Ace 400

[GMJG]

Ok I know the AT Pro is the better detector. Can any one with a Ace 400 give advice on the Pro and Cons of the 400? I have 3 Ace's 150, 250 and now the 400. The 150 was a good first machine for me as it was very easy to use. Found lots of coins. The 250 took me to what i see as the next level and I was finding rings. In the two years i used the 250 I found 47 rings and 3/4 of them were GOOD ones. Sold what my wife did not keep and saved coins to get the 400. The 400 machine seems to be better on depth but the tones seem different then on the 250 and I am not sure on the display numbers I am old 74 and wear hearing aids. I only wear one when detecting. Does any one feel the tones are different? Could be me not sure.
I will be getting the AT Pro in the future when I have found enough with the 400. Want to master it first as best I can.

 

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[bowwinkles]

I own the ATP and a 400 and I definitely would not recommend the 400. Choose a detector that has ground balance. If you are fortunate to live in an area where the soil is great then the expected performance would be better. With the Max out, there seems to be a fair amount of great used ATP's available and with the 5X8 coil is even better. Good luck with your choice.

 

[Andy Nunez]

I agree with bowwinkles. I have the 400 and while it is a good machine for the soil in my area, my friend with a Pro kills me with finds. Unless (like in my case) it's a question of money, go with the Pro. For hunting in trashy areas, the 5 x 8 is a great choice. My understanding from my buddies is that the Deus and T2 plus are the iron conquerors, but with a 5 x 8, you can at least max (no pun intended) out your machine's ability. Soil type plays a big part in depth and discrimination, which is why you need a machine with ground balance 400 is a turn on and go type, so you limit your ability that way. Otherwise, except for the folks in my club who are hard hunters and learn their machines, I can stay competitive with the 400 over the Sunshine Diggers, but those who hunt as much as I do can run rings around me with the Deus, Pro, Gold, and Max. Just my two cents. BTW, I am running a Cors Cannon 10 x 14 inch coil and it helps cover ground but not in trashy areas. Bigger is not always better. Happy New Year!

 

[Kodiak43351]

I would suggest skipping the AT Pro and go ahead and get the Max. It has features that the Pro only wishes it had. I have owned ace series, the Pro, Gold, other way more expensive manufacturer machines and just bought the Max. Up till now the Gold was the best of any machine I have ever used or owned. That being said I have done some testing with the Max and so far I'm very happy. I would skip the Pro unless all you going to do is hunt parks and places like that because mine completely missed good finds on my own property that I must of went over dozens of times with the pro. First day I used the Gold I pulled silver and old copper by the clothes line and by barn. Just my exp and opinion.

 

[bayhawk2]

Response to the ACE 400


I'm sure there are better detectors but I love my ACE 400 thus far.Only had it a couple of weeks and
found this little jewel in a most beat out ,hunted out area in town.I don't plan on getting any other
until this one dies in battle.ACE 400 rules in my house.

 

[Kodiak43351]

Great find. That silver will have you hooked on that spot now. I would be thinking of getting back to that spot when I go to bed and at work. Time wouldn't move fast enough for me lol. I get pretty excited when a site turns up silver and I'm sure it has a few more friends in the hunted out spot. Congrats.

 

[Andy Nunez]

I agree. Where there is big silver, there is small. I have also found that many things impact soil conditions, atmospheric conditions, all kinds of things can change your luck. I hunted a site and only found a button and a token. Went back a couple of weeks later, hit the same area, got five more tokens and a 2 cent piece. Somebody went back after me and got a large cent and I got more buttons. Finally, went back and hunted near a magnolia tree and got two war nickels. You never know. The 400 is a good machine, not having a ground balance is the biggest drawback. I went out Saturday to a 1600s site and got nothing older than 1900. I got a 63 silver Rosie and a 1920 wheat penny as oldest coins. I am going to wait and go back and try again. I know stuff is there, how can it not be? 10 acres or so, it's a big area.

 

[Phishfarmer]

Save for the Pro,,, I have both and the Ace was a waste of money. Just my opinion.

 

[Kodiak43351]

I didn't like the pro. The gold was the best machine till I got the Max. I swung a deus for two years as well and still prefer my Garrett's. The Ace 350 found me alot of silver

 

[Kodiak43351]

I agree. Where there is big silver, there is small. I have also found that many things impact soil conditions, atmospheric conditions, all kinds of things can change your luck. I hunted a site and only found a button and a token. Went back a couple of weeks later, hit the same area, got five more tokens and a 2 cent piece. Somebody went back after me and got a large cent and I got more buttons. Finally, went back and hunted near a magnolia tree and got two war nickels. You never know. The 400 is a good machine, not having a ground balance is the biggest drawback. I went out Saturday to a 1600s site and got nothing older than 1900. I got a 63 silver Rosie and a 1920 wheat penny as oldest coins. I am going to wait and go back and try again. I know stuff is there, how can it not be? 10 acres or so, it's a big area.

