From Etrac to Deus - Tips & Advice please!

[NEPAMD]

Hello all,

Man it feels weird posting in this section I'm so used to the Minelab section. Anyways....I did it! I finally got an Xp Deus. First impressions coming from the Etrac: 1) Man this thing is light! 2) Man this thing is confusing! I basically need help from any users that came from an Etrac. What should be my first steps? I already updated to V4 from the get go. Is there anything I can do with set up to help make the transition easier? The menus are kind of hard to navigate at first. What programs should I run?

Thanks for all the help, I appreciate it!

 

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[DeepDigs]

Like you, I came from learning the E-Trac & CTX to the Deus - I feel your pain. My first suggestion to you would be to buy Andy Sabisch's book, "The Deus Handbook". It will explain the basics plus offer you some custom programs to try as well. My second suggestion would be to dig as many solid signals as you can in BASIC mode until you get an idea of what the Deus is telling you.

If you stick with the Deus, and believe in its abilities, in a few weeks you will start to believe in yourself - and that's when the real fun begins

Congrats on your new machine!

 

[vferrari]

Agree with DeepDigs advice re the book and also check out UK Gary's videos linked at the top of the Deus forum to get a visual idea of how the various settings affect performance. The only change I would suggest is that you use Deus Fast as your basic default "out of the box" program because it is a little deeper than Basic 1 for reasons you will learn about later when you start digging into the various settings and submenus. It forms the basis for most of my custom programs. Also, some other basic advice:

Fully charge all the components before use, weak batteries can result in less stable operation and more susceptibility to EMI (noise).

Always turn on the Deus with the coil raised in the air at hip height and away from any large metal objects such as a vehicle or metal siding. This ensures the initialized settings are not inadvertently biased by ground conductivity or nearby conductive objects which can compromise performance.

If you are using version 4.0 and even if you are using Version 3.2 software, I recommend using GB in tracking mode vice manual mode, that way you don't have to worry about periodically readjusting ground balance as soil conductivity changes while you hunt. If you have very stable ground conductivity, then manual GB is fine, just make sure you adjust GB within +/- three points of the actual ground balance reading.

You can use basic 1 right out of the box and find stuff. If you want slightly higher depth performance, use Deus Fast as recommended above. Use 8 or 12 kHz (As pointed out below for Deus fast you need to change freq from 18 kHz)

Get as much swing time as you can to get used to the basic tones. I would graduate to 5 tones operation and ultimately full tones operation as you gain more confidence and start to enter your own custom programs. Try full tones, if too overwhelming back off to multi tones. One advantage to full tones is that you don't have to program your own tone breaks.

After you've gained some real world experience, read Andy's handbook, and checked out Gary's vids. Check out the custom programs sticky thread at the top of the forum and also check out some of the videos posted by frequent Tnet DEUS contributors such as Calabash Digger on You Tube. Most of all, have fun and don't forget to breathe.

 

[Tedyoh]

All great points but if I had to do it all over again I'd jump right into full tones......next step after 50 or so hours......set discrimination to 0 or 1 and go back to sites that were too iron polluted for your etrac to handle and be amazed at what you find.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[jadocs]

You got some great advice. Your #1 and #2 made me chuckle lol

 

[Tedyoh]

Oh yeah.....i learned in Deus Fast....but whatever program you use best to stick with 12 or 8 kHz.....(you will have to change deus fast, 18khz is factory setting) 18khz makes junk sound too good to use right off the bat.

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[JackalopeZL1]

For me the absolute biggest thing was realizing where this machine should be used. You have a etrac with fantastic abilities. Now you have a deus that has it's area where it shines. Heavy iron containing spots where you need separation abilities and you don't mind digging it all. Use both find lots!

 

[NEPAMD]

Thanks for the input guys I really appreciate it! I got a copy of Andy's book, I'm trying to read as much as a can. I got the Deus for the sole reason of using it in and around iron infested sights. My etrac was great, but in the iron sites it was extremely slow and extremely frustrating. In PA we have so many old homesites (especially farms) and every single one is loaded with iron. So I'm going to try it this weekend and use some of your pointers.

One quick question though to follow up....If my mineralization is low should I use 8hz over 12hz? Oh and another....How the heck do I tell target depth? On the Etrac the bar was there and made it simple. I thought the bar on right on the Deus was for depth until I realized it was for mineralization.

