Ace 400 vs AT PRO

[KJP462]

Getting the itch to add a new detector. Currently own & use a White's MX5. Considering trying out Garrett. I'm debating between the Ace 400 & the AT PRO. Are these detectors similar/close in performance? Or is this one of those no brainers where it's best to save & spend the extra $200 bucks and go with the PRO? Thanks in advance for the input.

-KP

 

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[bowwinkles]

The Pro only. run like hell from the 400.

 

[Andy Nunez]

The Pro is worth the extra money for the ground balance. The 400 has issues in heavily mineralized soil. I've hunted side by side with the Pro and even with a big coil, the Pro does a better job of getting targets. I love my 400 and it works well in my soil, but somehow the Pro manages to figure out targets that I can't get a good lock on with the 400. If money is an issue, though, and your soil is mild, the 400 is not a bad machine at all. I have some seated dimes and a bust dime that I got with the 400, but my friend with the Pro got some IHPs out of an area that was loaded with nails that just tore me up.

 

[P.ALLEN]

If I had the money I would go with a Pro just for the increased performance, display, and waterproofed command console. I have a Ace 250, and believe it or not it has been a fantastic machine for me. I will upgrade at some point in the future, probably to a Pro (hopefully the price will go down by then), but for the time I will make due with the 250 without issue (chances are I will run it into the ground before I upgrade, it's been a good machine).

 

[KJP462]

Thanks everyone for the responses. Sounds like the PRO is the better option. I'm also wanting a detector that will feel like a step up from what I'm currently using & based off your feedback, the 400 will probably be similar performance wise to the MX5 I'm currently using. Thinking the AT PRO will be a step up.

 

[Andy Nunez]

Learning all the tricks of your machine is, to me, even more important than the machine itself. I had to send my 400 off for warranty work the other week and hunted twice with my 350. I got seven buttons, either colonial or early 1800s (one was a Tombac with the shank intact), a war nickel, an IHP, and 1909 Wheatie and my first ever half dime (after 30 years of hunting), so I don't want to sell the Ace series short, but having gone head to head with the Pro, the Pro is just a better machine due to its ground balance ability. I am seeing used ones show up for $350, which is around the Kellyco price for a 400. If I had the dough, I'd snag one up.

 

[Loco-Digger]

The MX5 is not a slouch by any means. As I stated in another post earlier, why not get a DD coil and a smaller sharpshooter coil for the MX5? The majority of my keeper coins, bling, and relics were only 5 to 9 inches deep. The MX5 with the right coil for the site would have hit on most if not all of them.

 

[John-Edmonton]

I have done quite well with the ACE 400. Like all detectors, you have to put in some time to learn them well. It's a turn on and go detector, with some features found on many higher priced detecors.

Below is a report I wrote after using the ACE 400. If you do upgrade, I suggest you move up to the AT Series. They each have their strengths, and depending on what type of hunting you do, one might me the better detector for you. The AT Series cost more, but often times get you better results under certain conditions.

Good luck with whatever detector you choose!


Putting the new Garrett ACE 400i together was just like meeting an old friend. About 10 years ago, Garrett released the New ACE 150 & ACE 250 models. The new ACE Series at that time became an overnight success. It turned out to be one of the (if not the) best metal detectors sales of all time. It received cult status. It got nicknames the "Yeller Feller" and some converted it for water hunting, calling it the Aqua Ace." Most loved the new bright colored machine, as you could never ever really lose it. But some despised the color also. They went as far as to spray paint it a new color or cover it with camo tape

Well, fast forward it to 2016, and a new Garrett ACE Series has been released. The Top of the ACE line, the "Ace 400i" has even more improvements over it's earlier production models. The new ACE 400i now has cam-locks, a request many have made to Garrett and they listened. The front of the screen now has a large digital target ID, using numbers plus target probability numbers suggesting ferrous/non ferrous conductivity. Also new is the "iron Audio" feature, available only on higher, more expensive metal detectors. This helps eliminate junk targets by designating them with a distinguishable low tone in the iron range, which might be junk, depending on what type of targets you are searching for. To help eliminate EMI (electro-magnetic-interference) Garrett has given you the option of hunting with different frequencies. This will also allow you to hunt close to your buddy by elimination his metal detector interference. And....the coils off the older ACE's work fine on the new ACE Models. So hang on to your sniper coils!






Garrett still has maintained the notching system, which is also available in the higher end AT Pro/AT Gold Series. This allows you to selectively remove junk targets so you won't hear the audio, or set it up to just hear one particular target. This comes in handy when searching for a lost earring. You can remove all notches except the one(s) sounding off on the remaining earring, then search with ease for the other earring. And......you do NOT lose more depth removing notches for unwanted targets like on other metal detectors with knobs to add discrimination, where as you advance the knob to remove further targets, where you do in fact lose depth.

