Single vs. Multi-Tone Detectors

[Berryman]

I know many of you hunt with detectors both with and without 'tones' capabilities.
I've always wondered why someone would chose to use a single tone detector
when they also had a multiple tones machine at their disposal. Can you explain?

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Minelab PRO-FIND 35 Waterproof Pinpointer Metal Detector for Experts with Tone ID & Adjustable Sensitivity - Grab it through Amazon!

[tabman]

I know many of you hunt with detectors both with and without 'tones' capabilities.
I've always wondered why someone would chose to use a single tone detector
when they also had a multiple tones machine at their disposal. Can you explain?

Mike that's an excellent question! Screen ID numbers should also be included in your question.

I know what I think, but I'll let a few others chime in before I give my 2 cents worth.

tabman

 

[digger27]

I use both, 2 Tesoros and Fishers...currently an extremely capable F70.
Why?
Two words...challenging and fun.
I don't really consider one type all that much better than the other...I just think they both are a blast to swing and walk behind just in different ways.

The challenge of learning new detectors of any kind is one of the best parts of the hobby for me.
I would say master them but no matter how good I get that will never happen in my opinion.

Learning the Tesoro language was a blast, learning new things as I hunt with them is also.
I slowly realized that the one tone carries much more information than just a beep, and by maneuvering the coil and the disc knob and listening closely I think I figured out how to tell what is probably under my coil before I dig and avoid trash just about as well as I can do it with my screen unit.
I have always made an educated guess before I dig with my Tesoros and then see if I was right and have from the beginning.
A game I play with myself and a big part of that fun thing...especially when I am correct.
I use the Fisher and that screen which has a little more info for the eyes, but the tones can be slightly different, hold their own secret information and also matter and I can thank my hundreds of hours spent with my Tesoros for understanding that.
I am better with screens because I got pretty good without them first and I always recommend going that route for anyone no matter what you end up swinging as your favorite.

Using both over the last 5 years I have gone from digging most everything to now digging only about 20% of the trash I come across and still find more than my share of great treasures.
If you can believe it more and better quality, percentage-wise, than before when I was a dig it all kind of hunter.
Maybe, and I repeat, maybe I dig a bit more trash with my Tesoros but not a whole lot by any means.
I am never discouraged after any hunt no matter what I do or do not find.
For me it has always been about just getting out there and enjoying the outdoors while getting some exercise.
Still, I have found more coins, relics and jewelry both silver and gold with both kinds then I ever thought possible when I got into the hobby.
I have never had a thought I was at a disadvantage no matter which unit I was using on any given day and that includes some good natured contests I have had with hunting buddies using some advanced machines.
As you can probably tell, a really positive attitude is also a big part of the hobby for me.

I have gotten pretty good using two completely different types of tools in this hobby, or I believe I have, so in that respect I think I am blessed.

I can't fathom not having both kinds to grab at will on a whim when I feel like a change to shake things up and keep the boredom away.
I use the Fisher much more now because I am anal about learning it and that will take several seasons because all the settings possible that can do so many different things as you adjust them and that just amazes me.
I still pull out the Tesoros from time to time, however, and the second I turn it on at a site I remember how much fun they are to use, exactly why I keep them at hand at all times and I hope that feeling never ends.
Still trying to learn new things every time out with them, too.
I never plan on selling any of my detectors just to make sure the fun and joy never stops, either.

Detectors are just tools, a means to an end.
If you can enjoy the hobby using different kinds...why not?

Hope that is one logical answer to your question.

 

[Terry Soloman]

Simple really. I know I'm going to dig every sweet and solid signal I detect anyway, so why not just cut to the chase? Disc out Iron, and dig the rest. Is a higher o lower tone REALLY going to tell you the difference between a bullet and a class ring? Or, a platinum and diamond ring from a pulltab? Absolutely not! Give me a light, easy to swing machine that is sensitive and deep, and I'll do the rest.

 

[Captain Caveman]

Personally, I use the Fisher F75se for trashy areas because its easier for me to tell the difference between like pitches (ie I will dig a 67 but usually not a 75, I will dig a solid 29 but not a bouncing 26-28). I use the Tesoro Tejon when I'm in a cleaner area or want to get deeper in an area that I've been over a few times with the F75se. I'm still relatively new to detecting so my opinion on this matter could change over time.

