Big Boys Hobbies

X-Terra Pro pro and VDI numbers Work Around?

Digging Prayers

Digging Prayers

Full Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2024
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173
Location
North Carolina, near Hickory
I tried searching but the search engine in the forum seems to exclude some words that are to short or common, so I resort to asking.

I did alot of research while I was looking for an upgrade from my starter F22 Detector. I ended up getting the Legend and buying an additional LG24 coil. Im not fond of the stock coil yet.

Originally, I was looking at the X-Terra Pro and was leaning very hard that way but was turned off by the jumpy and unpredictable VDI numbers I was seeing all over YouTube. People like the unit but seem very frustrated at the jumpy numbers. This is supposed to be fun and help relax and release stress. I don't need more frustration trying to relax. šŸ˜µā€šŸ’«

Merrill over at Metal Detecting NYC and I rate metaldetectors was saying at one point, he was thinking this was the new best entry level detector, pushing the simplex to the side. I waited for a follow up, but no dice yet. That's one reason I continued my search and ended with the Legend.

The X-TERRA sends like a very good unit but I would go nuts with those numbers being all over the place.

Was my research that poor on the X-Terra, or does it have a VDI problem?

Has anyone found a fix/work around for it or are you just going by tones and digging everything with a prayer? šŸ¤Ŗ
 
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Digging Prayers said:
I tried searching but the search engine in the forum seems to exclude some words that are to short or common, so I resort to asking.

I did alot of research while I was looking for an upgrade from my starter F22 Detector. I ended up getting the Legend and buying an additional LG24 coil. Im not fond of the stock coil yet.

Originally, I was looking at the X-Terra Pro and was leaning very hard that way but was turned off by the jumpy and unpredictable VDI numbers I was seeing all over YouTube. People like the unit but seem very frustrated at the jumpy numbers. This is supposed to be fun and help relax and release stress. I don't need more frustration trying to relax. šŸ˜µā€šŸ’«

Merrill over at Metal Detecting NYC and I rate metaldetectors was saying at one point, he was thinking this was the new best entry level detector, pushing the simplex to the side. I waited for a follow up, but no dice yet. That's one reason I continued my search and ended with the Legend.

The X-TERRA sends like a very good unit but I would go nuts with those numbers being all over the place.

Was my research that poor on the X-Terra, or does it have a VDI problem?

Has anyone found a fix/work around for it or are you just going by tones and digging everything with a prayer? šŸ¤Ŗ
Click to expand...
X terra seems to be a dig every tone machine.
 
Biggest issue with the XT-Pro is the jumpy TID. IMO, Minelab screwed up by making the range too big (so there are too many target bins). Couple that with users running them too hot (sensitivity too high) and you get jumpy numbers.
I've had good luck with mine, but I hunt primarily by audio.
 
I think the 50 tone bins was better suited, but people think 'more TID's must be better!'. They did the same thing with the Equinox 700/900 which I believe was a mistake.

Also, I think it is important to consider that people have gotten used to the superior TIDs that SMF gives so when they go back to SF the IDs feel much jumpier in comparison.
 
I joined just to reply to this. About 3 yearsā€™ experience, keep that in mind.

I wouldnā€™t classify the X-Terra Pro ā€œentry level.ā€

For some reason, the ID thing just doesnā€™t bother me, and Iā€™m and ID man. I wouldnā€™t call it jumpy; Iā€™d call it highly reactive. Some how or another, I know what Iā€™m digging every time.

I go by target width. If itā€™s a tight round sound, I dig it. Tabs, bottle caps and screw tops give a wide sound profile. Bent trash may give a must dig sound.

The machine gives an incredible amount of information without fiddling with settings. I spend a lot of time testing sounds. A fast swing over a bunch of trash will kind of give a little tight blip if there is something good in there. I call this ā€œcenter of massā€ swing. A test fast swing tends to give the average of whatā€™s under the coil and tends to center on the densest object.

What Iā€™m want is a machine I can take a fast swing over trash and tell if there is a tight round target in there. X-Terra does a pretty good job. Also have ORX/Deus Lite which gives good quick info. Havenā€™t made a choice there.
 
I really like my legend, but being skeptical of the VDI, I skipped the X-Terra Pro. I still find myself eyeballing that X-Terra, wondering if I made the best choice. I'm a park, field, front yard kinda hunter, after clad, coins and jewelry.

I only have about 18hrs on this new legend so I'm still learning it, AS A NEW detectist and about the same on my old sold F22. I'm getting it down, but still wondering about the cute little X-TERRA girl dressed in green.
 
StanTheManStan said:
I joined just to reply to this. About 3 yearsā€™ experience, keep that in mind.

I wouldnā€™t classify the X-Terra Pro ā€œentry level.ā€

For some reason, the ID thing just doesnā€™t bother me, and Iā€™m and ID man. I wouldnā€™t call it jumpy; Iā€™d call it highly reactive. Some how or another, I know what Iā€™m digging every time.

