Ace 250 vs. Xterra 70 vs. Safari

[snyper77]

I currently own a 250 and it's worth every penny of it's $200 price tag. It seems to max out at the following depths:

• dimes - 5" in ground
• quarters - 6" in ground

I want a machine that will "see" coins at 8 to 10 inches (maybe more if I'm lucky).

Two questions now:

• Compared to the Ace 250, what makes the Xterra worth 3 times as much money? It's not going to give me 3 times the depth. What will it give?
• When comparing the X70 to the Safari, what does that extra $300 (safari price) do for you? The safari is pretty heavy I hear, and has slower recovery times than the X70. The Ace 250 gets heavy on my arm after an hour, so I'd like to stay away from heavier machines, if I can find a lightweight unit that will punch deep. Your thoughts please.

[/list]

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

A History of Mining on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska - Grab it through Amazon!

[oldbill]

You want deep and light go Tesoro! Bill

 

[Brett]

I would ask, what problem are you trying to solve?

You mentioned you wanted 8-10 inches. Why? Are you not finding enough treasure at 0-6"?

I had an Ace 250, and after a couple months my Dad and I both thought our Ace's just weren't going deep enough to get the silver. Well, where we were looking was the problem, but we didn't know it then. We ended up buying top of the line units and initially our finds decreased with the learning curves of the machines. Then they increased, but because we were looking for RICH sites. The other nice little benefit that came with a top of the line detector is that you get so much more information and target seperation is MUCH better for trashier areas. More info can hurt you though because you might be more inclined to not dig as much anymore.

All that aside, ask why you really want to upgrade and then try to fill that need first through other FREE avenues.

If you need the new detector find one used and save yourself a lot of DOUGH.

FWIW: I haven't found TONS of silver and gold, but MOST of it has been between the 0-6" range. I always wonder if the Ace 250 could have seen most of the targets too.

 

[marxionu]

Safaris target ID is 100 times better you don't dig up crap, you can discriminate 50 segments ACE has 12, FBS 1,5-100KHz going much deeper than ACE, its going really deep on wet sand, and finally its Minelab.

 

[snyper77]

Well, I plan on doing a lot of detecting. If I am going to invest a lot of time in this hobby, then I don't want to do it with a detector that only sees 5" deep on dimes, 6" on quarters, etc.. Why not use a detector that will give me 30% or more depth? Therefore, I'm trying to decide which unit offers maximum bang for the buck. I've heard the X70 is ML's #1 seller. I tend to favor a company's most popular unit. Just wondering how deep an X70 will detect compared to an Ace 250.
Also, has anyone heard that the recovery time/response time on the 70 is much better than the safari? Someone mentioned it's because of the multifrequency vs. single freq. That's where the 70 really shines with speed. Your thoughts?

 

[godisnum1]

You want deep and light go Tesoro! Bill

You know, last year, I wouldn't of known either way... but I had a man pull out three separate Tesoro models and do an air test on each of them with a CW Mini... then we air tested mine. His middle priced model that he owned (he used to be a Tesoro dealer) actually got more depth on the air test than my detector did. I was pretty impressed.... I just can't remember what he said the price of it was. I thought it was around 500 bucks maybe?

Bran <><

 

[Brett]

Well, I plan on doing a lot of detecting. If I am going to invest a lot of time in this hobby, then I don't want to do it with a detector that only sees 5" deep on dimes, 6" on quarters, etc.. Why not use a detector that will give me 30% or more depth? Therefore, I'm trying to decide which unit offers maximum bang for the buck. I've heard the X70 is ML's #1 seller. I tend to favor a company's most popular unit. Just wondering how deep an X70 will detect compared to an Ace 250.
Also, has anyone heard that the recovery time/response time on the 70 is much better than the safari? Someone mentioned it's because of the multifrequency vs. single freq. That's where the 70 really shines with speed. Your thoughts?

When considering what a company's #1 seller is, you also have to consider the demographics. Who's buying the X70 and for what purpose? Isn't the X70 the nugget hunters choice? I thought it was great for nuggets but not so great for deep silver. I think you have some more questions to answer.

Ahh, ok... did some digging.

"The X-TERRA 70 is the flagship of the Minelab X-Terra Series and offers the flexibility of three frequency coil options to convert the machine to hunt Relics, Coins and Gold."

So you can find coins or gold... but you'll have to switch your coil for maximum depth... uhg.

Here are your coil options:

9" Concentric - 3kHz; 7.5kHz; 18.75kHz
10" Elliptical Double D - 18.75kHz
10.5" Double D Round - 7.5kHz & 18.75kHz

Only looks like they have a 9" concentric for deep silver (3kHz).

Sounds like a lot of extra dough in coils to me. But you may want to talk to some actually X70 users... I just know Explorers and the E-Trac as far as Minelab is concerned.

