Thinking about switching to a Minelab E-Trac.Any Comments about these Detectors

Digger

Hero Member
Mar 24, 2003
740
186
Dodge City Kansas
Detector(s) used
XP Deus, E-Trac, Makro Racer 2, DFX
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I've been a DFX user for 7 years and bought an E-Trac last fall.

Without a doubt the E-Trac will pull out those very deep coins missed by the DFX. The E-Trac has brought new life into our city park for sure. Now that being said, It hasn't pulled any missed coins from my other hunting spots where the DFX seems to have done the job quite well. Coins in our city park are extremely deep(8-12+") where the E-Trac shines, everywhere else the DFX left nothing for the E-Trac to find.
 

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greg23

greg23

Sr. Member
May 16, 2008
320
62
Windsor Ontario
Detector(s) used
Whites DFX
Whites detectors are the only detectors I have ever used .in total I have had 7 Whites detectors.I want to try another brand,see how it compares to Whites detectors.
 

Stu Pedasso

Jr. Member
Jun 27, 2007
57
6
My buddy and I ran Whites XLT for years. He and his brother bought etracs last year. They consistently found more and better stuff with the etracs everytime we were out on group hunts. What sold me on the etrac was the day we went back to an empty city lot that we had absolutely pounded with the XLTs. I figured there was no way anything could be hiding. Well, they ended up getting some very deep coins and relics that the XLT couldn't reach.
Whites make some dynamite machines. I have never used the DFX. In my opinion the etrac is just a shade better than the XLT.
 

creeper71

Silver Member
Dec 5, 2007
2,936
61
South Central PA
You might as well buy a Vision 3 that is made by whites an I am not certain but I'm pretty sure it has the same features or maybe more then the E-trac an cost about the same...
 

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greg23

greg23

Sr. Member
May 16, 2008
320
62
Windsor Ontario
Detector(s) used
Whites DFX
I was thinking about that detector as well.I do like the wireless headphone feature.I find im always screwing around with the headphone line.
 

JDS

Jr. Member
Jun 8, 2007
65
0
Kansas City Missouri
Detector(s) used
ML4000/ML E-Trac/Ace 250/Antique Groundhog
The e-trac is an exceptional unit just don't try to over think it. I know many people who are constantly trying to identify objects by the numbers. Most say they are trying to figure out the FE 12 line. To build a coin program I filled my test bed with the coins I hoped to find and used the auto latch to build a program. I expanded each area a bit using the small cursor. Mostly I look at the depth and listen for the sound. Rusty nails can sound off like silver in FE but if you have a program built that ignores iron you wont be fooled into digging as much junk.
 

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greg23

greg23

Sr. Member
May 16, 2008
320
62
Windsor Ontario
Detector(s) used
Whites DFX
Most of the time I never use the screens.I just listen to the sounds.Canadian clad is a bit finnicky though.Beer caps and canadian quarters sound alike,so you have to learn the sound and to read the numbers that they both come in at.When I first started detecting,i used to get frustrated at the amount of beer caps i was finding.I practiced by putting both on the ground and constantly going over each one until I could tell the difference easily.Even now I still dig the odd beer cap,but a few is better than 30.
 

Deepdiger60

Silver Member
Jun 18, 2009
2,804
94
Long Island E-end
Detector(s) used
Minelab Sov GT,Sovereign xs2-pro Fisher CZ21 Custom Skullies , Stealth 720-i
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
One of my hunting partners has the E-Trac for a year now its a good machine with out question i have a DFX we both live in very old homes he claimed he hunted out his yard so i came over with my DFX and found 4 more silvers in the front :laughing7: it all depends on what custom program is in that machine i had that DFX finding tiny copper objects 8 to 9 inches down in fields a lot of copper rivets and lead musket ball,s you can tweak that machine to its max i like my DFX Dd60
 

Woodland Detectors

Gold Member
Nov 23, 2008
12,712
141
Toll Free ~ 855~966~3563
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Primary Interest:
Relic Hunting
Re: Thinking about switching to a Minelab E-Trac.Any Comments about these Detect

"I am Currently using a Whites DFX."

The only comment I can tell you is, as a dealer for Minelab,
I get a lot of people that HAD currently used the dfx that switched to the Etrac and re-gridding old turf they hit using the other Manufacture's equipment. They are realizing that the other machines are inferior

I have a lot of respect for White's Manufacturing but, the Etrac is on top it seems now.
 

chrisanddiane

Jr. Member
Dec 7, 2009
58
1
Northern WV
Detector(s) used
Whites V3 Whites XLT & Garrett Ace250 W/ 2 ProPointers
Re: Thinking about switching to a Minelab E-Trac.Any Comments about these Detect

4-H said:
"I am Currently using a Whites DFX."

