I covered the display on my detector and hunted strictly by ear tonight.

[DiamondDan]

How liberating. The number of holes I dug increased by probably one-third, and although I dug an additional one-third trash, we all know digging trash gets you the goods!

I always hunt in tone mode on my detector anyway, and instead of swinging back and forth over every target 500 times trying to get an unattainably-stable target id, I simply had to trust my ear and dig. I like it. I think I'll have my wife sew me a little cloth cover to go over the display. Maybe a tone-only machine is in my future! Thanks for reading!

 

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[Dan(NM)]

I remember the day, single tone, no meter, man, I dug a ton of neat and odd stuff. But, I dug a pouch full of trash as well.

 

[Escape]

Does the machine have more then one tone?

 

[ARC]

I covered my eyes with blind fold once...

Did not work out well.

PS.. word of advice ... do not do this in the rocky cliff areas and mountains.:P

PSS...
Not that I would know from personal experience... But I will tell you rocky beaches and jetty's are a definite challenge. :P

PSSS... And when did stiches and bandages at the hospital get so damn expensive ?

 

[DiamondDan]

Does the machine have more then one tone?

Yep. Seven.

 

[Escape]

Yep. Seven.

With 7 tones you really don't need to look at the display for every signal. That's why I prefer a multi tone machine even if it's just 4 tones. I can run my dfx on a single tone but don't like to unless I'm in a trash infested site and I run high discrimination picking up clad and occasionally silver. Actually finding silver more rarely then occasional. On the beach I run it on multi tone. The dfx has 181 tones. But generally the signals cluster around a few familiar tones. Which is basically the usual things you dig up, trash included. Regardless, you dig a lot of trash. I don't mind digging up foil and and pop tops. I don't like digging up small pieces of foil, but I often dig it just in case. I tend to dig a lot of junk because of just in case. My golden umax is excellent for identifying bottle caps on the beach. Up to about 4 inches deep. When I detect them on the beach I kick them out of the sand. Won't give them the dignity of a proper retrieval with the sand scoop.

 

[DiamondDan]

With 7 tones you really don't need to look at the display for every signal. That's why I prefer a multi tone machine even if it's just 4 tones. I can run my dfx on a single tone but don't like to unless I'm in a trash infested site and I run high discrimination picking up clad and occasionally silver. Actually finding silver more rarely then occasional. On the beach I run it on multi tone. The dfx has 181 tones. But generally the signals cluster around a few familiar tones. Which is basically the usual things you dig up, trash included. Regardless, you dig a lot of trash. I don't mind digging up foil and and pop tops. I don't like digging up small pieces of foil, but I often dig it just in case. I tend to dig a lot of junk because of just in case. My golden umax is excellent for identifying bottle caps on the beach. Up to about 4 inches deep. When I detect them on the beach I kick them out of the sand. Won't give them the dignity of a proper retrieval with the sand scoop.

I hear you about not having to look atthe screen for every target. I just don't feel that the display offers very much more than what I can decide by simply listening to the machine. After my trial "blind run" last night, I've come to the conclusion that the screen is more of a distraction for me than anything. Maybe once I get used to hunting by ear I'll take the cover off again, but I don't see it happening. I've discovered that I dig a lot more holes without it, and I don't mind.

I know display is very important for some guys. I've seen videos of dudes with very high-end machines that spend more time going over heir targets in different modes and stuff than it would take just to dig the target and find out immediately. To each their own, I guess.

 

[Escape]

I hear you about not having to look atthe screen for every target. I just don't feel that the display offers very much more than what I can decide by simply listening to the machine. After my trial "blind run" last night, I've come to the conclusion that the screen is more of a distraction for me than anything. Maybe once I get used to hunting by ear I'll take the cover off again, but I don't see it happening. I've discovered that I dig a lot more holes without it, and I don't mind.

I know display is very important for some guys. I've seen videos of dudes with very high-end machines that spend more time going over heir targets in different modes and stuff than it would take just to dig the target and find out immediately. To each their own, I guess.

