How to Make Your Metal Detector More Powerful? (7 Tips)


how to make a metal detector more powerful

There are some hobbyists actively using their metal detector, yet still not fully satisfied with it! Indeed, they want it be more powerful, more sensitive and more able to pick up more targets …

… That’s probably your case!

The good news is that, Yes, it’s totally possible to enhance the power of your detector … Sometimes, very easily.

In this Post I breakdown 7 ways to make your Metal Detector More Powerful.

Let’s dive in!

1. Use Your Detector on Wet Ground

Many people won’t feel comfortable detecting in rainy and/or muddy conditions! I totally understand that … However, you need to know that you will be missing on a lot by not doing so.

In fact, wet ground makes your machine much more capable especially when it comes to detection depth.

The electromagnetic signals emitted by the detector can penetrate even deeper when the ground is wet. So, you should be able to pick up targets much deeper than usual.

But, keep in mind that you should go for a machine that’s adapted for wet ground Like this Model (Check it Here at Amazon)

2. Combine Your Detector with Headphones

Headphones are particularly useful as they help you significantly cancel all the outside noise and only focus on the sounds coming from your machine.

Headphones make your detector more capable in 2 different ways:

  • It ensures that the battery won’t be drained, at least not as fast as usual. This will make you keep using your detector much longer per hunt.
  • It allows you to hear the faintest signals that you won’t be normally hearing from without them.

There are many models that you can choose from, but these are my favorites (Check them Here at Amazon)

3. Upgrade Your Machine’s Software

For this one I have good and bad news for you!

The good news is that you can make your detecting machine much more powerful and richer in features just by upgrading its software (in most cases for Free) just by downloading the latest version from the manufacturer official website.

The bad news is that not every machine allows that!

One of the most known machines for this option is the Minelab Equinox 800 (Check it Here at Amazon). By the way, it is my favorite metal detector by far!

4. Use the Right Search Coil

This is an interesting one!

Indeed, just by changing the searchcoil, you can make your machine go deeper and/or more sensitive to smaller targets.

There is caveat that you should pay attention to, your detector could not be compatible with many coils out there!

So, first take note of the coil types and sizes that your machine is compatible with before making your choice.

To make it simpler for you:

  • Larger coils go deeper and cover more space while swinging your machine.
  • Smaller coils won’t go as deep, but will make your machine more sensitive to smaller objects.

5. Check Your Battery

When your machine’s battery is drained, then it won’t operate at its full capabilities! You can do this experiment yourself …

… Indeed, once the battery charge starts hitting lower levels, you will notice that your detection device can’t detect things that it usually can detect.

So, make sure your battery is always fully charged before you go on a hunt and also, why not, have on you a backup battery in case the original one runs out of charge.

6. Settings are Extremely Important

Using the default search modes is definitely fine, especially if you are in your early days of using your detector!

But you need to keep in mind that these modes were designed based on standard conditions.

That’s why you need to play and tweak your machine’s settings (discrimination, sensitivity, frequency, ground balance …) and test that as much as possible.

By doing so, you will get to know the optimal settings that will work best for you.

7. Take Advantage of your Manual Guide

That’s a big one, and sadly many hobbyists miss on that!

They buy a metal detector and won’t even bother having a look at the user manual guide! The latter is, by far, the best resource that breakdown your machine … That’s why you should have a deep look at it.

One of the most valuable parts of the manual guide is the troubleshooting part, you will get to know the common issues that you might have and how to deal with them properly!

Another good use of the manual guide are the recommended settings depending on your conditions you are dealing with.

Conclusion

Hope these tips will sound good for you, and that you will implement some of them to boost your machine’s capabilities!

Finally, if you are a beginner and want to learn more about the hobby, then I highly invent you to check this Beach Detecting Beginner Guide! You will learn some useful information in there!

Carissa Harmer

Carissa is the huge metal detecting enthusiast that loves collecting coins. She is also highly interested in other treasure hunting activities like magnet fishing and gold prospecting/panning.

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