I go by target width. If itā€™s a tight round sound, I dig it. Tabs, bottle caps and screw tops give a wide sound profile. Bent trash may give a must dig sound.

The machine gives an incredible amount of information without fiddling with settings. I spend a lot of time testing sounds. A fast swing over a bunch of trash will kind of give a little tight blip if there is something good in there. I call this ā€œcenter of massā€ swing. A test fast swing tends to give the average of whatā€™s under the coil and tends to center on the densest object.

What Iā€™m want is a machine I can take a fast swing over trash and tell if there is a tight round target in there. X-Terra does a pretty good job. Also have ORX/Deus Lite which gives good quick info. Havenā€™t made a choice there.
Click to expand...
Hey DP, agree on the XTerra Pro. I feature it on my YouTube channel. I just got a Equinox 900 because of the 6" coil and headset on eBay for $788 in like new condition and I love the sniper coil on the XTerra! Not as jumpy, pinpoints better and seems to go as deep if not deep than the stock coil as EMI is at a minimum and you can really crank up the sensitivity! I score big time at Tot lots as I'm digging really deep coins 5 to 8" with it even under the metal bars of the Jungle Gym! This same coil on the Nox I have issue with micro targets that even the Garrett pinpointer has trouble picking up. Should be a really good gold setup!

YouTube: @KensMetalDetectingFinds My GAW will be at the end of the month as I reached 1K last week in subscribers : )
 
Digging Prayers said:
I really like my legend, but being skeptical of the VDI, I skipped the X-Terra Pro. I still find myself eyeballing that X-Terra, wondering if I made the best choice. I'm a park, field, front yard kinda hunter, after clad, coins and jewelry.

I only have about 18hrs on this new legend so I'm still learning it, AS A NEW detectist and about the same on my old sold F22. I'm getting it down, but still wondering about the cute little X-TERRA girl dressed in green.
Click to expand...
Youā€™re on the edge of serious danger, ā€œwondering.ā€ Just enjoy the legend. If you start ā€œwandering,ā€ sooner or later, you will wonder and end up with a room full of detectors and still be ā€œwonderingā€¦ā€
 
KensMetalDetectingFinds said:
Hey DP, agree on the XTerra Pro. I feature it on my YouTube channel. I just got a Equinox 900 because of the 6" coil and headset on eBay for $788 in like new condition and I love the sniper coil on the XTerra! Not as jumpy, pinpoints better and seems to go as deep if not deep than the stock coil as EMI is at a minimum and you can really crank up the sensitivity! I score big time at Tot lots as I'm digging really deep coins 5 to 8" with it even under the metal bars of the Jungle Gym! This same coil on the Nox I have issue with micro targets that even the Garrett pinpointer has trouble picking up. Should be a really good gold setup!

YouTube: @KensMetalDetectingFinds My GAW will be at the end of the month as I reached 1K last week in subscribers : )
Click to expand...
Iā€™ve been watching and really enjoy.
 
AccurateCalls said:
I think the 50 tone bins was better suited, but people think 'more TID's must be better!'. They did the same thing with the Equinox 700/900 which I believe was a mistake.

Also, I think it is important to consider that people have gotten used to the superior TIDs that SMF gives so when they go back to SF the IDs feel much jumpier in comparison.
Click to expand...
You know AC,
I'm still new to this legend and learning what the VDI numbers and tones mean. Also the sound and quality of the tones and the character of the tones. It's all a new world to me. There is alot of little tricks to learn but this is a great machine.

I have tried single and SMF. Depending on the field and conditions, it seems to me one(SF/MF) sometimes is better than others for hitting(Cherry picking) the coins out first.

I started with a Harbor Freight 9 function until. It either buzzed or grunted. I learned how to notch out with that and got pretty good at only getting what I was looking for. It was limited in depth and other things, but it did a good job.

I then weren't to the Fisher F22. I don't have it anymore, due to buying the legend, but I really loved that unit. It was a single frequency 7.69 kHz unit. Man did I have fun with that. I could notch and set tones for each segment of targets.

It was very good about target ID numbers on clean targets. Once I got better on spills and other conditions, I learn alot about what to dig and not to dig. Before I sold it, I had confidence, the majority of the time, what I heard and what the VDI was showing me was correct. Going from that to uncertain VDI numbers just didn't seem like the right choice for me.

