Non-Motion Audio Disc Mode....There is Great Potential Here!

CZconnoisseur

Full Member
Jun 29, 2015
209
327
Colorado Springs CO
Detector(s) used
XP Deus All Three Coils (9" currently), Tesoro Vaquero 8x9 and 5.75" DD coil, Fisher F70, White's Spectrum XLT, White's IDX, Garrett AT Pro, Fisher 1265-X, Fisher CZ5, Fisher CZ6, White's TM808, White
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Had a good Father's Day - hung around the house with the kids and watched a couple movies, and the Honey-Do list was suspended for one whole day :hello2: I played in the basement for a couple of hours, experimenting with "Squealer Mode" in all the different frequencies and found some important facts about the non-motion or "Squealer" modes:

1. 12kHz in non motion audio disc mode hits all U.S. coins more confidently, especially nickels. When I got it set up I was able to get 14" air test on a dime, and 16" on a nickel. A silver half dollar indicated out to 18" - I know air tests have limited value, but from air testing the "Motion" modes in this particular soil I only lose about 20% depth. the 4kHz program GOODJUJU that's I've been using for a while now will hit a dime at 11", but 9" is the real-world limit on an undisturbed dime.

2. 12kHz in "Squealer Mode" is much more stable than trying to set it up in 4Khz. Maybe this is why I abandoned trying to learn these non-motion modes last year - I wasn't hunting in 12Khz!!!!

3. 18Khz works well in non-motion modes, but the VDI spread is more condensed vs 12kHz. So when you push the coil into the grass to get a ferrous/non-ferrous indication, in 18kHz you don't get the VDI spread and it's harder to tell if what you're going after is iron or otherwise.

4. Identifying iron at depth is much more accurate than I had previously imagined - I called iron on three deep targets, and had my partner confirm with his CTX3030...and we both called iron those three times, and we were correct!

5. You want to try and hunt as silently as possible in these non-motion modes, and this means getting the GB almost perfect. This park has moderate ground for Colorado - a real blessing considering other locations - so at least here you don't have to recalibrate every few seconds....I remember having a hard time last year when I tried using these non motion modes, but I do remember pulling a couple 9" coins that the motion modes couldn't pick up....

6. The higher the conducting target, the more pitch increase you will experience while pressing the coil downwards. Iron DECREASES in pitch while coins will increase. Nickels will KEEP THE SAME PITCH, and Indian cents will slightly increase in pitch...I would imagine a silver quarter or silver dime will give a clear indication, but I have yet to come across one of those...next hunt I'm sure I will! :headbang:

7. Deep coins will give a smooth audio signal in non-motion modes, much like the motion modes; and with a little time it's very easy to distinguish a small, compact target vs a long nail. 6-8" deep beavertails are more identifiable at depth using non-motion modes beacause of the pitch - this is something I'm very happy to see!

SAM_2706.JPG

So with all this in mind I met my partner at the park, he recently put a 17" coil on his CTX and we compared a few targets. About the third target I got over a promising signal, and Squealer indicated a steady pitch when I pressed down. Nearby there was another target, which decreased in pitch - dug that out first just confirm it was iron, and it was indeed iron; and now went to dig this likely non-ferrous hit. Mike came over and scanned the "good target", and his CTX indicated a solid "nickel" hit at 8-9". The CTX quite confidently indicated "nickel", and from about 7-8" down out comes an 1887 V nickel! :hello2:

Filled the hole, and I rescanned in Squealer mode, and got another hit...pressed the coil down and got the SAME indication; a steady tone, and had Mike check it again with the CTX. This time it was indicating "nickel" again, but with a little less confidence than the first hit. At 9" deep I pulled another V nickel in better shape, this one dated 1899! We were onto something here! The Deus isn't able to ID coins past 8" in most cases in motion modes, but with a little tweaking, and more time under my belt in Squealer mode, I think I will be able to call most targets at depth - at the very least I will be able to determine ferrous/low conductor/high conductor before digging, and this is fan-freakin-tastic considering what's come from the park already!

