Should I ditch my explorer for a MXT?

[kai_gold]

First off, let me give a little background on my reasoning for asking this question. I have used a minelab explorer II for awhile and a really like how it performs. It is an exceptional machine and does go deep. I haven't found it that difficult to use. In the past, I had more opportunities to go out looking for the old silver coins and the explorer is great for that. At the present, I don't live very close to any really old parks and so I have been searching parks, mostly looking for jewelry. As many are aware, the explorer has a slower recovery time than other metal detectors and this can cause some problems in trashy parks like the ones that i hunt. Basically, I have to detect very slowly.

I know that I will probably lose depth going to the MXT but as I mentioned, I am not really looking for deep silver on a regular basis, but would like the extra sensitivity for gold. I understand that the MXT is based off of the GMT, which I have used and really liked but sold when I moved away from the gold bearing regions. I may be moving back and figure the loss of sensitivity to subgrain gold is not that significant and the MXT would allow me to do both the prospecting and the jewelry hunting. Also, I don't live near a saltwater beach so dealing with wet sand is not an issue.

I can save up for awhile and buy the MXT next year, or I can sell or trade the explorer and get started with it in the near future. I am especially hoping for feedback from any of you who have made the switch from an explorer to the mxt. Has the added sensitivity to gold jewelry been worth the switch? I would hate to sell my explorer only to find out that I would have been better off with my explorer.

Thanks for any feedback.
James

 

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[nw1886]

If you can have both, do that. If you can't, the MXT is one solid machine that absolutely a true gold machine that is a go to box for even professionals who want just one "grab and go" machine in their arsenal.

Very few machine have earned a reputation like the MXT....maybe none? One thing too...the MXT Pro is out now and it now has more features like backlight, a quick "Ground Grab" button (that instantly adjusts in tough/changing situations),tone ID..... Seems Whites didn't want to "muck around much" in changing the basics..... but added stuff that is hella important. Same price as an MXT 300! (It's going to storm the market pretty hard.... me thinks.)

Other good machines are out there but....now this. Sounds like you will do well no matter which box you choose but food for thought anyways. Scott

 

[bigtim1973]

Well I have one question, how do you know you will loose depth? I have a friend that has an explorer and it really seemed like a long learning curve. I also notice when we go detecting together that he does not cover too much territory when we are in the field since he has to go with a slow sweep speed. I do not know too much about the explorer but I will say that I have used a ton of machines and my mxt does a pretty good job at pulling stuff out of the ground. Of course I know that target ID on a machine is not too accurate after 6 inches or so but I have pulled 44 caliber civil war bullets in the 12-14 inch range and the machines tone was comming in loud and clear even though the ID was bouncing around a little. I am not familiar with the explorer but I do know the ID is more accurate on deeper targets with the explorer. I know it is very fast on recovery too and you do not have to bother with alot of settings either and I know with the explorer you do have more settings to fool with but it is a lot more complicated machine to learn too. I also use the 6X10 DD coil instead of the stock coil. I know that the concentric coil can get a little more depth but for around my neck of the woods it is a great choice for the type of hunting I do. If you really like your explorer then maybe you should keep it. If you want to get out there and cover more ground with an excellent machine then go for the MXT. I do know that brass and small lead items that are in the gold range seems to come in loud and clear with my MXT. I know your asking about gold but I relic hunt alot and I know gold lies within some of the ranges as brass and lead. It has been my favorite machine that I have ever owned. I had a minelab xterra 50 once and I really liked that machine. The only thing I did not like about it was it just had a number and I like a little more information before I dig. But I still liked it. I also had a minelab musketeer and it was a good unit. I have had alot of units and like I said this one is my favorite so far. I know it will probably be lighter than the explorer too since I have heard those things are heavy. Just do a little more research and maybe look in your area to see if there is a local whites dealer and see if he would rent out one to you for you to try so maybe you could get a better idea. Tim

 

[kai_gold]

I have not come across many posts that compare the mxt to the explorer directly so my observation is somewhat indirect as to the possible depth loss. My reasoning is as follows. I have read several statements that with skill a DFX will go as deep as the explorer. I have read several posts that suggest that the DFX goes deeper than the MXT, so from this it is possible that the explorer goes deeper than the MXT. However, I realize that there is a lot of bias and room for error in this logic since many comments are made by people who are not experienced with both metal detectors. For this reason, I would like to hear an opinion from someone who had used both. I plan to purchase an MXT regardless and I will likely keep the explorer. But, if someone who has used both doesn't think there was any significant loss going to an MXT from an explorer, then I may be willing to sell the explorer now and get an MXT sooner.

bigtime,
You mentioned that your friend has to go slower with the explorer and that is the truth. That is one of the reasons that I am interested in another machine. If I were looking for deep silver coins regularly, then the slow approach wouldn't bother me because I can go deep with the explorer, but if I want to focus on lets say gold jewelry and it is a numbers game, then the MXT could help.

