sovereign gt doa

RvaDiggn

Full Member
Jun 13, 2011
119
6
Richmond, VA
Detector(s) used
Fisher 1265x, F2 Nautlius DMC IIb
Lora the Explorer said:
Hi Tector,
I have a Sovereign GT, so air-tested a penny, dime, and quarter. I waved each coin approx. 10 inches from the bottom of the coil and it could detect each coin separately at the 10 inch distance and closer. I recently detected a penny in the ground, over a foot deep. Wish you were closer, we could do a side by side test. The threshold gets louder when it detects the coins, there is no kind of bing or pinging sound, just different threshold sounds, some (like a quarter) are very loud, while others have a lower threshold sound (like a nickel). Don't know if this helps, but I hope so. Good luck with your new detector....

Laura
I was thinking the same thing, this maybe the answer he's looking for.
 

OP
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Tector

Tector

Jr. Member
Apr 4, 2011
90
0
Davenport, ia
Detector(s) used
Tesoro silver umax
So I sent it to minelab. no cost tested better than the one they had, supposedly. Got it back, week later threshold screws up. At 7o'clock it's @ full blast. I got it back within four days. All this is really taking the fun out of things! Just wondering now with coins past 4 inches are you only relying on threshold tones. So far i'm yet to find anything past 4". Thanks for everybodies help. I'll try an air test soon to compare
 

OP
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Tector

Tector

Jr. Member
Apr 4, 2011
90
0
Davenport, ia
Detector(s) used
Tesoro silver umax
Air test was sad. Penny @ 4in max. So frustrated. Called again he says read page blah blah in manual. Try all metal. Air test wasnt much better. Why would I want to pay $800 and only use all metal? He wants me to talk to someone else avout my setup. I'm done analysing. Said it would be difficult to give a eplacement when nothings wrong with it. Ecerytime I use it I want to destroy it after digging huge craters with no results.
 

Treasure_Hunter

Administrator
Staff member
Jul 27, 2006
48,305
54,467
Florida
Detector(s) used
Minelab_Equinox_ 800 Minelab_CTX-3030 Minelab_Excal_1000 Minelab_Sovereign_GT Minelab_Safari Minelab_ETrac Whites_Beach_Hunter_ID Fisher_1235_X
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Tector said:
Air test was sad. Penny @ 4in max. So frustrated. Called again he says read page blah blah in manual. Try all metal. Air test wasnt much better. Why would I want to pay $800 and only use all metal? He wants me to talk to someone else avout my setup. I'm done analysing. Said it would be difficult to give a eplacement when nothings wrong with it. Ecerytime I use it I want to destroy it after digging huge craters with no results.

I own 2 Sov GTs....

Like other Minelabs they do not airtest well......

ON freshly buried coins for testing your not going to get much depth, there is no halo from interactions with the ground minerals...You will only get 4-6 inches on freshly buried targets you bury to test on.



What are your settings on the Sov GT?

How are you pinpointing, it could be a pinpoint issue....
 

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Tector

Tector

Jr. Member
Apr 4, 2011
90
0
Davenport, ia
Detector(s) used
Tesoro silver umax
Hey pinpoint by x'ing. I use disc no iron, notch disc a all the way down, volume max, threshold just audible. Tried auto and manual sensetivity. Manuall unstable then turn down a hair. Shouldn't it air test a little better. I trued a silver dollar maYbe 5".
 

jeff of pa

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Tector said:
Hey pinpoint by x'ing. I use disc no iron, notch disc a all the way down, volume max, threshold just audible. Tried auto and manual sensetivity. Manuall unstable then turn down a hair. Shouldn't it air test a little better. I trued a silver dollar maYbe 5".

Depth is never as good on Air testing the Sovereign.
(You don't search for coins in the air)

Use auto sense.

The sovereign has Awasome "True" Auto
You will hear Thumps occasionally as it adjusts,
But it won't be as Bad as Manual Instability.
or Loss of sensitivity because you have it Turned too Low.

