Minelab SDC2300 information and questions

[Redfin]

Any result CB?

 

[Chuky boy]

Still working on it Redfin. Long story but I eventually got onto one of the sdc' previous owners, (whom I thought was the original owner but wasn't). He told me he has the original warranty card and receipt somewhere stored away and will send me the details asap

 

[peterau]

Hi, does anyone know if there are any 2300 headphone adapter cables similar to Nenads being made. I have Nenads currently but I am looking for a spare. The current price seems way way excessive for what it is.

 

[grubstake]

My understanding is that the high cost relates to the exclusivity of the proprietary waterproof connecting plug. Whether a cheap source of these even exists is problematic. Good luck finding them at Jaycar! :lol:

 

[PhaseTech]

Yes, the connectors cost a small fortune. I have also had to absorb three price rises since starting to make them due to the weakening Aussie dollar. I have also had 2 small price rises with the engineering mob I use to do small mods to improve the assembly process. Since starting to make them I have only increased the price once.

I know it's expensive, but it's a small price to pay to get the best out of a $4000 detector in my opinion.

Cheers,

Nenad

 

[peterau]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Cheers peterau

 

[Roscoe]

I just wanted to know if you fella's have been happy with your sdc's. I have been holding off buying another detector for awhile now, but the sdc's seem to be selling for a good price now with the current specials.

I have read the Good and the not so good posts on here about them and i was hoping minelab would of ironed out all the bugs by now in them.

Anyway, I am still on the fence over this detector. Thought the SDC owners here could maybe get me off the fence and finally commit to one.

 

[Roscoe]

Come on i know how you Minelab Boys like to brag about ya machines.

 

[grubstake]

I just wanted to know if you fella's have been happy with your sdc's. I have been holding off buying another detector for awhile now, but the sdc's seem to be selling for a good price now with the current specials.
I have read the Good and the not so good posts on here about them and i was hoping minelab would of ironed out all the bugs by now in them.
Anyway, I am still on the fence over this detector. Thought the SDC owners here could maybe get me off the fence and finally commit to one.

I'm not aware of Minelab making any changes whatsoever to the SDC, even so, the used ones certainly seem to hold their value well.

 

[SCROUNGER]

I'm reluctant to brag about how good i think the sdcs are mate without knowing the areas you'll be targetting for gold. But i couldn't be happier with my selection of the sdc for what i want to do and where i detect. I wanted something that was simply to set up and didn't take hours of fine tuning, i also wanted a machine that just found gold, i wasn't fussed about finding big gold (although that would be nice), i just wanted to find gold whenever i went out if possible and the sdc does that consistantly. I haven't had one trip where i haven't located gold since the initial learning period of a month or so.
The only problem i've had with the sdc package has been my disappointment with the crappy earphones that come with the package. My first pair stopped working, they were replaced but i now run a pair of the Nenads sunray gold earphones and apart from finding them hot on my ears during warm weather (as they all are) they are great. I don't run a booster because i personally don't like having any outside noise interference when chasing light signals.
So, i couldn't fault the sdc Rosco. Hope that helps, good luck

 

[Nuggetbuster]

My opinion:

In the right area, the SDC is dynamite.

As a general "walk over the hillsides and dig everything detector," it's an infuriating trash magnet.

Target specific types of ground and you can't go wrong. My average with the SDC was a consistent 1 gram per hour, but I stuck to certain types of areas.

 

[mbasko]

Come on i know how you Minelab Boys like to brag about ya machines.

Too busy counting their gold :lol:

 

[Keano]

While I had a problem with my first SDC that was replaced under warranty, I cant fault them. Its amazing how many times it becomes the go to machine when out prospecting. But agree, it all comes down to the type of detecting you want to do and the area's you will be working.

Also agree with Scrounger and his headphone comments. Good quality ear plugs would be great but Im not aware of any at this stage.

 

[spikegold]

I love my sdc but will need to send it for repair as the speaker is crapping out and headphone jack is faulty and gives trippy erratic sounds that partially come through loud speaker whilst headphones are in. Also the skid plate sucks, have replaced 3 so far through hard use. Battery issue is crap but we'll known and easy fix. Apart from these issues it's a weapon! They will find gold

 

[kurrajong]

Scrounger's problem with the supplied headphones is not unusual. The lead is too short, which means the plug on the end gets damaged. That plug is a one-off and cannot be replaced.
There are all sorts of creative ways to overcome this issue, like contracting the shaft when digging the target, but you will still stretch the lead and it will break at some time in the future.
Nenad sells the adaptor lead to put any sort of headphone on the machine and that solves it, at a price.
Then you can use this awesome gold sniffer to get what is left, along with various pieces of rubbish, lead, alfoil and hotrocks etc.
But you will find gold!!

 

[goldwright]

I reckon they should just put the SDC in the CTX-GPZ frame and get away from the folding idea and it would run with far less issues. The hole folding and attached coil design has put me off buying one from their release. The tech is very good if not ground breaking for small gold and it is proving it's self time after time. I don't own one but have worked along side one and could not believe how much better than the 5000 it was on small gold even with the comander 8 inch mono on.

 

[SCROUNGER]

I love my sdc but will need to send it for repair as the speaker is crapping out and headphone jack is faulty and gives trippy erratic sounds that partially come through loud speaker whilst headphones are in. Also the skid plate sucks, have replaced 3 so far through hard use. Battery issue is crap but we'll known and easy fix. Apart from these issues it's a weapon! They will find gold

In 10 months i've replaced the skid plates (approx $19 each) 3 or maybe 4 times due to wearing them through. During the cooler months i was detecting at least two days a week and those who have seen me detect know i get the coil on the ground and keep it there, i don't do much air swinging :lol:
So for me being able to replace the coil skid plates makes a lot of sense and is just protective insurance against damaging the main coil disc.
So at say $80 for 4 replacement skid plate covers isn't an issue for me for at least 100 plus days at 5 hours detecting per day?
Just my thoughts on the skid plate covers

 

[spikegold]

I love my sdc but will need to send it for repair as the speaker is crapping out and headphone jack is faulty and gives trippy erratic sounds that partially come through loud speaker whilst headphones are in. Also the skid plate sucks, have replaced 3 so far through hard use. Battery issue is crap but we'll known and easy fix. Apart from these issues it's a weapon! They will find gold

In 10 months i've replaced the skid plates (approx $19 each) 3 or maybe 4 times due to wearing them through. During the cooler months i was detecting at least two days a week and those who have seen me detect know i get the coil on the ground and keep it there, i don't do much air swinging :lol:
So for me being able to replace the coil skid plates makes a lot of sense and is just protective insurance against damaging the main coil disc.
So at say $80 for 4 replacement skid plate covers isn't an issue for me for at least 100 plus days at 5 hours detecting per day?
Just my thoughts on the skid plate covers

That's fair play scrounger, I agree it's cheap enough to replace but I'd of thought minelab could make the cover out of something even more durable. Even brand new they are very flimsy at best, hold it up to the light and ya can see the outer edges are very thin.
Just about every time the machine goes out it easily finds double what a skid plate costs so not losing sleep over it

 

[SCROUNGER]

I reckon they should just put the SDC in the CTX-GPZ frame and get away from the folding idea and it would run with far less issues. The hole folding and attached coil design has put me off buying one from their release. The tech is very good if not ground breaking for small gold and it is proving it's self time after time. I don't own one but have worked along side one and could not believe how much better than the 5000 it was on small gold even with the comander 8 inch mono on.

I've never folded my sdc up since i've had it goldwright, i just leave it open and carry in the truck ready to go. I do retract the shaft when i'm storing it at home though which i find is very helpful and on days when i'm detecting on undulating ground i do adjust the shaft to short and longer to suit. I'm not keen on the amount of force needed to collapse the unit completely but that's not from seeing any being broken, it just doesn't make sense to me for something to be designed where it's necessary to hit something hard and sharp to collapse it. I think the concept of designing something that collapses to enable ease of carrying on your back through tight scrub or for longer hikes before reaching your search area is a great idea but i personally don't know of anybody doing that.
If i had a choice between an sdc that reduces in length like it now does, or one with a constant length shaft i still reckon i'd buy the one that collapses because its easier to store and travel with.

 

[SCROUNGER]

I love my sdc but will need to send it for repair as the speaker is crapping out and headphone jack is faulty and gives trippy erratic sounds that partially come through loud speaker whilst headphones are in. Also the skid plate sucks, have replaced 3 so far through hard use. Battery issue is crap but we'll known and easy fix. Apart from these issues it's a weapon! They will find gold

In 10 months i've replaced the skid plates (approx $19 each) 3 or maybe 4 times due to wearing them through. During the cooler months i was detecting at least two days a week and those who have seen me detect know i get the coil on the ground and keep it there, i don't do much air swinging :lol:
So for me being able to replace the coil skid plates makes a lot of sense and is just protective insurance against damaging the main coil disc.
So at say $80 for 4 replacement skid plate covers isn't an issue for me for at least 100 plus days at 5 hours detecting per day?
Just my thoughts on the skid plate covers

That's fair play scrounger, I agree it's cheap enough to replace but I'd of thought minelab could make the cover out of something even more durable. Even brand new they are very flimsy at best, hold it up to the light and ya can see the outer edges are very thin.
Just about every time the machine goes out it easily finds double what a skid plate costs so not losing sleep over it

Point taken mate. Perhaps there's a good 'technical' reason why they aren't thicker/stronger/tougher? Or perhaps there produced to wear through quickly to keep the after sales dollars turning over? :lol: