e trac noise cancel question

does anything else take place during a noise cancel besides selecting a channel is the detector ground balancing even though it ends up on the same channel it was on?

Ground balance and noise cancel are two separate features. The only thing happening during noise cancel (at least, as I understand it) is that the channel with the least EMI (electromagnetic interference) is picked.

Epi-hunter is correct, noise cancel just scans all of the channels and selects the one with the least EMI.

The E-Trac has automatic ground balance. The only ground settings are Neutral or Difficult. Many people just leave it set on Difficult.

This is not directly answering your question, but I will throw in my opinion that noise cancel/channel management on the E-Trac is extremely important. I noise cancel at least 30 times during a normal hunt, maybe 50 times or more at a difficult site. I've proven (at least to myself), that this matters, and matters alot, in the field. I can't count the number of times I've gotten an iffy signal, noise canceled, and then the target blew my ears off. That, to me, says it matters. Beyond that, lots of experimentation on my part proves that it matters alot, and has allowed be to develop a system of channel management to optimize my odds of success.

I've written an article on the subject, but since its on my web site (which is commercial), it will vanish if I post a link. So google around, and see what people have to say about the importance of noise cancel on the E-Trac (Minelab has some good blogs, for example), but the best education is to play with it in the field yourself rather than believe what others say. (Its importance, for example, may vary by location).

BTW, my recommendation is to noise cancel with the coil on the ground, not 12 inches in the air as the manual recommends. Take it FWIW, and experiment at your own sites. A day does not go by that I don't experiment with noise cancel at each new site.

HTH

ok i was just wondering seems like nine times out of ten it ends up on channel nine and the other time channel 6 yet the pros recommend doing a noise cancel every 30 minutes or so but if it just lands on the same channel did anything change?

I have noise canceled on an iffy target only to see it disappear. Had I hunted with the noise cancel setting, I would have missed the coin. I have worked with the ground enough in my area to know that it's hard to beat Channel 2. This may be different for you. I would suggest testing manual channel settings over various targets in the field. I never noise cancel anymore unless there is a lot of EMI in an area. It can be very helpful in this scenario. Randy, you are welcome to re-post your article here if you like. I am sure it would be very beneficial for a lot of folks. Good to see your post friend.

randy , I found your site and found it very helpful. thanx. I usually noise cancel several times during a hunt but seldom make much of note about it. Your technique gives me some more ammo for the highly mineralized ground around here. Do you have any idea how the ph affects the e-trac? The highly alkaline soil out here often runs to 8.5 or better and I have yet to get anyone to comment on how this will change detector performance regardless of the manufacturer.