The only comment I can tell you is, as a dealer for Minelab,
I get a lot of people that HAD currently used the dfx that switched to the Etrac and re-gridding old turf they hit using the other Manufacture's equipment. They are realizing that the other machines are inferior

I have a lot of respect for White's Manufacturing but, the Etrac is on top it seems now.

What I am not hearing is the reverse situation. It seems lots of people go to minelab from whites, but has anyone done the reverse. I am curious to know what the V3 will pull out behind an e-trac. I bet they both have their respective strong suits and I'm sure if all these comparisons were done in reverse the results would be similiar.
Just my 2 cents.


GaB
 

creeper71

Silver Member
Dec 5, 2007
2,936
61
South Central PA
Re: Thinking about switching to a Minelab E-Trac.Any Comments about these Detect

chrisanddiane said:
4-H said:
"I am Currently using a Whites DFX."

The only comment I can tell you is, as a dealer for Minelab,
I get a lot of people that HAD currently used the dfx that switched to the Etrac and re-gridding old turf they hit using the other Manufacture's equipment. They are realizing that the other machines are inferior

I have a lot of respect for White's Manufacturing but, the Etrac is on top it seems now.

What I am not hearing is the reverse situation. It seems lots of people go to minelab from whites, but has anyone done the reverse. I am curious to know what the V3 will pull out behind an e-trac. I bet they both have their respective strong suits and I'm sure if all these comparisons were done in reverse the results would be similiar.
Just my 2 cents.


GaB
Has anyone besides me watch the V3 promo? my goodness is that a awesome machine!
 

mainer

Silver Member
May 3, 2005
3,405
38
Maine
Detector(s) used
Minelab Etrac
Fisher F75 SE
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I switched from a whites XLT to the Explorer II and have never looked back. Used the XLT successfully for a few years but the explorer is way ahead of the xlt in my opinion, in a lot of areas. Dont get me wrong whites makes a great machine, but if I had to choose one it would be the ex.
 

gregd573

Hero Member
Oct 23, 2005
595
39
eldridge, missouri
I have owned several detectors including the minelab etrac. I am sure it is a good machine....I could just never get it to do what I thought it should and therefore was always thinking that no matter what I did......I was leaving something behind. In my books, the best thing I did was trade the etrac in on a V3......so much easier for me to learn. I am kind of spoiled though......I hardly use any other detector now that I have used the wireless headphones. I am not trying to push one detector or another as I think it is all in what you get used to. Just my 2 cents........

HH All,
Greg
 

creeper71

Silver Member
Dec 5, 2007
2,936
61
South Central PA
gregd573 said:
I have owned several detectors including the minelab etrac. I am sure it is a good machine....I could just never get it to do what I thought it should and therefore was always thinking that no matter what I did......I was leaving something behind. In my books, the best thing I did was trade the etrac in on a V3......so much easier for me to learn. I am kind of spoiled though......I hardly use any other detector now that I have used the wireless headphones. I am not trying to push one detector or another as I think it is all in what you get used to. Just my 2 cents........

HH All,
Greg
by the promo video I watched the V3 looks so much better then the E-trac...
 

DeArmitt Pa

Full Member
Jun 7, 2009
124
7
Johnstown, Pa
Detector(s) used
E-Trac, F75 LTD
Primary Interest:
Relic Hunting
If you want to know more about the E-trac you can go to this website.

www.fortbedfordmetaldetectors.com

My father-in-law and I sell Minelabs and were both former Whites users. We exclusively take the E-tracs out on every hunt with us. They are a very stable machine and go very deep. They are also very sensative to small targets. I personally have found a 3 ringer at 10" deep and it was a very solid signal, I was in Iron Mask mode to boot. There is also a depth chart for machines we have on our website. If you want more information you can find our contacts on the website.
 

Tnrelicman

Sr. Member
Mar 2, 2010
350
10
East Tn
Detector(s) used
Whites MXT but missing my Etrac
I had a whites MXT, I loved that machine, and I had learned it very well, I bought an Etrac from 4h here on the forum, I do miss my Mxt from the stand point of knowing it in and out, but I do think the Etrac is a better machine, I'm still learning it, but it really picks good targets from bad in trashy areas, I really don't pay much attn to the numbers but go by the sound, and use the numbers as a reference only, if you do decide to buy a Etrac.....don't hesitate to buy one from 4h "mike" and you can research that on here, don't know of anyone that will tell you any different. Good luck with any machine you choose, the transition wasn't to hard for me.
 

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