Garrett AT Pro - Not Impressed

[Matt1344]

[I know that this is generally considered the most beloved detector which is why I couldn’t wait to use it.]

So I’ve put about 10 hours on the AT Pro (I know that’s not a lot), but so far I’m not impressed with anything it does that the cheaper detectors don’t (if that makes sense).

Maybe I just need a little more time on it or need to adjust some of the settings.

The search coil being larger than the one on my White’s which I had previously used, makes digging a nightmare. Each object rings in, in an area that is about a square foot. The pin pointer (on the detector) is useless when there are multiple objects in one area. With the AT Pro I’m digging holes three times the size and spending 5 to 10 x more time searching for the object.

The thing is all over the place with the sensitivity set higher, but the sensitivity seems to directly affect the search depth. You can’t take advantage of the deeper search depth (over 6 inches) if you don’t have the sensitivity up, but if you keep it up there seems to be too many false positives. I get coin range signals that go away. I get coin range signals when the detector is sitting still. There seems to be so many random signals that go away with this thing as well.

Speaking of depth, I laid a quarter on the surface of the ground and took the detector directly over it. It rang in at 2 inches (which is what it should do)…but then at 4 and 6 inches with the exact same motion going over the same spot. So basically the depth indicator means nothing.

Now on to the numeric metal values. The same coin could ring in (and does) at 7 different values or more. So what’s the point? Is a specific number from 70-99 really going to keep you from digging? The numeric values seem useless when there is so much inconsistency and such a wide range of values the exact same coin can ring.

WIT reminded me below, I've also found more bottle caps than EVER! Which has translated to probably 5 x more trash digs.

To me, every bell and every whistle on this thing isn’t worth the hassle…at least so far.

What are your thoughts, feel free to put me in my place/tell me what I’m doing wrong. So far using it, for me, has been very frustrating.

 

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[Sandman]

I feel your pain.

I have lots of experience with many detectors and have had two AT Pro's that were not up to par when a good friend bought me another AT PRO. This one almost works as advertised but I don't trust it and it hangs on my wall. Maybe you just received one of the first ones produced and it isn't working as it should. I don't know, but I have many detectors that I trust to not waste my time using or having to second guess what it is telling me.

 

[Rawhide]

What your describing sounds like a ground balance issue. With a quarter on the ground you should be hitting hard and solid. The numbers should be in range, and consistent. You may want to try and ground balance a lil more since I did not see you make note of that.

 

[Minrelica]

I was just a little frustrated at first with mine due to all of the bottle caps.. I thought for a minute that it's all I'd ever find but then I learned iron audio and that solved that problem.

I've only been detecting 3 years and I've upgraded my machine every year [but kept the old one] due to being addicted to the hobby.

Year 1) ACE 250 - Found more gold my first year than the next two combined, includes a 22k gold necklace
Year 2) AT PRO - Found more silver than I've found in year 1 or 3
Year 3) Minelab Explorer - Found 0 gold but older, deeper and more unique finds to date

My thought since joining this forum has been that people spend WAY too much time playing the numbers game, talking VDI and trying to memorize everything your machine does.. Even going as far as taking notes.. I'm not saying that's wrong but it's just not for me and it doesn't seem like much fun. I just go out and have fun, listen to the tones and use my gut instinct.... I've found gold, silver and key date coins and I know people in real life and on other forums that have been doing this much longer and still haven't found any gold and some not even their first ring.

The AT PRO may or may not be frustrating to the user but I think any machine can be, right? There were times this past summer that I didn't think my Minelab was working properly but I was complicating things and messing with too many settings... I went back to factory presets and started finding the good stuff again.

10 hours isn't very long for any machine.. Give it a chance

 

[Dwight S]

[The thing is all over the place with the sensitivity set higher, but the sensitivity seems to directly affect the search depth. You can’t take advantage of the deeper search depth (over 6 inches) if you don’t have the sensitivity up, but if you keep it up there seems to be too many false positives. I get coin range signals that go away. I get coin range signals when the detector is sitting still. There seems to be so many random signals that go away with this thing as well.

Speaking of depth, I laid a quarter on the surface of the ground and took the detector directly over it. It rang in at 2 inches (which is what it should do)…but then at 4 and 6 inches with the exact same motion going over the same spot. So basically the depth indicator means nothing.

Reduce the sensitivity down 2 or 3 notches from max. It won't affect your depth on coin sized targets very much. It will also help your pinpointing because you won't be picking up the extra small trash targets that the high sensitivity picks up.