I guess I taught myself to detect the "wrong" way by depending on the VDI. I'm trying to relearn and break that habit. I'm finding tones mixed with the VDI is a great tool, once you learn it's language. Shoot, previously in times not to far in the distant past, they didn't have VDI, just tones and an analog meter. Boy, we gotten spoiled now. šŸ˜
 
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Hi Digging prayers,

Your initial idea to either purchase the X-Terra or Legend, is a bit on the strange side. Reason being, they are fundamentally different in the sense that the X-Terra is selectable single frequency detector ( 5,10,15 khz), while the Legend, is a SMF detector (3 SMF modes, and 5 SF modes of 4,10,15,20, and 40 khz. In addition, the Legend is packed with features and settings that the X-Terra does not have. In other words, it would be the Equinox 900, which is similar to the Legend.



Digging Prayers said:
I really like my legend, but being skeptical of the VDI, I skipped the X-Terra Pro. I still find myself eyeballing that X-Terra, wondering if I made the best choice. I'm a park, field, front yard kinda hunter, after clad, coins and jewelry.
Click to expand...


See my first comment :) In addition, if you really wanted to, although I don't know why you would, you could mimic the X-Terra using your Legend, by putting the Legend in the SF of 4, 10, or 15 khz.


Digging Prayers said:
I have tried single and SMF. Depending on the field and conditions, it seems to me one(SF/MF) sometimes is better than others for hitting(Cherry picking) the coins out first.

I then weren't to the Fisher F22. I don't have it anymore, due to buying the legend, but I really loved that unit. It was a single frequency 7.69 kHz unit. Man did I have fun with that. I could notch and set tones for each segment of targets.
Click to expand...

Regarding your first paragraph in that quote: As Accurate Calls said, SMF has superior target identification. In comparing countless targets in my test garden, and in the field, SMF always gives me more solid, and more accurate TID than SF. It is one of the fundamental advantages of SMF over SF.

Regarding your second paragraph in that quote:

You can notch and / or set tones for each ID number on your Legend.
 
Digalicious said:
Hi Digging prayers,

Your initial idea to either purchase the X-Terra or Legend, is a bit on the strange side. Reason being, they are fundamentally different in the sense that the X-Terra is selectable single frequency detector ( 5,10,15 khz), while the Legend, is a SMF detector (3 SMF modes, and 5 SF modes of 4,10,15,20, and 40 khz. In addition, the Legend is packed with features and settings that the X-Terra does not have. In other words, it would be the Equinox 900, which is similar to the Legend.






See my first comment :) In addition, if you really wanted to, although I don't know why you would, you could mimic the X-Terra using your Legend, by putting the Legend in the SF of 4, 10, or 15 khz.




Regarding your first paragraph in that quote: As Accurate Calls said, SMF has superior target identification. In comparing countless targets in my test garden, and in the field, SMF always gives me more solid, and more accurate TID than SF. It is one of the fundamental advantages of SMF over SF.

Regarding your second paragraph in that quote:

You can notch and / or set tones for each ID number on your Legend.
Click to expand...
All that is true.
The waffling between the two was due to still learning about detectors.

The final reason for settling on the legend was the realization that is it pretty much, the score and simplex line up all in one. If I can afford it, why buy the lower option versions when I can get the legend and learn about all it can do?

I hate buying something and then going, dang, I didn't know the other unit can do X,Y or Z. The legend has it all. MF, SF, notch, tone breaks, tone assigments.... I just figured, go ahead and get this instead of buying one of the others first and then finding out what all I could have had. Each one has it's place in the budget market, but in the legend, I can set it up to run as any of the simplex or score units.

My paragraphs usually have the tendency of being just one long run on sentence. šŸ˜Š
It's hard to outrun your raising and the region you were born in.

I guess the real reason for the Xterra Pro consideration, was that it just seems simple to operate with great performance, except the vdi numbers. Also, it seems there's not as many bells and whistles, though it has its own. Sometimes my patience in learning a new thing is not where it ought to be yet, but bear with me it'll get there. (See, is that a run on sentence? My English, grammar and spelling teachers hated me.)
 
Digging Prayers said:
I hate buying something and then going, dang, I didn't know the other unit can do X,Y or Z.
Click to expand...
That's similar to what I experienced when I got back into detecting afer a long absnce. I purchased a Simplex and a Vanquish 540 at the same time. Both of those are excellent detectors for what they are designed to be, but I quickly grew out of them and bought a Legend. With full featured detectors like the Nox, Manticore, Legend, D2, etc, there isn't anything else to grow into :)
 
Stan, what detector do you swing?
Click to expand...
Too many, Iā€™m messing around with the X-Terra Pro right now. Even though it has a jumpy ID, it seems to give me a lot of information without messing with the settings. The main thing I want to know is the size of the target. If itā€™s the size of a coin or ring, I dig, otherwise ignore. Tabs, caps and screw caps give a wide sound profile. A bent tab gives a good sound.

Iā€™m an old timer. I spend more time listening than digging.
 
I love waffles!! Legend is a proven winner with a lot of members here that don't want to spend $1,500+++ for the hobby. Plenty of support, accessories that are priced right and a darn good machine. Best of luck.

Mark in Michigan
 
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