get it and see for myself. HH

 

[redbeardrelics]

Cool, I am ordering the 10"x 14" DD, and maybe we can compare notes later on. I am hoping that the 10" x 14" will give me both better separation and depth than the stock 9.5" imaging. Only way to find out for sure is to get it and see for myself. HH

FYI.. I received my new 10" x 14" DD coil last week and immediately put it on my GTI 2500 for a test in my front yard where there once was a small mid 1800's house site. I have pounded this spot for years with this detector and the 9.5" and 12.5" imaging coils. I was a bit surprised and disappointed when I turned the detector on and no longer had any of the Discrimination modes, only All Metal mode was now available. I knew I would obviously no longer have any imaging, but thought for sure I would still have discrimination mode. I turned it off and on a few times, and went through all the menu options, but still no Discrimination modes. I scanned the yard for about 45 minutes in All Metal mode, which I have never been a big fan of, and found a few bottle caps pull tabs and a matchbox car, along with a few small pieces of copper scrap and tubing, and spent 10 minutes chasing a high tone signal that turned out to be a soda can at 12" deep.
I had turned the detector off while digging the deep can, and when I turned it back on it was totally going haywire, screen scrolling through all sorts of gibberish, talking at me, what a mess. I turned it off and on a few more times, unhooked the coil wire, and re-attached it still the same mess. Went back inside, on the PC to the Garrett website, printed off the repair order form, called the factory, and got a return authorization number. The nice lady there could not tell me if it was normal to lose the Discrimination modes with a DD coil, but said the repair man would check it out when it was received at the factory. While at the computer I took the time to read through the online Operators Manual for the first time in years.
I went back outside and started to get the detector ready to package up and send out for repairs, but decided to turn it on one more time, and this time I held down the Power On button for over 5 seconds to reset it to factory default settings. Wouldn't you know, it came back to life, this time I had all my Discrimination Modes available, and everything was working fine. I went back out in my yard and hunted for about an hour, and found a few clad dimes and cents, which were probably lost at yard sales during the past 5 years, and one older junk ring. I guess maybe it is supposed to be standard practice to hold the power button down and go back into factory preset modes every time you change to a different coil ?

 

[DDancer]

Should not be necessary however it was a good idea to go back to factory settings. Might be your set up didn't like the flavor of the new coil~ never used anything but imaging coils on mine. Be interesting to know if you have to reset when swapping coils back and forth.

 

[I DIG]

I haven't had to reset my Garrett 2500 when changing form DD to Imaging coil.

 

[gabbyhayes]

You shoudn't have to do a reset when changing coils, but the detector has a processor (computer) inside and they can go bonkers.
I have had to do a reset on mine once or twice.
Static can be the worst enemy of a computer and I suspect that is what can sometimes make your machine crazy.
You may have had a static discharge when you changed coils