CTX, wheres the love?

[Native Floridian]

CTX, where's the love?

No fancy pix of spectactular bling on this thread. Just an old fashioned discussion of Minelab's latest greatest offering, the CTX3030. So what's up with this machine? Or, what's up with the swirling controversy surrounding it? Is it the price? Is it dissatisfaction that Minelab is going upmarket? Is it the way it is being marketed? Or, does there only appear to be controversy? Reality being, it's all good?

Let's have the pro, the con, or just get it out of your system. You got something to say about the CTX, Minelab, let's have it here.

Just for the record - On the CTX I'm Switzerland. I'm a very happy camper with my Sov GT while my Excal gathers dust. Until I can no longer buy batteries for my GT, I'm not going anywhere!!!!

 

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[Jason in Enid]

I don't think most of the buyers are hardcore water hunters. I think they are mostly the E-Trac crowd, just looking for little better edge in finding those old silvers and coppers.

 

[bigscoop]

I like the concept of being able to switch coils but other then that just too many bells and whistles I don't need and too much drag-inviting hardware on the stick that can't be moved and balanced elsewhere to suit my usual hunting environment. The $$$$ is also too high.

 

[NYwaterhunter]

I would think it has the exact same frequencies as the excal?
It sounds to me it was made for the folks who want to hunt water and land without diving.
Well, the excal does just fine on land also , and you can get 2 for the price of one 3030
I guess I just don't see the advantage of 3030 over excal. If the circuitry is different, then maybe.

 

[bigscoop]

It just goes to show you, "you can" setup your Excal for quick and easy water-tight coil exchanges.

 

[dewcon4414]

No it isnt set up the same as the Xcal. FBS is different than BBS. BBS is SET freq at 1.5 kHz increments (17 freq's) up to 25 kHz..... the FBS have channel with several freq randomly set. How they process data and there IM ability is different as well.

This really is a great machine.... but one has to decide do i grab 1 machine or buy 2. I use an Exp and Xcal.... so i have to know what im doing that day or take them both. Personally i still think BBS is the way to go in the water.... BUT on the sand or park the Xcal cant match depth and TID. I just like simple on the beach. I dont want a reason to NOT dig. It didnt help they are still tweaking it..... so most are waiting. NF.... i think you hit many of the reasons. I think a lot of the newer hunter love having one.... is it better? They dont know. Sorry ML ... but i hope it dont take off or all the brands could get pricy. Price for a water hunter can be recouped a lot quicker than a dirt digger. I do believe it a shame people cant feel comfortable posting finds or talking about it without being beaten up. I think we would all like to follow its use by some of the hunters using it.

Dew

 

[gravediggermax-vabeachva]

dew is right
you sit back and watch - it will become a great heater really fast or is now a great heater once u get to know it.
it does have a few whistles and bells, some will use all, some will use hardly any.
at times i would like to have mine back....at times.
but for someone like me who tries to hunt everyday i just could not handle the extra weight at my age. it just bothered my sholders.
land and sea
stand by

 

[bigscoop]

I was referring to "reliable water-tight connectors" for quick and easy coil changes. 8, 10,15" inch coils can easily be exchanged on the Excal with a little thought and the correct connector. In fact, I'm preparing to setup my older 800 for that now. Wasn't talking about the machine technology or the use of CTX coils.

 

[GreenMeanie]

It is FBS2 not BBS so yes the circuitry is different.
Wireless headphone's - I never thought I would like them as much as I do they come in real handy!
Waterproof to 10ft and I can change Coils.
Battery last real long love it.
I like the cable going up the middle of the rod it never gets stuck on things.
GPS - What did you pay for a GPS in your car 200.00?
Add those up and it puts it over 2K
A whites v3i runs 1600.00 with wireless and doesn't have GPS and can't go in the water.
E-trac is 1300.00 at kellyco add the features of the CTX and it goes over 2K.
If you don't use the GPS that isn't minelabs fault don't buy the machine. I never use the GPS but I can see why it is so pricey.

I would think it has the exact same frequencies as the excal?
It sounds to me it was made for the folks who want to hunt water and land without diving.
Well, the excal does just fine on land also , and you can get 2 for the price of one 3030
I guess I just don't see the advantage of 3030 over excal. If the circuitry is different, then maybe.

 

[bigscoop]

I think there are several good machines out there, the 3030 being one of them. Beyond that it's whatever machine best suits your hunting conditions and where you place your confidence.

 

[Sandman]

dew is right
you sit back and watch - it will become a great heater really fast or is now a great heater once u get to know it.
it does have a few whistles and bells, some will use all, some will use hardly any.
at times i would like to have mine back....at times.
but for someone like me who tries to hunt everyday i just could not handle the extra weight at my age. it just bothered my sholders.
land and sea
stand by

The CTX will be a great detector as Max says, but I too am getting to old to carry that thing and a scoop too. Reason I gave up on using a PI was from being worn out digging so many holes and needed some disc and a nap.

