Minelab GPX4500 tips, settings, questions

[loamer]

I usually run a SD2200D. I have the opportunity to 'test drive' a second-hand 4500, prior to buying.

I am aware of the factory presets, but was wondering if any-one has any settings or advice for the following scenarios. There are numerous posts across various forums but they appear to be for people who have some understanding of the GPX set-ups, of which I don't.

1. Locations. Dunolly - Maryborough - Tarnagulla Vic, so the ground is considered mineralised.
2. Coils to use/test.
8" Mono.
11" Mono.
11", 14" and 18" DD.

I know its a lot to ask, but I would appreciate any advice and my thanks in advance.

Loamer.

 

[MYSPOT]

Hello,

As this machine is not much different than my 5000, if you are starting out I would say to use 8" mono and all factory preset. I would run the machine in tracking and in special mode (front panel), why 8" mono? think of it as an antenna and the bigger the antenna the more signal ( noise ) it will pull in. Go the 8" and the gain around 10 or 12 you should be able to run the machine at that and if it is running smooth then try the 14" but you might have to back off the gain.
Try starting with gain at 14 or 15 with 8" and back it off if needed and dont forget to auto tune.

Keep your stabilizer no more than 4 or 5 lower the your gain.
And remember its not a race, go low and slow. No point in zooming through a patch only to miss half of the targets.

I am planning to go to Talbot this weekend if you will be about.

hope this helps

cheers

 

[loamer]

Myspot - you are a champion. many thanks mate. We won't be back to the triangle for at least a couple of weeks - we may head up towards Logan - St Arnaud way on some new ground. Good luck in Talbot. Great little town.

 

[MYSPOT]

Yep Talbot area ok for me, as I say if the fish are biting no need to move on. Its the same with the gold, my patch just keeps on producing color. Small but it color.

Hope I could help you, .


cheers
Steve

 

[xray1982]

I have decided after some solid advice to begin saving some money to purchase a second hand GPX4500. The reason being that it will go deeper than the new 5000. So where i am going to be hunting is a lot of smaller gold at depth. My question is what is the best coil setup and configuration to pick up fine gold at a deeper range?

 

[loamer]

The 4500 does not have a fine gold timing - the 5000 does. The common belief is that the 5000 in fine gold will give better depth and sensitivity than the 4500 in enhance.
I am not sure what you mean by deeper and smaller gold? Small gold to me may not be small gold to you etc. The 'depth' depends on coils, settings, soils, target preferences and the like. The two detectors are different in that the timings amongst other things are different. The specifications across the board would indicate the 5000 as a better smaller gold machine. That's just my advice from the readings on the relative merits of the the 5000 vs 4500. I know who few folk who specifically hunt smaller gold with the 5000 for various reasons and they do quite well. Some of the 5000 users on the forum may have better input. I use a 4500 usually with either a NF 14 x 9 or 12 but do not hunt for 'fine' gold so can't help you with settings I am afraid.

 

[xray1982]

So what are your common finds with the 4500? are you talking over an ounce that you are set up for or are you still able to pick up sub grammers? If so what depth are you at? I dont quite have an understanding of coils yet, DD, or mono. I am basically after a machine that is good value for money and in my opinion the 4500 is pretty versatile. Thanks for the quick reply loamer.

 

[trashmagnet]

hi xray
last trip out I went back to a patch we worked with the 4000/4500
I picked up 1.5 oz of little ones all over the place. we could not work out how they were still there until we done some testing on some undug nuggets.
we could not pick them up in any settings on the 4000/4500.
they were all over the place in finegold we could not pick them up in any settings on the 5000 apart from finegold including normal which surprised us as we were thinking normal should have these little buggers singing.
the ground was not that hot and normal was running smooth.
totally up to you, but finegold is great on bread and butter gold.
regards trashy

 

[loamer]

I used to run a 2200D and upgraded to the 4500 (kept the 2200 for using big DD coils). I don't know what state you are in so my observations are for Victoria only. I am not being obtuse, but I switch settings and coils depending on the ground conditions frequently. I run monos because the new GPX range is better suited for monos. If you do some research on coils, you should find a below the ground image of what coverage you are getting - monos generally give you a broader coverage. Its all to do with the wiring and the whole coil is usually 'alive' whereas the DD can have some blind spots - for example with a DD you need to go face into trees and rocks, not side on. But, the below ground image will highlight that.

