Garrett ATX vs Minelab GPX5000

[Gravity]

Well done Steve, my fossicking buddy just got himself a new 5000 and after a few weekends out found out that his threshold setting isn't working at all, no tone difference any setting...He's sent it back for repair but already sooo many hours lost due to a malfunctioning machine...
Do you think a Mono coil is better suited to the G.T or prefer the DD...I heard the Mono is better in the early morning to midday but then switch to DD in the afternoon because of temp and hot ground, would this be true ?
I'm following Ozzie Gold hunters on Foxtel at the moment and there detectors seem to be doing very well in the heat so again is there really a difference ?
Wish they got there gear out and showed us enthusiasts there setups.

Thanks again for posting your experience
Cheers

 

[Steve V2.0]

Thanks Gravity. I dont think I know enough to make any comparison between DD and Mono - only used the Mono on my first ever detector day and it produced. I dont have FoxTel but the guys should give us newbies and others a few tips especially their settings etc. Afterall most of us are weekenders

 

[Gravity]

Forgot to mention, in your 1st post ATX VS 5000...Over the years I've had a few different machines but about a year or so ago thought to give the ATX a go, from the get go what a horrible tone drove me absolutely nuts and never found a thing other than junk...That said great on the beach if your a treasure / coin hunter, personally I just don't think this machine is suited to perform in Australian hot earth conditions and would never invest my hard earned in Garrett again although I do still have my Garrett pin pointer that I've given to the kids for playing on the beach.
Cheers

 

[PhaseTech]

What type exactly would you recommend Nemad ?
Have a 4500 and would like to know the best option .
Gaz

Best all-rounder is the 12" Evo. An excellent match to the 4500.

 

[Steve V2.0]

looking to collect my 5000 this weekend and have been looking for the best package.... I've noticed that if you were to buy online there's a big difference between packages from the same suppliers..... Example Miners Den online have a pretty basic package with one coil etc when the in store package includes two coils.... and cheaper.... Anyone else noticed this and whats the best way to get the online package the same as in store?

 

[GaryO]

Its usually the other way around Steve , id give them a ring and see if they will match the store deal online .
Or else try Central West Prospecting as they are keen to do make sales and are very trustworthy .

 

[Steve V2.0]

Its usually the other way around Steve , id give them a ring and see if they will match the store deal online .
Or else try Central West Prospecting as they are keen to do make sales and are very trustworthy .

Many thanks Gary, I was thinking the same as you but pleasantly shocked to see the shop-front beat the online....

 

[Brutus and me]

Retirement stone
The commander coils are awesome,,,,,
obviously the newer tech with the nugget finder and coiltech coils offer a slight advantage.
But there is nothing wrong with the commander coils,,,, they still get good gold

 

[Steve V2.0]

Update

It's been a while and since my first outing with a borrowed 5000 had to put things on hold while i moved house! Now living in the country north of Melbourne and slap in the middle of the goldfields.

I am also the proud owner of a 5000 plus Elite and Evo coils. The team at Maryborough helped me through the buying process and gave a great deal so a big thanks to them.

First outing was last week, a full 12hr day in the heat but my simple approach paid 6.2gms. I'm still working small areas of 5m x 5m rather than wander and not changing the settings except to rebalance. All the finds were found on Mono - the Commander and the Elite. Just bought the Evo but not had the chance to take it out yet.

Happy New Year to all

 

[Kozi M]

I own a atx and havn't found any gold yet but I'm new to this and only been out a few times. There are many reports stating that a garrett was used and found x amount of gold and a minelab was used and found double or triple the amount of gold. Wouldn't this come down to where these people actually walked/detected and not because of the detector itself? I know of people who have found gold with both machines. I also know of people going on 5 years with no finds with either machine. I bought the garrett mainly because of the ease of use as a beginner and not because one is better than the other. Hopefully someone can put me in the right direction if i decide to continue detecting for my future purchase, with proof that the garrett is simply not good enough.
:Y:

 

[PPP]

Kozi M, I too was in your shoes, having purchased an ATX for all the same reasons. As time went by it was picking up all sorts of bits and pieces, everything except what I was out there for! It was also tested against some sub grammers for which it passed straight over (using DD stock coil). A GPX5000 did pick them up. Word is now the newly released Garrett coils are said to be a marked improvement but for the pricetag, I would like a written guarantee! That was really the clincher for me, I now proudly own a Minelab, something I haven't regretted! So in summary, I gave it a go, didn't work out and I now believe I own a better machine which has found gold. ?