 

[JackalopeZL1]

Thanks for the input guys I really appreciate it! I got a copy of Andy's book, I'm trying to read as much as a can. I got the Deus for the sole reason of using it in and around iron infested sights. My etrac was great, but in the iron sites it was extremely slow and extremely frustrating. In PA we have so many old homesites (especially farms) and every single one is loaded with iron. So I'm going to try it this weekend and use some of your pointers.

One quick question though to follow up....If my mineralization is low should I use 8hz over 12hz? Oh and another....How the heck do I tell target depth? On the Etrac the bar was there and made it simple. I thought the bar on right on the Deus was for depth until I realized it was for mineralization.

The horse shoe on the left is supposed to give you a depth idea based on a coin size target, and also let you know ferrous or non ferrous probability. It will not be nearly as accurate as the etrac if it is anything like the 3 deus's I have owned.

 

[Calabash Digger]

I agree I too would start with full tones,horse shoe I HAVE NEVER PAID ATTENTION TO. I look at the numbers but that's not what tells me to dig or not dig ,I know a lot of mine lab users rely on vdi a lot ,imo way to much and I think they are leaving plenty of good targets behind but that's for another thread. my main advice is learn the tones ,full tones . The machine will tell you so much from the tones a ton of info is in them once you learn to speak deus. good luck btw you can raise disc to 2.5 after you go over thick iron in 0 or 1 and find a few targetsd missed .

All great points but if I had to do it all over again I'd jump right into full tones......next step after 50 or so hours......set discrimination to 0 or 1 and go back to sites that were too iron polluted for your etrac to handle and be amazed at what you find.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[gsxraddict]

I agree I too would start with full tones,horse shoe I HAVE NEVER PAID ATTENTION TO. I look at the numbers but that's not what tells me to dig or not dig ,I know a lot of mine lab users rely on vdi a lot ,imo way to much and I think they are leaving plenty of good targets behind but that's for another thread. my main advice is learn the tones ,full tones . The machine will tell you so much from the tones a ton of info is in them once you learn to speak deus. good luck btw you can raise disc to 2.5 after you go over thick iron in 0 or 1 and find a few targetsd missed .

I agree but since he doesn't use the horseshoe then you should know if you use it that it's not very accurate if the disc is set to under about 6

 

[JackalopeZL1]

I agree I too would start with full tones,horse shoe I HAVE NEVER PAID ATTENTION TO. I look at the numbers but that's not what tells me to dig or not dig ,I know a lot of mine lab users rely on vdi a lot ,imo way to much and I think they are leaving plenty of good targets behind but that's for another thread. my main advice is learn the tones ,full tones . The machine will tell you so much from the tones a ton of info is in them once you learn to speak deus. good luck btw you can raise disc to 2.5 after you go over thick iron in 0 or 1 and find a few targetsd missed .

I don't agree with "minlelab users rely on
The VDI alot "...the minlelab is actually accurate and has tons of info with the tones, and it makes the machine combined with the sound bar none the most accurate machine. So a smart user of any machine is going to use all the good tools available to increase their good finds ratio.. And yes, the deus does not have that tool like the minlelab IMO..

 

[Calabash Digger]

Let me rephrase what I said a lot of people ive read and people I know rely on the minelab id too much imo. Remember I bought a ctx and tested its id in trashy areas BIG difference than a silver dime at 7 inchs in a clean area. The deus tones are more nuanced than the ctx ,I can stick the remote in my pocket and never look at the screen and tell you whether to dig or not. They are 2 different machines with to different operating styles. All those targets that minelab users pass over because of the vdi might actually get a big surprise if they dug some of them. TNSHARPSHOOTER actually has some good write ups about that issue. Congrats on the new purchase not gonna highjack your thread with the minelab debate been going on as long as ive been on the forum. lol

 

[JackalopeZL1]

Let me rephrase what I said a lot of people ive read and people I know rely on the minelab id too much imo. Remember I bought a ctx and tested its id in trashy areas BIG difference than a silver dime at 7 inchs in a clean area. The deus tones are more nuanced than the ctx ,I can stick the remote in my pocket and never look at the screen and tell you whether to dig or not. They are 2 different machines with to different operating styles. All those targets that minelab users pass over because of the vdi might actually get a big surprise if they dug some of them. TNSHARPSHOOTER actually has some good write ups about that issue. Congrats on the new purchase not gonna highjack your thread with the minelab debate been going on as long as ive been on the forum. lol

What I see now that I have thousands of hrs on the CTX and a few hundred on the Deus is that a lot of comparisons gets made by a lot of people who do not have enough time on one machine or the other to actually make a educated unbiased comparison. They get into the old Ford/Chevy syndrome claiming things or saying how one is so much better than another without question. And it can be seen right through by the experienced operator of said machine.

