Discovery 3300 vs Garrett ace 250

[TonyinCT]

Sounds like you are making this a personal issue now

 

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[cryptodave]

Sounds like you are making this a personal issue now

Nope, you said some good stuff in there that newbs need to know. Its all on them 95% of the time how their detector works and how much time they put into learning the controls.

 

[TonyinCT]

Ok sir. Just rying to help out here. Sorry if I offended anyone.

 

[tabsrus]

Nope no offense taken

 

[Monty]

I have both detectors and prefer the ACE250 by a wide margin although I still pull out the 3300 to coinshoot when the opportunity presents itself. I have run the two machines side by side several times to work out a comparison and my ACE consistently out performs the 3300. How? First off , it finds targets that the 3300 has missed, especially when relic hunting. It is slightly better at coin shooting in that it is more apt to signal a coin on edge that the 3300. Depth wise, it may bee a little deepr than the 3300 but that isn't important to me, but it might be to some users. Both units pinpoint well. When you turn the 3300 off you loose all your settings or when you pinpoint you loose all your settings. With the ACE it comes back to the settings you were on and won't drop them unless you change them. So, you have to reset the 3300 every time you go out and every time you pinpoint. Weight wise, the 3300 seems a little lighter, but the ACE is no heavy weight itself. The 3300's shaft is more flimsy and you get a lot of shake if you are sweepiong an area quickly. The ace could stand to be more rigie too but it is better. You can use any BH coil with your 3300, but the ACE requires coils made just for it, so advantage for the 3300. And cost wise, I bought my 3300 for just over a hundred bucks from Radio shack. Now it is selling for around $300.00 while the Ace goes for $249 with a spare coil. Some on the forum deem BH products junk, but I have used them for some time and they definately are not junk. I have a BH Land Ranger that will outperform both the 3300 and the ACE for that matter. The only edge the 3300 has over the ACE from my hands on use is the ground balance adjustment on the 3300. But a word of caution, manual ground balancing with it is a bear and sometimes it works and sometimes it don't. Most of the time I just set mine on the default setting and go. I have very little use for the bigger coils for either machine, but the little 4 1/2" coil is worth it's weight in gold for trashy areas. The bigger coils work OK, but make the machines heavy and out of balance for me at least. Oh, and my 3300 is a battery hog compared to my ACE 250. I change out batteries out of habit when they are at half charge because I have found out I lose some performance when they get low. MY ACE Will run 12 to 18 hours easily but my 3300 will only go about 6 to 8 hours without falling off to half charge. So, that's how I see it. Bear in mind that my detectors may not perform exactly like someone elses and my style of hunting may be more adaptive for one than for the other. That's why I always say "my" detectors rather than generalizing. For the money, quality and when the possibility of finding more than just coins, I prefer the ACE 250. If you have one, I would not recommend changing just to be changing. They are that close. Get both and keep one for a spare and loaner. That's what I do. Monty

 

[diggummup]

Thanks for your reply Monty.I respect your opinion and observations.Maybe I should sell both of my BH's and get a Tesoro,i've read some decent things about them.

 

[tabsrus]

 

[joelt]

Here's my take on it:

Yes, batteries don't last as long on 3300, I use rechargeables so I don't care
pinpointing is better on 3300
250 doesn't forget notch settings when going to pinpoint like 3300 (major pain I think)

and lastly the 3300 has a numeric ID which helps distinguish tabs from nickels, when the target id says nickels, also the tone on nickels (in pinpoint) is more mellow and you can pick them out. That's why I've stuck with the 3300. Although I'm interested in a Land/Time Ranger and may eventually use it as my easy turn on and go machine. I'd say pretty good match-up and the 3300 is a few bucks less doesn't hurt.

 

[Blackjack77]

Both of these detectors have good and bad points. I upgraded from a
BH 3300 to a Garrett GTI 2500 and I'm happy with My choice. Would i
sell the 3300-- no way! Its a great back-up machine. If i owned either
the Ace 250 or 3300 i would upgrade up to a top of the line- -not a
lateral move between a 250 or 3300.
I've used a 250 - -nice machine. Has more to do with the operator
than the machine anyway!!!
good luck & HH

 

[Monty]

By gosh blackjack I think you've got it! It just took me more time to say it! And tonyinct, I don't know who you might have offended it certainly wasn't me. I respect everyone's opinion and the right to express it whether I agree with it or not. I try not to state absolutes when rendering an opinion, rather only what I have observed in my experience, realizing that all detectors are slightly different as are operators. What works for one operator and detector might have different results with another because of all the variables. Whew! Now that that's said, good luck and good hunting to all. Monty

 

[diggummup]

I just don't see the logic in going from one "low" end machine to another.If your gonna "upgrade" then make it worthwhile.From everything i've read comparing the 2 machines, there just isn't enough difference to justify "upgrading" to an Ace 250,especially if your in an area with soil that has a high mineralization content,the manual ground balance feature is priceless in that regard.I've read too many posts about the Ace 250 giving false and errating signals because of this.Now, depending on what part of the country you live in,this may not be a problem for you.But for many it has been.Just my 2 cents.