(Plus maybe 10 feet down the line
you could Raise your sense,
But unless you Play with the sense after each swing,
You'll Never Know :tongue3: )

Everything Else Looks Good in your settings
 

Treasure_Hunter

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Staff member
Jul 27, 2006
48,305
54,467
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Minelab_Equinox_ 800 Minelab_CTX-3030 Minelab_Excal_1000 Minelab_Sovereign_GT Minelab_Safari Minelab_ETrac Whites_Beach_Hunter_ID Fisher_1235_X
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Tector said:
Hey pinpoint by x'ing. I use disc no iron, notch disc a all the way down, volume max, threshold just audible. Tried auto and manual sensetivity. Manuall unstable then turn down a hair. Shouldn't it air test a little better. I trued a silver dollar maYbe 5".

Do you have a pinpointer also or just using pinpoint on Sov?
 

OP
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Tector

Tector

Jr. Member
Apr 4, 2011
90
0
Davenport, ia
Detector(s) used
Tesoro silver umax
Is it always a battle to find deep targets_4"+? Meaning you have to go over back and forth, wiggle, and rely solely on threshold? Maybe the learning curve is that difficult. I guess if mibelab says it's good its good. I have read people give up on it. I wonder if i'm another statistic!
 

jeff of pa

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Tector said:
Is it always a battle to find deep targets_4"+? Meaning you have to go over back and forth, wiggle, and rely solely on threshold? Maybe the learning curve is that difficult. I guess if mibelab says it's good its good. I have read people give up on it. I wonder if i'm another statistic!

I Don't think the Learning Curve on the sovereign
Is that Bad. You get a Sharp Tone (Low, Med, or High,
or any tone in between,) You slow & Check
it out with Slight Swings, wiggle , whatever.

That you Pull back slowly while swinging Till
the tone Disappears, Then move forward while swinging till
you hear it & Know it's at the Tip
of your Coil, Turn Sidways Do the same.

Then Dig & Pinpoint with your centech.

I went from a Whites Coinmaster to the sovereign
With No Confusion & Found deep Coins Immediately.

I Had (Have) more problems
getting used to the SE
 

Treasure_Hunter

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Jul 27, 2006
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Minelab_Equinox_ 800 Minelab_CTX-3030 Minelab_Excal_1000 Minelab_Sovereign_GT Minelab_Safari Minelab_ETrac Whites_Beach_Hunter_ID Fisher_1235_X
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Tector said:
Is it always a battle to find deep targets_4"+? Meaning you have to go over back and forth, wiggle, and rely solely on threshold? Maybe the learning curve is that difficult. I guess if mibelab says it's good its good. I have read people give up on it. I wonder if i'm another statistic!

No it isn't....... Don't know what you were hunting with before, and don't know your experience. Like Jeff said, the learning curve for the Sov isn't really steep.

Once you find a target you can do as Jeff suggest, locate target then back the coil off till it disappears, target is just off the tip of the coil. I have found you don't have to have the coil moving very much to pinpoint the target. I can just back the coil off the target, either back and use toe of coil, or forward and use the heel of the coil, don't really need to swing it as the movement forward or backward is enough to get the target to register....

If you sent it back to Minelab and they told you it is operating properly I would first suspect operator error (no offense meant).

Here is something to try, take a coin and tape it on the back of a piece of cardboard, if you can cut a card board box open so you have a large area. Tape the coin somewhere on it but not in the middle, turn it over and spin it as you throw it on the ground so you don't know where the coin is. Now locate the coin on the cardboard and make a "x" mark with a pencil on where you think it is after pinpointing it, then poke a tiny hole in the cardboard in the center of the "X" and flip the board over and see how close you are to the coin.... If you can get at least 2 cardboards to do the test with and spin and throw both at the same time.

This is something that is also done at seeded hunts with prizes to the person who pinpoints closest to the center of the coin....

Again I mean no offense in my suggestions, but it may be the pinpointing your doing is off.......
 

jeff of pa

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Treasure_Hunter said:
Tector said:
Is it always a battle to find deep targets_4"+? Meaning you have to go over back and forth, wiggle, and rely solely on threshold? Maybe the learning curve is that difficult. I guess if mibelab says it's good its good. I have read people give up on it. I wonder if i'm another statistic!

No it isn't....... Don't know what you were hunting with before, and don't know your experience. Like Jeff said, the learning curve for the Sov isn't really steep.

Once you find a target you can do as Jeff suggest, locate target then back the coil off till it disappears, target is just off the tip of the coil. I have found you don't have to have the coil moving very much to pinpoint the target. I can just back the coil off the target, either back and use toe of coil, or forward and use the heel of the coil, don't really need to swing it as the movement forward or backward is enough to get the target to register....