To those considering the New ACE 200, 300 or 400, it is simple to use. It's well balanced and only weighs 2.9 lbs. (1.32 kg.). The length of the rod can be adjusted, depending on a persons height. It comes pre-programmed for your choices of coin mode, relic mode, jewelry mode, a custom mode (you create it, it saves it) or a setting with no discrimination so you can hear all targets. It is so simple to operate or sequence through the different programs. It operates on 4 x "AA" Batteries and readily excepts rechargeable batteries. I managed about 27 hours on the set of batteries which came with the metal detector.
To maintain a high degree of reliability with consistent results, I used the unit for 10 hunts. Anyone can go to a site not previously hunted before with any detector and do well. I chose to put on about 50 hours on it, so as I can properly learn it, and learn it's strengths and weaknesses.






Here are the results of my 10 hunts. This machine is a Super coin magnet! I started hunting in relics mode, hunting a lot of schools and sports fields. As I learned where my (Canadian) coins were reading with the VDI, I began to remove some notches. I pretty well ended up using the coins mode, as it also maintains notches where most (but not all) gold rings will read. I used my old concentric 9" x 12" coil from my old ACE 250 mostly. Bottles caps often read as good copper/silver coins, so using the iron audio can help to eliminated them. I discovered that deeper bottle caps read higher compared to more shallow ones. So......bottle caps and aluminum pull tabs remain the "Curse" for metal detector users. The square pull tabs often tend to give a strong double beep, whereas nickels have a softer single beep sound. It got so I could guess a nickel would pop up with a good probability. Hey....these things happen when the hours accumulate on a detector. One thing for sure....the ace BANGS hard on coins. Because the weak signals on the ACE are amplified so you can easily hear them, (unlike the modulated volume on the AT Series) hunting without headphones becomes easy in a quiet environment. Wireless headsets not required!






I did manage to dig up 4 rings during my hunts. You can't miss them. They hit hard! The older ACE models were very good for hitting rings, including gold ones. I didn't find any gold rings, however, I did get a solid gold football charm in a sports field! That was a first!






Here are some pieces of jewelry I dug up. If the jewelry is there, the ACE will find it no doubt.






My last 3 hours metal detecting were done in a freshwater lake. Because only the coil is water proof, I hunted just the beginnings of the freshwater lake. I notched out nearly everything except where gold rings might show up. That left only 4, sometimes 5 notches left on the screen. I had built up my confidence with this machine that any old silver coins/rings or older copper coins would easily be hit on. I got pennies in the 40's on up, but no rings today.






My thoughts.......A great detector for coin/jewelry hunting. It also performs well hunting relics. It has too much power! I could not hunt with full sensitivity....a first for me. All my other detectors could operate with full sensitivity in the woods, but not the new ACE! It bangs hard on targets....even very tiny ones. This machine would do well on the beaches dry sand or shallow fresh water searching for micro jewelry. When hunting in shallow water, PLEASE remember to tether the machine so it can not accidentally fall in the water if you drop it.

The depth indicator id fairly accurate with coin sized targets. I did pull out an old tag at bout 8 inches. It performs well for depth in my soil. I wish I could try it on a wet salted beach in/out of the water, but the nearest beach is 14 hours away. I hunted an afternoon without using any headsets, and I could easily hear the audio and distinguish the soft signals from the loud double beeps. I didn't like detecting with the iron audio left on, rather, I used it to help identify a target. Running the iron audio on all the time and getting a good audio on a target added confusion as to dig or not. A little trick I learned was that trying to pinpoint a large target is very difficult. Pop cans were easy to ID because of this. This allowed me to just move on to a better target saving time.

It is an excellent entry level detector, with lots of bells & whistles seen on many higher priced detector. It's simple to use, easy to learn, and depending on your goals for metal detecting, may be the only machine you might ever need, yet, you can easily move up to a more elaborate expensive model in the Garrett line. For a metal detectorist with over 20 years of experience, the ACE 400 is an excellent machine for coin and jewelry hunting! And......it will not sit in the closet collecting dust. Every metal detector I own has it's strengths in certain niches.

Some Actual Field Hunt Videos To Compiment The Garrett ACE 400i

ACE 400i Water Hunt
How To Increase Your Finds
ACE 400i Relic Hunt

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[Loco-Digger]

IMHO the Ace 400 is a lateral move and not an upgrade from your current machine.

 

[KJP462]

Thanks all for the feedback. And Loco- thanks for mentioning about the coils. I might need to do a little research & take your advice and add a few different coils for the MX5.