Depth - hmmm - the 14 x 9 - pretty comfortable on mineralised ground up to 10 - 12". The 12" mono - anywhere up to about 14". These would be around the 1/2 gram mark. Any bigger gold than that, very clear target. As I said, it all depends on the ground, how much loam is sitting on top of the natural ground etc. I have used a 10" DD on an old VLF and pinged large ferrous rubbish quite deep on clear mullock heaps so target size is a factor. These are conservative estimates and I am probably erring on the cautious side because I am a bit suspicious on "I found a sub-grammer at six feet with an 11" coil' stories.

Value for money - you betcha. The 4500 is a ripper and my personal opinion it is the best all-rounder available if you are into mono coils - the SETA technology is a winner in my opinion. The 5000 really is deadly on smaller gold but I would hazard a guess by saying as the coils get bigger on both machines, they even out. I have seen a 2200 with a big DD beat both machines BUT that was on a test where we knew there was target and the target signal was very iffy.

Positives - a great work horse of a machine and I am very happy with it. the target responses are clear and unmistakable for gold. Coil selection is a key factor and something that gets overlooked at times. Seen $6000 machines with old crappy coils that are really letting the capabilities of the machine down. The newer mono coils can set you back over $300 each but i look at them as a valuable tool. Settings can be confusing if you have not used these before - I would stick with the factory pre-sets until you are comfortable with the machine. I run my gain as high as I can get it but I migrated from the old 2200 which are a wee bit noisy so I can cope and know what I am listening for so you need to learn and learn and learn. they are very robust and can take the odd heavy accidentle knock

Negatives. My big sook - the power lead has a happy habit of tangling up in itself but got some great tips from the crew on this forum that has sorted that out. The newer GPX are susceptible to EMI - the 4500 can 'hear' a plane before I can and its a matter of waiting the plane out. electric fences send them bananas. Because I am taller, I can't use the udner chin ear plugs as the leads are too short and fragile -I stick with the speaker.

 

[xray1982]

Thanks loamer, this is great info for me. Maybe I need to hire both machines and see what works better around my local Stuart town mullock heaps

 

[Ben78]

If you are near stuart town then it is probably worth ducking over to Mudgee and talking to Kim about 4500 vs 5000.

There is a 4500 for sale on the gold detecting.4umer forum for $3500, pretty reasonable if you ask me.

 

[Nightjar]

Negatives. My big sook - the power lead has a happy habit of tangling up in itself but got some great tips from the crew on this forum that has sorted that out.

If you are in the habit of stepping over your machine while digging you are going to get tangles. At the end of the day do you disconnect the lead from the machine the battery or both?
We disconnect lead from battery and then recharge leaving the lead connected to the machine.
When we gear up for a days detecting we let the lead dangle free from the machine to remove any tension before connecting to the battery. No problems with the lead winding up in a tangle.
Hope this helps your problem.

Cheers
Peter

 

[Sparra]

Hey fella's...Wasn't sure where to put this so in here it is...Having just recieved a quote for a GPX 5000 and associated bit's and pieces I am starting to think a 4500 would be a better buy until I am sure I am going to stick with it...Not too long ago they were the best on the market and in the future the 5000 will be the second best as technology progresses. I know that if I fork out almost 7 g's for the 5000 and I decide it's not for me that I can sell it and get the bulk of my money back.(I saw one last week that sold on fleabay for 6300 second hand).My problem is,getting my head around a $7000 outlay.
Having rambled on, is a 4500 around the $4000 mark a good price??? Thats what most seem to priced at and did the chinese make fakes of these as well???

Cheers...Sparra

 

[Diggerdude]

$4000 is a good price for a 4500. With an experienced operator a 4500 will find just as much gold as a 5000. For a newbie there is very little difference in the two so the 4500 is a great place to start. Don't bother wasting money on lots of different coils to begin with as it is best to master the standard 11" coil first, which is a good all round coil.
There are fake 4500s out there too so be sure to check the serial number with

DD

 

[Sparra]

$4000 is a good price for a 4500. With an experienced operator a 4500 will find just as much gold as a 5000. For a newbie there is very little difference in the two so the 4500 is a great place to start. Don't bother wasting money on lots of different coils to begin with as it is best to master the standard 11" coil first, which is a good all round coil.
There are fake 4500s out there too so be sure to check the serial number with

DD

Cheers,thanks DD...