I guess the real question I am looking to have answered is whether or not there is enough of a gap in features between the two metal detectors to justify owning two expensive machines for a particular type of metal detecting.

 

[Born2Dtect]

Seems to me that you can set up the EXP II to maximized parks. I would try running in all metal and use set the iron mask from least up, until you get stable operation. If you cannot go to settings and turn on coins and jewelry. Turn off Iron mask if you do.
Set recover to fast, if you cannot separate signals. Also if you are in a high trash area get a smaller coil, 5" or so should help. I find that turning down the sensitivty may also help in parks.

Ed D.

 

[W6PEA]

Seems to me that you can set up the EXP II to maximized parks. I would try running in all metal and use set the iron mask from least up, until you get stable operation. If you cannot go to settings and turn on coins and jewelry. Turn off Iron mask if you do.
Set recover to fast, if you cannot separate signals. Also if you are in a high trash area get a smaller coil, 5" or so should help. I find that turning down the sensitivty may also help in parks.

Ed D.

I have to agree. You have a very good detector. JMHO

 

[Tin Nugget]

Should I ditch my explorer for a MXT?


Nothing wrong with an upgrade, go for it!

 

[kai_gold]

Well, an MXT is on the way. Will see how well it works.

James

 

[fatheadnc]

The MXT is a great relic hunter/prospecting unit but its a poor silver hunting unit. The Garretts,Fishers and Minelabs all beat it for depth on silver. MXT's do like gold jewelry and civil war relics and they make a darn good prospecting unit but for silver it would be my last choice. However if you add the 10 x 12 SEF coil it turns into a much better unit for silver. Its also much faster than the Minelab which helps cover ground when in a hurry.

 

[kai_gold]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts all.
James

 

[srf2112]

I don't know the Explorer, James, as I've never used it but my opinion is that you've made a great choice that you can't go wrong with. Even though most good "all around" machines just means that they do a lot of things mediocre, that's NOT the case with the MXT. I believe it's coil selection is it's strongest point as it allows you to hunt a variety of places VERY effectively and it holds it's own with top machines in most any situation. Despite opinions to the contrary, it is NO slouch on silver! JMHO
HH
Scott

 

[kai_gold]

Took my new mxt out for the first time this week with a dd coil and went to a very trashy park that gave my explorer fits. This trip I learned that on average, there are 2-3 targets picked up on each sweep of the coil. With the explorer I had to go really slow to work my way through the iron and trash. So far, I like the target separation of the MXT at a faster sweep speed. I worked the same area that I had used my explorer on and pulled out some more coins. Also, in the tot lot, I pulled out a small earring and a small piece off of another jewelry item. Both were cheap items but I was impressed by how well the MXT picked up these small targets as well as tiny bits of foil and trash. I did notice that it is harder to tell pennies from dimes since the MXT does not have the graphical display like an explorer. I only throw that out there for those looking for a machine to cherry pick targets. The explorer is great for that. But for digging all targets, I am happy with my purchase.

 

[littletwig]

Did you get the MXT or the new MXT pro?

 

[Keppy]

Well if you want to hunt fast and cover a lot of ground the MXT is the one for you to me the MXT is Whites best detector. If you want to hunt slow and cover little ground not get much done then it would be the Explorer.

 

[kai_gold]

Did you get the MXT or the new MXT pro?

I decided to pick up a regular MXT used but in excellent condition. I thought about getting the pro but figured the standard MXT with extra coils would be a better fit. No regrets. Flipping the switch to ground and then back to fixed doesn't take much more time than pushing a grab button. If multi-tones were really important to me, I would have kept the explorer. The standard audio options are working for me. So that leaves the backlight which would be nice but not necessary considering I am digging it all. With a week on the machine, I am pulling out quite a bit of clad and jewelry from areas that gave the explorer fits, prettty much perma-null when using minimal discrimination. The elliptical coils on the MXT are cutting through it really well. Even found several rings and some tiny pendants and earrings. No gold, but that is more a matter of time and luck at this point. If its there, I am confident that I will be able to pick it up. Down the road, when I have more money, I will probably pick up another used explorer to keep on hand for looking for deep silver in older areas, but the MXT will be my main hunting unit.

