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Garrett ACE 250 MODES clarification

Seaking406

Elite Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2018
Messages
515
Location
Nova Scotia, Canada
Greetings, I've been finding fun stuff with my MD during the past week and learning the quirks to keep it from falsing and keeping it steady etc

(apologies if my terminology isn't correct)

One thing I can't figure out with this MD is exactly what do the various "modes" do on the Ace 250? As far as I can tell, regardless of what mode I select, all it actually does is have a pre-selection of discrimination pre-set for you?

For example, when selecting COIN mode, it removes the iron, foil and "pull tab" from the ringer tone, but if I do my own custom mode using those settings, I'm just repeating the coin mode, correct?

In ALL METAL mode, if I discriminate the iron, foil and pull tab, all I've basically done is repeat the COIN mode..

OR is there something else added to one mode that other modes don't have?

Since I'm new to this, I am searching on "all metal" with iron foil removed (no need for more fish hooks) but the gold ring I found on my first day was found on foil notch... weird.. so I basically dig on everything, and cleaning the beach at the same time.. ?!

But do one mode offer anything special over another mode other than preset discrimination?

Cheers
 
You are correct.

Changing modes only changes the disc patterns on the Ace 250.

Some users think the "All Metal" setting on the Ace 250 gets more depth or has different tones but that's not correct on the Ace 250, as it's not a true all metal mode. It simply means "all metals", as in, "no discrimination".

Increasing sensitivity can help with detection depth of targets, but it also increases sensitivity to ground minerals and EMI, and that can hamper target detection.
 
From what I understand (and it's possible that I'm incorrect....it happened once before :) ) you are correct...if you go to all metal and eliminate all the same things as "coin mode", you're simply re-creating coin mode....the modes are there to make it quick and easy to set for what you want to hunt for
 
Changing modes only changes the disc patterns on the Ace 250.

Some users think the "All Metal" setting on the Ace 250 gets more depth or has different tones but that's not correct on the Ace 250, as it's not a true all metal mode. It simply means "all metals", as in, "no discrimination".

Increasing sensitivity can help with detection depth of targets, but it also increases sensitivity to ground minerals and EMI, and that can hamper target detection.

Great, confirms my understanding of the what it actually does.. I do find that the sensitivity helps a lot when the sand is wet / damp etc.. I've not yet taken this out into soil / grassy area where it should be a new learning experience.

Thanks for the info!

Cheers
 
Good luck!

I had my Ace 350 and loved it for a first machine, but when I began hunting old home sites with a lot of junk targets, I was amazed at what my Ace couldn't see compared to my buddies AT Pro. We would cross check signals and my Ace had terrible recovery speed and was missing stuff.

I traded it in for a Racer 2, and then my buddy couldn't believe how fast that was compared to his AT Pro.

He still has his AT Pro and loves it and does well, but I moved on to the Nokta Impact, and I'm still learning it. 12 truly different modes and 3 frequencies to choose from. Makes my head spin at times.
 
Good luck!

I had my Ace 350 and loved it for a first machine, but when I began hunting old home sites with a lot of junk targets, I was amazed at what my Ace couldn't see compared to my buddies AT Pro. We would cross check signals and my Ace had terrible recovery speed and was missing stuff.

I traded it in for a Racer 2, and then my buddy couldn't believe how fast that was compared to his AT Pro.

He still has his AT Pro and loves it and does well, but I moved on to the Nokta Impact, and I'm still learning it. 12 truly different modes and 3 frequencies to choose from. Makes my head spin at times.

Thanks for the info.. There are certainly a lot of various MD out there, that work differently than what I'm currently using. I'll be giving it a year or so to see how this new hobby sticks when I get home after vacation time before looking at upgrading. After this morning stroll through the sands and only finding a few coins and a silver stud through a heavily picked over resort area, I'm eager to find virgin ground ;)
 