Tones, The same goes for a minelab, you can tell if it is more than likely a trashy target and never look at the display so I do not agree with the deus being more of a tone machine then the ctx, the ctx just has another GOOD tool that is accurate with the FE/CO readings, you would be crazy not to use it. In my experience the Deus gets things inaccurate all the time with just tone alone, And heck that is all you have to go on in my experience(at least my west coast ground) with the DEUS. There are so many variables in the ground(trash, mineralization emi) and so on. A matter a fact I trust the tone on the Minelab better than the Deus. But again that can come down to being much more experienced with it. The true ability of the deus is separation in targets and frankly the CTX gets whooped here.. IMO

As said before I think the biggest thing people need to realize if you own both is that you need to know is where to run the different machines. Knowing this will save you lots of frustration and increase your good finds ratio, And increase the fun you have!

I own both, use both and enjoy both. I didn't enjoy the deus until I found it's true nitch and understood that. Final thought, well I always go back to my signature, Get your coil over the target!!

 

[JackalopeZL1]

I have a experience from last weekend with my Deus as a perfect example. I went to a old park that i have literally beat to death with my minelabs. But there is one area in the back of the park that you can tell had a building on at one point by the extreme amounts of iron in that area. My CTX nulls out almost constantly and is about worthless when it comes to hunting in this spot. Well for the first time I took the deus to this spot and went nice and slow listening for a good signal. I ended up getting a scratchy high tone, But it was consistant. Now the target sounded scratchy and I am certain a lot of people would have passed on it as being a junk target. I dug it and out popped a old silver ring. In the hole was 3 different nails and a shallow pull tab. Sounded crappy but ended up being a really neat target, So glad I did not go by the tone alone.. And yes, my ctx would have just nulled out..lol

 

[Calabash Digger]

Yeah a lot of people would pass those type signals but ive used the deus enough to know what its saying . Heres a target that came from such a signal. There is also a another nuance that comes into play in full tones when digging in iron its not full proof but a lot of times it will be a masked target hiding in the iron. I might start another thread and talk about that nuance. I will say this I relic hunt and on some sites that are good I dig every scratchy beep,faint signal, what might be a signal or might not be a signal,beep ,pop,crack,whisper,! lol I dig it all and ive seen what can be hiding in the iron and trash. I don't claim to be expert with the ctx I used it enough to figure out the the deus smokes it for what I do and I didn't need it in relic arsenal. to each his own on that issue. Going back to the original post spend some time with the deus and it will click with you after awhile .Learn the settings and so forth in other words do your home work and you will be rewarded.

 

[JackalopeZL1]

but ive used the deus enough to know what its saying ,,,I dig every scratchy beep,faint signal, what might be a signal or might not be a signal,beep ,pop,crack,whisper, I dig it all View attachment 1439472

We agree, You have to dig it all with the deus and that is one point I have been trying to make... It is a great separating beep and dig machine, the best.. But I don't see how that is knowing what it has to say, that is digging everything because it could be a good target no matter what it sounds like. Don't take it the wrong way but I am just quoting what you said which frankly your statements contradict them selves.

If you dig nothing but really old places where you would be crazy to not dig a non ferrous target it is one of the best machines to take. So I stand by my statement, It is about knowing where to use the machine if you have both.

In the end I do appreciate the finds you post as it is obvious you put in the time and have some great spots. And your videos have helped a lot of people understand setting that might help them!! Keep up the good digging, I wish I do a hunt out your way some day!!

 

[Calabash Digger]

Do you think the ctx would id those type targets? It wont and would be lucky to even see some on them, In other words you would have to dig it all with the ctx too or you would not know what your missing thus it becomes a beep and dig detector too. Its the same thing , aren't you relying on the vdi to much? Which goes back to my original post and what I said about the minelab users relying on the vdi to much. I must have missed something I thought you were making that same old claim about how great the vdi is on the minelabs . I will give an example my friends have been die hard minelab users for years. They have a park they have pounded I mean beat to death. Well my buddy Erick bought a deus and I set it up for him and low and behold coins started coming out the ground again. WHY? some he might have missed true but we know why now. He relied on the etrac,ctx vdi to much and it lied to him that's a true story. So the moral of that story is this if your trusting the vdi on the minelab you are being lied to sometimes. I will say this the ctx is the best at it vdi but but it has its faults too. you like ford or chevy? lol