Also, I really like experiencing more stuff. I will likely buy more machines as I go so that I can experience them.

 

[tabman]

Simple really. I know I'm going to dig every sweet and solid signal I detect anyway, so why not just cut to the chase? Disc out Iron, and dig the rest. Is a higher o lower tone REALLY going to tell you the difference between a bullet and a class ring? Or, a platinum and diamond ring from a pulltab? Absolutely not! Give me a light, easy to swing machine that is sensitive and deep, and I'll do the rest.

You got that right!

tabman

 

[Berryman]

I have both a Tesoro Silver Sabre and a Tesoro Golden uMAX. I find that I do better with the Golden , because the 4 tones it has give me a better idea of the targets under the coil. I do well with the single tone Silver but not as well as with the Golden.

Maybe what it comes down to is patience. I like to locate my targets, dig and then move on. I don't relish the idea of spending extra time maneuvering the coil and the discrimination knob trying to discern minute tonal differences.

 

[digger27]

I have both a Tesoro Silver Sabre and a Tesoro Golden uMAX. I find that I do better with the Golden , because the 4 tones it has give me a better idea of the targets under the coil. I do well with the single tone Silver but not as well as with the Golden.

Maybe what it comes down to is patience. I like to locate my targets, dig and then move on. I don't relish the idea of spending extra time maneuvering the coil and the discrimination knob trying to discern minute tonal differences.

Minute tonal differences?
Some might do that, but that is not exactly what I do.
I got very fast and efficient my way and could acquire, figure out and could always dig more targets than anyone I ever hunted with.
When I was digging more trash in the past, that is.
Nowadays I just pass by most suspected trash and dig the better stuff which works out better for me and ultimately finds me more.
It's a hobby...everyone should figure out the best way to make them the happiest.

 

[cokat7]

Simple really. I know I'm going to dig every sweet and solid signal I detect anyway, so why not just cut to the chase? Disc out Iron, and dig the rest. Is a higher o lower tone REALLY going to tell you the difference between a bullet and a class ring? Or, a platinum and diamond ring from a pulltab? Absolutely not! Give me a light, easy to swing machine that is sensitive and deep, and I'll do the rest.

I won't disagree with what you wrote here Terry, BUT, let's throw vid in there. It is a game changer.
On the beach, ya dig it all. Targets are sitting at weird angles and even the best vid detectors can't Id stuff on edge. But, in grassy, dirt areas where objects generally stay flat an id machine is hard to beat. Of course there is target masking, so that does leave some good targets for the guys that strictly beep/dig. But even most us beep/dig guys have learned to manipulate targets to find wether they are what we are after, it's not much different than using tones or vid. Junk targets will still be left in the ground and good masked targets left behind.
Now, vid WILL tell me the difference between a pulltab and ring. Like Cryer777 pointed out, 'solid' numbers are the answer. Pulltabs will act erratic, but a ring will give a very solid id. Same with the class ring, watch the numbers, see how they react and the numbers the machine gives. But, zinks and round lead can give some pretty solids numbers too. I just haven't found many foil pulltab signals that behaved like a ring.
I've mainly used the Cortes this summer, IMHO, it truly is Tesoro's current flagship detector, nearly or as deep as any other tesoro I've used. Never with any other tesoro have I been as successful in parks/yards/ play fields as I have been with the cortes.

 

[Berryman]

So if you don't search out the minute tonal differences, what is it that you do do that enables you to successfully bypass most trash with your single tone machines?

 

[digger27]

So if you don't search out the minute tonal differences, what is it that you do do that enables you to successfully bypass most trash with your single tone machines?

I have posted my methods before so to save time I just copied and pasted the info below.
This is the way I do it, others have tried it and it works for them and they contacted me and thanked me but everyone needs to figure out how to do this hobby for themselves that makes them the happiest.

I got extremely fast at this method after so much practice.
If you watched me I would look like I would stop for a couple of seconds and make a couple of quick swings over an area and then either move on or bend over and dig.
The bulk of the targets I have found including older ones tend to be 6" or less in depth so I average about 20-30 seconds or less from the time I acquire a target, figure it out and recover it and then close up the hole and move on.
On deeper targets I don't think these rules apply as much so those I usually just get down and dig.

