Entry Level Detectors: Whites Vs Garret Ace 250/350?

[Lexicon7]

Hi Guys, I am shopping for my first unit and liked the Ace 350 but then found the Whites products.
Anyone wish to weigh in on either of these brands or add any others and which have volume control if any?

 

[Captain Caveman]

I highly recommend the Fisher F44.

 

[Jason in Enid]

There are LOTS of options available for the entry-level detector, so be prepared to hear them all very shortly.

 

[airscapes]

Look into higher end used rather than wasting your money on entry level

 

[Lexicon7]

Great info thank you.. in some areas of equipment other than this, used is not always a good idea and I WAS wondering about it so glad to know this :::

 

[H-2 CHARLIE]

I use a gold bug pro , it sells around $500 sometimes a little more .
It is a fabulous unit for all sorts of hunting .

 

[Rob 183]

I recently tried he Ace350 and got rid of it after a month because I just couldn't get used the the BONG/Doorbell tones. Good luck!

 

[Rob 183]

I should add that I went back to a White's analog machine.

 

[jharhed]

Anything but ace series

 

[Jason in Enid]

Anything but ace series

Just curious why not the Ace series? I have seen a lot people with good things to say about them. They are an entry level machine, so I wouldn't expect the performance of a higher level detector, but I'm just wondering why you feel so strongly against them.

 

[jharhed]

My first machine was a ace 250, and it absolutely drove me nuts, you may enjoy the constant bong, Bing bong, Bing. Same as Rob said above post. There are a few machines in that price range that I would choose besides the aces, just my humble opinion.

 

[PostalTwo]

Fortunately I never owned an ace . I did have the opportunity to try one tho . It lasted about 10 minutes lol. Those tones drove me nuts . The ding ding bell tone is responsible for why ppl feel so passionate for the dislike of the ace machines. It's not that they don't find metal

 

[PostalTwo]

If I was starting over I would buy the treasure pro. It has pro features at a great price

 

[RobRieman]

I would have bought a CTX 3030 and saved a lot of time and money.

 

[PostalTwo]

Lol imo it's not practical to spend that kind of money on a hobby u don't know if u like yet

 

[PostalTwo]

My v3 holds it own very well against my buddy's ctx 3030's. I would choose it again

 

[RobRieman]

Yeah I like my V3i and my Etrac but I'm still getting a 3030.

 

[Zip Zip]

Most of my detectors were whites. I did have an Ace 250 also. The cheapest whites I had was the Prizm 4. Comparing the two, I sold the P4 and kept the Ace 250. Best bang for the buck. The tones were ok. On the Prizm 4, I dislike the screen staying on the previous target until another target was located. It was aggravating. I used the Ace when I had a person new to detecting. Worked out great !

 

[Phantasman]

Ace was great for it's day. Too many lower end machines with better features (numeric ID, PP depth, less batteries) have come out lately to challenge the Ace fanfare. Garrett needs to bring the Ace's into the 21st century. A bigger coil and raising the freq on the 350 ain't going to get it. After using my Ace 250 for a day, I heard that ((BONG)) in my dreams all that night.

 

[Andy Nunez]

I am a few days late to this, but let me share my thoughts. Back in the early 90s, I had the GTA 1000, my first experience with the "Garrett Sound of Money" after owning a Big Bud Pro. It didn't drive me crazy, but lack of depth did. I ended up getting an Eagle Spectrum used and it was a decent machine. I got out of the sport to raise a family and now, on the edge of retirement, my oldest boy and his friends invited me to join them and my wife thought I could use the exercise. The three of them all had Ace 350s, so the price was right and I got one. That was three years ago. I really like my Ace and the tone doesn't bother me at all. I have found a colonial copper with it, several silver quarters and dimes, the oldest being 1898, lots of Indian head pennies and Wheaties, and, for the first time in 30 years of detecting, a 2 cent piece. Also got some tokens, lots of flat buttons and silver ring. I picked up and rehabbed a Fisher 1265X and its nice, but the Ace is very light. I also got a Prizm IV real cheap as a backup and it was nice (my grandson got an 1888 Indian Head with it), but neither machine was very good in wet grass or the beach. They both falsed a lot. A friend of mine recommended the White's Coinmaster, which has a beach mode, but I haven't tried it. I saw a Teknetics Delta 4000 at Gander Mountain for $249 and it had a numeric readout. It was tempting, but it had an 8 inch coil and the Ace has an 11 inch coil. While more expensive detectors will definitely outperform the Ace, my budget doesn't allow for an upgrade right now, so I am happy with my Ace 350. Besides the falsing in wet conditions, the only other complaint is that it is hard to learn to pinpoint, but I understand that is more to do with the DD coil technology than the brand. I did splurge for a pinpointer, which helped a lot. Anyway, far from an expert (most of my big finds were with my old Big Bud Pro so far, a 1689 shilling and some reales), but for a starter machine, the Ace 350 satisfies me, and the Delta 4000 and Coinmaster series probably would perform similarly. I do like the idea of the numeric readout on the Delta, but I already have an entry level machine or two, so I don't think I'd gain anything. My 2 cents YMMV.