 

[Native Floridian]

The CTX is a good machine. How good? Let's talk money. Pricing from a reliable source puts the price of a CTX at $2499. That same source is selling the Etrac for $1549, the GT for $1049. The top White's machine comes in at about $1600, and both Garrett and Fisher have nothing priced above$1225. For someone with their wallet open there is some room to move in the right direction on these prices, but that's where they officially sit today. MAP is where it's at.

That said, is the performance of the CTX that much better than the lesser priced machines? At Almost 150% more cost than a Sovereign GT will you find more than twice the treasure with the CTX? Do the added features add up to that much more benefit? Or, is it more like a BMW, the Ultimate Driving machine, kind of ? Yeah, they are good, but on the twisties a used Mini Cooper will eat anything coming off a BMW production line for lunch. And do it for 1/4 the cost. The BMW is an excellent car, and it is certainly more impressive than the MC. But were is the value? ( and yes i know that BMW produces the MC)

Using that comparision, where does the price/benefit of the CTX leave it?

 

[lookindown]

3030 is overpriced and if people buy it the other companys will follow suit...so dont buy it and keep the prices from skyrocketing. Its a good machine but too much money.

 

[NYwaterhunter]

thanks Dew on the frequency
sounds like it is totally different than excal

 

[MBbeachrat]

The 3030 is a killer in the dirt. Great for trashy sites. Hunters always going back to old sites and finding more. Not to impressed with what I been seeing on the beach with it. (Except for you know who). The demo CTX at my local shop up north won't air test close to my Excal or CZ 21. Probably not set up correct or just a bad CTX. I hate the sounds it makes like a pinball machine at the arcade. You can sure get it for less then $2500 if you shop around. But they really don't seem to be getting used much at the beach.

 

[Buried Crap NJ]

Tom as I have always said all machines pay for themselfs. Its just a matter of time for that to happen. The CTX will take a bit longer to do so. If it had not been for Hurricane Sandy my 3030 would have been paid for by years end. I am at about 1600 right now since May 28th 2012. My GT was paid for in 2 weeks with just one find. My one Excalibur find this year could have paid for 6 CtX's with tax! They are never going to pay for themself sitting in the closet! I hunt the beach 99.9% of the time and it has really come to shine on the beach, I just needed the time to learn. This will be one speical heater before long. Pictured here is Garys Drayton finds for 3 weeks hunting with the 3030 in November 2012 4.5 oz of gold sits on the 3030. He has found over 6 oz in November but some was with other machines. I think that should answer any questions on its capabilties in the hands of a master hunter!
BCNJ

 

[Les West Central Fl]

My buddy Ken hunts with one and likes it. Only problem he had is with the battery. If you water hunt and need to replace the battery be sure to pull the gasket and clean it before putting the other in ir it may leak.

 

[Samuelljackson]

The gasket thing concerns me too. Anyone have a beat on when to pick us a spare or two. I'd imagine it just like the gaskets on sand sharks and DF's we should probably replace them from time to time to ensure a good seal. Plus pulling in and out of the machine to clean, at some point one will get damaged or lost.

 

[Buried Crap NJ]

The gasket thing concerns me too. Anyone have a beat on when to pick us a spare or two. I'd imagine it just like the gaskets on sand sharks and DF's we should probably replace them from time to time to ensure a good seal. Plus pulling in and out of the machine to clean, at some point one will get damaged or lost.

I am guessing you could just measure it and see what you could find. I am sure that Minelab use an off the shelf O ring! I do know Minelab doen't have them or atleast the didn't have any!
BCNJ

 

[Native Floridian]

IMO, from my reading the forums. Most of the pushback has to do with price. There is no question that the machine is a good machine. It's early problems are no different that what has been experienced in other product areas. For example, it's not unusual for NIkon to issue firmware updates for it's top line pro and prosumer cameras as glitches are discovered in early production run models. As well auto manufacturers are constantly tweaking their cars as small problems are discovered. Big problems get a recall. IMO, the early CTX problems are a non event.

That said, IMO, the question stands: Is it worth the money? I realize the top of game hunters like Gary, Steve, and others are finding boat loads of bling with this machine. However, this elite group finds a boat load of bling regardless of what machine is used. Of course, there is a lesson there. The question is, is this machine worth the 50 to 150% premium in it's price. Again, using the car analogy, a BMW is a good performance car, but it's not twice as good as a Mini Copper S. Though a well equipped 3 series can cost twice as much. Many well informed car guys would argue that the 3 series is not better in any way. To these people there is no value in spending the extra money. Which, bringing it back to the CTX, sounds an awful lot like what we've all been reading about regarding the CTX. So, the question isn't how much gold the CTX is finding, it's how much more gold is the CTX finding? Minelab needs to find a way to answer that question in a way that gives us function over form guys a clear choice. I know what hunting advantages the EXcal gives me versus my GT, but a CTX? Well, it gives me a gps I don't need. Past that, hmmm ? ? ? !