On your Delta transmit power and threshold is fixed, you can control the gain which is your sensitivity.
Transmit power is depth penetrating power and is usually fixed on most detectors but there are a few that you can control this power being sent out from your coil...if you don't mind using up battery power faster.
From what I gather gain, (mostly interchanged with sensitivity), is more often described as a form of amplification.
Weaker signals, this can mean smaller and deeper targets, are raised in volume so we can tell they are there and not silent.
Higher gain or sensitivity DOES NOT get deeper as many think, it just amplifies the signals on deeper targets down to the penetrating depth our tools are capable of reaching.
Threshold is linked with the audible tone we can set at different levels on many detectors usually in all metal that is the bar we can control to either let in or cut out signals at specific amplification levels.
Many compare this to a door...at zero threshold the door us halfway open and you can see, (or our detectors can react to), much on the other side like smaller and deeper targets but not all.
Lowering the threshold, which is actually lowering the bar, opens that door and we can hear and see more deeper and smaller targets.
Raising the threshold is actually raising the bar, the door closes and we cut out smaller and deeper targets, they will not be picked up, seen, sensed or reacted to by our detectors.
This can get confusing because on mine -9 is the lowest setting but at the highest threshold/bar level and +9 is the highest numbers but sets the bar the lowest.
In the field targets aren't the only thing we are concerned about, EMI, hot rocks, and many minerals in the ground itself can be picked up and cause a reaction, signals and noise or chatter, also electronic circuit hum from the machine itself at certain high setting levels.
Add it all up and there can be a wall of noise we can get lost in, confused by and make it very hard to pick out the very signals on targets we look for to dig.
Both gain and threshold controls can also be used in different combinations together to also mitigate extra noise and chatter from minerals in the ground and EMI sources...it can make for a much quieter playground to enable us to hear the better targets trying to come through that wall of noise and signals.
Then there is frequency, most any from 5-17kHz is fine for general hunting but gold and lower conductors can be seen easier by the highest frequencies and high conductors like silver can be seen seen and sensed more easily and deeper by lower frequencies so that is why multiple frequency choices have become popular...to hunt at optimum levels and depth in more specific sites like mineralized gold fields, salt water beaches or deep and masked silver in scoured hunted out public sites.
Different frequencies penetrate the soil to different levels so again for all around hunting in normal soil and conditions average frequency ranges work fine, change the parameters on these conditions and different frequencies can have an advantage.
All detectors are designed differently, different circuits, sometimes more than one gain sections, different programming and the more features you add that all costs money to design and manufacture so that is why there is a wide range of prices on different levels of detectors out there.
Generally the more they cost the more features are included and some are very satisfied with simplistic tools and basic settings and controls while others demand the higher end features they can control in order to hunt at the highest levels possible.
This is why we upgrade...to increase our chances of success.
A tool that has more control over these features, the gain and threshold for sure, is a tool that can be adapted to each an every site by using different combinations of controls to dampen the signals and input we don't need to deal with and let us concentrate on the better ones, the smaller and/or deeper ones we do need to notice.
It is a balancing act, learn to use these controls and set them at optimum levels can give us an advantage in not only the easy to hunt sites but especially the harder more difficult ones with deep targets, masking problems and more challenges....and be more successful.
This is why I love my F70 and am very impressed with the price on the Patriot.
Massive transmit power, 1-99 steps on the gain/sensitivity you can control, -9 on the threshold control to raise that bar to the quietest levels up to 0 and then nine more steps up to +9 to lower that bar to the lowest level possible and let the most signals on targets in...and the ability to control it all to hunt at optimum and enjoyable levels in any site for all owners.
Plus I can control that threshold in disc, there is no threshold tone in that mode but the control is still there for me to adjust and use and I have found it very helpful and can be more productive in my difficult and challenging dirt and sites.
I used an F2 among others for years, I was shockingly successful with that much more simple tool with pretty much the same features as your Delta, I found a ton of coins, silver and gold and I will never regret one minute I spent with it but when I upgraded to the F70 a whole new world opened up for me...a much deeper more target rich world that I didn't even have a clue about.
More depth was great but that is not the most important thing I gained for me, it was the ability to find much more and mostly severely masked targets in the most challenging type of sites I usually spend my time at that really made a difference...thanks to all those extra features and settings I eventually learned to control.
Just 5 or 6 years ago there was very little on the market to choose from compared to now.
You had different brands with a few units in entry, mid range and top tier levels to choose from but things have changed dramatically since then.
Lower end products are now adding much more useful features than ever before, mid range products have so many they would have been considered close to top end in the past and top end detectors are filled to the brim with more features and abilities and control over those features than ever before.
Waterproofing is becoming the standard bar for most companies to hit and the many foreign units that have hit our shores in the last few years have found their niche and established beachheads...and they are still coming.
The AT Max improved that model with features that owners have been asking for, the Eqinox has just entered the field and with just a few vids is making waves and if you understand anything about retail you can see that FTP has not lowered their flagship prices across the board and repositioned and lowered prices on other models just because they got bored...they are planning something and many of us think it might be a pretty big something but that still remains to be seen.
It has never been a better time to get into or be in this hobby with all the capable tools available at all these different price points.
Upgrading is something many do in this hobby, your job is to figure out what new features you think you would need to get you to the next level in your state, dirt and sites.