You have a great detector- especially when you add the sniper coil!
(1). All metal mode is what it suggests and you will hear the low tone grunts for iron.
(2). Relics mode (my personal favorite) is the same as just notching out small iron and accepting all else- an iron grunt will sound for large nails and some small foil.
(3). Customs mode is your personal favorite settings and WILL NOT disappear when the unit is turned off- ONLY when you change it. All other modes will return to default setting when detector is turned off.
(4). Coins mode rejects everything below zinc pennies/screwcaps EXCEPT nickels and targets in the nickel category. Good for high trash areas.
The idea is that you can go to any needed mode at just the touch of a button- making it highly versatile
FWIW, Mr. Bill- who was a famous Garrett user and an author- found that 4 bars sensitivity was a sort of universal setting for most mineralized ground.
I just can't let mine go-even after 10 years!:cool:
 
You have a great detector- especially when you add the sniper coil!
(1). All metal mode is what it suggests and you will hear the low tone grunts for iron.
(2). Relics mode (my personal favorite) is the same as just notching out small iron and accepting all else- an iron grunt will sound for large nails and some small foil.
(3). Customs mode is your personal favorite settings and WILL NOT disappear when the unit is turned off- ONLY when you change it. All other modes will return to default setting when detector is turned off.
(4). Coins mode rejects everything below zinc pennies/screwcaps EXCEPT nickels and targets in the nickel category. Good for high trash areas.
The idea is that you can go to any needed mode at just the touch of a button- making it highly versatile
FWIW, Mr. Bill- who was a famous Garrett user and an author- found that 4 bars sensitivity was a sort of universal setting for most mineralized ground.
I just can't let mine go-even after 10 years!:cool:

Thanks, Slingshot. Though I have only been able to play with it in the sand whilst visiting in Florida Panhandle area, I've gained a bit of experience with what it can and what I think it can't do.. I've been digging on all hits just to see what it is pinging against, making notes.. I've experienced the disappearing target syndrome as well where I get a good solid hit, pin point it, and after digging a scoop or so the target either migrates to one side or disappears altogether. I'm rather persistent to see what causes this and in most cases discovered its either a coin on its edge or just a plain ol' pull tab.. and usually happens when there is a wet layer of sand below 4-6 inches of dry sand.. (adjusting sensitivity etc)

Which ever way it goes when I start digging, at least I'm helping to clean the beautiful beaches, one trashy pull tab at a time ;)
 
You have a great detector- especially when you add the sniper coil!

FWIW, Mr. Bill- who was a famous Garrett user and an author- found that 4 bars sensitivity was a sort of universal setting for most mineralized ground.
I just can't let mine go-even after 10 years!:cool:

You answered a question I too have: What is the best sensitivity setting?
I wish I understood that aspect a bit more.

Oh, could you elaborate on what is the sniper coil? -are branded coils interchangeable or is a fisher coil only for a fisher console / Garrett etc?
 
You answered a question I too have: What is the best sensitivity setting?
I wish I understood that aspect a bit more.

Oh, could you elaborate on what is the sniper coil? -are branded coils interchangeable or is a fisher coil only for a fisher console / Garrett etc?

Garrett's 4" coil- called the sniper coil. It is a concentric coil and doesn't react as bonky as the concentric/elliptical coil that comes with it. It will snuggle close to poles and under playground bars, close to sidewalk edges, etc. to find coins, etc, that other detectors can't get near. At 2 bars sensitivity, I have almost touched poles and found coins. On the opposite side, the sensitivity can be maxed out or close to max without as many adverse effects as the large coil. In detector language, it's called "burning" the coil and the depth is amazing for such a small coil! Let's put it this way- if I hadn't discovered the sniper coil, I would have traded in my Ace.:cool:
Oh. Almost forgot. The Ace has a fixed g/b and in different soils there is a point reached where sensitivity setting is least reactive to ground conditions to allow signal to sense target. The default setting of 6 bars is great in mild soils, but as mineralization increases target signals suffer. It was found 4 bars was a fairly universal setting for difficult soils. The sniper coil is far less affected and in some cases can actually go deeper!
 
I agree, Fisher coils won't work on your Garrett Ace.

Also if you haven't been doing so I would get on you tube and watch some videos. It is a great place to learn about any machine, and helps with understanding.
 
Sort of resurecting this, but I'm new to this and my machine.

What I've been using is Jewelry mode the most, for where I'm hunting. I want to make sure that I'm not missing out on any good stuff. Wondering about y'all's thoughts on that.
 
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