I have no illusions that this method is foolproof and I can find every great target out there this way because the numbers say I probably miss stuff here and there.
Don't care...I no longer have the patience, energy levels or time to hunt like I have in the past so I had to figure out better ways for me to do this.
If you saw what I am able to pluck out of my mostly really trashy park sites doing this while avoiding tons of trash you will understand why I am happy and satisfied and I no longer let the what if feelings bother me like they used to when I started.
Some sites still need a dig it all mentality to be the most successful and I do that when I come across them but for wandering around my open public park areas or curb strips I use these methods and I stay happy.

These methods work with both my Compadre and my Vaq but my Vaq is a high tone model and even though I found out I actually prefer the lower tones the Vaq has a little superpower with that high tone that makes dealing with foil and can slaw very fast and efficient too also so I will keep it the way it is.
The second post below tells about this.
The most efficient way to do this using my Vaq is with concentric coils as DD coils don't handle the high tone pop top problem the same way.

To compare, using my Fishers long ago I got good enough to realize that I could quickly maneuver the coil over any target, again not super deep, and either get the numbers on the screen to calm down and be stable or not.
The ones that did a lot of jumping were usually trash, the ones that stayed fairly solid were usually good.
I quit digging most the jumpy ones and again my good finds totals soared while I succeeded in avoiding about the same 80% amount of trash I used to dig.
I definitely found way more gold in trashy sites than ever before and still do plus all kinds of other great keepers.
In essence this is the same method I use with a screen unit that I do with no screen info but by quickly manipulating the disc knob instead.

----------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------



Ok, let me tell you how I hunt with this thing and what seems to work well for me to cut out a lot of that trash with confidence.
Confidence is a big thing with me, it is the reason that drove me to be a real world dig-it-all hunter at first, and that is because the "what ifs" in this business would kill me if I let them get to me and they still would even to this day if I let them, anal as I am about these things in this hobby.
Keep in mind without X Ray vision there is no way to ever tell 100% what you are swinging over without digging it...EVER, something I know and believe in with the very fiber of my being, but I dig so much trash looking for gold jewelry in so many trashy sites that I just had to find a way to cut out at least some of it and over time this is what I figured out...my line in the sand if you will.

I use a Vaquero and a Compadre and I have never in all my hundreds of hours hunting with either one set the disc knob and dug everything that beeps above it.
I have always thumbed that knob on every target and tried to figure out and make an educated guess on what that target might be.
Just a game I have always played with myself and it has become the natural way for me to hunt and pretty fast and efficient too because I have had so much time in doing it this way.

You will sacrifice some depth, not much but a little as you turn up the disc.
All units are a little different but there might be very little or as much as an inch difference in depth with the knob down in all metal and the knob set at max disc.
Maybe even a little more on some units.

I used to hunt like they say in the manuals and turn the knob up to the fade out point to figure out targets, but over time I changed and eventually learned to hunt in all metal to get the deepest, clearest signals and then turn it up past the fade out point and then back down slowly and listen closely to how the target comes in...I never turn up the disc till it fades out anymore.
If there is a lot of iron I might set the knob a little below the I in iron, if I don't want to dig a ton of junk like little foil at a real trashy site I might go all the way up to a little past the N in iron, if I am tired maybe up a little more to cut out some foil but that's about as high as I go.

In my opinion it is much more accurate to go past the target fade out point and then back then it is to do it like the manuals say.

Listen to what it sounds like as you do this and you dial down to hear how targets come in.
Good targets like coins and rings will usually just "come in"...they just appear with very little noise like crackles, pops, or clicks or scratches, irregular shaped trash will usually not sound like this and you will have anywhere from a little to a bunch of these noises and sounds as you slowly dial down.

These rules don't apply 100%...there is still a lot of shallow or coin shaped trash or trash that is presenting itself perpendicular to the ground that still might come in solid like many tabs, compressed foil that is coin shaped and some others like certain sizes and shapes of can slaw pieces, and some good targets that might be deep and near the limit of the scanning field that could be a little more noisy, but 98% of the time I have found these rules will hold true.
Out of all the coins nickels seem to be a little weird and might come in noisy, also, but all other coins seem to come in clean.

Most high tone pop tops will disc out.
They might disc out when you turn the knob to max disc and just a slight turn back they could come in with no noise clear as a bell, but dimes, quarters, copper pennies and other large high tone coins won't do this and won't disc out so you can always tell.
I can't count how many pop tops I used to dig learning this fact, but don't anymore.

I still dig a lot of trash because doing it this way only cuts out about 80% of the trash amount I used to dig when I actually did dig it all, and it might be true that I have missed some very good targets along the way that just fooled me and never fit into these rules I have, but if you could see the large amount of great targets I have found while avoiding digging so much trash this way you would understand why I don't worry about those missed targets all that much, anymore.
Again, having confidence I am not missing great targets is actually more important to me than actually knowing the truth, and I go back to my sites over and over so if I don't hit all targets from all different directions every time I just figure I will usually get around to it eventually.
Sometimes hitting targets from one direction vs. another could make a difference in the sound of that signal as it comes in, and I do stop and do a turn sometimes when examine targets in the gold areas, but again most of the time these rules apply when scanning targets from all directions.

Sometimes I still dig trash at some sites even though I suspect it is actually trash just to check myself at first, especially at new sites, but eventually I just fall into this method and stop doing that after my trash digging threshold has been reached and hunt and I have found some great targets in sites so trash filled you might not believe it doing it this way.

This technique seems to work on both the Vaquero and the Compadre, so this is the way I do it when I hunt with either one and probably always will.



----------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------








I also have a Vaq with the high tone...I ordered it that way but I had no experience with any other Tesoros up to that point.
I enjoyed it immensely, but a few months later I also bought a Compadre and eventually came to the conclusion that I like the lower tones better.
When I switched back to using the Vaq I no longer enjoyed listening to that high tone, it actually became kind of annoying after now having experience with another lower type.
I want to send mine in for a little free service and I called them and asked how much it would cost to change it back to a low tone and the cost was only $15 so that was what I was going to do....but then I started thinking.

After awhile I came to understand that the most annoying thing about that high tone is when it came to foil and aluminum.
When I ran over any of that, especially the larger types of can slaw into the zinc and high tone area, I knew it every time because that very "tinny" sound I heard just grated on my last nerve and made me grind my back teeth every time.
I know other tricks to help tell trash from good targets, but this sound is so unusual to my ear and so telling it is the perfect way to tell foil and can slaw for me 99.9% of the time quickly and efficiently and almost instantaneously... when I gnash my teeth I am hearing foil or aluminum, and I have dug a ton of garbage like this checking targets over time to know this method is pretty darn accurate for me.
Way more accurate than I ever would have believed if you would have told me it was this way before I ordered mine.
Surprisingly aluminum tokens don't seem to have the same annoying sound and I have found my share of those, too...just trash I need to avoid sets my teeth grinding so I am thankful for that.
I am not sure if this is just an ability I have or have learned because of my specific way I hear things while using that high tone Vaq frequency or if others can do this too, but I hope it can be replicated by others if they know to listen for this very annoying tell and they also use that high tone Vaq.
I am afraid if I switch back to the low tone this instant ability to tell this type of trash might not be so easy anymore, or at least not as fast and efficient.

Because of this I changed my mind about switching to that low tone.
Why would I give up such an accurate way of doing this on a type of trash that is so prevalent out there?
Except for that foil and can slaw the high tone isn't all that bad, and I can deal with it knowing there are advantages to continue using that high tone for me even knowing that listening to low tones is a little more fun and relaxing for me.
If I need a break I can always switch back to the Compadre if I need to, anyway.

 

[Mike Hillis]

Me, I like tone ID because tone ID tells me what is under my coil in the most efficient manner. I hear a tone in my ear and I say, "that is a coin range target", or, "that is a foil range target", or, "that is a co-located foil and tab range target", or "thats an iron false". I don't have to thumb a disc knob or look at a screen.

Also, I personally fine a multi-tone detector less fatigueing to use.

But...that said, I do like to hunt with a VCO tone sometimes.

HH
Mike

 

[Berryman]

Digger: Thanks for all the information. I'll definitely have to try your technique. Question: What do you do when your target fades back in in the pull-tab range (dig or not)?