If you sent it back to Minelab and they told you it is operating properly I would first suspect operator error (no offense meant).

Here is something to try, take a coin and tape it on the back of a piece of cardboard, if you can cut a card board box open so you have a large area. Tape the coin somewhere on it but not in the middle, turn it over and spin it as you throw it on the ground so you don't know where the coin is. Now locate the coin on the cardboard and make a "x" mark with a pencil on where you think it is after pinpointing it, then poke a tiny hole in the cardboard in the center of the "X" and flip the board over and see how close you are to the coin.... If you can get at least 2 cardboards to do the test with and spin and throw both at the same time.

This is something that is also done at seeded hunts with prizes to the person who pinpoints closest to the center of the coin....

Again I mean no offense in my suggestions, but it may be the pinpointing your doing is off.......

Exactly !

One Correction I Should have added.

I Found

IF the target is Shallow, (like under Cardboard)
it will Pinpoint
just in Front of the Coil,
Or just Behind the Heel.

If deep it will Poinpoint just Under the Tip
Or just Under the Heal.
 

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Tector

Tector

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Apr 4, 2011
90
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Davenport, ia
Detector(s) used
Tesoro silver umax
No offense taken. I'm used to it. I just got through a four year carpenters apprenticeship! I'm open to any feedback. I just can't get over the terrible air tests. I've been hunting 6 pre 1900s houses with nothing past 4". It seems all I find are strong shallow targets. I lucked out and found a minelab dealer who is willing to help. I'm meeting him tommorrow
 

jeff of pa

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Tector said:
No offense taken. I'm used to it. I just got through a four year carpenters apprenticeship! I'm open to any feedback. I just can't get over the terrible air tests. I've been hunting 6 pre 1900s houses with nothing past 4". It seems all I find are strong shallow targets. I lucked out and found a minelab dealer who is willing to help. I'm meeting him tommorrow

Awsome :thumbsup:

That will definately Help.

My guess You are just not Familiar with what deeper
targets sound like Yet, Or are swinging a Bit too Fast.
Or both.

You'll get the Hang of it,
& Trust us the Sovereign is Deep :laughing7:
 

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Tector

Tector

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Apr 4, 2011
90
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Davenport, ia
Detector(s) used
Tesoro silver umax
Thanks for all the help. He's going to let me use his etrac too!..ill post back
 

Treasure_Hunter

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Minelab_Equinox_ 800 Minelab_CTX-3030 Minelab_Excal_1000 Minelab_Sovereign_GT Minelab_Safari Minelab_ETrac Whites_Beach_Hunter_ID Fisher_1235_X
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Tector said:
Thanks for all the help. He's going to let me use his etrac too!..ill post back

I'm glad you found someone local to help you. Believe it or not, you have one of the best detectors made, the Sovereign GT is a great detector for both land and wet salt beaches. The dealer will be able to help you and will know if it is pilot error or if it is the detector.........It will be nice you get a chance to see and use an ETrac, I own the Minelab Safari, a sort of stripped down version of an ETrac, Etrac has a lot more menu's and options, you think the Sov has some weird noises, wait till you hear the tones of the ETrac.....LOL
 

Woodland Detectors

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jeff of pa said:
are you moving over it slow ?

also if you just bought it
the dealer should help.

if you get the tone change it sees it

so it should sound off
You're right Jeff, his dealer should be more than willing to help. If he isn't, feel free to call me, I'll take care of you.
 

bottlebum

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Jul 18, 2007
509
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Indiana
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Minelab EQ 900
Nokta/Makro Anfibio Multi
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Are you using headphones? Sounds like the plug might not be plugged all the way into the jack?

Just a thought. Hope you get it all worked out.

HH, bottlebum
 

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Tector

Tector

Jr. Member
Apr 4, 2011
90
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Davenport, ia
Detector(s) used
Tesoro silver umax
The nightmare continues..... Never got a chance to test on deep targets with the dealer_got rained out. He'd never used a sovereign before. I'm sending it back...again! I literally cant locate my buried pennies @4". Theres no way this machine could suck that bad. All you get is a threshold change after working over them for eternity. They said they'll try to get a replacement. Used to go metal detecting daily. I can't even look @ it without angry thoughts.
 

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