Garrett ATX vs Minelab GPX5000

ATX .....GPX, even the names are getting to be similar,
Don't own a MD purely into creeks and pans/sluices ( that will change soon).
Just can't help thinking we're being totally ripped off in the pricing of the Minelab "premium" machine ..... At the end of the day it's just electronic circuits with a few processing algorithms thrown in (these I assume are the "intellectual knowledge" that we're paying for), the electronics I assume anyone could copy/replicate.
Micro circuits etc are pretty common these days although like metal detectors things like hearing aids are still priced at the extreme end of such items compared to other items.
So help me out here are they really so much better to demand the premium ( super premium price really) that they are asking for these units???
Can't help feeling RIP OFF every time I look at the price..
Bit like fishing 1 or 2 blokes catch a fish on one type of lure, every one else uses it and it becomes the "hero" not because the others are crap but just because everyone is using the 1 type.

WE NEED COMPETITION, please,
Cheers Tom

Ill wait for 6 months after it comes out before i even comment as this is all speculation and will depend on so many factors its not funny

Yes I agree Duck, we need time but as Garrets are a large company its crazy that their marketing of this product is sooo poor. Obviously there are some major issues which would blow the market wide open for them if this detector was actually as good as we all hope it is.

If this was our company and we knew that the GPX was the market leader.


I go to WA a highly mineralization ground and video my finds showing clearly depth of detection and ground balance then explain the technical side of the DD over the mono as referred to by Heatho in the post above, then show how compact it is and versatile in coin, beach and relic finds. This would blow the market wide open. Which would force Minelab to reduce priced ASAP.

But IF my product was only as good as the Minelab CTX plus with a frequent change so that its was able to gold detection
to an average depth.

I would do exactly as they have, little technical info some basic utubes and leave the rush to "hearsay" and peoples wishes for a cheaper high quality detector.

To top up my cash flow I would delay the release of some extras like coils and cover to bring in some extra cash as the market sales slow.

So lets see what the results really are in time.

I've just canceled my order

Chat Soon.

Zakman

Check this out.

I don't take much notice of air tests. The targets must be buried in the ground.

This test is very flawed....
Would need to know how the GPX was set up.....
I have pinged sub-gram nuggets at 4" deep with a very clear signal...
Also when he was swinging the GPX over the target he was to quick to say "not a peep", "not a peep" when i could here it detecting the nugget..... he was also swinging them differently.....
At the end of the day he is selling the ATX so he is bound to try to discredit the GPX.
Get the settings sorted and there is no way you would miss a nugget on the surface, even a sub grammer....

Need to see them both back to back in the field with buried nuggets..... tested by someone independant...

Having said all this i hope the ATX is as good as they make out, competition can only be a good thing

Bill A. Bong,

The guy in the video likes Garretts but he also swings a GPX 5000...
Just in case that makes any difference?

I think what you see coming out is..... he's excited about the small gold performance
Of the ATX....

Cheers,

Tye

The Garrett ATX PI metal detectors have finally arrived into store.
Sold out and being delivered.

We are now taking preorders on the next delivery in December.

So up until now no one could really be giving reviews on the detectors.
The shops did not have them until now.
well actually it was yesterday afternoon.

So having got our hands on one,
We tested it.
Seems very well made and looks good.
tested in my local park.
A little EMI n lots of junk.
1g nugget 8 inchs.
2g nugget 11 inchs.
5c coin 13 inchs.

tested with max senisivity and no threshold,
so u could raise it to listen the the ground n
get more depth.

Need to test with a spec of gold and
seems I need a 3 ounce nugget to test with too...

need to test out on the goldfields and
directly compare to other detectors.

So far I give it the thumbs up.
Seems more sensitive then my Infinium with an 8" mono.

cheers.
Lee.

Yes more tests needed but is proving interesting.

So far its thumbs up for the ATX.

Now a depth test on the nuggets or a range even in airtest
would b nice.

Cheers.
Lee.
ps. In our tests, the ATX,
1g nugget 8 inchs
2g nugget 11 inchs
5c coin 13 inchs.
Now need to test in goldfield conditions
and against other detectors.
And larger nuggets.
It seems more sensitive then the infinium with an 8" coil.

We have sold out and are taking preorders for the december delivery.

Thank Lee,

That seems more impressive than I thought, maybe is a star after all.

Yes field tests will make the case. Plus finding a Nugget or two would be good.