What you are doing is very interesting. Its like some kind of ninja metal detecting exercise. Hope to hear more about your experience as you continue. ((Even though I believe the master metal detecting ninjas hear the treasure vibrating in the earth before they pass the coil over it. Some kind of ninja 6th sense. )) I can sort of do that, I just haven't developed it beyond trash. : )

 

[Liu21]

Im going to experiment on my next hunt with my AT Pro. Im going to cut a piece of E. tape and cover the last digit on the screen, so all i will see is 4X-9X, thus i will rely heavily on tones.

 

[Truth]

Im going to experiment on my next hunt with my AT Pro. Im going to cut a piece of E. tape and cover the last digit on the screen, so all i will see is 4X-9X, thus i will rely heavily on tones.

I'm going to try the same thing tomorrow with my AT Pro.


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[Iron Buzz]

Get an XP Deus and simply leave the detachable "remote" in the car. (I haven't had the courage to try that yet, though, but admit that it sounds like a great exercise! )

 

[foiler]

crown royal bag works nicely

 

[CoilToTheSoil]

Get an XP Deus and simply leave the detachable "remote" in the car. (I haven't had the courage to try that yet, though, but admit that it sounds like a great exercise! )

Hah I'm with you on that

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[Charlie P. (NY)]

I have an older Minelab Musketeer Advantage that has no display. It does have a signal that is not just an alarm, so you get a wide range of volumes and pitches. It "talks" and you can tell not only by pitch but the "shape" of the sounds what you may be over. Vowel sounds are usually good, bit clicks and hard consonant sounds are usually junk. A coin might be "--ooOOOoo--" while foil or can slaw may be "--oK'k--" or "--oot--"

But it sure loves aluminum bottle caps.

Even with my F-75 I go by sound and just use the display while "X"ing the target to analyze it.

 

[CoilToTheSoil]

Oot!!

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[Iron Buzz]

Oot!!

oK'k

 

[IDXMonster]

Great exercise. I started on an IDXPro and now have a CTX with an Explorer2 in the middle. Sound does have shape,as Charlie says and a lot of us know. It is SO easy to set the disc up around a zinc penny and dig good targets with that machine.....the quality of the monotone response is what counts. It's fast,accurate....FUN to use. That being said,my silver and deep coin count has gone WAY up since the Explorer,and certainly since the CTX. I've also gotten some better sites so any machine may have worked well. I believe there is a distinct advantage in using the ear,not to sound cliche. I think we should all make an effort to hone our hearing skills more often,as that is also where the initial hit is picked up.

 

[Truth]

I did it on the AT Pro today! It was hard at first, but then I got use to it and actually enjoyed it. More just relying on my hearing and using my eyes to enjoy the beauty around me. It was definitely another way of detecting. I just dug what was pleasant to my ear. I even closed my eyes for a while and wondered if there were any blind metal detectorist out there and would their hearing be super sharp? Just a thought.


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[DiamondDan]

I did it on the AT Pro today! It was hard at first, but then I got use to it and actually enjoyed it. More just relying on my hearing and using my eyes to enjoy the beauty around me. It was definitely another way of detecting. I just dug what was pleasant to my ear. I even closed my eyes for a while and wondered if there were any blind metal detectorist out there and would their hearing be super sharp? Just a thought.

It was a bit weird for me at first, too, but I know well enough "what tones go with what target" on my machine that going blind with it wasn't that hard to get the hang of. Honestly, I don't need numbers telling me the difference between a pull tab and a nickel, anyway. The tone is the same and I dig holes for both as a matter of reassurance!

 

[luvsdux]

I'll confess to being opinionated on this. I think it's a good plan for every detectorist to put in many hours on a beep and dig machine - no display. Then, carry over the audible experience gained to add to what a machine with a display is trying to tell you. I had detected a lot with no display, but now have several detectors with displays and I find the tone to be quite useful in addition to the display. I feel quite comfortable with either type of machine and have had good results with either.
luvsdux