 

[johnnycat]

Actually I believe there are about 8 different size/frequency coils for the X.70. I've owned mine for almost a year and really like it. It is very light and so versatile because of the different coils. No one detector is going to be perfect. The versatility of the machine was what attracted me. So what if you have to change coils. The operation of the X-70 is very simple and so easy to make changes to the settings. The 9" 3KHz is a killer on deep silver coins. The 18.75KHz is great on gold stuff. Notch disc'. is also a breeze to accomplish, takes less than 10 seconds. Ground balancing takes about 15 seconds or less. The X-70 has 4 different patterns you can hunt in, it takes just the push of a button to toggle between any pattern. The deepest coin I have found with my X-70 was an honest, measured 9". But...I found an IH just as deep with my Tesoro Vaquero!! OK I'll be honest, to me the X-70 is one heck of a machine and yes...it is a pain to change coils. But...I look at it this way...I have a coil for just about any opportunity that might pop-up.
Don't know anything about the Safari other than I have heard that it is a, "slow" machine. Good Luck.

 

[Brett]

I was only considering the cost of the coils... one for just about everything you would like to find... and then having to change them. By the time you buy all of the coils, you might as well have just bought an E-Trac.

 

[bazinga]

The X-Terra 70 is a pretty good coin detecting machine that is pretty simple to use. My grandpa purchased one after I recommended it. The first time I took him hunting he pulled a couple of wheats in the 7" range with it. I would show him coins in the 6-8" range and his machine picked them up with no issues. I didn't find any deeper that day though to help his test his machine with.

I've also hunted alongside an x-terra 50. I was showing the guy obvious 6" coins and his machine wouldn't pick them up. Seemed to be a big difference in performance.

From what I've read about the Safari, there seem to be a lot of grumpy buyers out there. Maybe it's because they are new and still have bugs, but I haven't seen a whole lot of really positive reviews on it just yet.

 

[bigjohn070]

I used the x-70 for 1/2 a year its the only detector i have ever used.
Think it's more about getting your coil over good targets than anything.
Sure it's that simple. But higher end machines seam to have better discrimination.
Use good head phones and slow down.

HH
BIG JOHN

 

[treasurefiend]

Why not get the 9x12 coil for your Ace, that will get you 3 more inches no problem and its a whole lot cheaper than buying a new machine. When I use my Ace I only use the 9x12.

 

[George (MN)]

I recently acquired a X-Terra70. Yes, it is deeper than the Ace 250.

In my air test with the 5.5x10 DD 18.75 kHz coil, it got correct tone on a nickel out to 9". Maybe only 8" with 7.5 kHz concentric coil. Don't have a 3 kHz coil. HH, George (MN)

 

[Trackerman]

Xterra 305 like 299 on ebay better than the ace better pinpointing targetting and lighter plus 2 coil selection and manual ground balance. Safari would be a better beach machine than both. But xterras a great park machine and decent on the beach.

 

[Dale Simmons]

The X-Terra 70 is a good machine. It's fast, light and easy to use. I moved up from the X-Terra 70 to a Safari. There is no comparison in the three units you mentioned. The Safari is a great coin finder. You can use it in a park, school, beach,,,etc The Safari has no problem with any part of a beach. You can use it in dry or wet sand it has no effect on it. The Safari's only problem in my book is it's a very deep machine. I have dug items at the beach over 20". I have dug items in parks over 10". So if you get a Safari be prepared to dig alittle deeper. This does help work sites where others have been. That's just my two cents.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Air tests can be deceiving, some detectors do not air test well. Sov GT for one does not air test well, but in the real world it goes d-e-e-p. I have dug coins at beach that were over 10 inches easily......

snyper77 if your having trouble with the weight, try the harness. I hunt with a harness probably 75% of the time, my arm never gets tired. Harness supports the detector weight, you only guide it, plus you can let it go and it hangs by your side.. I get mine at Kellyco, and I carry 2, in case I misplace one of them.

 

[vondrewvious]

You want deep and light go Tesoro! Bill

You know, last year, I wouldn't of known either way... but I had a man pull out three separate Tesoro models and do an air test on each of them with a CW Mini... then we air tested mine. His middle priced model that he owned (he used to be a Tesoro dealer) actually got more depth on the air test than my detector did. I was pretty impressed.... I just can't remember what he said the price of it was. I thought it was around 500 bucks maybe?

Bran <><

Air tests don't tell you squat.
I regularly dig silver in the 12"+ range with the xterra.

 

[marxionu]

http://www.detectortest.info/
And the winner is Safari

 

[Goes4ever]

I own both the ace and the x-70, it is like comparing a ford escort to a Cadillac
the x-70 is that much better. I absolutely love mine, the more hours I use it the better it gets, get some good headphones too, because those real deep coins are just gonna be a whisper.

 

[Trackerman]

Safari would be better of the three easy to use and depth plus better for beaches and not as noisy as the xterra or ace