Not two feet away I get another hit in Squealer mode, and then get the pitch to slightly increase while pressing the coil down. I switched to a 12Khz MOTION deep-seeking program to check the target:

12khz (11.9kHz)
TX = 3
Disc = 1
Sens = 90
Iron Volume = 0
Reactivity = 2
Silencer = 0
Notch 00-10, 97-99
Audio Response = 3
Full Tones
GB = TRACKING
Notch Ground = 85-90

This program was able to barely see the target, and switching to 4khz it actually came in slightly better, but still very faint and choppy. Got down to 8" and thought it was going to be iron. The pinpointer finally got a hit in the sidewall - and it was a NAIL! This didn't seem right so I looked in the "dig pile" of dirt and then the pinpointer went crazy - there was a 1905 Indian cent waiting! Surely this nail was partially masking the coin, and had I been hunting in my regular 4Khz program I honestly WOULD NOT have dug the target.

Things got quiet for a little while, and then I hear Mike state "I win tonight!" Walked over to see what he'd found....a fairly detailed 1898 S Barber dime from 8". The CTX made no mistake on that target and he knew it was silver before digging - these targets are getting scarce in this area, but I think hunting with the non-motion audio disc (NOMAD...or Squealer, whatever you want to call it) will help with co-located and deeper targets....can't wait to get back out there!

Shortly after Mike pulled his lovely dime, I got a suspect signal in Squealer mode that increased in pitch....the 12kHz motion mode didn't get SQUAT...and the 4khz motion mode gave a blip every so often - again, this is something I would not dig normally; but the non-motion mode said "Dig it up!" At 7-8" down the pinpointer finally gave an indication, and at at full 9" deep out comes a nice 1886 Indian! This target was the one that confirmed it for me - undetectable in motion modes, but VERY detectable in non-motion modes! I was floored! Given the signal strength in the non-motion modes I would bet that a dime or penny-sized target can be detected at 11-12" maybe more, where the motion modes won't give any sort of signal.

Last coin was a bit of a surprise - I got the same behavior from a target as before...non-motion indicated a low conductor, and it sounded much like those two V nickels dug earlier. At 8" down I saw a coin, and started looking for the Buffalo or V....but then I saw Jefferson. Somehow a 1961 nickel had sunk to the same depths as most of the older coins, but hey - it was a coin! :icon_thumleft:

Next hunt cannot come fast enough! Using the non-motion audio disc mode in conjunction with 12khz and 4khz motion modes is DEADLY, especially on the nickels. Will keep y'all posted :hello:
 

ggossage

Hero Member
May 18, 2009
609
214
Eastern Nebraska
Super write-up with great detail Taylor, thank you! I know a LOT of us don't even mess with the non-motion modes....when you get a little time, would you mind telling us exactly which non-motion mode you're using and how you set it up? I haven't checked youtube to see how to do this and I parted with Andy's book a while back. Thanks, and congrats on some old coins...still waiting for you to find that tiny gold $1!
 

vferrari

Silver Member
Jul 19, 2015
4,910
8,377
Near Ground Zero for Insanity
Detector(s) used
XP Deus with HF/x35 Coils and Mi6 Pinpointer/ML Equinox 600/800/ML Tarsacci MDT 8000 GPX 4800/Garrett ATX/Fisher F75 DST/Tek G2+/Delta/Whites MXT/Nokta Simplex/Garrett Carrot
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
CZ,

Can't recall if I asked you this before, but have you experimented with gold field at all? Sounds similar to the non-motion modes you describe but with vdi.
 