 

[JackalopeZL1]

Do you think the ctx would id those type targets? It wont and would be lucky to even see some on them, In other words you would have to dig it all with the ctx too or you would not know what your missing thus it becomes a beep and dig detector too. Its the same thing , aren't you relying on the vdi to much? Which goes back to my original post and what I said about the minelab users relying on the vdi to much. I must have missed something I thought you were making that same old claim about how great the vdi is on the minelabs . I will give an example my friends have been die hard minelab users for years. They have a park they have pounded I mean beat to death. Well my buddy Erick bought a deus and I set it up for him and low and behold coins started coming out the ground again. WHY? some he might have missed true but we know why now. He relied on the etrac,ctx vdi to much and it lied to him that's a true story. So the moral of that story is this if your trusting the vdi on the minelab you are being lied to sometimes. I will say this the ctx is the best at it vdi but but it has its faults too. you like ford or chevy? lol

Again, I have said in many of my replies I would not even see the target in heavy trash with my CTX so it goes back to my main point, Knowing where to run which machine if you own both to maximize your good find ratio. I gave the example of the park area where the building used to be and my CTX just nulls out, so it is essentially worthless. then I took the Deus and found a silver ring with 3 nails in the hole..

On the flip side, In that same park I can use my Minelab and sift through the targets in areas that are not so trashy and maximize my good finds, It is not possible to do that to anywhere near the accuracy with the deus since it is a dig it all machine... I understand where they both shine!!

 

[vferrari]

Again, I have said in many of my replies I would not even see the target in heavy trash with my CTX so it goes back to my main point, Knowing where to run which machine if you own both to maximize your good find ratio. I gave the example of the park area where the building used to be and my CTX just nulls out, so it is essentially worthless. then I took the Deus and found a silver ring with 3 nails in the hole..

On the flip side, In that same park I can use my Minelab and sift through the targets in areas that are not so trashy and maximize my good finds, It is not possible to do that to anywhere near the accuracy with the deus since it is a dig it all machine... I understand where they both shine!!

I hear what you are saying to Calabash regarding the right machine for the conditions at hand (trashy - Deus has the edge because of its ability to separate trash/iron from desirable targets). I would even concede that perhaps the CTX has the edge on giving you a more positive ID (both audibly and visually) and more accurate depth indication vs. the Deus in non-trashy conditions - especially if you have a lot more swing time with the CTX vs. the Deus. But I wouldn't go so far as to call the Deus a dig it all machine in non-trash. The subtle quality of the tones and even the X-Y display provide some additional information to the operator to make sound dig/non-dig decisions in non-trash. IMO. In my case, there are situations where I would prefer to use the smaller coils available on my F75 vs. the Deus. But I do not consider the Deus "dig it all". The tonality can give me enough information such that I can make a high probability correct call as to whether the target underneath my coil is a pull tab, nickel, or gold ring, even though the visual target ID for all three is about the same. In other words, I suspect that a knowledgeable/experienced CTX user, such as yourself vs. a knowledgeable/experienced Deus user such as CD, would give each other a run for their money under conditions where both machines are capable weapons (e.g., light trash coin/jewelry site). Don't know if that can ever be proven with certainty unless very controlled conditions were established, but that is my educated guess. As a matter of fact, you can throw the experienced F75 user in there, or the experienced MXT user in there and I think they would all fare about the same. Perhaps even an experienced AT Pro user. Point being, that as one gains a lot of experience on a particular mid to high end machine, and starts to understand its nuances and what it is whispering in your ear, then the specific machine feature differences start to matter less.

Otherwise, I totally agree with you. For the variety of the types of digging I do (beach vs. terrestrial, wet sand vs. dry, relic vs. coinshooting/jewelry) I am lucky to be able to afford a number of specialized machines that excel at each of those jobs. And there are some situations where the Deus lags or downright just can't get the job done (deep seeking relic hunting in hot soil or shallow water salt beach hunting, for example). But if I could only choose one general purpose machine out of my arsenal to hunt with for an entire year under a variety of conditions and target objectives, it would probably be the Deus with the F75 a close second (now eyeing the Nokta Impact as a possible F75 killer). The main reason being is that I have probably 500 to 750 hours on the Deus which is a lot more than I have on any other individual machine. FWIW.