Prizm IV VS. Classic II - What's wrong with this Prizm??

[partenr]

I love MDing so much that I coerced my father into buying a MD. I wanted it to be as easy for him as possible so I recommended a Prizm IV thinking it would be more rewarding than my Classic II. I think I was wrong.

Here is why. The Prizm seems to really make only 3 types of tones. Low,Med, High. My Classic has MUCH more variance to it's sounds- and those sounds paint a picture for me. I sense I can "feel out" a target with my Classic -like a blind man -where the Prizm just "tones or doesn't". The Prizm also seems to have a teeny delay in target response time which hinders my ability to close in on the target.

Now...the screen thing. What is the point of an LED screen is wrong so often? Are you NOT going to dig it if it says it's a penny? Most of the time is flashes between 2-4 different things at 2-4 different depths. It's crazy, I say. Then it has the range that says it's a ring or a pulltab. Ummm....so that means either you REALLY REALLY want it or it's trash. How is that helpful?

It (the Prizm) very well may be a better machine and I simply don't know how to use it well. I will say that the all-metal mode pinpoints EXCEPTIONALLY well. And it's very light and comfortable. I'd prefer it's two 9-volts to the Classic's eight AAs if I had a choice.

The bottom line to though is finding stuff, and I feel like my Classic makes it easier to find better stuff more efficiently. (part of today's find pictured below- 1st SIlver )

I would appreciate ANY feedback anyone might have so I can figure out how to help make the Prizm as enjoyable of an experience possible for my Father.

[Ridley]

The Classic II makes all kinds of chirps and beeps. The deeper coins sound muffled. Coins near the surface beep twice sometimes. The CII works great if you dig ALL the
solid tones.

It's also perfect for trashy places, because its small coil picks out coins between (foil and iron) really well.

I don't own a prism, but I do own a DFX and I can tell you that the ID feature cannot separate gold from pull tabs. I think the prizm is digital and the classic is analog.

Tell your Dad "If you don't dig the trash, you don't get the cash".

The other thing is those 8 AA batteries will last an extremely long time.

Hope that helps.



Ridley

[bill dilly]

I have used a Prizm IV for a little over a year. Your impression of this unit is pretty much on target. My experience is that the Prizm IV is fine if all that you want to find is clad coins that are at 1" to 4" in depth. In my area (St. Louis), this unit will NOT find any coin or piece of jewelry below those depths. The only thing that the screen on this machine seems to I.D. well is a quarter. If the screen shows a quarter at 4"...that is what it will be. White's should market this machine to the utility industries. It can sure locate a telephone cable or steel pipe at 12"+ with no problem. But for coins...this is strictly a toy. That is why I am currently in the market for an Explorer SE and an Infinium.
Good luck...but don't expect much from the Prizm IV.

[TonyinCT]

The SE is so much better but it is in a different league than the Prizm IV. There is a way to adjust the threshold and Ground Balance on the Prizms. You can adjust it in for your area. Call the factory and have them explain how. This will get you the depth that you thought you would get when you bought it. As far as tones goes the Classic II is a mono tone detector. It will "react" to different metals in different ways however there is only one tone. The Prizm IV can be run with a single tone or multiple tone. Your choice.
TonyinCT
www.tcmetaldetectors.com

[Kas]

Hence the Prizm 5

VCO pinpointing- 9 different target tones, instead of just three.

I've found large cents, IH's, and plenty of silver, rings, and good stuff with the Prizm 5.

I found after one season that it didn't have enough horsepower for me, and bought a DFX, which I love.

I don't know too many ther's that don't dig most every good repeatable signal anyway.

A pulltab signal can be a ring. who wants to take the chance on passing up anything.

You have to dig it all to find it all. Doing that will make you conservationist. Cleaning up the environment.

Know thy detector.