Last edited:

tabman

Bronze Member
Jul 5, 2011
2,306
7,241
Germantown, Tennessee
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🏆 Honorable Mentions:
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Detector(s) used
Presently: CTX 3030, Tesoro Modded Cibola, F75LTD-2, XP Deus, Tesoro Mojave, MXT Pro, Tesoro Eldorado, Whites MXT All Pro, Minelab Equinox, Fisher CZ5 & CZ3D
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
Taylor I think you're married to your Deus, because you sure seem to know it like the back of your hand. Big Congrats on the old deep coins. I'd like to compare some more targets with you.

tabman
 

OP
OP
CZconnoisseur

CZconnoisseur

Full Member
Jun 29, 2015
209
327
Colorado Springs CO
Detector(s) used
XP Deus All Three Coils (9" currently), Tesoro Vaquero 8x9 and 5.75" DD coil, Fisher F70, White's Spectrum XLT, White's IDX, Garrett AT Pro, Fisher 1265-X, Fisher CZ5, Fisher CZ6, White's TM808, White
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
CZ,

Can't recall if I asked you this before, but have you experimented with gold field at all? Sounds similar to the non-motion modes you describe but with vdi.

Goldfield runs in 18K and I have tried it on deep targets. My lower-kHz programs actually hit coins deeper than Goldfield, but in its defense I've never used that program to actually find gold.

I did however try to go to a non-motion mode FROM the Goldfield program, BUT...

it won't let you change into a PP or non-motion mode like most of the other programs will.
 

vferrari

Silver Member
Jul 19, 2015
4,910
8,377
Near Ground Zero for Insanity
Detector(s) used
XP Deus with HF/x35 Coils and Mi6 Pinpointer/ML Equinox 600/800/ML Tarsacci MDT 8000 GPX 4800/Garrett ATX/Fisher F75 DST/Tek G2+/Delta/Whites MXT/Nokta Simplex/Garrett Carrot
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Goldfield runs in 18K and I have tried it on deep targets. My lower-kHz programs actually hit coins deeper than Goldfield, but in its defense I've never used that program to actually find gold.

I did however try to go to a non-motion mode FROM the Goldfield program, BUT...

it won't let you change into a PP or non-motion mode like most of the other programs will.

I use it like the non motion modes since the pitch changes with proximity to the target so it serves the same purpose as PP to me but with more info since the VDI will still display target conductivity numbers. I rarely use PP anymore, preferring to go to GF when I get a target hit from my custom search programs to zero in on the target. Also, although the default is 18 khz you can switch to any of the other operating frequencies including 4khz and I have set up a custom GF program in an adjacent custom slot so I can quickly switch to it from my other custom programs and use it like a PP or as an all metal primary search mode in low trash areas.
 

OP
OP
CZconnoisseur

CZconnoisseur

Full Member
Jun 29, 2015
209
327
Colorado Springs CO
Detector(s) used
XP Deus All Three Coils (9" currently), Tesoro Vaquero 8x9 and 5.75" DD coil, Fisher F70, White's Spectrum XLT, White's IDX, Garrett AT Pro, Fisher 1265-X, Fisher CZ5, Fisher CZ6, White's TM808, White
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Seems like the higher 12 and 18 kHz frequencies in non-motion mode are much deeper on all targets than 4 or 8 kHz. The more I hunt with the squealer mode, the more it seems to me like it's "painting a picture of what's in the ground" kinda hard to describe...also, getting the pitch to cooperate on deeper targets is more finicky than I originally thought.

Last hunt I was totally skunked but Mike pulled an 1893 S Barber dime on-edge from 8-9"...I have since planted some deep 8-9" coins and "calibrated" the initial audio tone from those coins, but haven't hunted after "calibrating" yet. Tomorrow evening I will plant some coins and calibrate off of them IN THAT SOIL, since it seems to vary from where I've been hunting to my house.

Just a little difference in tuning makes a HUGE difference in how deep nickels sound, iron on the other hand is pretty easy to spot. Deep high-conducting coins give the most promising of tones. That first day hunting in non-motion mode I must have had everything running about right - pulling 5 total deep coins vs ZERO last hunt.

Definitely a learning curve, but well worth it IMO...
 

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