Need help with my new Ace 250 (false signals)

i would try some air testing first to see just what sound every potential target will give you. Gather up all the usual kinds of targets you might come across and start air testing in all different modes. especially the modes that you always use. Get to know the different sounds and then go apply what you have learned to a real hunt.
Ive only had a problem with false signals once and it was with a different Garrett model and it turned out to be a bad sniper coil. I would sound off while the coil was in the air above my head. As far as my 250 is concerned all those "false" signals that only respond on a one way pass,more than likely it is trash. I have dug alot of those because i didnt want to miss anything good bit 98% of the time it is junk. But it also depends on your mode settings.use them all,get to know what each one will do for you. alot of more experienced hunters may have other suggestions,this is just what works for me. :thumbsup:
 

I'm very new to this hobby and I'm using an Ace 250. After several hours of use, I'm annoyed. Running the unit in coin-mode and the factory sensitivity setting (6 bars and 2 blank). I tried backing it down to 5 bars (3 blank) and it still seems to do the same thing. Let me explain what it does: While swinging, I'll get a beep. I'll swing over the spot again, nothing. Swing again, nothing. Swing again, and it BEEPS! So, it's very iffy and very hard to get a solid signal on each pass. I've tried swinging from different angles, moving around the targets, etc. Many times, the signal will totally disappear on me! Is there something wrong with my Ace250? It's very annoying to "get excited" when I get a beep...then stand there, swinging back and forth 20 times, trying to get a steady signal. Thanks in advance for your help.
Try taking your 250 over different ground, if the ground you are on is full of coke ore hot rocks the garrett will do this.Many people using the garrett complain about getting a signal digging it to find nothing, I have found this to be mainly caused by coke. For some reason it gives the garrett 250 a signal when buried , but then once on the surface nothing.Turning the sensitively down does not help if this is the case. Just move on to better ground,This coke issue is something Garrett have yet to sort out. Don't let it get you down, the Garrett is a grate detector for the money .
 

Too funny! This post is 5 years old.
 

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The original post was from 2009.
 

I was talking about "they quit making the ACE 250 a couple years ago" part.
gotcha I was unaware of Garrett stopping production of the 250 also. Lol must be a joke in there I missed too.
 

Not sure where you got your info John,but they never stopped making the 250....

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Just goes to show, you shouldn't believe everything you read!!:rolleyes:

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Not sure where you got your info John,but they never stopped making the 250....

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If they didn't, that's my my baddy and I stand corrected. I thought they replaced the ACE 250 with the ACE 350? Anyhow, I still have my ACE 250 and have found so many good finds with it. I still take it out with the sniper coil to places where I can't get the other coils close to metal objects. Just curious, which coil do you mostly use?

Cheers, John
 

I use the one that came with it originally. .have found lots of clad..few silver rings and of all thing a cauldron.



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No, the ace 350 is not a replacement. ...they sell the 150, 250 and 350..I'm hoping to buy the At in the future..

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Private message me if you want any other tips after reading this.

You should have no problem running the sensitivity at 6. My ground is extremely mineralized and that is what I run.

---I have an ace 250 also. What you are most likely experiencing is being in coin mode it sometimes picks up on trash and briefly dings coin but going back over the object it will read it as trash and in coin mode it will be silent with the id block on what it's picking up.

--- if what you are saying happens and you swing back over it watch the screen to see if it is picking something else up. If it is but not showing coin it isn't a coin. If it isn't use the pin pointer mode to see if there really is metal where you are looking or a false (this is very helpful)

---last point I will add is this. The 250 is very very good at telling you that it is a coin up to around 5" so If you are getting an intermittent false with the depth showing 6 or 8" with a faint sharp pin point dig it because it could be a coin.
 

I too didn't realize this was an old post until I got near the end.lol I think everyone's comments and suggestions here are valid. My Ace 250's and my GTI 2500 both give these type of "false signals". The way I like to interpret them is that when I am swinging along and the detector beeps, chirps, pongs, or farts it is just telling you " hey, there is something here, swing over it again". When you sweep over the area again, the detector gets more info on the target and either stops chirping because upon closer inspection it determines it is junk, or it pings and pongs consistently, and tells you to dig it up. With this in mind I usually run at near full sensitivity to get max depth, and just move on to the next target if the signal isn't consistently repeatable. The exception being as someone has already pointed out about getting a good coin signal intermittently, but it being too deep to lock onto a depth reading, and constany signal, and you get the "cone" image showing up on the depth scale, dig those up to be sure. Also a good point was raised about how not to dig up aluminum cans that have the same conductivity and signals as copper and silver coins. Go into pinpointing mode, and scan the signal, and the coins will give you a sharp chirp in a precise location, and cans will give you a dull sound over a larger area. The somewhat consistent good signal that you start to dig and then they disappear, are usually rusted nails a couple inches away from where you opened your hole. As the iron rusts it can give you an off center coin halo that goes away after you remove some dirt and give your Garrett a better look at it.
 

Same Problem

Hi everyone, I have just bought a Garrett Ace 250 and I am having the exact same problem. I've been searching the beach and I am getting lots of false signals on wet and dry sand, plus everything is showing to be 6-8 inches deep even though some items I've had were just below the surface. The problem was so bad the last time I went out I gave up and came home wondering if the coil is faulty.
I have the wire coiled round the shaft and I'm sweeping around 1 inch above the ground and still get lots of signals that when I return to the spot shows nothing.

Should I consider sending it back to Garrett for inspection?
 

First make sure your plug is in for the coil all the way and its screwed in tightly. Then hit a grassy area away from the beach and see what you come up with.
 

The Ace 250 is very sensitive and it's not the most stable running machine out there. I've heard many of the same stories of the Ace falling and constantly dinging when swinging. Mine does the exact same thing even with all the tweeks everyone says to try, coil wire wrapped tight etc. I've tried everything and it still does the same thing. I even tried buying a new coil, still did not improve. That's the nature of the Ace it's a noisy machine. Somehow I still have no trouble finding coins and gold with it. I love my Ace and still use it even though I own other machines. I just look at it as every-time she beeps she's telling me to slow down and be patient. If I don't get a second beep over the same area, I quickly move on. Just learn to accept that it likes to talk a lot and while it's not the best detector, it just plain out finds the treasure.
 

Hi everyone, I have just bought a Garrett Ace 250 and I am having the exact same problem. I've been searching the beach and I am getting lots of false signals on wet and dry sand, plus everything is showing to be 6-8 inches deep even though some items I've had were just below the surface. The problem was so bad the last time I went out I gave up and came home wondering if the coil is faulty.
I have the wire coiled round the shaft and I'm sweeping around 1 inch above the ground and still get lots of signals that when I return to the spot shows nothing.

Should I consider sending it back to Garrett for inspection?

No I would not send it in. A single frequency machine, especially one with fixed ground balance, will not work well on wet salt beach. Look at Pi or multiple freq machines.
 

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