Looking forward to more info. regards Zakman

I still can't believe no one talks about the Whites TDI as if it isn't a serious contender in the Australian marketplace. It will achieve similar depths to those reported by Lee for the ATX and will run with minimal EMI in suburban locations using a Mono. It is very light and still around HALF the price of the ATX. It is let down on small nuggets, I'm talking about the micro stuff. There is THOUSANDS more 0.1g nuggets than 1g nuggets out there. All of the major PI balancing machines will achieve similar depths on larger nuggets as large nuggets aren't an issue or difficult to detect. Its the small stuff that keeps the passion happening and all those sub gram bits that come in is what pushes you to walk the steep slopes looking for more. The TDI didn't do well on the micro stuff - and videos and internet posts of people finding pieces where there was two to the grain coming from the 5000 was enough for me to jump on board.

You can post all the air tests and 'findings' that you like of any detector getting 1g+ nuggets but at the end of the day if you are walking over gold, any gold then its gonna get old real quick.

When I see videos of people digging sub 0.1g pieces then we will know that there is a serious rival to the GPX out there.

To quote Madtuna (Steve from Nuggets from Downunder)

Yes we had the ATX for a few days, unfortunately due to me being a GPX user and having a somewhat very loose involvement in the industry, any opinion I have would be seen as biased so best I probably don't say anything at all.

There are enough out there now that the reports should start filtering through directly.

Click to expand...

BTW I really really want this to be successful, competition in this arena is only ever going to be a good thing as it will encourage Minelab to go one up and it will kick Carl Moreland into gear to get the Super TDI off the ground!

That video test has got to be the biggest piece of crap i have ever seen. He has not even an incling on how to set up a 5000 and to use something like that in a comparison vid is a sure way of showing how incompetent you are as a detector operator.

I have just got back from the Mongarlowe Gold field with gtsJeff and his new ATX. We put it through a quick general run in goldfield conditions, and compared it to the 5000. Let me tell you (and Jeff will agree), the results were nothing like the vid above.

Will post a quick rundown under a new post shortly.

Cheers Wal.

This is not my test, and I dont even own a detector, just putting this out there so dont be shooting the messenger. Cheers Balx

Cheers Balx
Lots of interest in these 2 detectors.

So.... Garrett ATX it is then?

I bet equivalent opposite videos trashing the ATX can be found as well

DD coils, USA soils, sarcastic comments, biased. Pass. I wish there was an equivalent or better for a lower price but alas there is not. Lets see how our sarcy friend would go say around the triangle or on the hot WA ground. All I want is an unbiased test done on all the contenders, including the Whites gear. Then I would actually care what some septic says and thinks.

Personally I think that even though that last video looks impressive I dont really think it would go to a jury. I like the ATX for what it can do for a price I and many others can afford, however, I see its shortfalls as; expensive coil changes and no real option for aftermarket coils due to radical redesign; pivot point issues which could be overcome by a special designed coil cover (overhang at the rear to bring pivot point closer to center).
I think it is value for money and I would really love to see how it is in the shallows at the beach because that is where I spend more time.

I see the GPX5000 as the work horse, the swiss army knife of detecting. With a variety of aftermarket coils to go for at a reasonable price, the GPX can be tailored to do the job. However it is not waterproof which could be remedied if Minelab wanted to.

My conclusion would be that if I could afford it, I would love to have them both in the back of the 4x4. They both look like great machines but I can only afford the ATX.

This bloke Bearkat or whatever his name is? is saturating the internet with his lack of detecting skills and knowledge, like a few others.
As Loamer said,

We need unbiased tests done in our soils by unbiased prospectors [not dealers or fan-boys] on real, undisturbed targets.

Excellent points K98 - they are chalk and cheese as far as detectors go. Both are designed for their respective markets and I am a wee bit over the comparison nonsense. I can get my old 2200 to beat the 5000 in certain areas - so what? My Xterra 70 will kill anything on tiny quartz species - so what? And the Garrett will beat my 4500 in some areas I am sure - again, so what. As you very well articulated, research what you want versus what you can afford and then make the choice. I always remember, the Hand of Faith was found with an old (new at the time) Garrett! and I don't think there have been many that big with anything else of late.

As for waterproof - I don't think you can actually legally market anything as 'proof' anymore, or I may be wrong. I think the best you can say is 'resistant' because 'proof' would mean there will never be anything better - e'g. burglar proof safes, fire proof etc etc.