Agree on soil conditions and changes. I've went back to sites I've been over hard and pulled out large and half cents plus a few 2 cents pieces. On one site. I've found more Indian Head cents than I have wheats and copper memorials on my sites. But they are just farm fields where farm houses and barns were on old maps from the 1800s so that makes sense. I have a mason jar over half full of Indian Heads now.

 

[Andy Nunez]

Sure. A lot of people down the Ace series for lack of penetration in bad soil, but where I live, the soil is mild and nails are the big problem for the Ace machines. Between the two, I have gotten 3 seated dimes, 2 colonial coppers, three US large cents, one half cent, a state issue coin, a bust dime, two 2 cent pieces, a half dime, a cob, Barber dimes and a quarter, an SLQ,some wiped coppers and a ton of buttons and IHPS, including a US ACW artillery button. That being said, my friend with the AT Pro consistently outdoes me, especially on half dimes and trimes. Because the Pro has better iron rejection and ground balance. He also has a big NEL Storm while I have the Cors Cannon. However, another friend just got the Max and is getting super finds with it. Only one person in the club has the Gold, but from what I pick up Youtube, the Max is better than the Gold, the gold is better than the Pro and the Pro is better than the 400. It all comes down to money in the end. Get the best detector you can afford, but if you have mineralized soil, you have to have a machine with ground balance or some sort of "ground grab" technology. Even the toggle switch on the Tesoro Mojave is better than a turn on and go machine. To me, you do your research, get something you can afford, and practice the heck out of it until you master it. Happy Hunting and sorry to be long winded.

 

[Bart@Big Boys Hobbies]

Ok I know the AT Pro is the better detector. Can any one with a Ace 400 give advice on the Pro and Cons of the 400? I have 3 Ace's 150, 250 and now the 400. The 150 was a good first machine for me as it was very easy to use. Found lots of coins. The 250 took me to what i see as the next level and I was finding rings. In the two years i used the 250 I found 47 rings and 3/4 of them were GOOD ones. Sold what my wife did not keep and saved coins to get the 400. The 400 machine seems to be better on depth but the tones seem different then on the 250 and I am not sure on the display numbers I am old 74 and wear hearing aids. I only wear one when detecting. Does any one feel the tones are different? Could be me not sure.
I will be getting the AT Pro in the future when I have found enough with the 400. Want to master it first as best I can.

The Garrett ACE 400 and all the new Ace series machines are MUCH faster recovery than the old Ace 250 and 350. Great machines now!

 

[Andy Nunez]

Bart is right. I can swing the 400 faster, but in most cases, I like to go slow to pick between the iron. I got a broken shank flat button that way Saturday. Still, the Pro, Gold and Max are superior machines in every regard.

 

[Thaddeus]

All i have ever used is the 400. Been detecting for 4 months and i love my machine. Everyone seems to be pretty down on it but its all i have ever known. Is it really that bad? Only time will tell. I do believe it can ground balance as well but in an automatic sort of way. If you are getting alot of interferance and random false beeps just keep the coil down flat switch it off and on again. The two seconds it delays when turning on is it ground balancing itself. Or am i nuts? I use this technique alot and it seems to work for me. It sure lessons the squaking and gets more accurate readings. Some terrain is just plain way too hot for it though for sure. But like i said i have nothing to compare to so maybe a day on a pro or a max and i would never want to go back to my little 400.
Listening to everybody on here i think my next machine if its a garret would be the max.

 

[Andy Nunez]

400 is still my top detector (upgraded with a Cors Cannon coil for extra coverage and depth). I am looking at a machine with ground balance right now, but I remain competitive with most other of my friends except Deus Power users that went to the Deus Bootcamp and one or two power users that have the AT Pro and the AT Max. The idea is to slow down. With a digital machine, your response time is a little off because it has to translate to the readout instead of just an audio return (like Tesoro). So, if you are in a trashy area, you want to slow down to give the machine time to process the good signal that is next to a piece of iron or nail. Go 90 degrees and swing your coil to see if you get a better return and make sure the iron reject is activated. After a few swings, my 400 either continues to give me a solid return in the same spot, or it either gives me the iron grunt or the good signal will be all over the place. If the former, I dig, otherwise, I move on. Sure, I might be missing stuff, but the two Ace series I own (350 and 400) have given me great coins, large cents, British coppers, seated dimes, a capped bust dime, a half dime, a New Jersey copper and tons of IHPS, buttons, 2 2 cent pieces, tokens, Civil War button, stuff like that.