 

[traveln]

hi all and happy easter
can any1 tell me if the gpx4500 to hard of a machine for beginner's.ive been doing a lot of research and at 1st was looking at the garrett atx for its simplicity.
now after looking on here I feel the gpx 4500 is more superior but scared that it might be to hard to operate till my experience level gains.
the main areas where I will be using it is in the gold fields here in wa.
there is a couple on gumtree over this way and even gpx 4000.
would the 4000 suit better.im all ears for your suggestions.
I know most of you maybe tired of these questions but for us newbies its exciting.
can I cut and paste the add on here at what gpx im looking at so I can get your advice or im not aloud to do that.
thanks jason

 

[loamer]

If cost is not an issue, get the 4500, its far superior to the 4000. Don't worry about the settings when starting out. The manual is very good and there are numerous factory pre-sets for varied situations, scenarios etc. May I suggest you look at getting Jonathan Porters 4500 DVD - it helps explain the detector quite well. Some of his advice is for Queensland but otherwise, an OK DVD. On the display you will see FP - these are the pre-sets and in my opinion about 95% towards being what you will need. As you gain experience, you will then start to tweak the settings to suit what you want to do. The 4500 is designed to use mono coils in the majority of cases and if you are just starting out, the 11" mono is a pretty friendly and forgiving coil. Depending on what coils you get with the machine, and they came standard with an 11" DD coil which are OK as well and the DD can be switched over to reject iron trash, whereas the mono cannot.

If you get it and when first starting out, get test pieces of gold (if you have one) or lead of various sizes. Try and detect the test piece at various depths and get used to the sounds it makes. The key settings are your timings, gain and stabiliser with attention being needed for the manual tune switch. It can be a confusing set-up when first starting as there are many setting variations from the front to the back of the box you will need to deal with but it is a mighty machine and is pretty close to the later 5000 in performance - but has less settings (for example the 500 has a fine gold setting). The 4500 was a real game changer of a machine when it came out.

If you are still worried, a 3500 is a good starter machine and very simple (has the old toggle switches - flick these around and off you go) to use and will be cheaper. Still gets big wraps and lots of people have kept them. The issue is they can be a little bit noisier with a mono which is a consideration here in Victoria.

 

[WalnLiz]

A GPX 4500 and an ATX can be mastered efficiently in the same amount of time by beginners. Most WA detector operators run 4500's or 5000's, ( not much difference in the ability of both machines), and you will bump into plenty of them over that way. Nearly every one of them will be willing to give you settings and advice if you ask them.

For the WA gold fields my "Personal" recommendation would be the GPX 4500 if you can afford it. Coil selection is an important consideration over West with small gullies producing best with a small coil ( 6" round or NF 8x6). A mid sized coil (11" or 12") is mostly recommended for general coverage and a 16" or 18" for deeper ground or larger deep nuggets.

The GPX's have the largest range of coils to suit these conditions, and this gives them the edge on all other detectors on the market. To be consistent in WA you need a reasonable coil range....which the ATX at present lacks.

At the end of the day price may be a determining factor, but total amount of nuggets in the jar should also be a consideration, and the GPX's have the points on the board......My opinion only.

Wal.

 

[traveln]

thank you for so much info.wasnt expecting that much but its great knowledge as I thought from here.
Minelab GPX-4500 metal detector in excellent condition.
Includes the following:

Padded carry bag
12 volt charger
Koss headphones
11" DDCoil
14" mono Advantage coil
External speaker
Minelab harness
2 picks
Intruction manual
asking $3800

- As new padded carry bag offering good protection.
- 11 Minelab GP series coil.
- Minelab battery.
- 240/12 volt chargers.
- External speaker.
- Koss headphones.
- Minelab harness.
$4200

this is what comes with the 4500 that im looking at.there is a couple over this way on gumtree but me being me im not sure which is the better for the price.
price isn't really a issue for me value for money is tho.
will order the dvd as any training manual is helpful for me.
to many choices and not sure which 1

 

[WalnLiz]

If it was me it would be the $3800 and I'd spend the difference on a Sadie 8x6 and a NF18" round (Spoked) not solid, for WA conditions.( If you look around you'll pick both of these up for around $400 total second hand).

The 14" Adv is a great general coil for your area and extremely sensitive on very small gold while still giving great depth. It's certainly my go to coil when I'm over that way.

Wal.