 

[digger27]

Digger: Thanks for all the information. I'll definitely have to try your technique. Question: What do you do when your target fades back in in the pull-tab range (dig or not)?

I dig all solid signals that come in solid on my Tesoros or stay solid in the numbers on my Fishers.
PRETTY MUCH ALL OF THEM!
When I get tired near the end of a hunt I might turn up the disc to knock out the smaller foil pieces or at sites with a ton of that trash I have no patience to deal with at the beginning but that is rare.
I have not found any gold so far or much anything else in that lower foil area so the numbers say I am pretty safe avoiding that stuff from time to time.
Small gold could come in there but that would be pretty rare so I would rather conserve my energy and dig higher percentage solid targets instead.

Otherwise I dig most solid signals if they come in at foil, nickel, tabs, zinc or higher...even iron from time to time because small thin gold and silver chains can come in there.

I am a gold hunter and I have found 35 gold targets in 5 years.
Only a few came in at tabs, 5 gold class rings were at low zinc, a few were at nickel and a lot came in at foil.
One small thin chain clasp goes no higher than iron.
Gold is a master of disguise and likes to hide among trash, as trash.
You want to find it you need to understand it and I have made an effort to learn all about it.
Every one of my gold targets came in solid with non jumpy numbers and good tones on my screen units or dialed in clean as a whistle with no noise on my Tesoros.
None were deeper than 5 inches so really deep stuff could act different as I mentioned.

I have found other great targets too, all pretty much stayed within my rules for digging but gold is my favorite.
If I do miss anything I don't worry anymore about what I don't know about and I just figure I will come back another time and find the stuff I missed, anyway.

Luckily the way I do this, even by digging all solid signals in all areas, I still cut out 80-85% of the trash I used to dig so I am a happy and more well rested camper.

 

[Curbdog]

I trust the discrimination on my Tesoro units, more than what the VID/tones tell me on my T2 SE. That's just from using all the units for a long time.

That Tesoro single tone can tell you a lot about a target!

 

[jld66]

well, i'm not a know it all or claim to be, and detecting is not my life. i have other hobbies. but, the single tone has differences in it to different things. a little time with one, you will realize it. like a coin will sound different than say a can. also, disc-ing out iron does not cancel all iron. i have dug large washers and big bent square nails that buried the disc and sounded good.

 

[Cal G.]

I'm trying out a Outlaw hopefully next week ( order to be mailed late this week). The first method I am going to try is raising the coil to see if trash or dig. I saw this work on video with a silver umax. I am sure their will be adjustments and compromises. I have had two Tesoros and while different, both have been hot on nickles and gold jewelry. While I know higher 14 kHz^ units are hotter on gold, some of the lower 14 to 6.8 kHz units are very hot on nickles and gold jewelry. I think the manufacturers have a way to tune the lower kHz that way. Anyway its all for fun.

 

[Cal G.]

I know many of you hunt with detectors both with and without 'tones' capabilities.
I've always wondered why someone would chose to use a single tone detector
when they also had a multiple tones machine at their disposal. Can you explain?

The multi tone will get you in the ball park ( nickle or square tab, foil or gold,ect) Some detectors offer 7+ tones to sort of help discriminate farther. Too many tones for me is just too busy. If you have a single tone and can understand how it sounds different on say a nickle and square tab there lies the advantage. The best I ever saw used a old whites Tr with a piece of tape over a hole warn in the coil.

 

[Hobojo]

Analog vs Digital. Vinyl vs Data. What ever you want to compare it to.
For me there is a sweeter sound coming out of my single tone units than my multi tone units. And you really can hear the difference in a single tone. Also for me there is only one company I would trust to give me the best single tone unit money could buy and thats Tesoro.

 

[luvsdux]

It took me a good number of hours before I began hearing the subtle differences in the single tone. It's the kind of thing that you eventually hear and understand, but you can't describe it well enough to another person so that they can hear it without putting the time in also. I've seen it mentioned that one should put in at least 100 hours to really get to know a detector, but I think it goes faster after learning the first one. That said, in my own experience I can say that it does take a fair bit of field time whether or not 100 hours is accurate.
luvsdux