[/quote] Yeah Monty,I guess that's what I was trying to say here too.
Happy Hunting and good luck whatever machine your using.

 

[jorge del norte]

don't upgrade from 3300 to ace 250....to similar, go up a notch from both.....i sold my 3300, now i wish i kept it as a back up.....

 

[Monty]

mvsvector made a good suggestion, except I think I would go up a step above the ACE250 if I were upgrading. If you like Garrett products I would look at one ofthe GTI or GTA series depending on what kind of hunting you do. Both have an adjustable ground balance that comes in handy sometimes. Monty

 

[Korban]

My buddy has an Ace 250 and he does great. By the way to everyone out there, Tony knows what he is talking about, he has been alot of help to me and others, he has the job that allows him to contrast and compare models more than most.

 

[dahut]

It always interests me when one person has a contrary opinion, how the other takes umbrage and gets riled up over it. Shortly, another will pounce in and defend his favored side. Hey folks, so someone disagrees with you...BFD.

Heres another one for you guys to launch into.

Im with Tony and Monty. I wouldn't get another 3300, and if I had to choose between the Ace 250 or 3300, the BH/RS unit would stay on the shelf.

Here's some more for you to latch on to, pick out and quote to death. I do not know what Im talking about. Ive only had one - count it, one - 3300 and I didn't have it a week. What a piece of crap! I got rid of it in a hot minute. And dont start with your "gotta stay with it," yadda yadda yadda's...

Like TonyCT, I've used top of the line to entry level detectors, from every maker over the years and I know enough to know what I like. I wouldn't consider owning a 3300 again. Wait, Ill change that; if I found one at a yard sale, I might buy it.

That's just what it was worth, to me. It was flimsy and shoddily built and just had nothing going for it, performance-wise, over others. Manual ground balance? Big deal - nothing unique in that. It certainly is not heads over an Ace 250, which is a solid performer on every count. The Ace coil alone is worth more than an entire 3300, in my book.

Now, if you dont agree with the above, thats your right. If it offended you, then you might want to consider getting a life. It's metal detectors here, folks, not the end of the world. It's a hobby, remember?

You might also recall that some wisdom was spoken in this thread: "Have fun." Keep that in mind.

 

[Korban]

You hurt my feelings,...........

 

[diggummup]

It always interests me when one person has a contrary opinion, how the other takes umbrage and gets riled up over it. Shortly, another will pounce in and defend his favored side. Hey folks, so someone disagrees with you...BFD.

Heres another one for you guys to launch into.

Im with Tony and Monty. I wouldn't get another 3300, and if I had to choose between the Ace 250 or 3300, the BH/RS unit would stay on the shelf.

Here's some more for you to latch on to, pick out and quote to death. I do not know what Im talking about. Ive only had one - count it, one - 3300 and I didn't have it a week. What a piece of crap! I got rid of it in a hot minute. And dont start with your "gotta stay with it," yadda yadda yadda's...

Like TonyCT, I've used top of the line to entry level detectors, from every maker over the years and I know enough to know what I like. I wouldn't consider owning a 3300 again. Wait, Ill change that; if I found one at a yard sale, I might buy it.

That's just what it was worth, to me. It was flimsy and shoddily built and just had nothing going for it, performance-wise, over others. Manual ground balance? Big deal - nothing unique in that. It certainly is not heads over an Ace 250, which is a solid performer on every count. The Ace coil alone is worth more than an entire 3300, in my book.

Now, if you dont agree with the above, thats your right. If it offended you, then you might want to consider getting a life. It's metal detectors here, folks, not the end of the world. It's a hobby, remember?

You might also recall that some wisdom was spoken in this thread: "Have fun." Keep that in mind.

Wow! Such hostility! That's all I can say about that. So I guess you don't like the 3300? I'm having fun how bout you?

 

[dahut]

Tons!

 

[diggummup]

Just messing with you dahut.I own a 3300 and I have to tell you,the more I use it,the less I like it,lately. It seems to miss targets that even my BH Lonestar will pick up. I've been running them over a practice garden I have and I think the Lonestar outperforms the 3300. I started out in this thread saying that I wouldn't "upgrade" to a Ace250 from a RS3300. I wouldn't make that comment today. What a difference 6 months makes. Now I just have to sell the three machines I have and get something decent. It's been about 5 years since I started in this hobby,it's time for a real machine.

 

[cryptodave]

I still use my 3300 on a weekly basis. It stays in the trunk and comes out at parks and playgrounds for clad hunts during lunch. Its lighter than my Explorer, and its pretty dead bang accurate with clad. And I'll tell you that just last week I dug a 52 quarter at almost 8 inches with it.

The 3300 works folks. I've seen the 250s up close. They are nice and pretty, and they work for some people. Just like the 3300 works for some people... Just like you couldn't give me a DFX. They don't do it for me like an Explorer does.

Just reading over some of the last few posts... My 3300 doesn't forget notch settings when I pinpoint. I must have got the only good one sold in the US apparently. Oh well....