Pre Amp Gain question for the DFX

1235CE

Hero Member
May 23, 2006
663
195
The Beautiful Berkshires in Western Mass.
Detector(s) used
White's DFX
Hello all,

Been an XLT user for 10 years (love it to death!! :notworthy:) and last week decided to upgrade to a DFX as I felt the learning curve would be very minimal and also my brother, a 2 year DFX owner, says he really likes the factory "Deep Silver" program, not available on my XLT.

I have never been one for tinkering around with any settings as the factory "Coins" program on the XLT has always exceeded my expectations but I have come across a number of chats/posts that talk about raising the Pre Amp Gain on the DFX from factory-set 2 to 4 in order to obtain more depth.

Is this seemingly simple tweak a popular way to gain depth and if so, what (if any) differences might I notice from an audio and VDI standpoint? And what am I actually doing to the detector if I make this change? :dontknow:

Thanks in advance for any advice!!

HH all!!

Greg
 

Sandman

Gold Member
Aug 6, 2005
13,398
3,992
In Michigan now.
Detector(s) used
Excal 1000, Excal II, Sovereign GT, CZ-20, Tiger Shark, Tejon, GTI 1500, Surfmaster Pulse, CZ6a, DFX, AT PRO, Fisher 1235, Surf PI Pro, 1280-X, many more because I enjoy learning them. New Garrett Ca
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Preamp gain is the amplification of the signal from the coil right after it enters the box and before it is processed by the AC / DC / etc circuits. PAG will have an effect on depth ONLY as you hear it. Running the DFX with to much pre amp gain could make it to unstable where it occasionally sounds off on changes in ground minerals as it amplifies those tiny "hot rocks". It is much better to run the detector, regardless of the brand, smoothly and you will hear the deeper signals. At least that is my take from reading the book, Understanding White's DFX. :read2:

http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Whites-DFX-James-Normandi/dp/B000FTHDLU
 

FCCDFEd

Hero Member
Sep 29, 2007
857
566
Terra Bella, Ca.
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DFX, IDXPro, MXT, Lobo St., At Pro
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All Treasure Hunting
There are a multitude of thing that you can do with the set up of the DFX. I have had mine about 5 years and would highly recommend the book " Digging Deeper with the DFX" by Jeff Foster. Usually runs about 20-25 dollars and is well worth the investment. It will explain all the adjustments and suggest several to enhance canned programs. Have fun with it try out other options, you can always go back to the canned programs.
 

jamesbibb

Bronze Member
Sep 11, 2009
1,554
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Central Va
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T2SE
DFX
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GPX
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Relic Hunting
Increasing the PAG to as high as you can while remain stable is a good adjustment. it will give you more audible depth
 

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