 

[Born2Dtect]

Keppy,

I am probably going to regret this but......................

Your statement

Well if you want to hunt fast and cover a lot of ground the MXT is the one for you to me the MXT is Whites best detector. If you want to hunt slow and cover little ground not get much done then it would be the Explorer.

Is not 100% true or false. ? How?

About 6 years ago when I was looking to update my hot little Whites detector, IDX Pro, I did a lot of research. Read reviews, manufacturers lit you name it. I talked with anyone who detected and did not run away.
What interested me most was not the detectors but the coil. Specifically the DD coil. Why? To me the pattern appears to cover the total area, depth and width(all the way to the egdes and down) better. You see a concentric coil has a pattern like an upside down traffic cone. As you go deeper you loose area. With this in mind you will need to cover/overlap more to get the same coverage as a DD coil. Push comes to shove, if you look at time verses coverage, the deeper you go the worse the trade off for the concentric coil. To wrap it up. In general, if you are finding shallower targets the MXT/concentric coil covers quicker, but deeper targets, no. Before anyone jumps out of their skin, this applies to the standard MXT. I do not know if the spider coil is "DD" or not. It should be better than the standard coil for coverage. Also if the MXT is used with a new DD coil it would once again get better coverage all the time. Question? Does the MXT need to be slowed down when used with a "DD" coil. Feel free to chime in.

Ed D.

 

[kai_gold]

I should mention that I have been using dd coils with the mxt. Haven't tried the concentric. I have to agree with Born2Dtect on the not a 100% thing. Having used the explorer extensively, I personally would not knock it down for performance. It is a very powerful metal detector with a lot of capabilities and better tone id than any other machine that I have used. In fact, I wouldn't discourage anyone from buying one because I know what it can do. If I lived back East and had much more access to older areas to detect, I would have kept the explorer and just saved up for an MXT. Since that is not the case, I opted to let the explorer go. At the moment, the MXT better aligns with my metal detecting goals and budget. I also plan to use the MXT prospecting, which the explorer wouldn't do well. Ideally, I would own both but that is not possible for now. Both are excellent machines and both are worth their price.

 

[srf2112]

Keppy,

I am probably going to regret this but......................

Your statement

Well if you want to hunt fast and cover a lot of ground the MXT is the one for you to me the MXT is Whites best detector. If you want to hunt slow and cover little ground not get much done then it would be the Explorer.

Is not 100% true or false. ? How?

About 6 years ago when I was looking to update my hot little Whites detector, IDX Pro, I did a lot of research. Read reviews, manufacturers lit you name it. I talked with anyone who detected and did not run away.
What interested me most was not the detectors but the coil. Specifically the DD coil. Why? To me the pattern appears to cover the total area, depth and width(all the way to the egdes and down) better. You see a concentric coil has a pattern like an upside down traffic cone. As you go deeper you loose area. With this in mind you will need to cover/overlap more to get the same coverage as a DD coil. Push comes to shove, if you look at time verses coverage, the deeper you go the worse the trade off for the concentric coil. To wrap it up. In general, if you are finding shallower targets the MXT/concentric coil covers quicker, but deeper targets, no. Before anyone jumps out of their skin, this applies to the standard MXT. I do not know if the spider coil is "DD" or not. It should be better than the standard coil for coverage. Also if the MXT is used with a new DD coil it would once again get better coverage all the time. Question? Does the MXT need to be slowed down when used with a "DD" coil. Feel free to chime in.

Ed D.

Ed, in reference to your question about sweep speed with the 10"DD I have not noticed the need to slow down the sweep speed significantly as compared to my 6x10 when I'm hunting with my MXT. When I do sweep over multiple targets I do sometimes have to slow down a little more to separate them out than I do with the 6x10 depending on their proximity to each other, etc. but that is unavoidable with a physically larger coil. As far as sweep speed while searching I can sweep it the same speed as the smaller coil and it gives the same readings loud and clear...just deeper. JMHO
HH
Scott

 

[JOE(USA)]

kai_gold,

My two cents is: Keep the Explorer and buy a cheap coinshooter like an Ace 250, Tesoro Compadre, or a Bounty Hunter. No one detector can do it all. Joe

 

[DAVID@RT6DETECTORS]

Should I ditch my explorer for a MXT?


Nothing wrong with an upgrade, go for it!

HARDLY AN UPGRADE ID SAY.