The false signals could be EMI. Again, reduce the sensitivity (same 2 or 3 notches from max). I hunt in a spot that mine goes nuts in because of EMI, I move 30' away and it's quiet. If the false signals continue, check your coil connection and wire. A loose connection will cause you all sorts of grief. The AT Pro is a booger to get the coil connected tightly with the O-ring and difficult, underside connection. I've got fat fingers, so it was really hard for me...

Pinpointing does take some time to learn, but follow Garrett's instructions about moving back & forth, turn 90* and do it again then look at your pinpoint signal meters and listen for the loudest tone. The target should be close to the hole just in front of the shaft. Believe me, the 9x11 coil is a bit tricky to pinpoint with. The 5x8 coil is AWESOME!

As for the quarter target sound, are you sure you're in Pro (proportional audio) mode? In standard mode you'll get the monotone audio response you described. In Pro mode, you'll get a proportional audio response depending on how far (deep) the target is from the coil. At 6"+ the sound will be a more quiet high tone.

The VDI is only an idea of possible target identification. A lot will depend on ground balance and how the target lies in the ground. If it's a decent sounding, repeatable target, dig it...

Give it 100 hours and report back. I think you'll find that you like it better.

 

[Matt1344]

Thanks Guys.

Sandman...I'm glad someone else (right off the bat) knows what I'm talking about.

Casca...I've Ground Balanced the heck out of it...haha

Thanks for the tips Dwight...I'll try them!

Glad you guys understand...I thought there may be some backlash being critical of the sacred AT Pro! hahaha

 

[Treasure finder]

Matt,
Let us know what you finally replace it with!
Rich

 

[atomicscott]

2 words: Tesoro Vaquero.

 

[silversnacher]

Check out aquachiggers youtube Chanel I think he uses the AT pro and AT gold and finds a ton of civil war relics, I'd love to be able to upgrade to the AT pro though I don't own one now

 

[GarretDiggingAz]

I've got the ATG. Have had out for around 10-12 hours and still learning. I've run across ID and depth going crazy at times. After looking at area there was multiple targets and discovered different tones. Plus I've found stuff that was at the depth. So far I'm happy with mine. They say you need to spend 100 hours to fully understand these. I think almost all of them take time. I don't rely on numbers as much as tone. Since gold has various ranges.
The pinpoint for me has worked very well. Sometimes depth is off. Deeper than says. There has been a couple times where I couldn't find my target though. Frustrating after digging a foot. That's where having a good pinpointer helps to use in the hole. After all you could be off an inch.
Keep using and read up on unit. As well as watch other(s) videos. Don't think there is a perfect detector but its the user who uses the tool that makes it work.
Happy hunting

 

[signal_line]

Watch the videos at the Garrett website. Pinpointing with a double d coil takes some practice. Set out some different targets and practice. There are some good tips on the videos. When ground balancing, you must be certain there is no metal underneath the coil. If you have any iron discrimination your will never know if there is any metal because the machine will be silent. Bottle caps, especially shallow ones, many times do not pinpoint well. This is your clue to check with the Iron Audio. Highly recommended to start your practice in an area with low trash levels. Welcome to the learning curve.

 

[ELITE]

i suggest you get a smaller search coil

 

[cahil_2]

E-trac is king.

 

[atomicscott]

[I know that this is generally considered the most beloved detector which is why I couldn’t wait to use it.]

So I’ve put about 10 hours on the AT Pro (I know that’s not a lot), but so far I’m not impressed with anything it does that the cheaper detectors don’t (if that makes sense).

Maybe I just need a little more time on it or need to adjust some of the settings.

The search coil being larger than the one on my White’s which I had previously used, makes digging a nightmare. Each object rings in, in an area that is about a square foot. The pin pointer (on the detector) is useless when there are multiple objects in one area. With the AT Pro I’m digging holes three times the size and spending 5 to 10 x more time searching for the object.

The thing is all over the place with the sensitivity set higher, but the sensitivity seems to directly affect the search depth. You can’t take advantage of the deeper search depth (over 6 inches) if you don’t have the sensitivity up, but if you keep it up there seems to be too many false positives. I get coin range signals that go away. I get coin range signals when the detector is sitting still. There seems to be so many random signals that go away with this thing as well.

Speaking of depth, I laid a quarter on the surface of the ground and took the detector directly over it. It rang in at 2 inches (which is what it should do)…but then at 4 and 6 inches with the exact same motion going over the same spot. So basically the depth indicator means nothing.

Now on to the numeric metal values. The same coin could ring in (and does) at 7 different values or more. So what’s the point? Is a specific number from 70-99 really going to keep you from digging? The numeric values seem useless when there is so much inconsistency and such a wide range of values the exact same coin can ring.

WIT reminded me below, I've also found more bottle caps than EVER! Which has translated to probably 5 x more trash digs.

To me, every bell and every whistle on this thing isn’t worth the hassle…at least so far.

What are your thoughts, feel free to put me in my place/tell me what I’m doing wrong. So far using it, for me, has been very frustrating.

Ok just one more thought: Do you only draw an 'X' through the target when pinpointing it? If so, be sure to draw a circle ('O') around the target as well, to see where the signal stops using the edge of the coil. So first I do the 'X' as most detector instructions suggest, then I draw a circle around target, large enough to NOT get a signal and then I make the circle smaller until the target just starts to beep. Now the target should be in the exact CENTER of the circle, which is also the center of the 'X'. It only takes a couple extra seconds. This has helped me alot and I've narrowed down my plugs to 3-4 inches with the target being either in the plug or in the bottom of the hole, not on the sidewalls of the hole. So the 'X' tells you where the target IS, and the 'O' tells you where the target ISN'T. Give it a try if you arent doing this already, and it may really help. Good luck, Scott

 

[Silver Worm]

I had to read the book about a dozen times to understand the writers "logic tree." Got the 5" x 8" search coil and put in the hours learning it. I LOVE THE MACHINE!

 

[toorude89]

I have had the ATP for a week. I have taken it out 3 days in a row. In my previous 1.5 years with the 250 my oldest coin was a 1909 wheat. So far the ATP has pulled these...

 

[GarretDiggingAz]

Toorude. Nice coin. I haven't found anything older than a '77 penny. However today I think I found a trade token. About the size of a quarter same thickness. Sorry no pick yet. Very hard to read anything. Plus one side seemed smooth. I'll know more in a couple days. Was in a high trash area around a abandoned barn.
I've got the 5x8DD on it. I find a lot of trash. I found that the pinpointer doesn't work everytime. I think it's defective. I have to push the button several times. It either works or doesn't. Plus I've found it's not centered. I mark the highest point of tone. Then dig, dig, dig. My holes are about the size of the coil almost everytime and even then it's still in the sidewall. Frustrating. I'm going to talk to Garrett about it. However, I still love it. I just have a hard time with the jumping ID numbers. Rings 75 (or so). Jumps down to teens. Then back up to around the same number. So I go over it a couple times and figure it's not iron. Then I dig it. It's IDON. Then I go over it again to verify I didn't miss it. I didn't. I'd heard that when it does that that it normally is trash, but I passed up one of these happenings. My son went over it and dug it. It was a 2 blade pocket knife.
You'll find more trash with the AT and gold. The golds higher frequency helps with that. Some of the cheaper ones that are coin mode discriminate out a lot of those signals. But you can set it up to do it as well. It's just up to you to decide if you want to dig it. I dig pretty much everything 40+ in case of masking target. The more you use it and understand it. The more you'll like it. Remember they say it takes about 100 hours to fully understand it. I've only gotten about 25 hours on mine. So I've got a long way to go.
I got a BH 505 Pro for my kids $100+. They just turn it on swing beep dig. They seem to find less trash and more coins as well. They dig less and cover more area faster. However they miss a lot that I've found. Still junk but I've found old pots and rods.
The AT is one to grow into. The cheaper ones are a great starting point. I've seen numerous videos of beginners with the cheaper units. They still find good stuff. Any detector can find stuff no matter the price range. It's the user who had to swing over the target and decide to dig it. You've probably heard that before. Especially if you asked for advice on which detector is good and for what.
So keep practicing and finding things and learn the unit. It won't let you down. If its not working properly call Garrett help center. They'll guide you in what to do. I'll be doing it about the pinpointer as well.
HH

 

[tcornel]

I agree that pinpointing is inconsistent. I only dig with a hand Lesche and not a shovel. If the pinpointed spot is off an inch or so I would miss the target.
Be very aware of the slope of the ground when pinpointing as it can easily throw you off if you are not exactly level with the slope.

I usually try to pinpoint with the ATP then use my Pistolprobe to determine exactly where to dig. Works 9 times out of 10 with a plug only the width of the Lesche!
Once the plug is turned up the Propointer is used. Many, many finds are recovered in less than a minute.

 

[reednc]

I love the 5x8 coil. It works well in trashy areas and is much easier to pinpoint with than the large coil.

 

[toorude89]

If you aren't finding anything it is because of location. The pinpointing on the AT Pro takes a little getting used to but you should be able to master it by the end of your second hunt. I don't understand why people with the 250 want the big coil upgrade and people with the ATP want the little one.