 

[Kozi M]

Fair enough PPP. i guess without trying any other brand out in the field myself I will never know. I did my own basic test today (with a gold ring) and buried it at different depths. I was quite happy with the outcome. I'm pretty familiar with all the controlls and I'm confident that this machine can find the colour I'm after. Until I do I guess I have allot of practice/ learning ahead of me. Hopefully someone is willing to catch up for a prospect or even a chat although for some reason it is showing very difficult to do so.

 

[PPP]

Yes Kozi M it will find gold, I did exactly that as well but in the field it seemed to struggle. Maybe I just never walked over gold?. All the best with it, given time you should prevail. :Y:

 

[Heatho]

Fair enough PPP. i guess without trying any other brand out in the field myself I will never know. I did my own basic test today (with a gold ring) and buried it at different depths. I was quite happy with the outcome. I'm pretty familiar with all the controlls and I'm confident that this machine can find the colour I'm after. Until I do I guess I have allot of practice/ learning ahead of me. Hopefully someone is willing to catch up for a prospect or even a chat although for some reason it is showing very difficult to do so.

Detecting a small gold nugget in highly mineralised soil is totally different to detecting a gold ring in non goldfields soil. Even the certain shape of some gold makes it difficult to detect. Minelab PI's do the job much better that almost every other detector out there, the only better detector than a minelab PI is a Minelab ZVT detector. :Y:

The Garrett will find gold but it will struggle in the harsh mineralised soil of most Aussie goldfields.

My 2c.

 

[Gravity]

Sold mt ATX for most of the reasons given but most of all I can't stand that tone...Minelab for me :Y:

 

[Kozi M]

I'm enjoying any time at the moment. Gives me that adrenalin rush. :Y:

 

[Hillbill]

Funny I was going to ask users their thoughts, but thinking of what I may ask I sort of decided that the 5000 might be the better purchase. Currently using SDC2300 and wanted to step up a notch -SDC is borrowed (I have a great brother!).
Cheers, Andy

 

[Davent]

5000 over the garret everyday.
Having said that, an SDC with the coiltek 14x9 is a very capable unit.

 

[Guest]

G'day

A prospecting mate had a Garrett ATX when I first met him, after a couple of trips with us he was astounded at the gold my other mate and myself found with the 4500 and 5000, and was very disappointed the the few pieces he had picked up with the ATX over the same time, it took a little convincing and he was reluctant to dump the ATX, his reasoning was the dealer convinced him that the ATX was the ducks guts and the very latest technology, I actually heard the dealers rep say to a customer at the caravan and camping show that the "The Garret ATX will blow Minelab out of the water" the very same twit told me once that they didn't sell nuggetfinder coils as they had a 70% return rate on them as apposed to no returns on the Coiltek coils.

My mate saw the light and got rid of the ATX and bought a 4500 and later added an sdc2300 as we did, he has found many many ounces of gold in the last few seasons and more than paid for both detectors and has never looked back, I am sure that the ATX in some circumstances is a useful detector but probably more suited to US conditions than ours, and probably better suited to bigger nuggets, as I have seen some people using them when pushing ground with a dozer, also its said that they don't suffer as badly from the EMI issues that the minelab's have at times, the other issue is they are weighty and clunky units, have some coil movement issues, and coils are expensive with only a few available.

In short the Gpx is a way better choice if you want to get more consistent gold and you will be able to get many accessory items for it as well.

cheers

stayyerAU

 

[old hand]

I have a coin it has a head on one side and a head on the other flipping it up i will call heads for the gpx5000 regards john :Y: